This morning, when I felt like the thoughts and feelings that were raging through me were just so, so, so wrong.
This morning, when the tears began pouring before I even got past Ann Voskamp's foreword: "I've lain in bed too scared to get up and ruin another day -- ruin my kids."
This morning, as I curled up in bed, blankets tight around me, trying desperately to hold in my emotions lest they burst the dam and drown everyone and everything around me.
This book is full of raw honesty and authenticity about this beautiful, crazy, HARD adventure of motherhood. With every page, tears fill my eyes, because I know this loneliness, this "I just can't be a mother today" desperation. When the rose-tinted phase of infancy is over and the reality of the immense, daily, unending responsibility of raising our children sinks in, this book meets you there ... and it brings hope.
Before you begin to think that this book "sounds depressing," as someone said to me recently, let me assure you that it's definitely not. It's about hope ... encouragement ... joy. It's about focusing on the ultimate purpose of motherhood and then living like you believe it. It's about making life beautiful for the people in your home, including yourself.
I can't recommend this enough. I even went on Amazon and wrote a review; I love it that much.
I'm so thankful that someone wrote this book and offered it up for all of us who are in the midst of this very lonely, very tired, very desperate season of life, and to remind those who have gone ahead to remember this season and to reach out a Titus 2 helping hand.
GET IT NOW!
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A few reviews on Amazon:
Hope for this Desperate Mom,
By
This review is from: Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe (Paperback)
This book has changed my life. It has transformed my view of motherhood
and has given me the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. It is
the story of motherhood from two points of view - hip deep in the chaos
(Sarah Mae) and survived and thrived (Sally Clarkson). There are honest,
hard questions and conversations - the ones you wish someone would have
told you about instead of talking about how cute all the clothes would
be. There are hard answers - the ones you wish you could ignore, the
ones that make you dig deep into your heart and seek God. There is hope,
Scripture, encouragement, love, and grace. And the message, at the end
of the day? I'm the mother God chose for my daughter. He doesn't make
mistakes and I need to trust Him. Desperate is set up to help mamas go
further than just another parenting book. It's personal. It's
Christ-centered. It's hopeful and full of grace, and just what this
desperate mama of a toddler needed to read right now.
For Older Women Too,
By
This review is from: Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe (Paperback)
I recommend this book for us older women to read as well as the young
moms. I can forget how big my burden was back when all mine were little
if I am not careful. The busy-ness of teens and young adults present me a
different burden but I can neglect my duty as a Christian to fulfill
Titus 2. Sometimes we older moms close our eyes to the needs of these
young moms. The "I paid my dues" mentality is farfrom Christlike. This
book will remind us, burden us, and challenge us to step up to the plate
and help these young ladies. It is our godly responsibility. Perhaps
these young moms are hurting because older ones aren't serving as we
should?
5.0 out of 5 stars
I joined the Movement!, January 6, 2013
By
Christina Lang (Arizona) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe (Paperback)
Every mother needs to read this book. It is THAT GOOD. It will not
only change your mothering perspective, it has the potential to alter
the next generation of mothers across the globe.Every once in awhile a book will come around that will completely alter my thoughts on a certain subject. For me right now, Desperate is that book. Thoughts? Being a good mama is hard. But there are people out there who get it and want to help and have really good advice if we are willing be honest about our fears and failures as mamas.
It is an interesting time in my life to read this book because with 6 kids ages 10-2 I feel like I could have been in either of the two author's shoes at any given time. Sarah Mae writes as the new mama who is at times overwhelmed and depressed with all things motherhood, and Sally Clarkson writes as the seasoned mama who has been there done that and offers endless encouragement for every mamas dark days. There are days when I feel like I have got this parenting thing down to a science, and then there are days when I can be found on my bathroom floor counting from 1-10 and then back down again as I breathe deeply and try to maintain my composure.
Each chapter in this book reveals truth and experience that will encourage every mama no matter the season of parenthood that she finds herself in. But my favorite parts of the book are in the raw emotion that Sarah Mae is free to share and the consistent words of encouragement that Sally uses, always backing them up with scripture and grace.
Buy the book. Lock yourself in the bathroom to read the book. Change your life.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Mothering Book I've Ever Read, January 16, 2013
By
This review is from: Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe (Paperback)
Desperate.A word most moms can identify with. As we travel this journey of motherhood we can often find ourselves at end of our rope.
Desperate for space.
Desperate for understanding.
Desperate for help.
Desperate for hope.
Sometimes we can even put a finger on what it is we're desperate for, we just know that we are DESPERATE!
The good news is that we don't have to be desperate, we don't have to feel have to feel overwhelmed. We don't have to feel like we don't measure up as a "good" mom. We don't need to feel like failures. We can put our hope in the One who can take away our desperation for good, if we choose to live in his freedom!
Although Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson are in different seasons of mothering, they've both experienced the desperation we do. In their book, Desperate, they bravely share their hearts and experiences. Before you think to yourself, "oh great, another book telling me how to be a good mom" - think again. Desperate is not a book filled with formulas and step-by-step instruction about mothering; it's more like a mentoring session with two of your most supportive friends. It's like joining in a conversation between two mothers; one who is in the throes of raising small children and one whose children are grown.
Desperate is hands-down the best mothering book I've ever read! Each chapter has a section written by Sarah Mae and one written by Sally. It was awesome to see issues tackled from both ends of the mothering spectrum. At the end of each chapter there are questions to answer and an exercise to help you get our of the pit of desperation. Another nifty feature at the end of each chapter is a link to a short video by Sarah Mae and Sally that wraps up each chapter nicely.
This book helped me to remember that I am not alone on this journey and that my journey will not look exactly like anyone else's. God has given me exactly what I need to raise my children, I don't need to compare my journey to those around me. This book gave me hope and filled me with wisdom that I'll use as the years go on. I would highly recommend this book to ALL mothers, even if you think you aren't desperate. There is an abundance of biblical wisdom in this book that will benefit moms at any point on the journey of motherhood. I am so grateful that these two women stepped up and wrote out of truth and love about issues that most moms feel they may struggle with alone.
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