Are you stressed about the holidays? Do gatherings exhaust you and leave you feeling like you missed out? Maybe you’re in a new life season and just want to change things up a bit? Years ago, my family went to an apple orchard. My ten-year-old grandson, Braden, couldn’t get anyone to walk through the corn maze with him. So, with map in hand, he asked me again, “Come on Meema. I promise we won’t get lost and die in there.” I didn’t want to disappoint my grandson. There are a couple reasons why “yes” wasn’t the wisest answer. 1. I’m claustrophobic and 2. I was in peri-menopause. Physically, I was fine. But my pinging hormones caused random bouts of anxiety. Overwhelming, heart-pounding panic. After much deliberation, onward we went. Dry corn husks crunching under our feet. About 20 feet in, I lost my sense of direction and I was done. Irrational fear created terrifying stories in my head. I panicked, big time. Hence the text (picture above) to my husband. Jeff rescued me and finished the maze with Braden. Now, this memory makes me smile. I share it to remind us: It’s okay to change course. It’s okay to tap out.  It’s absolutely okay to put your needs first and say, “I can’t do this.”  Or “Let’s do something different.”  It’s good to accept our limitations. It’s right to choose what’s healthy for our mind, body, and spirit. Maybe this is the year to order dinner from a restaurant or a grocery store. Maybe it’s time to ask for help in the kitchen (I taught my granddaughter how to peel potatoes). Or maybe this is the year to just hang out and do a whole lot of nothing 😴 Whatever it is, let’s choose less mess and more time for what truly feeds our soul. How do you simplify and de-stress the holiday season?  ☮💗

I deal with depression every day. Sometimes it’s barely there, light and manageable. But, it’s often heavy and overwhelms me. That’s when I need to remember one of my favorite promises: “When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.” ~ Isaiah 43:2 Did you see that? It says when. Not if or maybe. When we have difficulties. I guess it’s like a not-so-great promise inside some great and powerful promises. And “When you go through.” There’s movement here. We go through. We walk through. Therein lies our hope. And the best part? “I will be with you.”   God will. We will. Get through. Just keep moving forward. It might exhaust us and it may look like baby steps. But, with a bit of grit and a whole lot of grace, we will.get.through.  💗☮ Robin   📣 Check out my Speaking Gigs: Saturday, April 12, 2025 = Moline, Illinois. Come out and hear “Renew Your Mind” at the women’s Iron Sharpens Iron Conference. Spring 2025 = Copperas Cove, TX. Stay tuned for details! Do you need a guest speaker for your women’s group, conference, retreat, etc.? Reply to this email and let’s chat. 😊 📚 Book News: My book Uncover Your Divine Design  needs only 11 more reviews/star ratings. When we reach 50, Amazon will give it more visibility. That means more sales & more sale means the message of hope & healing is reaching more women 🙌🏻 Will you help me reach 50? Click here to leave a review or a ⭐rating.

In 2020, when the world got really weird, I wanted to send a little extra joy in my sister’s birthday card. Confetti was the logical conclusion. My sister called, thanked me for the card, and laughed about her extra surprise.

Mission accomplished. I made my sister giggle.

A few weeks later, I received a suspicious envelope in the mail from her. Wanna guess what was in it? The very same shiny balloon-shaped confetti that I sent her. I smiled for days … and now again as I think about it.

So for four years, every birthday card I give has confetti in it. I’m not sure how my daughters-in-law feel about this. But they open cards slowly these days. And my grandchildren open theirs outside.

This year, on my 60th, they got me back big time. As I opened gifts, my son snuck up behind me with a BIG bowl full of … yep, you guessed it …CONFETTI!!! 🎉

Hence, the picture above. My lap was full, my heart was full, and the floor was sparkly too.

Six weeks later, I still find a tiny balloon or birthday hat in a shoe, under the couch, or in the laundry. A smile just when I need it.

One of my favorite quotes is, “Kindness is free. Sprinkle that stuff like confetti.”

The way I see it, Joy is free too. I hope to always leave a little wherever I go. Life’s too short to not.

Do you know someone who needs a little pick-me-up? How can you pass on some kindness?

💗☮

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🙏🏻Speaking Update: April 12-13, I’ll be in Houston speaking at Living Word Nazarene Church. It’s a women’s retreat & we’ll be talking about finding freedom in “Renewing Our Minds.” 🙌🏻

 

 

Is there something or someone you need to say No to? It’s an important word … especially this time of year.🎄

Two days before Thanksgiving, we had new floors installed into 4 rooms. Imagine the amount of stuff we boxed up out of closets and off of bookshelves, etc. And of course the cleaning & dusting that’s involved too. Oof.

The clutter and I are sloowwllyy getting organized as I prepare for a weekend with 5 of our grandbabies and my MIL.

There will be happy messes with cookie-making, gift-opening, and other random shenanigans. But if I’m not careful, I’ll burn out before they even get here.

So. I’m saying YES to peace even if it means saying NO to help at church. I’m saying YES to simplicity even if it means saying NO to traditions that require too much of me this year.

This is my motto for times such as this: “What gets done, gets done. If we don’t have it, we don’t need it.”

No guilt. No shame. No worries.

☮❤