And we're live!

The new spring line of the Noonday Collection  has officially launched. 

And while most people will look at this beautiful pictures and see pretty colors and intricate details and unique designs, I look at them and see stories. 

I see a mom trying to make enough money to feed her children. 

I see a woman with HIV seeking to maintain her dignity and meet her medical needs. 

I see a man smiling from ear to ear in the fact that he can now, for the first time ever, afford to send his children to school. 

I see beautiful faces of every size, shape, age, and color all working to make the world a better place. 

And I see Jesus. 

More than the pretty products, I love the verse from which Noonday is named: 

  

"....when you satisfy the needs of the oppressed, your night will become like the noonday."

Isaiah 58:10

I hope you will take a minute today to check out the website. Look at the products, but more importantly, watch the beautiful story of Jalia and Daniel, two of our artisans who truly represent the heart of Noonday and our desire to help those in need. 

www.mccallaldridge.noondaycollection.com

Loving Lately

See this picture? Isn't she beautiful? She's one of our Noonday artisans in Rwanda. 

She's one of the many lives that have been changed through YOUR Noonday purchases.
And see what she's holding? Look closely. It's a note from me and my family, thanking her for her hard work and for being a part of it all. And the first time I saw it, it made my cry. It seemed to make Noonday even more real to me. I AM working to change the world for even one person. While I love the pretty accessories and the excuse to look cute that Noonday offers, I love these artisans so much more. And tomorrow the new spring line comes out with over seventy new pieces. That's over seventy ways that you can make a change in the life of someone else in this world. AND I LOVE IT. 

This week I'm also loving......

*Monday night, the Noonday ambassadors have a conference call with THE JEN HATMAKER. Ask me if I was excited. 

* A little girl I prayed for what seems like a long time recently celebrated her first birthday. 

*This week's Sevenly Cause. 

*This post on how to show love to a special need's family. 

*My friend Lindsy's new fundraising t-shirts. 

*Super excited about FINALLY seeing this movie. It's about time. 

*This post by Jami Nato on saying no. 

*This amazing post on serving our sisters. 

What are YOU loving this week? I'll be back tomorrow to share some of my favorite new Noonday pieces with you. Are you excited? Good. That makes two of us. 

It's Not Easy Being Married....

....to me. 

I'm messy. 

I leave my towel on the bathroom floor. 

I steal his hairbrush. 

I get sidetracked.....often.

It's taken me a long time to develop my skills in the kitchen and still have so much to learn. 

I get frustrated. 

I raise my voice. 

I say hurtful things. 

I'm selfish, stubborn, and don't always listen like I should. 

I get frustrated when things don't go as planned. 

I complain about my hair.....often. 

I am not always a ball of sunshine. 

And yet He's still here.

There's something to be said for that, folks. 

Want to know what I think it is? 

He loves Jesus way more than He loves me, and in return, I respect him immensely. 

And it works for us. 

Here's hoping that if you have a fella, he loves Jesus more than he loves you; 

I'm convinced it's the secret to a healthy, happy marriage....that and a shared love of all things Harry Potter.....or, as Libby calls him, 'Libby Baker's boyfriend'. 

There's a Hippie Hiding in Here

I totally think that in another life I could have been a hippie. Not so much a free love and puff puff hippie; more of a living on love, we are all beautiful kind of hippie. 

I am literally the happiest version of myself when I'm in Africa.

 Dirty. 

Sweaty.

 Messy hair. 

Red feet (from the five layers of red dirt). 

Long skirt. 

Covered in babies and all kinds of happy. 

I am totally in my element there. 

I could stay forever and smile until my face hurts. 

Just thinking about Africa gives me butterflies in the pit of my stomach-- the good kind. 

And although I still have no official plans to hop on a plane anytime soon, I know it's coming. 

I can honestly say that I feel more at home there than I do here. 

My heart literally aches to go back.

There are very few times that I have been completely certain

 that I was doing exactly what God wants from me...Africa is one of those times. 

So until we meet again, Africa, know that I'll be missing you and longing for you and dreaming of you. 

Every. single. day. 

Making Heart Day Special

So I wanted Valentine's Day to be special for Hollyn. 

Libby had a big school party to be excited about; Hollyn was stuck home with me. 

So, here's what we did: we painted. 

OK, so maybe I helped a little to get her started...

I mixed a little shaving cream and a little food coloring, and there you have it. 

BEST. BATH. EVER. 

Needless to say, my little girl is quite the artist. 

She giggled and laughed and painted and giggled and laughed and painted. 

I'd call that a successful morning. 

And Libby's school party was quite the hit. 

Here's hoping your weekend was wonderful. 

If you need me, I'll be stalking the sample; it's Noonday spring sample shipment week. 

Ask me if I'm excited. 

Your Opportunity is Waiting

Earlier this month, I shared this post on the MercyFound blog, a great place for those interested in caring for God's children throughout the world. However, in case you missed it, I wanted to share it here as well. 

The past year was such an amazing adventure. 

God provided the means for me to travel to Africa not once but twice in 2012, 

once to Uganda in July and once to Malawi in October. 

And while these trips were full of memorable moments, the most memorable moment I had was when I held an orphan for the very first time. 

That sounds funny, I suppose. 

I have several friends who were adopted or have adopted, and I've hugged them and loved their little ones. 

But I'd never before help a child with no one to call her own. 

She was in an orphanage with all of her survival needs met, but she was still missing one very important necessity in this roller coaster called life: a family of her own. 

She looked up at me, and I stared into her beautiful brown eyes, stroked her dark, curly hair and prayed for her family to come for her soon. 

I was changed by that experience, 

and I can see her little face in my mind today like it's been carved there in stone. 

And while I believe God has a family for her, waiting somewhere to hold her tight and kiss her good night, I also believe that God wanted me to love on her in that place at that moment. 

Visiting orphans is life changing and important. 

We can't adopt them all, but we can go and show them the love of a family, even if it's only for a brief time. 

There are so many great opportunities to go and be the hands and feet of Christ to little ones waiting on families across the world. 

God may have called you to adopt domestically or internationally, and you may have your littles home with you at this very moment. 

Or maybe you're not sure WHAT God wants from you or how He wants to use you. 

Sometimes the answers come through taking action, from trying something new, or from stepping outside of your comfort zone.

Maybe you're looking for a opportunity to teach your children about the importance of serving others. 

Perhaps you are searching for a meaningful way to spend your summer.

Or He may be calling you to simply be an advocate, and I can tell you from personal experience that my voice for the orphans was turned up a notch after I went and held and saw for myself. 

It's as though people took my words and my heart more seriously once they knew that I'd been, 

and I came home with a much better understanding of the needs that weigh heavy on the hearts of orphans.

And while the opportunities to serve here at home are limitless, I want to share with you some opportunities to serve orphans around the world.

If you're feeling called to go, here are some great ways to do just that: 

147 Million Orphans - Honduras

Ordinary Hero- Ethiopia and Haiti

One Life- India, Kosovo, South Asia, Southeast Asia

Visiting Orphans- Africa, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Ukraine, China, Ecuador, Haiti, India

Sweet Sleep- Ethiopia

Compassion International- Bolivia, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Nicaragua, Peru, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda

Show Hope- China and Haiti

Orphan Outreach- Latvia, India, Guatemala, Honduras, Russia

Project Go! - Peru, Kenya, Russia, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico

All God's Children International (AGCI)- China, Ethiopia, Haiti, Rwanda, Taiwan

Serving God's Kids- Mexico

Bring Me Hope- China

Every Orphan's Hope- Zambia

Lifesong for Orphans- Guatemala

Heart of the Bride- Haiti, Kenya, Uganda, Ukraine, Zambia

Simply clink on the links above for more information. 

The opportunities are limitless. 

You will bless others and be blessed more than can know.  

And the little ones are waiting for someone just like you.

I AM THAT MOM: Take 3

I am that mom who: 

-after eight years is still, constantly, every day, learning something new about myself, my kiddos, and my job as their mom. This whole motherhood thing is essentially largely about always moving forward, always evolving, always growing, and always changing--- hopefully for the better. Just when you think you've got this, they grow. They learn something new. They change. And you quickly realize, you don't got jack. 

-openly admits that motherhood is hard. At times, it's frustrating, it's overwhelming, and it's often lonely. Why lonely, you ask? Aren't there millions of mothers in the world going through essentially the same struggles, giving their all every day only to feel like they're still messing it up? Of course there are, but society and Donna Reed tell us not to talk about those things. And thus, we feel alone. 

-has been reminded time and time again that there is no way I could do this without my Jesus. On the days when it's just too much or I've had all the permanent marker incidents I can stand, He reminds me to be patient. Be still. Be brave. Keep on chugging. If He can love me after all the times I've failed Him with grace that is new every morning, the least I can do is work to forgive my kids after they cut their own hair, lock the cat in the play kitchen, color on everything we own, and leave sour milk sippy cups in my car. 

I am the mom that: 

- was an only child. Sibling rivalry is a foreign concept to me. Why can't we just all love each other and get along and share? I would give anything for a sister; can't you at least appreciate the one you have been blessed with? I mean, come on. LOVE YOUR SISTER ALREADY. Pleaseandthankyou. 

- still, after eight years, gets grossed out on a regular basis. 

Poopy diapers, wiping little booties, snot, boogers, and throw up. Oh my. 

- has just now realized that there are books on parenting. And I should read them. If I were going to get a job doing ANYTHING ELSE in this world, I'd learn everything I could about it. I might even have spent four (or more) years getting a degree to teach me to do just that. But become a mom and it's like, "No instructions. No past experience. No problem. You'll figure it out. Good luck. Here's hoping you and your kids make it out alive and without severe emotional damage". Parenting books (at least some of them) are helpful. I DO have things to learn. I AM a reader. I clearly DO NOT know everything. I WANT to be the best mom I can be for my girls. It just makes sense. 

- messes up. Often. I have regrets about how I handled situations, what my kids ate that day, and the time I spent doing dishes versus playing Go Fish. But I am getting better. I am doing my best. And I have truly mastered the art of asking for forgiveness. 

I am THAT mom...you know, the one who: 

- really wishes sometimes that my kids were more alike. If we're being honest here (which we are), my kids are total opposites in almost every way possible. This means that how we discipline one doesn't work for the other one. And that's hard. It's stressful. It's not fun. But we're getting there. 

- honestly thinks my kids are the most talented, beautiful, precious, funniest kids ever. My heart literally feels like it's going to burst in my chest sometimes when I look at them. 

And this is exactly how I think it should be.

-will leave the house looking like a total mess from head to toe, but you'd better believe my kids will be cute. WHY do we do this? Someone please explain it to me. 

-will shameless eat M and M's like it's my job, but my kids WILL eat their broccoli.

 It's the law in this here land. 

I AM THAT MOM WHO: 

- has learned almost everything I know about love from my kids. They bring out the best in me. They helped me grow up. They changed me. They molded me. They shaped me. 

-will never ever for the life of me understand how something that is sometimes so challenging and so hard can also bring me such intense joy and such extreme happiness. 

-feels the utmost sense of responsibility to teach my kids to care for others, to think about the least of these, to love the seemingly unlovable, to do more than what society sees as acceptable. I want them to be givers, not takers. Selfless, not selfish. Helpers, not hurters. 

-knows I will miss this time in my life when Libby literally asks two hundred questions a day, thinks she has it all figured out, and has more ideas in her head than I can keep up with.

-realizes I will one day long for the sound of Hollyn singing to herself as she plays with My Little Ponies for the one hundredth time this week, crawling in my bed five out of seven nights a week at roughly two a.m., and crying simply because I had to leave to take a shower. 

- is working hard to see the beauty in the mess that often comes from being a mom and is having more fun trying than I ever thought possible.

Thanks again to everyone who contributed to this year's I AM THAT MOM series. I have truly enjoyed reading your stories, relating to your struggles, and sharing your joys.

And I ask, WHAT KIND OF MOM ARE YOU????