Big Mama (her real name is Melanie) (She is also not Big, she is the tiniest little thing) writes a witty, light-hearted, daily blog about her life as a mother. Her stories about parenting have made me laugh out loud on multiple occasions, as well as her tales of being married to a man with a array of outdoor hobbies that she can not relate to in any way, shape or form. She writes like she's sitting down having coffee with you. She's honest, kind, warm, and above all else, she is RELATABLE.
My goodness.... I think every time I read her blog there are at least 3 paragraphs that make me say "THAT IS SO ME!" and I copy and paste it and send it to my mom or my sister or my best friend or my college roommate. Reading her blog has become a great comfort to me. I read it everyday and I have done so for years. She makes me laugh every morning and makes me feel like the following things are okay:
1. It's okay if you aren't a domestic goddess. Sometimes we make a Stouffer's lasagna for dinner rather than some creative Pinterest recipe and that's okay.
2. It's okay if you don't love working out and running.
3. You can still be an amazing mom AND have a passion for television shows.
4. Sometimes your husband has entirely different hobbies than you do and that's something we can all learn to love.
5. You can love your children with your entire being while also admitting from time to time that you want to just crawl under a blanket and stay there for a day or 4 days.
6. You can be funny and sarcastic and still love Jesus.
I guess I can just sum it up to say that Melanie makes me feel like it is okay to be me and I've come to embrace that. We're kindred spirits.
For years, the one thing about her blog that I could not relate to was being a mother. However, I loved seeing the way she parents because I felt like it was peeking into the future a little bit. So, when she announced that she was writing a book about raising a daughter, I was like SIGN ME UP, BIG MAMA.
I pre-ordered the book, "Sparkly Green Earrings", in December and it was released a few weeks ago and DEAR AMAZON IT STILL IS NOT HERE AND YOU SAID IT WOULD BE HERE LAST WEEK SO I'M MAD AT YOU.
The good thing is, Melanie came to Houston for a book signing so I went and bought a copy that I could start reading toot suite. I was so glad to have Melanie AND her daughter Caroline sign my book for me. Here we are... Caroline, Melanie, me, Ellie Paige, and Tiffany, my other kindred spirit.
So, here's the book.
I started it Saturday night and finished it yesterday.
Um, hi, I LOVED IT.
Here are some reasons you should read it:
1. Beth Moore and The Pioneer Woman recommend it so there's that.
2. It's a super quick, easy read. The chapters are short and you can read it in bits and pieces while your children nap.
3. You will laugh out loud. I promise you that.
4. If you have a daughter, you will probably cry.
5. When you finish it, you will feel reinvigorated about your role as a mother. It's like sitting in a mom's support group and after everyone shares their horror stories you can still look around and know that none of you would change it for anything in the whole world.
This book made me look forward to the life stages to come with Ellie. Look forward to and/or dread. But mostly, I look forward to them. I realized as I was reading how truly, madly, deeply, I love my girl and I am so thankful that God has given her to me to raise. As I finished the very last paragraph of the last chapter of the book, I heard Ellie's cries as she woke up from her nap. I finished the book, went into her room, pulled her into the rocking chair and we rocked and snuggled and sang songs and I just felt so encouraged. I may need to read the book once a year just to remind myself that I will get through it.
You can buy Sparkly Green Earrings on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
Thanks, Melanie, for speaking to the heart. I'm recommending this to every mama I know!
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