🤍Mothering 5 Boys | Sibling Conflict | Free Audiobooks

👩‍👧‍👦Motherhood Snapshot Series

^{Short features on moms and how they mother. The ladies highlighted here are in all seasons of motherhood, so we can all glean a little something. We’d love to feature you; please reach out!}

Background: Marlee McCarty is a SAHM mom of five boys, 7 and under. She and her husband welcomed their youngest this past fall. She is also a homeschool mama who loves all things birth, motherhood and Jesus! And loves to build other women up in their marriages and motherhood. The conversation with Marlee was so full of spiritual and practical wisdom! Enjoy!

What are some practical daily habits you have as a SAHM of 5? “The number one thing is starting mornings off with the Word. I love to journal every day, as often as I can.” Marlee specifically loves to journal her prayers, which is such a great way to lay down your thoughts and supplications to the Lord. “I’m really not good in the mornings, so I try to have pre-made breakfasts for the boys. They wake up on level 10, they’re ready to go…I have to wait until noon to be at their level! The first activity we usually do is a Bible story, usually on the TV—our go-to’s are Superbook, Minno Kids, or Saddleback Kids; later on we’ll do a regular Bible study with our Bibles.”

On Chore Charts: “I have more of a rhythm—things like brush your teeth, Bible reading, homeschooling, chores, workout, play, pets, etc. I move these activities around on the chart based on how our day started/what we did first. It’s just a chart I do by hand.”

On Discipline: “I have the The Blessings Chart, The If-Then Chart and another chart from Not Consumed called The Sibling Conflict Chart; it’s about reconciling with your siblings and what to do when you do something wrong…and it’s full of scripture. I have them come in front of the fridge and they read what they did wrong, read what the Word says, and they receive disciple and reconcile.”

But how are you actually getting in the Word and time in prayer? Do you wake up before the boys? “Haha, I try to wake up before the boys and when I do I just can’t believe the sun is as beautiful as it is! Haha But you know, there’s 5 of them, so usually at least one of them is waking up. Occasionally I’ll get a really sweet coffee time with the Lord, and I’m alone and it’s amazing. But we co-sleep with 2 babies in my bed right now, which we’ve never done before, so it’s sporadic. So with the boys, we do the Bible Stories on the TV first, before I do Bible studies with them, so I set them up with snacks and that’s when I drink my coffee and read the Bible.”

On Home Liturgies: “I’ve also been reading Habits of the Household, it’s a really good book that talks about the importance of liturgies* in your household, and one of the things they talk about is kneeling beside your bed for prayer. I’ve been trying to do that more often and I usually have a baby join me and they’re usually pretty excited to join. I just open scripture and pray through it. I recently did it with my middle son and he loved it, it was very special for him.”

You recently moved from Virginia to Texas, but before that you spent about one year living the RV life. How was that? Any advice for anyone looking to do it?: “I would do it again! My tip is: get rid of everything! Embrace that. It was just fun…just don’t take anything with you. We had so much. I will say, the hard parts were food—just having limited cooking space— and the poop tank.”

How was the transition from VA to TX? “There’s been some hard stuff: finances, having my appendix removed, car issues, a couple of ER visits, a car accident. So there’s a lot of life but it’s somehow been peaceful and we believe the Lord is leading us to be rooted here. Some of the difficulties did cause me to question…”We’re not doing well, so God’s not with us” but with every difficulty the Lord shows up in a way that’s confirming His calling for us”.

This is something to highlight: knowing the Lord called you to something and following in obedience is KEY to navigating rough waters when they come. If you’re confident in His calling, you’ll be able to navigate trials with joy, perseverance, peace.

How are you making friends in this season? “I actually have met the majority so far at the park. I’ll go to the park and they’ll be a lady there, she’ll hear my babies names and ask if we’re Christians, or vice versa. There’s also a lot of large families here, so I’ll start the conversation, “Oh wow you have 6 kids”, and a response may be “Yes, I’m letting Jesus decide the size of my family”. God totally sets it up. And these are women who have shown up for me, they’ve brought us meals after I gave birth to my last, after I got my appendix removed, etc.”

You’ve had 2 hospital births and 3 home births. Why? How did you land in home birth and what stands out from those experiences? “I’ve had three home births after 2 C-Sections”.

Wow…this is where we’ll paused the conversation and leave the rest for a future part 2. We can talk birth for days! And want to give her birth stories full focus on another Motherhood Snapshot.

*What is Liturgy? Liturgy refers to the order (or rituals/patterns) of a public or collective worship service. “A Customary repertoire of ideas” (from the MW dictionary). For most evangelical churches this is typically worship followed by announcements, a sermon, maybe ministry time/altar call at the end. We CAN create these liturgies (think habits) in the ministry of our homes, with our spouses and children. The concept may be odd, or new, but what’s the alternative? It will look different for everyone…for example: snapping at your kids to get them to bed, then praying and telling them you and God love them. Or checking your phone first thing in the AM. Or dinner tables with no meaningful conversations as a family. The author of Habits of The Household offers such simple yet life changing ideas to create meaningful, Christ centered habits/liturgy in your home.

This podcast is a great intro to the concept.

Short Reads, Big Gains

^{Quick write ups highlighting valuable content, habits, approaches, products, etc that can make a big impact when applied to your life.}

Use the doctrine of creation to teach your children (ages 2-8) about their bodies: God Made All of Me.

What you can expect: Easy and simple language to handle the natural curiosity children have for private parts approached with the truth that God created them, and they are therefore good. The book explores this through the lens of healthy and safe relationships and does it beautifully, without creating fear and instead setting a great foundation for children to care for their bodies as God’s glorious creation.

🎧️Libby App: Free Audio Books

Follow these steps: get a library card (typically, all you need is a driver’s license), download the Libby App, link your library card, download FREE audio books through your local library!

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Company: Liberty University Online (LUO).

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