We have a bunch of fun things coming up this next week for MOMS!

On Monday, Sept. 26th, we are having a Chick-Fil-A fundraiser night (at the Paseo/San Pedro location). If you come between 5-8pm and give them our flyer, Chick-Fil-A will donate part of their profits to our MOMS group.

On Tuesday, Sept. 27th, we will have our next MOMS meeting. Evelyn Obermueller will be speaking on Proverbs 31:30, which is our theme verse for the year. Evelyn is a wise and godly woman who attends New Covenant Church.  

On Thursday, Sept. 29th, we will be the "guest chef" at the Ronald McDonald house.  We will meet there at 4:00pm, unload groceries and any other items that people have donated, get a quick run down of the kitchen and then cook dinner for 60!  As the "guest chef" you plan a meal and bring the food to prepare it.  There is no set dinner time, it is served from 5 - 6pm.

We are excited for all that we have in store for this week!  Please contact us with any questions about our upcoming events. I can't wait to see you all!!

First Moms Meeting!

What a fun first meeting! We had a great kick off for the year complete with a skit from our multi-talented steering team, speed chatting, craft time creating journals, and an overview of the verses we will be focusing on this year.

Proverbs 31:10-31
^"A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants. She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes. She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."

Wow, that's a lot to work towards! We will examine these attributes more deeply each week and discuss how these can look in our life's today. Well ladies, thanks for a fabulous kick off meeting! I look forward to all the fun we have in store for us this year! 

MOMS 2011

Welcome to MOMS 2011! Our theme for this year is becoming a Proverbs 31 Mom.  We are going to take an in depth look at what this means and how we can work towards this goal over a lifetime.

I would like to introduce our new coordinator for the year, Katie Hallstrom!  She was a member of MOMS last year and has a sweet daughter named Emma, who is adorable!  Katie is working closely with Carmen Duarte, who was a mentor mom last year and is a mom of two sweet daughters.

Registration will take place a little different this year. The steering team will be available each Sunday until September 13th (which is the date of the first MOMS meeting).  A table will be set up in the NCC foyer, where you can pick up a registration form.  The second way that you can register is by picking up a form in the NCC office. If you would like to have a registration form mailed to you, please just let us know. If you register and pay your dues on or before September 13th, you will be entered into a drawing for a special prize!  Dues will be $60.00 per semester or $100.00 for the whole year.  If you have any questions, please contact Katie Hallstrom at khallstr@hotmail.com or 306-0485 or Carmen Duarte at cdtruenorth@hotmail.com or 884-7589.

In other news, this year MOMS is opening up for both home school moms and moms with older children. We are going to have a home school room this year so that the mommies that have kiddos doing school at home can attend. This year, we will also have reduced rates for moms that will be attending without their children ($60.00 for the year or $35.00 per semester).We are excited for this addition. Every mom could use friends to walk along side of them, no matter what age their kiddos are! If you have any questions, please contact Carmen Duarte at cdtruenorth@hotmail.com.
 
Finally, you are invited to attend the Just Between Friends Pre-Sale Event! The date has changed to the evening of October 6th.  The event will be held at the New Mexico Army National Guard Armory.  Just Between Friends is the leader in the nation's Children and Maternity Consignment.  If you are interested in attending the special pre-sale event, please contact Melanie Branham at 750-7169 or melaniebranham@jbfsale.com.  The website also has great information www.jbfsale.com.  It is important to contact Melanie soon, so she can put your name on the list to get in or get you a pass.   Melanie has gracious offered this to our MOMS group!  Not just anyone can attend the pre-sale event!  

Well, I hope that covers it all! We are so excited to see everyone in a few weeks and can't wait to get this new year of MOMS started! See you soon!!

Summer Fun!

There are lots of fun ideas on the web for inexpensive or free summer fun. Here are a few of my favorite links so far (feel free to post your own favorites in the comments):

Camp Mom on parents.com - why not get together with some other moms to hold your own summer camp? Cheaper, and easier than other summer camp alternatives.

Summer Bucket List - write out a list (or borrow this bulletin board idea) of fun things you want to do this summer, and hang it somewhere for your family to see.

And if you need inspiration for that list, here's a link to 100 free or inexpensive things to do with kids...
Creative Mama has a list of favorite summer things, including a bubble recipe...

So what are some of your favorite things to do with your kids/family over the summer?

2010-2011 slideshow

Happy Summer!!

What a wonderful MOMS year - thank you for making it such a great one! Have a great summer!! :)



Can you believe how much our MOMMETS have grown?!?

Conflict Resolution

Just a few notes from our great speaker on conflict resolution:

CONFLICT = danger + opportunity!!

Try this for effective communication:
level 1 - describe event
level 2 - feelings/emotions
level 3 - meaning/significance
level 4 - what does it cause you to feel about yourself?

"couch time" - make space and time to do it!

And don't forget the 13 ways to handle conflict and a model for active listening (handouts)

Does anyone else have good resources on effective communication and conflict resolution? Any thoughts you had on this meeting? I'd love to hear them - leave a comment!

chemo caps

Man, I'm sorry I missed this one! Janelle Morris came and talked about the chemo caps ministry, and it looks like everyone did a great job cutting out caps and making blankets. Thanks, Beth, for the photos!

Here was an email from Janelle:

"Thanks again for your help with the chemo cap project. I really enjoyed
coming to MOMS last Tuesday and meeting so many great moms. Their help and
enthusiasm was wonderful in helping get so many blankets and hats tied for
our project.  Please tell them how valuable and appreciated their help was
for me.

Hope some of the MOMS can help on Chemo Cap day January 29. Thanks for
getting the youth room lined up."

Don't forget a little something for your secret sister if you weren't able to bring it at the last meeting!! :)