The Mom Crowd

Change can be a good thing. In fact, I really love change and big events in life. I get excited about how life will be different after a big decision. The results of change are thrilling even if its an unexpected turn of events in life. There is change in my life and as a result The Mom Crowd is closing. This basically means that we will not be publishing any new content. The blog and archives will remain online. We may re-run some of our best posts in January.

A Little About Me (Amanda)

I am the Editor and one of the original founders of The Mom Crowd. There hasn’t been any drastic change in my life unless you count adding a second child into the mix this year. I feel that it is time for me and my co-writers to end this phase of our lives. The Mom Crowd has grown to be a wonderful, successful blog, but to take it to the next level of blogging would require more time than I am able to give the site. Blogging is so much more than writing blog posts, in fact that is the easy part! Blogging also includes marketing, networking, accounting, updating design, adding new features, search engine optimization, promotion emails and planning the blogs future. I don’t have time to keep all of it going.

As a result of The Mom Crowd ending in my life I am excited about devoting this new found time to new projects. I have a personal blog that got sorely ignored and I can’t wait to revive it. I want to blog more about my family and my random thoughts that aren’t necessarily related to motherhood. So you can find me over there. (You can also find Dawn at her personal blog and Amelia at her blog as well.)

This next year I have some new opportunities to serve at my church, River City Community Church. I also plan on helping my husband in a bigger role with his web development business, Grow Development. I am excited about the new opportunities that I have to serve others and help my family in 2010.

Finally, I helped create The Mom Crowd 3 months after quitting my full time Human Resources career. I needed a creative outlet that let me use my brain. This has been an amazing project and I have learned so much about leading a team, accounting, and networking! I think I am definitely more confident in my role as a Stay at Home Mom and I don’t need a successful project to define what I do now. I will be forever grateful for the bridge that The Mom Crowd created for me.

Thank You!

Thank you all so much for reading and commenting. Thank you to the sponsors of The Mom Crowd. Our goal has always been to encourage, inspire, and inform moms. My hope is that The Mom Crowd has helped you in some small way in your life. Thank you from the bottom of my Texas-sized heart for your comments and reading The Mom Crowd!

Our History

I co-founded The Mom Crowd 2.5 years ago with my friend McKenna. Together we brainstormed a name, design, blog posts topics, and the future of our site. We felt that we had information and encouragement for new moms to share with our friends. McKenna has expertise in Down syndrome and loves to research everything. I brought my own excitement of building a website and my knowledge of breastfeeding and natural child birth to the table. We felt like we could conquer the internet world and even host a conference one day! I registered a DBA and opened business bank account and got ready to launch August of 2007.

McKenna and I quickly realized that it takes a lot of time to write meaningful content 5 times a week. So we asked my friend Amelia to join us. Amelia has 3 boys, is a Bradley birth instructor, and shared our love of investigating motherhood. Amelia brought honesty and transparency through some of her mothering events and some interesting propositions to The Mom Crowd. Our site would not have been the same without her.

As the blog grew I needed more help with content so I could work on marketing and with advertisers on the site. Myself, McKenna, and Amelia all agreed to include our friend and frequent-commenter, Dawn. Dawn’s original title was “Pop Culture Correspondent.”  She wrote about movies and television shows portraying motherhood. She later wrote more about her own motherhood lessons with her children. These last few months she began writing our wonderful Abiding Monday series focusing on being a woman and a Christian. I am so thankful for the friendship that grew between Dawn as we worked together on The Mom Crowd and other projects.

This past Summer in 2009 McKenna stepped down from contributing on The Mom Crowd and we invited Christy to join our team. I hadn’t seen her in person in 14 years. She brought a fresh look at motherhood with her experience with Juvenile Diabetes and her amazing frugal sense. Christy is a wonderful mother and a great writer. I will always be thankful for her insight and time that she gave The Mom Crowd.

We have had some fun here on The Mom Crowd. Along the way McKenna and I thought we were going to be big internet stars and created a web show called, “The Mom Crowd Show!” We wanted to be the Diggnation or CommandN of motherhood. It was fun to film, but a heck of a lot of time to edit, render, and upload. We didn’t have the tools and equipment to make this happen full time, but we had a lot of laughs filming.

The focus of The Mom Crowd was always changing. In 562 blog posts we have focused a lot on Down syndrome, breastfeeding, natural child birth, being frugal, pop culture, and recently Christianity. I have loved every post and learned so much here.

Check Out These 10 Blogs

If you have enjoyed The Mom Crowd, here are 10 other blogs that I enjoy and I think you will too:

• Like a Warm Cup of Coffee- Sara Mae writes wonderful posts on Christianity, motherhood, and many other subjects. She is also fun to follow on Twitter.

• Kristi Stephens – Kristi loves researching the Bible and sharing deep insights in scripture. I love that she is real and isn’t afraid to share who she is online. Kristi is one to watch in up and coming blogs.

• Big Mama – Seriously funny. I had the privilege to have lunch with her one day and pick her brain about blogging. Sometimes I happen to sit on the same row with her at church. She is as funny in person as she is on her blog.

• Sarah Markley – I found Sarah’s site, because MommyZabs often posts links to Sarah’s posts on Facebook and Twitter. Sarah posts sometimes say what I am thinking. She wrote her post about temptation and marriage around the same time I wrote my post on the same subject.

• San Diego Momma – I got to meet Deb the writer behind San Diego Momma a few months after starting The Mom Crowd. She blogs unabashedly about her weaknesses and experiences with her own brand of wit and creativity.

• Firemom at Stop, Drop, and Blog – I somehow became a follower of Firemom on Twitter. I then read her profound story of her daughter and life with her boys. The blog is great and fun, be sure to check it out!

• Happy Mom Amy at Makes Mom Happy – For product reviews, be sure to check out Makes Mom Happy and follow Amy on Twitter. She is a great follow and nice person. She really is happy and you never hear her crabbing much.

• Women Living Well – I found Courtney’s site through Kristi. Courtney has been on Rachael Ray showcasing traditional marriage and motherhood. Her site is helpful and encouraging to all women.

• Run Faster Mommy – If you are a runner, you must read Heather’s running blog. She is encouraging and helped me out a lot when I was confused about breastfeeding and marathon-training.

• Mom Bloggers Club – Technically this is not a blog, but I have to plug The Mom Bloggers Club. This is a great site to discuss blogging, meet friends online, and join groups. The founder, Jennifer James, is very nice and sincere. I really enjoy hanging out over there.

Phew! There are so many GREAT blogs out there. I could keep listing more. A lot of Mommy Blogs have started and have become successful since The Mom Crowd started 2.5 years ago. I am proud to have been a part of the mommy blog movement and I can’t wait to see the power of this blogging movement grow.

Thank you again for being a part of The Mom Crowd!

- Thank you photo courtesy of Vernhart

^“17 Now when they [the shepherds] had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. ¹⁸ And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.” Luke 2:17-20 (NKJV)

The shepherds who came to see Christ after His birth understood the importance of His birth and in essence were the very first missionaries for Jesus Christ.  In verses 9-14, angels came to the shepherds and proclaimed that they were bringing joyful news “to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  The shepherds went and saw Christ and were compelled to go share the good news of Jesus with everyone they knew.  Then to top it all off, they went back and then glorified and praised God.

The shepherds on that first Christmas are a perfect example of what our hearts should look like every Christmas and year-round… hearts that long for the world to know Him and hearts that give God praise for sending Christ for us.  Even when we are trying to focus on Christ at Christmas, it’s easy to get sidetracked from having the right heart.  Make it a point this Christmas, and from everyday forth, to share the good news of Christ’s birth, death and ressurection and then daily go back and praise God for His love and mercy to all mankind by sending Christ for us.  It will give Christmas a whole new meaning for you and maybe for someone who’s heart is ministered to by you.

Lord, please give us the hearts of those first Christmas shepherds.  Let us see Your good works and know who You are, share it with the world, and always come back to give You the praise and glory.  Let Christmas be a time of ministry in our lives and not just a time of gifts, decorations and stress.  Thank you for sending us Jesus and for giving us examples of what You want us to do.  In His precious name, Amen.

During Advent, we often hear the word peace:  “Peace on earth, good will toward men.”  “Sleep in heavenly peace.”  “His law is love and His gospel is peace.”  Isaiah 9:6 says, “For a child is born to us, a son given to us.  And the government will rest on his shoulders.  These will be his royal titles: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”  Just by being born, Jesus brought peace to our broken planet.  Hallelujah!

Someone asked me yesterday if I thought “peace on earth, and good will toward men” (on a global scale) was really possible for us to achieve.  I pondered it for awhile and concluded that, no, it isn’t.  Man is fallen.  We are sinful beings.  We can strive for it, but it won’t be here with any form of longevity until Jesus returns.   We discussed how nations are at war, and nations are made up of broken communities formed by sinful people.  Relationships are constantly being torn apart.  The brokenness we have with others is what prevents peace from existing.

So I turned inward.  I started examining my relationships and how Christmas is as good a time as any to get going on some reconciliation.  I know I can’t tackle the entire mountain of brokenness in my life at once, but I can start on one piece.  God has been speaking to my heart this past week that the time has come to approach a friend with whom I have not been spending time.  We had a disagreement in the spring, and our friendship has suffered as a result.  Though we were both in the wrong, I have been closed off in my heart towards her, and the Holy Spirit was nudging me to stop.  I prayed in faith that God would help me approach my friend when the time was right.  For me, making an effort to connect one-on-one again would be an act of faith that God could restore what was broken.

On Sunday morning, I acted vulnerably and asked my friend if she would be interested in hanging out with me.  (I know this sounds very basic to a friendship, but we haven’t done this for 8 months!)  She responded very happily and readily.  I don’t know if the Spirit will lead me to share what prompted my actions (I’m fine either way), but I am glad that this Advent, I will be celebrating Christ’s birth with a very personal thankfulness for His supreme example of reconciliation. 

I hope that you, too, will experience Advent in a personal, redemptive way this year.  Have a wonderful week.

It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.  Ephesians 1:11-12 (MSG)

What great hope this verse gives us!  Have you ever felt like your days just blended together and nothing stood out as being awesome or even remarkable?  I was discussing this idea with my Sunday school friends yesterday and I heard myself saying, “Time seems to go by fast when we let life live us rather than us living purposeful lives.”  (Wow, that’s deep for me!)  I am a wife, mom, friend, daughter, and many other roles – but my biggest role is often forgotten:  I’m a child of God.  Paul tells us in these verses that we are designed with a purpose – and for a glorious life!

I think my purposes for day-to-day are pretty well laid out for me.  But lately I’ve been wondering if God is calling me to fit another role.  It’s still in such an ambiguous state that I can’t even express it here.  But I can tell you this:  I am simultaneously freaked out and glad that my significance in this life is ever-evolving as I get older.  All too often I put myself in a timeline – how I think things should play out in my life – and I’m trying to stop that and allow God to speak to me the purpose he is working out for me.  (As for the “feeling freaked out” part, I’m working on that.  I’ve discussed battling fear with you before – I’m trying to put that into practice.)

I share this with you this week as an encouragement.  December is a busy time, but I’m determined to hear God amidst everything else clamoring for my attention.  Rick Warren says, “It takes foresight and planning to live our lives on purpose.”  I’m bringing my specific questions to God and I am asking for His specific answers.  And I am clinging to Psalm 143:10 every day:  “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God.  May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.”

How do you live your life on purpose?  In what ways has God surprised you?  What are your goals for this holiday season?

“Can anything separate us from Christ’s love?  Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or are hungry or cold or in danger or threatened with death?  (Even the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”)  No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.  And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love.  Death can’t, and life can’t.  The angels can’t, and the demons can’t.  Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away.  Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8: 35-39 (NLT)

We spent some time in the above passage in my Sunday school class yesterday, kicking of a 3-week series on the purpose of Christmas.  I asked each person to spend some time reflecting on the amazing words above, and to share a phrase that stuck with them personally.  The responses were varied and beautiful, and I also shared my own: the repeated use of the word “separate”.

I thought about how that word describes our relationship with God before Jesus enters into it.  Our sin separates us from a perfect, holy God, and only Jesus can bridge that gap.  In taking our sin upon Himself and nailing it to the Cross, Jesus made a way for us to be in relationship with God forever.  Hallelujah for Christmas, the birth of our Savior!

So seeing the word “separate” in the passage from Romans has all new meaning, because of the words that precede it:  “nothing can”!  We are stuck to God like glue.  In the words of a guy in my Sunday school class, God is like this loving, ever-present bodyguard.  That is certainly a nice picture to have in mind when facing the trials of another day – and a great reason to begin celebrating Advent.

I like to think of God not just as a bodyguard, but a gentle giant, one who is completely interested in everything I think and do.  Donald Miller describes it like this (in his excellent, must-read book, Blue Like Jazz):

“Jesus didn’t just love me out of principle; He didn’t just love me because it was the right thing to do.  Rather, there was something inside me that caused Him to love me.  I think I realized that if I walked up to His campfire, He would ask me to sit down, and He would ask me my story.  He would take the time to listen to my ramblings or my anger until I could calm down, and then He would look me directly in the eye, and He would speak to me; He would tell me the truth, and I would sense in His voice and in the lines on His face that He liked me.”

It is this same Jesus that we celebrate at Christmas.  May your Advent season be shaped and colored by the thought that He is your friend, and His love never fails.  Have a great week, Mom Crowd!