Many thanks to Pure Flix for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions
are 100% my own.

About An Unlikely Angel

Janie is a workaholic who is falling apart at the thought of becoming a first-time mom. She whispers a small prayer for help and it’s answered in a very unlikely way when an angel intervenes and fast forwards her life. Will her second chance change how she approaches life? Janie is lucky enough to be given a second chance, but will she change before it’s too late?

Who is this movie for?

• Parents who are trying to do it all and need to know they aren’t alone on the journey.
• Someone who needs a reminder that it’s ok to not control every aspect of your life.
• Anyone who needs help coming back to basics in an overcomplicated world.
• The person is looking for a second chances at prioritizing what’s truly important in life.

Mom Maven’s Thoughts

An Unlikely Angel isn’t just a feel-good movie, it’s a movie that makes you re-think your priorities. A movie that reminds you that faith and family are the most important things. This movie reminds us to, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)

The acting is great, the cast fits well together and I was happy to see that one of my favorites, Robert Amaya, is playing Gabe, the angel in this story. Janie prays a simple prayer for help and God sends Gabe to do just that, by being available, gentle, thoughtful, and helpful.

Watch An Unlikely Angel on Pure Flix starting August 26th!

Giveaway

I’m giving away a 3 month subscription to Pure Flix to a US based reader of this blog! The giveaway ends 9-9-22 at 12:00am. The winner will be verified-make sure you actually leave a blog comment-and then their information will be sent to the sponsor for fulfillment.

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Way back in 2011 I told you about the Kendrick brother’s fourth movie COURAGEOUS. I actually wrote 7 posts about this film and the important message it has about fatherhood. It’s hard to believe that this movie is 10 years old! This weekend, September 24, 2021, COURAGEOUS LEGACY is being released in theaters!

Ron and I watched COURAGEOUS LEGACY last night. This is a remastered, special-edition release for a new generation. This updated version of the film includes an enhanced look and sound along with impact stories, new scenes, and a new bonus ending you don’t want to miss! Get your tickets NOW!

A lot has happened in the decade sine COURAGEOUS hit theaters, but God’s plan for families and for fathers has not changed. God has called fathers to lead their families well, to disciple them, provide for them, and to protect them. This movies is just as powerful as the original was 10 years ago. I cried, several times-even though I knew what was coming because I’ve seen the original many times.

The statistics on how fatherlessness effects the lives of children are staggering. Honestly, if men would step up and be the father that God intended them to be crimes, drug use, suicide and many other social problems would decrease dramatically. The Kendrick brothers know this well, COURAGEOUS was their first film on the subject and earlier this month they released the documentary SHOW ME THE FATHER, which shares a lot of the staggering statistics surrounding fatherlessness.

In the movie, the men sign a resolution and vow to hold each other accountable for upholding this resolution. The resolution starts with “I … , Do solemnly resolve before God to take full responsibility for myself, my wife, and my children.” It continues on will 11 more “I Will” statements. Just think what this world would be like if more husbands would truly commit to taking full responsibility for their families. So many lives would be changed!

Maybe you are reading this and feeling like you have failed your family; stop that right now! None of us are perfect, we all make mistakes. One of the themes of this movie is that while we may not have started well, we can finish well! Ask God and your family to forgive you for not being the parent that He has called you to be. Then ask God to help you to walk out what He has called you to. Praise God that He is a God of second, third, fourth…etc chances! He wants to help us all be closer to Him, but we have to take the first step. If you have questions or need help, please reach out to me. I’m here for you.

Courageous Legacy Ticket Giveaway

I am giving away a pair of Fandango codes so that you can go see COURAGEOUS LEGACY in theaters! The giveaway is open to US residents only. The giveaway ends at 12:00am on Saturday 9-2-21. Please follow all rules listed in the giveaway.

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Get you opening weekend tickets NOW!

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You may have missed last week’s announcement but, I’m a grandmother now! Ok, technically I’m a Cici but let’s not get picky. Yes, Aaron and Summer had Harmony Iris on June 20, 2020 at 5:24pm. She is a beautiful little bundle of joy!

Actually though, I’ve been a foster grandmother since Aaron and Summer became foster parents last fall. They currently have two toddler brothers in their care so yes, they have their hands full.

Being a Cici to theses children has meant a lot of babysitting and driving the kids to and from preschool. Of course, driving youngsters around means using car seats and one thing I’ve learned, my fingers aren’t as strong as they used to be. It’s difficult getting the boys out of their car seats in the third row of the minivan!

Recently, I was introduced to UnbuckleMe, a new product that was on Shark Tank earlier this year. I received 2 UnbuckleMes for the purpose of this review. I keep the blue one in my car and I gave the pink one to Aaron and Summer.

About UnbuckleMe

The dynamic mother/daughter duo of Occupational Therapist and Grandmother Barbara Heilman and her Daughter, Mom of two and a Child Passenger Safety Technician, Becca Davison created UnbuckleMe to help support caregivers with hand or wrist weakness and offer support to many families in their daily routine.

With the simple and handy UnbuckleMe solution you can unbuckle kids and grandkids in your vehicle at your arrival without pain. The Unbuckle tool uses leverage to make it easier and reduce the force by more than 50% to unbuckle their car seat buckle.  UnbuckleMe does not attach to the car seat for safety and works with all push button child car seat buckles.

The founders share it is important that UnbuckleMe is readily accessible to use when you need it, but also remains out of reach of children when not in use. They recommend storing in the side-door or seat-back pocket of your car, although many may prefer to attach to a keychain, or keep handy in a purse or diaper bag. UnbuckleMe is patented, made from BPA Free Plastic and Made in the USA.

You can get your own UnbuckleMe for $14.99 and free US shipping on their website or on Amazon. There is also a store locator on the site to see if it is available in a store near you.

MomMaven’s Thoughts

Unbuckle Me has been a lifesaver. I’ll be buying it as a go-to baby shower gift from now on. I have used it several times when I’ve had to pick the boys up from daycare. I have weak hands and slightly long fingernails. Both of these add up to make undoing the car seat buckles very difficult.

Unbuckle me is well made and fits easily in my purse when I am driving Summer’s minivan instead of my car. I’ll be buying it as a go-to baby shower gift from now on. You need to go buy one for your friend who just had a baby!

The post UnbuckleMe Review appeared first on The Mom Maven.

Children learn best by imitation. They see others doing something and they want to do it too. This is why we often hear that parents need to model the behaviors they want their children to have. When our children observe us praying, reading Scripture, and attending church, they want to be a part of those activities.

I have volunteered in Children’s and Youth Ministries for almost 40 years, I believe wholeheartedly in age appropriate spiritual education. The 60-90 minutes a week a child is in Kid’s Church is not enough to be the sum total of a child’s spiritual upbringing. That is the job of the parents. “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. ” Proverbs 22:6.

The question I hear most from parents is, “What should I be doing at home?” My answer always starts with the basics I’ve listed above-pray, read the Bible, and attend church. This is where the Faith Forward Family Devotional comes into play.

About the Faith Forward Family Devotional

This devotional is written by Ruth and Patrick Schwenk. They are the coauthors of For Better or For Kids: A Vow to Love Your Spouse with Kids in the House and the creators of TheBetterLifeMinistry.org, which is home to TheBetterMom.com, ForTheFamily.org, and RootlikeFaith.com. Patrick and Ruth have been married for more than twenty years, have four children, and have been in full-time ministry for more than fifteen years. They live in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Faith Forward’s goal is to help you raise faith-filled kids who know, love, and live for God. Each of the 100 devotions include a Bible passage, teaching applicable to children of any age, a key idea to learn and remember about God, questions designed to spark discussion, and a guided family prayer. You can purchase your copy of the devotional here. You can also enter to win a copy of the book here. However you acquire your copy of the book, I pray that it blesses you and your family.

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According to the original author of this post, you should know the following things before you turn 18:

• How to Change a Tire
• How to Change Your Oil
• How to Drive a Car with a Stick Shift
• How to Balance Your Checkbook
• How to File Your Taxes
• Credit Card Pros and Cons
• How to Hem Pants
• How to Sew on a Button
• How to Cook
• How to Season a Pan
• How to Grow Your Own Food
• Basic First Aid
• The Cost of Having a Baby vs Getting an Education

Yes, I agree these and many others are all skills any 18 year old should know. Where I take issue with this meme is the fact that the author feels these should all be classes offered in high school. Arguably, many of these skills are taught in school IF you take the right courses and we all know that fitting multiple electives into a high school schedule nowadays is near impossible, but that isn’t the issue. The issue is that these, and many other skills should be taught by PARENTS!

I learned all of these from my parents and I taught them all to my children. I couldn’t get my drivers license until I could change a tire and change the oil on my father’s car. I cannot for the life of me drive a stick shift but my mother, and some friends have tried hard to teach me over the years. Balancing a checkbook and filing taxes are usually taught in high school economics classes but practical application happens at home, with parental guidance. I learned to sew buttons around age 8 and so did my boys. My boys started planning and cooking dinner one night a week each at age 13. When Aaron got married at age 21 he took over all of the cooking duties because his wife’s parents never took the time to teach her.

Parents, we all need to step up and invest time into our kids. I know we all work hard but parenting is the hardest and most rewarding job we will ever have. I have written before about raising productive, God-fearing citizens. This list from this meme is a place to start. Pour into your kids, show them how to do whatever it is you are doing. Doing home or car maintenance? Have your child beside you, explain what you are doing and why. If it is safe, let them help. Hands-on education is the best education.

If you don’t know how to do something, learn together. Thanks to Google and YouTube you have a world of lessons at your fingertips. Don’t you want your kids to know more and be better than you? Do you really want the school system to teach your kid everything? They seem to have a hard enough time teaching reading, writing and arithmetic-let alone anything else.

Also, if you know a single parent who may need help teaching their kids some of these life skills, offer to help. Invite them over and make learning a fun, hands-on event.

Step up and raise your kid, give them the power that comes from knowledge and experience. Don’t let them turn out like the author of this meme.

The post MomMaven’s Response to the Stuff You Should Know Before You Turn 18 Meme appeared first on The Mom Maven.

Chores-jobs or activities assigned to an individual that, when accomplished, benefit the family as a whole ie. sweep the floor, load the dishwasher… If your dishwasher is malfunctioning, make sure to contact a reliable dishwasher repair service near you! And those who are dealing with a plumbing emergency may hire a helpful contractor. You can also look up plumbing repair in Seattle, WA and nearby areas.

Personal Responsibilities-jobs or activities that, when accomplished, benefit the individual who did them ie. practice piano, clean your bedroom, brush your teeth

When children are young we do our best to work hygiene and other personal responsibilities into our children’s lives. We often make charts or schedules of things that must be accomplished daily. These tasks, which benefit the child doing them, are teaching personal responsibility and independence. These are things that kids should be self-motivated to do. These are also things that by age 7-8, they should be automatic and no longer require a chart or a reminder from a parent.

I recommend focusing on Personal Responsibilities before ever introducing chores into your family dynamic. In future posts we will be talking a lot about chores including topics like Why Kids Should Do Chores and Should Kids Get Paid for Chores but for today let’s focus on the personal responsibilities.

An Incomplete List of Personal Responsibilities for Kids

• brush their teeth
• comb their hair
• make their bed
• clean their room
• practice their musical instrument/sport
• care for their pet (if it is theirs and not a family pet)
• do their homework
• take a bath/shower
• empty their backpack when they get home and put things where they belong
• put their cup/dish in the sink or dishwasher when they are done

Are you seeing how these items are things that benefit the child more than the family? I also recommend that while a chart that reminds a child of what needs to be done can be useful, especially for younger children who are just starting to take responsibility for themselves, I don’t advocate using a reward system here. Verbal praise should be all that is necessary when a child shows responsibility. Rewarding kids for every little thing they do sets them up for disappointment. They aren’t going to get a sticker, piece of candy or more screen time every time they turn in a school assignment on time or throw their milk carton in the garbage can-don’t let them expect this. Let the reward be knowing they did a job well done.

In all honesty, the fact that I feel the need to write this post drives me crazy but, I know too many parents who are not teaching their children to be responsible for themselves. I know 8-9 year olds who would never think of brushing their teeth if someone didn’t tell them to do it! I know middle schoolers who don’t think about doing their homework until someone tells them to and then there is often a fight over it! This is ridiculous! As a student your #1 job is your education. Doing homework and doing it well is your job and takes priority over extracurricular activities and free time. Parents who don’t instill this work ethic in their kids at a young age are doing their children and their community a huge disservice.

Daily I see moms on Facebook complaining about disagreements with their kids about basic things they should be doing and I have 2 things to say about that 1. stop airing your family problems in a public forum and 2. raise your kids-don’t let them raise themselves. I’ll step off my soapbox for now but as parents our responsibility is to raise our children, to train them and it starts by teaching them personal responsibility. Teaching your child to take care of themselves and their surroundings is one building block to raising great kids.

Do you agree, disagree or fall somewhere in between? I’d love to have a great dialog as long as it remains civil. I retain the right to delete any rude or hurtful comments.

The post Chores vs Personal Responsibilities appeared first on The Mom Maven.

I rejoiced with my friend and told her what a great job she was doing as a mom. I told her my belief is that a parent’s job is to raise well-rounded, self-sufficient, productive citizens who love Jesus. She agreed and said she wanted to get together soon so we can talk more about parenting.

A parent’s job is to…
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The real question is how do we accomplish that goal? It isn’t always easy because kids have a free will, but I strongly believe that when parents take their job seriously and parent with purpose, that goal can be reached. As Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” Lay the groundwork for adulthood as your child grows in all areas of their lives.

• Expose them to arts, sports and other activities and see which ones excite them.
• Give your children boundaries-but don’t hover too closely. It is ok if they fail, or fall-we learn from our mistakes and they make us try harder next time.
• Teach personal responsibility early on in life, it is an important trait that is sadly slipping away from our society.
• We need to coach our children to be self-sufficient and productive. Requiring chores and teaching life skills over the course of their lives makes them better adults, citizens, employees and parents later on.
• Submerse them in the Word of God. Use music, stories, videos etc to keep them in the Word day and night. Family devotions and Bible studies as well as Sunday school, Children’s Church, mid-week church classes and youth groups are all important activities to help kids of all ages keep their eyes on Jesus.

As we move through this year, I will be sharing the tools and methods we have used over the years to raise our awesome sons. I know every child and every family is different but all I can do is share what worked for us and hope that some of it works for you. Parenting is hard work and I am here to be a friend that walks beside you on the journey. Thanks for coming along for the ride!

BTW that picture is from 2006! LOL!

The post A Parent’s Job appeared first on The Mom Maven.

Thirty years ago today, Sunday, December 23, 1984 started as a typical day except I was 20 years old, single and pregnant. I had been home from college since the middle of September and I was due to give birth, soon. I’ll give the back story another time, I hope you’ll stick around for that some day soon. That evening my dad was out Christmas shopping. I was home playing Trivial Pursuit with our neighbor Rick. As the game and the evening wore on, I had some intermittent back pains. I attributed these pains to being very pregnant and sitting on the floor. After the game I got up to walk them off and I was hit with a bit of a worse pain. I told my mom and we decided I was probably in labor. At the time we had but 1 car and my dad was out shopping. Of course, we had no way of reaching him, this was before cell hones and we didn’t know where he was shopping.

I remember telling Rick he might have to drive us to the hospital in Sarasota and I remember the look of panic on his face. Rick was a good friend, a quadriplegic, a few years older than me. I gathered my things for the hospital and my mom called th doctor and thankfully, my dad arrived home to drive us to the hospital.

My doctor was not available, he had recently broken his leg on an African safari, so his associate, whom I had met at my last check-up would deliver my baby. I wasn’t in the Labor room that long before they decided to wheel me to delivery. On the way there was a traffic jam in the hall and I remember telling the doctor that the baby was coming now! I was assured there was plenty of time. I arrived in the delivery room and things moved along. I can’t remember how long I was in labor but it wasn’t too long. Yes, there was pain and yelling and my younger sister swearing she would never give birth (and she never did). At 12:24am on 12-24-84 Brynn Ann was born.

There was no baby’s cry. There were hushed tones, nurses scurrying around and other doctors coming into the room. Brynn was whisked to NICU and eventually I was taken to the maternity ward where I shared a room with four other mothers. Later I was told that Brynn had Meconium Asptration Syndrome and Hyaline Membrane Disease. Her lung x-rays showed that her lungs were black like a coal miner’s.

The Sarasota NICU couldn’t care for a child this sick so they were going to fly her via helicopter to Lee Memorial Hospital in Ft Myers. I was able to visit her in the NICU for a few minutes, looking at her in her isolette, lying on one of the hospital beds. A nurse took a Polaroid picture of her for me and gave me her footprints before she left the hospital.

That afternoon I was released from the hospital. I went home to spend Christmas with my family and the plan was that dad and I would head to Ft Myers the day after Christmas. In the meantime, the hospital called us with updates of Brynn’s care. Early Wednesday morning we received the call that every mother dreads, Brynn’s lungs were just too bad and they couldn’t keep her alive. My daughter had passed away and I had never even held her.

For 30 years, Christmas has been a difficult holiday for me. Brynn was born on Christmas Eve and she passed on the 26th. For the last 20 years I led the music at the Christmas Eve service at our church and every time I sing “Silent Night”, I get choked up.

It is hard for me to imagine having a 30 year old daughter, how different my life would have been. I do believe with 100% that this was all a part of God’s plan for me. Yes, even the heartache and pain. This experience made me a better person, a stronger person and it drew me much closer to God. As hard as it was is, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Happy Birthday to my Christmas Angel! I know I will see you again some day, and we will have a wonderful reunion.

Thank-you for sticking around to read this story that is part of my heart.

The post Thirty Years…A Story of a Mom and her Christmas Angel appeared first on The Mom Maven.

About QuickFlics

With QuickFlics, organizing, archiving, and sharing your life on DVDs is as simple as just a few taps on your smartphone or iPad: Download the app in the iTunes app store, create a QuickFlics account, upload all your favorite videos, and you’re done! You’ll get your DVD in the mail (in a convenient pre-labeled envelope) within one week! Enjoy, share, or store at your leisure.
QuickFlics is the perfect solution to organizing and watching your mobile videos, and the perfect gift for grandparents, relatives and friends. You will all be enjoying your videos for years!

Mom Maven’s Thoughts

This app is simple to use! You shoot your videos like normal and then you upload them to the app. About a week later the DVD arrives at your door and you have a safe, hard copy of your videos. I shot videos at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party on a Friday night. I uploaded them Saturday morning. It takes just a few minutes and it is super easy to do.
Just click on the videos you want to upload, one at a time and they upload rather quickly. (The grayed out videos have already been uploaded.) I would recommend a subscription for all parents who shoot a lot of video. A subscription would also make a great gift for parents.

The Giveaway

FIVE readers will each win a 1 CD trial subscription. This is a great way to try out the app and the service and see if it is a good fit for your needs. This giveaway is open yo US residents only. The giveaway ends at 12:00am on 11-24-14. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and verified. The winner will be notified via email and they will have 48 hours to respond and claim their prize.

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Good Luck!

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Now that we are in the month of November, we have arrived in cold and flu season. While we all need to take extra care to stay healthy during this season we need to take extra caution to keep babies healthy. One particular virus, Respiratory Syncytia Virus or RSV is a common virus that almost all children contract before the age of two. RSV presents as mild to moderate cold symptoms ie. persistent coughing or wheezing, rapid, difficult or gasping breaths, fever (especially if over 100.4° rectally in infants under 3 months old), and bluish color around the lips and fingernails. RSV is actually the leading cause of infant hospitalizations with approximately 125,000 hospitalizations and 200 deaths annually. RSV is particularly dangerous to premature infants and they are two times as likely as full-term babies to be hospitalized for the virus. World Prematurity Day is November 17, 2014, please share this post so that parents of preemies are aware of the risks of RSV.

Premature infants are 2x as likely than full-term babies to be hospitalized for RSV #sponsored #MC #RSVawareness #Preemieprotection
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Now that we know what RSV is, how can we help prevent it? The simple answer is basically the same as most other viruses-wash your hands. RSV is spread by touching, sneezing and coughing and the virus can live on skin and surfaces for hours so hand washing is imperative. In addition to hand washing, keeping babies away from people who are sick, or have been recently sick is important as is keeping toys and blankets extra clean. Take extra care when taking baby out in crowds and never let anyone smoke near your baby. Make sure you choose a safe daycare for your child like the buddle.

I suggest you pin that infographic to your parenting or babies board so that you can find it when/if you need it.

If you would like more information about RSV, tips for talking to your pediatrician about risk factors or find data about the RSV season in your area visit RSVprotection.com.

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