November 20th Meeting Announcements and Notes

We had a great meeting today! For those of you who missed it, here are some notes....

Our speaker was Mary K. Petty and she spoke on the Five Love Languages. What a blessing it was to receive her words. She spoke from Gary Chapman's book, "The Five Love Languages." If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. I had to read it for one of my classes in college and it is phenominal. Here are some things that are on the handout she gave us.

The five languages are: Acts of Service, Gifts, Quality Time, Words of Affirmation and Physical Touch. Mary K. talked about how we each have a "love tank" and how we need to have our tanks filled. She geared most of her speech toward our children and what we can do to fill their love tanks. For example:

If your child's tank gets filled through acts of service, you may wake up a half hour early to make a special breakfast for them or, instead of telling your child to go to bed, go upstairs with them and tuck them into bed. Talk about their day with them and pray with them. It will help to build lasting memories for both of you to cherish.

If your child's love language is gifts, keep a small collection of inexpensive gifts packed away for your child. Then give them one at a time as you sense there is a need. When away from home, mail a small package to your child with their name on it.

Let's say your child's language is quality time...stop what you are doing to make eye contact with your child as they tell you something important, get down on their eye level when talking to them. Cook something together for a snack and share more meals together.

Affirmation....make up a song about them, make it a habit to say "I love you" when putting them to bed or parting for the day. Create a special name of affection for your child that is only used between the two of you.

Physical touch....when you greet or say goodbye to your child, gather them into your arms and hold them. Kneel down for small children. If your child is under stress, gently stroke their head to relax them.

Here are some discussion questions to discuss with a friend, family member or your spouse or child:

1. Can you identify YOUR love language?
2. Can you identify the love languages of your spouse and children?
3. Can you see why it takes a concerted effort to speak someone's love language that's different than yours?
4. Can you think of something specific you could do for each of your family members in order to speak their particular love languages?

For more ideas, pick up a copy of the handout at the next meeting.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

A big thank you to those of you that have volunteered to help our steering members with various things. Your name has been given to them and you should be receiving a call soon.

Thank you also to those of you that volunteered to help with Parent's Nite Out. Someone will be contacting you soon!

Fundraiser forms are due in the church office by 10a.m. tomorrow, November 21st. If they are not in the office by then, please get them to me by Monday November 24th. December 18th is our Christmas Party. If you wish to participate in our gift exchange, please bring a $5 gift.

We have adopted a couple from the Christmas Bureau to make the holidays a little brighter for them. We only have two more items from their list that were not picked up. If you are interested in contributing, please contact Myah.

Just a reminder that Mom's Nite Out meets this coming Monday at 7p.m. @ Starbucks on Coliseum across from the mall. Come grab a cup of coffee and enjoy chatting with the moms.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving and be safe if you are travelling! We'll see you all on December 4th as we start preparing our hearts for the celebration of Christ's birth!

School delays and cancellations

Keep in mind with the snow starting to fall that if Southwest Allen County Schools are on a delay or cancellation we will NOT meet that day. Thanks!

Custom Made Christmas Cards

If you missed the meeting last week, Sara Norwood donated a set of holiday cards that she makes herself. She has several styles you can choose from and have them made just to your liking. If you're interested, check out her site at www.norwoodarts.com

MOPS Update

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile but there hasn't been much to report with the long break in between meetings. Today we talked about being grateful. Several moms shared stories of times in their lives when something happened, what the outcome was and how it moved them to be grateful in that situation. We also talked about Thanksgiving and the different traditions that different families carry. It was a good time and hopefully it helped some of the moms that may have been looking for a new tradition to start within their own families.

Here are some announcements for you!

We kicked off our fundraiser today. We have flyers for Avon products as well as Home Interiors. It is a very simple layout that is easy to follow and the prices are sure to suit any budget. If you missed the meeting or forgot to pick up a form and would like to participate, post a comment on the site or email me at bizzybeemom@hotmail.com and I'll get the forms to you. We appreciate all of you that are participating in this!

We are now taking volunteers for the Parent's Nite Out on December 5. Email Stacy (same address above) for more info.

Mom's Nite Out last month was a hit so I have scheduled another one for Monday November 24th. We will meet at the Starbucks on Coliseum again @ 7p.m. Come for your favorite cup or coffee or cider!

We are going to be talking about Christmas Traditions at our December 4 meeting. If you have a family tradition that you would like to share with the group. please email it to Stacy and it will be printed for everyone to take home.

Do you ever need groceries but aren't sure how you're going to stretch your dollars??? Well, Angel Food Ministries offers a large box of food each month for $30. Check out their website at http://www.angelfoodministries.com/ for menus and a pick up site near you!

Our next meeting will be November 20. We will have a speaker there to talk about "The Five Love Languages" don't miss it!

Have a great week and stay tuned for updates!