The Girl in the Mirror

A couple of months ago, I looked in the mirror and I was not pleased with what I saw. “How did this happen?!” I wondered. Then I decided to do something about it. I joined a dance class. Even after 4 classes, I just couldn't keep up with the fast-paced, bouncy hip hop moves and I couldn't handle watching myself in the mirror. So I did what any postpartum sleep-deprived woman would do - I left class early and cried all the way home! And I refused to go to class the next week. I have a bad case of what I call “Mommy body!”

How about you? When you look into the mirror, do you like what you see? Chances are, if you are a female, then you have dealt with body image issues at some point in time. We compare ourselves with other women and often unrealistically so. No matter what the number is on the scale, we tend to fixate on the things we don’t like about our bodies. One woman says, “I wish I had curly hair,” while another woman wishes hers was straight. One woman wants a flatter tummy while another wishes for a curvier figure.

What’s a girl to do? How do we find contentment with the girl in the mirror? Perhaps we need a different perspective – God’s perspective. You’ve probably heard these truths before, but we all need a reminder now and then.

Genesis 1:27-28, 31
“God created man in His own image…male and female He created them.
God blessed them…God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.”

Psalm 139:14
“I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”

I Samuel 16:7
“For God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.”

I Peter 3:3-4
“Your adornment must not be merely external…but let it be the hidden
person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit,
which is precious in the sight of God.”


(Written by Heidi Songer for the Westwood MOPS May 2011 newsletter)

Are You Tech Savvy?

I came downstairs one morning and found my 6-year-old son already on the computer. “Whatcha doin’?” I asked him. “Updating my website,” he responded casually, as if that was a perfectly typical thing for any 6-year-old child to be doing!

It got me thinking about how tech savvy our children are compared to us and how we grew up. I remember how exciting it was when my dad bought our first computer, a Commodore 64. I think I was 8. I learned to type in 8th grade. I got my first email address and first used the Internet for research in college. (Man, I wish the Internet had been available in high school!)

That conversation with my son also got me wondering, how tech savvy are my peers and their children? So I surveyed some MOPS moms and here are some of my findings.

Tech Savvy Moms

90% of the 39 moms that responded say they belong
to a social networking site. Facebook is by far the
most popular with 34 moms belonging. 8 moms use
LinkedIn, 2 use Twitter, and 1 mom is on MySpace.

All of the moms surveyed have at least 1 email account. 82% say they check their email several times a day. 10% check their email at least once daily and 8% check it less than once daily.

67% of moms use websites to share photos or videos. Shutterfly was the most popular with 17 users. Snapfish was second with 10 users. 5 moms use YouTube, 5 use Flickr, 5 use Kodak, and 3 use Walgreens.

28% of the surveyed moms have their own blog or website.

Tech Savvy Kids

Of the 33 moms that responded to this survey, 24 allow their children to use the computer. Just 6 of the children have their own computer.

How much time do your kids spend on the computer each day?
8 said 10 minutes or less
6 said 10-30 minutes
8 said 30-60 minutes
2 said 1 hour or more (That would be MY kid! But just for the record, he doesn't watch TV much.)

What do your kids do on the computer?
19 use Games
8 use Word or Excel
7 visit websites
7 use photo/video/music software
6 do artwork
1 does school research

Recommended Websites for Kids

Barbie.com
Club Penguin
Disney Junior
Funbrain
Google Maps (My son spends HOURS on this site!)
Lego.com
Moshi Monster
Nick Jr.
PBSkids.org
Peep & the Big Wide World
school website
Sprout
Starfall.com
VeggieTales

By the way, my son uses www.shutterfly.com to create his websites. He logs in to my account and uses the "Share" sites to work on 2 of his own sites. It's easy to add photos from my Shutterfly albums and he's added text, maps, weather, links and more. It's easy enough for a Kindergartner!!


Written by Heidi Songer for the Westwood MOPS April 2011 newsletter

I'll Pray for You

I wasn't feeling motivated or inspired to write anything for the April MOPS newsletter. Then I came across this blog post on prayer by a friend of mine. She gave me permission to use it in the newsletter.

Click on the title above to read her article.
Or visit her blog at http://www.mybeautifulday.net/2011/04/promises-we-just-dont-keep.html