My Fabulous Finds in June - The Merry Momma

I don’t know about you, but June is a BUSY month for us! Isn’t it funny how you always think you’re going to get so much done in the summer, but then *poof!* weekends just start filling up fast? That’s how June was for us.

But as busy as it was, I still had time to discover some Fabulous Finds! And they are definitely fabulous this month! (Aren’t they always, though?? I think so!)

Without further ado, here they are – some of my favorite finds from around the Web this month, as well as a few of my favorite products!

**Links in this post may be affiliate links. This means that if you click that link and purchase the product, I may receive a small compensation. I am, however, committed to honestly assessing the products mentioned. Please read my disclosure policy for more details. **

June Fabulous Finds

Raising Kids with No Regrets: Interview with Rhonda Stoppe | Simply Joyful Podcast

I’ve mentioned on my Facebook page that the Simply Joyful Podcast with Kristi Clover is my new great love. Her enthusiasm is contagious, her guest interviews are awesome, and her laugh is just so darn infectious. I LOVE listening to this show.   And one of my favorites from all of Season 1 was this interview with Rhonda Stoppe. (It actually aired in May, but I didn’t get around to listening to it until June.) I found her insights on parenting in general and raising boys in particular fascinating, motivating, and extremely practical. I got so much out of her interview, I bought her book, Raising Sons to Be Men, the very next day! I just started it a few days ago, but so far I’m liking it a lot.

5 PARENTING STRATEGIES TO EMPOWER OUR KIDS | MOB Society

This guest post from the MOB Society contains reflections from a mom seeking to apply the lessons she has learned from her oldest son to the parenting of her younger children. These are five strategies that will help us raise our children into adults who are responsible, who are empowered, and who make wise choices in their lives. You will definitely want to read this post and learn from her wise advice. My favorite is #3!

3 Reasons Mom “Loses It” With Her Kids {& How She Can Win} | Club31 Women

Unlike the author of this post, I knew loooong before I had kids that I had a temper. It’s actually one of the reasons I wasn’t sure I wanted to have kids. But through my kids, God has been shaping me and molding me into a more loving person, and He continually gives me the strength and wisdom I need to keep calm in the more heated moments of motherhood.   

Posts like this one from Lisa Jacobson of Club31 Women continue to equip me to win the battle against my temper. I LOVE her explanation of three common reasons moms “lose it” with their kids, and I especially love that she offers “winning strategies” for each of them. Not only will you identify a few of the triggers in your life, but you will be equipped and ready to overcome them!

10 Practical Ways to Plan for Peace

31 Days of Real Food | Serving Joyfully

I’ve mentioned a few times on this blog and on Facebook that I began a real food journey as part of the MuTu System to correct my diastasic recti. I’ve talked about my love for the 100 Days of Real Food blog and cookbook, but I was looking for more real food resources. I found several, which I will share sometime in the near future, but this series from Serving Joyfully was very informative and comprehensive. If you’re interested in learning more about the benefits of a real food diet and how to go about following one, this is a fabulous place to start! I especially liked the post about how to eat real food on a budget.

just do the dishes. please. the kids will be fine. | findingjoy.net

I shared this one on Facebook last week, but it was so good it deserved another mention. While I can’t exactly relate to her intense need to clean everything (I wish I had that urge!), I can totally relate to her guilt over not “savoring every moment.” I have read sooooo many posts, articles, books, etc. that say things like, “Forget the dishes! Forget the laundry! They’ll be there tomorrow! Your babies won’t be babies forever!” I bet you have, too.

 And while I understand (and completely agree with) the sentiment that kids grow up fast and you don’t want to spend their entire childhood cleaning the house, the fact is that at some point those things DO need to get done. Work and responsibilities are a fact of life. And I personally think it’s good for our kids to see us fulfilling our other roles besides “mom” sometimes.

Housework doesn’t have to conflict with mom work – it’s actually part of it! So while I think we all need to be careful not to be consumed by our to-do list, we shouldn’t feel guilty about having one, either. Read this post. And then just do the dishes. 🙂

Products I Loved This Month

Beyond Bath Time – Erin Davis

“Motherhood for motherhood’s sake won’t leave us any more fulfilled than working just to work. But understanding your God-given purpose and embracing that purpose does lead to fulfillment.” – Beyond Bath Time

I absolutely LOVED this book!!! It blew me away how good it was. For one thing, her description of how feminism and our society’s obsession with self-fulfillment have programmed women to believe that motherhood is a hindrance and a burden perfectly sum up how I felt five years ago. I’m so thankful God used a couple books to change my heart, but I could have used this one!  

My other favorite part of the book was chapter 7 when she invited readers to honestly ask themselves if they have been talking or acting as though their children are a burden rather than a blessing. She says, “I don’t say, ‘My children are such a burden!’ But those feelings are revealed in my words and actions.” Yikes. That was very convicting to me, as was the entire chapter. But convicting in a good way that made me aware and motivated me to change.

This is not a long book, so it was a quick read, but it gripped me the whole way through. There was no fluff or filler. Every word hit its mark right in the center of my heart. It definitely succeeded in its mission to help me embrace motherhood as a sacred role.

Taming the To-Do List – Glynnis Whitwer

Taming the To-Do List is another fabulous book I read this month. I read almost the entire thing on our road trip a couple weeks ago, and it was incredible! I gained so many valuable insights into the reasons behind my tendency to procrastinate (hint: it’s not laziness – it actually stems from perfectionism!), practical ways to streamline my schedule and routines, and powerful inspiration to prioritize some big things that I’ve been putting off because I’ve been filling my days with “urgent” (but less important) tasks.

If you struggle with procrastination, or you just want to learn how to better organize your day, accomplish your big goals, and fulfill your important purposes, I highly recommend this book!

Additional Resources: Procrastination: Preventing the Decay of Delay by June Hunt

Pineapple slicer/corer

I’ll be honest – I was a little skeptical about this product. I had used a pineapple corer several years ago, and I didn’t think it was worth the trouble. It really wasn’t any easier to use than cutting by hand, and it left a lot of the pineapple behind. But I found this one so cheap at ALDI, I thought it was worth a shot. And I love it!

  It makes super easy work of coring and slicing a pineapple – it’s literally just a simple turn of the handle! Sure, you still have to do some cutting if you want chunks, but I leave the slices in a stack, make two cuts with a knife in a cross shape and two cuts in diagonals, and presto! Pineapple chunks in under 10 seconds!

When I told my husband about it, the first thing he asked was, “Does it waste a lot of the pineapple, though?” (Like I said, we’d experienced that before.) I showed him this picture and said, “Does it look like it wastes anything??”

I got mine at ALDI, but I found several exactly like it on Amazon!

Click here or on the image to get yours! —>

There you have it! Those are my Fabulous Finds for June! Whether you’re looking for inspiration, stimulation, or recommendations … I’ve got you covered! 🙂