Category: Motherhood
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nighttime rose: resurrection musings
I wrote this in honor of my daughter’s birthday about a month ago:nighttime rose:resurrection musings My daughter—my first child—my once-presumed-lifeless but miraculouslyresurrected-while-still-within-me child—the one who turned the tomb of my womb into a cradle that rocked her gently and protected her from every harsh thingwhile she formed intothe baby I met months later—I have witnessed […]
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postpartum depression
CW: Postpartum Depression & Anxiety “Did you ever think you could love something this much?” Sometimes the most innocent words spoken at a particular moment can pierce your heart and expose the shame that scurries to the shadows, trying to remain unseen. My smile felt awkward and unconvincing. How could I tell the pediatrician—a wonderful, […]
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power trip
Power Trip Signs, wonders, and miracles are the shiny packages that tell us of God’s might but oh, how we have despised God’s weakness! And in so doing, perhaps we have learned to despise our own. But Jesus submitted to the vulnerability of birth and death and all the joy and pain and every-day-ness in […]
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Say Their Names
Breath Prayer: Inhale: Remove my heart of stone. Exhale: Give me a heart of flesh. “Say Their Names” Memorial from Lake Highlands Area Moms Against Racism, displayed at Arapaho United Methodist Church Every morning this week when I walk my two children into church for VBS, we will walk by the Say Their Names Memorial […]
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Healed People Heal People
I poured my heart and soul into this post I wrote about healing for our church’s blog over at Arapaho United Methodist Church. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for the way God has met me in my pain and shame and am passionate about normalizing this conversation! Healed People Heal People BY LINDSAY O’CONNOR Father Richard […]
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the body you have
As I approach middle age, I am just as susceptible to insecurity as the next woman, but I have decided that I don’t want to spend my whole life feeling dissatisfied with my body. When my 9 year old shares her insecurities about her appearance, I only know two things: I know how just how […]
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ask for what you need
I used to think that I needed to shrink myself smaller and smaller so my needs would disappear. Some years ago, I was talking to my therapist about the intense anxiety I felt as I sat for over an hour in a doctor’s waiting room not long after I had had a miscarriage. The doctor’s […]
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Quarantine Queries 5: How can I help little people with big feelings? Quarantine Calm Down bucket for Kids!
Quarantine parenting, like quarantine-everything, is HARD. I wanted to share something simple but helpful that my almost-9-year old and I put together after a difficult day in the world of parenting. First, a confession: These two books have been sitting on my shelf, unread, for several years now. If I’m honest, even though my degrees are […]
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Quarantine queries, #4: How can I talk back to my shame?
We are coming to the end of week 7 in quarantine. Every day I am grateful for many things, but today I felt Not Ok. I’m learning that when I struggle, the struggle itself usually pales in comparison to the shame that is close on the heels of the initial problem. Some days, it whispers […]
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My Body is Not a Conversation Piece: when small talk is not so small
Ladies, we need to talk. To start with, I’d like to share an excerpt from my book-in-progress: “Rachel!” a voice said. Rachel looked up to see a long-time friend approaching her. “Marion! Hello! Sorry, June’s having a rough morning.” “No worries, I totally understand! I won’t keep you. I can see that you’re busy, but […]