CELEBRATING THE SEASON

"When the angel came to her, he said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. He will reign over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom.”    Luke 1:27-33

In this time of Advent, as we’re "pregnant" with expectation and all of these intense emotions swirl about us, as we long to see God’s reign, as we hope for a just and peaceful world, it seems that the messages of our stories continue to shape us.  In our elation, our fear, our inadequacy, and our confusion, we will need to keep holding one another, reminding one another, “Don’t be afraid. God is with you.”  This was the message told by Melea Brock, storyteller and guest speaker as she expressed her unexpected joy through storytelling on Friday.  We spent a few moments trying to relate to one of the many characters developed by Melea in our time together.  

Debbie Wong and Jayme Lenker then led us through the story of Christ's birth by sharing in Christmas carols.  It was a wonderful time to enjoy great food, good company, and to be reminded that "God is with us." (Emmanuel)

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

written by Jayme Lenker

Caroling with Jayme and Debbie 

Melea J. Brock

Amie Hanrahan and new baby Jake! 

MOPS = Mothers Out to be Pampered Sufficiently

Our last MOPS meeting brought delight to many faces, hands and backs, as we took time out to indulge ourselves in relaxation. 

We spent some time on Friday, November 19, having our hands massaged and fingernails painted by our Mentor Moms. Those hands were then used as templates to express our blessings and to write prayer requests and thank-you notes to our Moppets workers.  All with a dazzling coat of new nail polish!  What a wonderful reminder that a mother’s hands can be used daily for such things as wiping a child’s tears and making holiday treats.

Many moms felt the healing affect of touch as our friends Michelle and Jocelynn treated us to upper body massages.  Since most of us naturally hold our tension in our neck and shoulders, it seemed that the weight of the world was magically lifted from us that morning.

In addition, we created some fine crafts.  Many moms enjoyed making the whimsical Christmas jingle bell shadowboxes and fun beach-themed shell shadowboxes.  We also took advantage of our fine motor skills to create tiny bubble glass magnets for the fridge.  Moms then chose which craft to take home, and donated the other for the Ladies Night Out and Boutique at PazNaz on December 2 and 3.

Wow!  What a relaxing and inspiring day . . . best of all, we had time to share stories and get to know each other better.

See you at our next meeting, December 10^th for traditional Christmas caroling and a discussion of Holiday Traditions and Storytelling with Melea Brock. 


written by Gretchen Lee

Mentor Mom Day

 "Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise."  Proverbs 19:20

Good food, good company and good advice – what more could one ask for on a beautiful Friday morning?  Our November 5^th meeting was Mentor Mom Day, where we had the opportunity to get to know the Seasoned Mothers who sit at our tables.

Our eleven lovely mentors each came forward to share a bit about themselves and offer sage words of advice such as these:

BITTER ARE THE TEARS OF A CHILD...SWEETEN THEM.

DEEP ARE THE THOUGHTS OF A CHILD...QUIET THEM.

SHARP IS THE GRIEF OF A CHILD…TAKE IT FROM THEM.

SOFT IS THE HEART OF A CHILD...DON'T HARDEN IT.

On making decisions when your child wants an answer right away: “If you need an answer now, it’s NO; but if you let me think on it, it may be yes.”

“Laugh, and have fun with your kids.”

After all the introductions, our mentors joined the ladies at their table for more questions and conversation.  Moms from other tables were encouraged to mingle with all of mentors.

During this chat time, moms also went “shopping” during our winter clothing exchange.  Of course, this being Southern California, there weren’t too many parkas and mittens to choose from!  All clothing left over will go to others in need, so thank you, ladies, for bringing items for our exchange.

Thank you to all of our wonderful mentor moms at Paznaz MOPS.  We are blessed to have you!