I Told the Teacher to let Her Fail



I told the teacher to let my daughter fail. Seriously, what kind of mom does that?  My daughter has been complaining about her homework, and it is only the second week of school.  She has been groaning and moaning when homework time rolls around each evening, so I decided not to nag her.  I decided to let her mess up. Why?  Is that not the worst mom decision in the world?  I was asking myself the same question.  But here is my conclusion.

She is in 3rd grade today, but shortly she will be out in the big world without a Momma to remind her to do her work.  I want her to be motivated on her own.  I want her to remember how it feels to come up empty when the teacher asks for an assignment, so that she will never want to feel that feeling again.  A missing assignment in 3rd grade means she may have to stay in during recess.  A missing assignment in college means she may fail the class.  I want her to fail today so that maybe she will want to succeed tomorrow.

This morning we had tears.  Her tear stained, puffy red face hopped in the carpool and headed off to school.  I honestly thought about saving my sweet girl.  She is really smart, and she could easily catch up tonight.  I thought about letting her finish her work this morning and taking her to school late.  I thought about sending the teacher an email and asking for an extension.  I thought about saving my first born, but instead, I let her fail.

I did, however, send an email to explain my daughter’s tears.  I told the teacher that it was fine to give my little Ava Grace consequences for no homework.  I have a feeling that things will be different tonight.  I have a feeling that I will not remind my little girl, who is getting bigger so fast, to do her work tonight.  I think we may have just grown up a little…both of us!

There is this snippet of a scripture that comes to mind “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial” 1 Corinthians 10:23

I am just like Ava in my thinking and actions.  I hit snooze instead of getting up to have a Bible study, I pass on yoga because it hurts, I have one more bite because I make the best brownies in the world – I really do – my kids told me. 

So many days it’s much easier to be lazy than to be intentional with our daily lives.  Human nature is to take the easy way out.  Have you ever noticed that doing the easy thing is not as satisfying?  The permissible things in life just do not satisfy like the beneficial things.  Maybe that is God’s way of pulling us back into His Best plan for our life and keeping us on task.  It seems like his best for me involves failure, practice, trial-and-error, fixing mistakes, and re-doing things until I get it right. Hmmm....Sounds like God gives homework too!



The Hot Mom

Matt on his Guy Trip in the Great Smoky Mountains
The Hot Mom

We all know a “Hot Mom”. You know – the mom that everyone thinks looks way younger than the age she is and could pass for a college student?  I know we are not supposed to worry about the outside appearance, but let’s be real – we all want to look our best. Well, I finally achieved “Hot Mom” status.  Unfortunately it was because my A/C quit working in August.  August in Nashville is similar to a picnic in Dubai during the middle of the day. That might not be accurate because all the pictures I have seen of Dubai look like there is a breeze. So, imagine a desert with no breeze. The last weeks of my summer in “Dubai” have not been my best.

My hubby asked permission to go on a guy’s trip – yes I said that correct. No, he does not need permission, but he asked out of love. I said, “Of course, you have a great time. I am excited for you to go!” Then, summer, in all its glory came in full force.  We had the best summer ever, but this momma was tired.  We had done the park, rivers, pools, camping, and grocery store a bazillion times. The heat was now close to apocalypse level, and I noticed that I was a bit drained.  My kids had been with me everyday the entire 9 weeks.  I love them so very much, but honestly, a little time apart never hurt anyone!

The big trip was approaching, and I was still feeling positive.  Then we found out the plane tickets needed to be made for Tuesday, not Wednesday. Ok – what’s one more day, right?  Then, we found out that the trip actually extended until Sunday.  Matt was going to fly to Detroit and help drive an exotic car on a road rally to Atlanta. Super fun!  This was every man’s dream trip.  I was thrilled for him, but maybe secretly a little jealous that I was not the one doing my dream trip.

In my mind, I had always thought we might retreat to my parent’s farm the six days Matt was away.  That is always a good plan – to call in reinforcements when the brigade is feeling a bit weak.  Alas, my parents were not in town during Matt’s trip dates.  For a few minutes I felt like I was back in elementary school and wanted to pitch a tantrum, but my words were more like, “Oh too bad, well you guys have fun.”

No worries.  I will be super mom.  I would finish strong.  So, like any good mom, I made a list and planned each day with fun activities to keep us entertained.  Matt left on Tuesday morning and the A/C started acting funny that afternoon.  By acting funny I mean the house was 77 at 3 pm.  It had been struggling a bit, so I just said a prayer and made sure to close our blinds.  I am sure the neighbors thought we were the most unsocial hermits since we never opened our blinds this summer.  I often imagine they think we are hoarders with lots and lots of cats, but I closed the blinds anyway hoping it would help cool the house by bedtime.  The A/C did work that night.  It cooled off to 75 by 2 am, and it was back to normal by 6 am.  We had so much fun planned that I did not have time to give it much thought.  We had worked in a quick lake day with my parents between their activities, so we met them at Center Hill.  After a day of boating, tubing, and swimming, we traveled home, tired, hot, and happy.

We arrived home from our quick trip knowing that we had to hurry.  We had to be at school in less than one hour to meet my daughter’s new teacher.  The heat wave that hit me when I opened my kitchen door felt almost the same as the heat outside – not a good sign.  Long story short, I called the A/C guys while I spackled my face with make-up (which sweated off at the same rate of application).  I tried to coax my lake hair into a casual up-do.  After struggling, I mused to myself that the messy bun must only work on celebrities using a professional hairdresser.  My kids were also feeling the heat and did not magically get dressed on their own.  This hot mom, who usually tries to speak softer when frustrated, ended up yelling, “Get ready NOW!  We were going to be late to meet this blessed new teacher. And let’s not forget the bag of chocolates we bought her. Never mind– It melted!”

Fast-forward to nighttime. We had met the teacher, and we ate our PTO provided snow cones, all before a massive thunderstorm made us jump in the car to race home.  Seriously, is this a joke?  My children are sticky and sugared up in a house that feels like a sauna.  Just in case you are not familiar with Tennessee weather. If it rains in the summer, approximately one minute later the air becomes as thick and hot as that sauna you sat in on vacation because it looked good in the brochure.  Quickly the temperature in our house rose, and by night it was 82 in the house. The next day, it reached 90 in our bedroom!  I was officially the Hottest Mom on the block! That was about the time that my phone vibrated to notify me of my hubby’s activities of the day.  He was driving a yellow Ferrari thru the Smoky Mountains.  I texted back “hope you are having as much fun as we are” and included the appropriate emojis.

My hubs felt terrible that while he was gone I was dealing with our Chernobyl Catastrophe alone.  He offered to come home early, but I was prideful enough to not be “that wife” who is too wimpy to handle things while the man is gone.  I said, “No save yourself!” and gave him the OK to finish his trip.  I may or may not have been plotting my next adventure with the Girls!

As I write this, I am again cool thanks to our new A/C system. In reflection, I feel I have learned a lot from this experience.

·      I am still that selfish “child” down deep that wants to be comfortable and have my way.
·      When things get hard, the true “me” comes out; she ain’t pretty.
·      It is OK when I get grumpy and flip out, because I can apologize. Asking forgiveness teaches my children to do the same.
·      God’s love and forgiveness is way bigger than me and way bigger than my worst moments.
·      Look for blessings in the problem. These are a few of mine:

I took the kids to the park we passed on our way to pick up an extra fan.  I ran into a friend I had not seen in a year and she totally cheered me up.  We went to see a fun movie that we would not have taken time to go see.  I did not cook or do laundry for 2 days because it was too hot.  WooHoo!

On the first day our A/C unit died, right before we went to the lake, the following Bible Verse Card appeared mysteriously at my spot on our breakfast table.

 “My brothers and sisters, you will have many kinds of troubles. But when these things happen, you should be very happy. Why? Because you know that these things are testing your faith. And this will give you patience.”  James 1:2-3 ERV


Thanks God!  You tried to warn me.  At first I really failed this test.  I yelled at my kiddos, got irritable and grouchy.  Then, I stopped.  I remembered reading that verse.  I remembered what I had heard about praising God in the problems – how it changes things.  I started praising him, and you know what?  It changed me.  I felt more positive and less short with my kids.  God really cares about our problems.  He cares enough about me to somehow place a Bible verse on my spot at breakfast.  He is a big God who has time for our little problems – even when they involve the Air Conditioner.

With love from Tennessee,

The Hot Mom

Chai "Mock"accino


Try this delicious Chai "Mock"accino Today
30 calories, Zero Sugar, and High in Calcium

Remake the No Bake Cookie

Remake the No Bake Cookie 

 A Healthy Twist on an Old Favorite 



My youngest is five, and his taste buds are five going on two. To say he is a picky eater is an understatement. I rejoice when I can sneak in healthy fiber, good fats and a dash of protein. I tested this recipe out on my extended family a few weeks ago. The family was shocked when I revealed these cookies had no sugar and no flour. My mother -in-law, who is one of the best cooks I know, said she liked these better than the traditional No Bake Cookie. Give these a try! I know you and your pickiest eater will ask for seconds with this recipe.

Fuel For School!

Just a Few of the Nutritional Benefits of this Cookie:

Raw Honey: Antioxidant, may help digestion and allergies
Organic Cold Pressed Coconut Oil : Studies show it may help prevent cancer, inflammation and heart disease. Make sure to buy cold pressed. When heat is added the coconut oil looses its flavor and healing properties.
Flax Seed: High in fiber and nutrients, may help digestion, high in antioxidants
Old Fashioned Oats: High in fiber, 6 grams of protein per 1/2 cup, studies indicate it may help cholesterol 

Healthier No Bake Oatmeal Cookie

Mix well : Be patient - it takes the coconut oil a little longer to blend.
1/2 cup honey (raw is best)
3/4 cup Peanut Butter, natural (can substitute any nut butter)
3/4 cup organic cold pressed coconut oil
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
Next Sir in:
2 cups old fashioned oats (gluten free is best)
1 Tbsp ground flax seed (grind them in the blender or food processor if you buy whole flax seeds)
optional: 1/2 cup chopped almonds


Spoon tablespoon portions into a baking dish.

Refrigerate for one hour and enjoy!


Tips:
This recipe freezes well.
If you don't have Organic coconut oil substitute peanut butter.
Store in refrigerator. 

Where on Earth do I buy Coconut Oil? 
Most major grocery chains sell this in the baking aisle. My favorite is Aldi's brand; it has the most flavor.




The World Does Not Need Another Blog

The World Does Not Need Another Blog 
The word blog used to really annoy me - I honestly did not even understand why someone would want to blog when I first heard about "blogs" back in the Stone Ages of 1998. I still think the blog craze is a little crazy, but here I am jumping on board. Why? Because I don't think the world needs another blog, but I do think families need Faith. Real, dig in your heels, down in the trenches of the mundane, your car won't start,  FAITH in JESUS. That is the reason I am jumping in this blog world.

Who am I? Just a girl, turned school teacher, turned school counselor, turned stay-at-home mom who teaches cooking classes, loves Jesus and family - and brownies (the good kind). I have this idea that God wants families to start looking to HIM more than just on Sundays. His Fit Family is not about weight loss or a way to make your family’s dinner table look like a picture off a Pinterest Board.  That stuff is about us, and the purpose is to be about Christ.  His Fit Family is about fitness God’s way- not ours. It is about faith first and exercise second. It is about our daily activities being lined up with God’s perfect purpose for our bodies. The goal is to learn how to better align our families’ Faith, Eating, and Activity to honor Christ.  

Do I have all the answers? No- honestly my son just ate four "healthy cookies" at lunch today! We are as far from perfect as it gets. This is about sharing Jesus and Life together to help create a family life that is lined up to God's best. I want to invite you to walk with me through life. I want to share our faith,fitness, food and our family - together.

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