Just a Mom.

To all the moms who are just a mom...

"I wish you actually did something." 

Dear Child, 

One day you will understand what it means to be just a mom. One day you will understand the sacrifices I have made to be just a mom. One day you will realize all that I do without so that I can be just a mom. 

From your first breath, all I wanted to be was just a mom. And when I saw your face I knew I wanted it to fill my day.  You took all my selfish desires away with your first cry. The first time I held you I knew I had everything I would ever need. 

Your deep belly laughs sealed the deal; I wasn't going anywhere. 

During our sleepless nights and your bursts of colic, I knew no one would love you like I would. Your curiosity and messes taught me that no one could love you like I could. 

I don't want to miss the moments. Any of them. I don't want someone else to see your face when you wake up. I don't want someone else to be your after school care. I don't want someone else to have our car conversations or share our dance parties. 

I want to be your chef. I want to be your chauffeur. I want to be your maid. (I actually don't want to be your maid but I want to be the person who teaches you to clean up after yourself).  I want to visit you during your lunch hour and help in your classroom.  I want to see your smile when you walk in the door after a long day at school. I want to watch you do your homework and struggle with spelling words while I prepare dinner. I want to be your tutor. I want to remind you to take a bath and to use soap. I want to hear your highs and lows at night and hear your heart when you pray at night. I want to tuck you in and kiss you good night. 

I don't want to rush to get everything done and miss any of these moments.

I've always told your daddy that I can do without all the things of this world to stay at home with you. And I have. I've learned to coupon, to shop the sales, to shop second-hand, to cut hair, and how to budget. I'm a magician when it comes to stretching a dollar. 

I will continue to sacrifice to be just a mom.  I will continue to do without to be just a mom.  I'll continue to not do anything so I can be just a mom. 

I love you with all my heart, 

just your mom


(To the working moms, and/or single moms. You amaze me, you do it all. My sister was one of these working moms and she was on top of it all, all the time- with 4 kids! Her kids didn't lack a mom. I struggle being just a mom. So, to you working moms, I give to you a high five!)

God is bigger than this and Jesus can fix-it.  

Weekend Review

Remember these two? 

Addison and Preston -Day 1

Preston and Addison- Age 5. 

Guys, That went by too fast! My favorite twin niece and nephew just turned 5! I just love these two so much! 

Sister Laura threw the cutest Dinosaur/Cinderella jump party! 

All Addison wanted for her birthday was birdseed and a birdhouse. Aunt Mary delivered! All Preston wanted for his birthday was dinosaurs! Aunt Mary delivered! (actually, Henry picked out the dinosaur and stickers for his BFF) Do you want to be the favorite? Here's what all dinosaur little boys want, sister delivered on this!

Uncle Pookie couldn't wait to show Taylor and his Taylor's friend his new Minecraft creation.

Preston ignored all his party guests and played with Henry.

All had fun.

My family of four.

My mama and me. (not sure what G-daddy is up to in the background.)

Nene, Manna, and me.

Sister with Addison. Out of 4 kids, Laura only has 1 that looks like her!

That's really the highlight of our weekend. I finished a puzzle, did laundry, washed sheets, and tried to get ready for a new week. Lucy was sick yesterday with an allergy headache and Wesley got in the trash 57 times. Henry spent $60 on Minecraft upgrades without us knowing it and lost his Xbox privileges. Jonathan and I took a nap and I forgot to bring a meal to a family who just had a new baby. (I called and rescheduled for tonight... She gave me grace.)

That's it.

God is bigger than this and Jesus can fix-it.

*This post contains affiliate links. If you click or make a purchase from a link I may or may not receive a small commission. I won't recommend things that I haven't tried or purchased myself. Thank you for supporting Trust Without Borders. 

Friday Favorites

{one} Happy Birthday, Addison! Happy Birthday, Preston!

My niece and nephew turn 5 today! These babies are such a blessing to our family and a constant reminder that God is in control! They also almost killed my sister (the shock of twins, the shock of going from 2 to 4 kids, kidney stones, early labor, 8 weeks of bedrest), so, to see them and her survive 5 years is such a blessing and miracle! Well done, Sister!

{two} School Routine

We survived the first week of school! I might have over-committed our time already. The kids each get to have an activity this year. We limit each child to two activities because 1. we can't do it all 2. I'm not driving them everywhere all the time.

Lucy is playing soccer with her same little team that she has been on for the past 3 years and she is playing volleyball with a group from church.

Henry is playing tee-ball this year! He loves his team of friends and wants to practice every morning. Tee-ball pants are the cutest thing I've ever seen!

I'm excited for my activities to start up as well- 1. Bible Study 2. Back to the gym after taking the summer off...

{three} Activity Bag

With all the activities that we have going on, I thought it was time to invest in a gym duffle bag for Lucy to store all her gear. I ordered this bag yesterday and am looking forward to housing all her mess! I'm tired of running around the house looking for soccer pads, cleats, balls...

{four} Mystery Solved

Do you remember last week when I said we were down to 6 spoons? Well, Henry was eating ice cream and when he finished I heard a bang-clang in the trashcan. Henry has been not only throwing away his disposable bowl but also my metal flatware. So, I am in the market for new flatware, a house can't run on 4-6 spoons. 

{five} Tinted Moisturizer

I just ordered a new tube of this tinted sunscreen. I've used this all summer long! I haven't applied any base just this sunscreen and a little powder on top for coverage. My face hasn't burned and my skin feels great. I just found this on amazon with free prime shipping. 

I'd never heard of this brand until my dermatologist told me about this sunscreen. 

{six} Tidying Up: Paper

I've finished clothes, books, and paper! Now I am moving on to the Komono (miscellaneous items) now. There's a lot in that category but I will remember to stick with only my things, discard, and keep only the things that spark joy! Yes, I've found myself talking to my stuff, which I thought was strange when I was reading but totally get now. 

This book really is life-changing. Not like Jesus life changing but if you have trouble letting things go or hoarding or stacking pile tendencies I would strongly suggest this book. Hoarders UNITE! 

Speaking of Hoarding- When people say they are type-A and have a place for everything I stare and want to know everything about them. That is so foreign to me as if they were speaking a different language. 

Just an FYI- I don't like a mess but I don't like to clean. I like things to appear clean on the surface level but I'll have 10 levels of hell stuffed in a drawer or piled in a closet...

 That's it, all I know. 

God is bigger than this and Jesus can fix-it. 

*This post contains affiliate links. If you click on or purchase an item from a link I may receive a small commision. I suggest things that I have tried or bought myself. Thank you for supporting Trust Without Borders. -Mary

Weekly Happenings

Back to School week has been a success! Lucy is loving second grade. Henry is loving having his mama to himself and I'm loving having a routine!! 

Below are our happenings through the week. 

First Day of School Pictures. 

Monkey Bread for our Brunch Recipe

Julie and I hosted our 3rd back to school brunch!

Lucy's second day of school outfit!
(My sister texted me and said Emma Grace wore the same outfit on day 2).

Wesley Bost.

Henry Bost

Henry's face cracks me up!

Sweet Boy after a full day at the pool! I don't usually let him nap during the day because I'd rather him go to bed early but we had tee-ball practice and I didn't want him to be a grump!

Henry's first tee-ball practice.

The coach would ask the kids which way was first base and all the kids would point towards 1st base! Except for mine and he would point towards 3rd base.... We will work on that!

He's in all orange..

I've been working on tidying up. That book really is life-changing. Especially for someone with hoarding tendencies. I hold on to stuff that I think I might need, someone gave me, or things that I've just had forever. I've learned that I don't have to keep that stuff. I just recycle it or give it away! It has been so freeing! I threw away Christmas Cards yesterday! That was a big step for me.



So, I've started on paper. Yes, I know it's messy.... This is real life, sir. So I turned on a JamieIvey podcast and got to work.

Oh Lord... Real Life. I threw most of that away. Through this process of tidying up, I've learned that I deal with problems in life by avoiding them, or shutting them out. There's a problem- Let's just put that in a drawer and I'll get to it later...

The third day of school picture! Emma Grace wanted to see if Lucy wore the same outfit again and SHE DID! (Laura and I shop together..)

We ended day 3 with a snowcone!

That's it. That is our week!

God is bigger than this and Jesus can fix-it. 

Back to School Brunch!

Julie and I hosted our 3rd annual Back to School brunch on Monday. This brunch was for all the second-grade mamas! This party was so important to both of us when our babies went to Kindergarten and needed the support to get through the day! I love that we have carried on the tradition. I'm not sure what we will do next year when our little boys go to Kindergarten. 

All my pretty second-grade mama friends!

I love that our group can fit around my dining room table and we can share our stories of sendoff and to-dos. Also, we had a few kidless moms, who sent their last child to Kinder this year, and they were the giddiest of them all!

Julie and I split the food responsibilities down the middle. She made a delicious breakfast casserole while I was in charge of the sweet dish!

You can't go wrong with MONKEY BREAD! It's easy and delicious and people will be impressed with your culinary skills!

I'm thinking about writing a cookbook - Mama's who don't like to Cook.

I can cook, I can follow a recipe but I don't like to cook. I did at one point in time but now I will make a culinary masterpiece and my kids won't eat it. My method in cooking now involves 5 ingredients or less.

Monkey Bread

Monkey Bread Recipe
-3 cans of biscuits
-1 cup of sugar
-3 teaspoons of cinnamon
-1 sticks of butter
-1/2 cup of brown sugar

Cut biscuits into fourths.
Put biscuit pieces into a large ziplock of sugar and cinnamon mixture.
Shake the ziplock until biscuit pieces are covered with sugar.
(I had leftover sugar, I'll tell you what to do with it in a minute)
Grease bundt pan. Put sugar covered biscuit pieces into bundt pan.
Pour leftover sugar on top of biscuits. (Trust me)
Mix melted butter and brown sugar together and pour on top of biscuits in the bundt pan.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

The center of mine was a little gooey but it might have been the best part!

This recipe was adapted from the pioneer woman/ Pinterest/my mama.

God is bigger than this and Jesus can fix-it.