Mentor Moms Needed for Young Lives Ministry

Young Life is starting a new program for teen moms this fall in Indianapolis.  It is called Young Lives and there is a need for Mentor Moms. Teens and Mentor Moms gather every Wednesday evening from 6-8 pm at Church at the Crossing (Keystone and 91st).  The group eats dinner together, reads scripture, and does a craft.  You can bring your children - childcare is provided.  Being a mentor could also include hanging out, helping with homework, giving her a ride to a doctor's appointment, etc.  The goal is to be in relationship and support these girls in their transition to motherhood.
If you are interested, contact Renae Dorsey at jed.renae@gmail.com, 317-313-7928, or Erin Whittmer (coordinator) at erin.wiersma@gmail.com, 317-777-0903.

Mark Your Calendars

We have a small change to our MOPS schedule for the year. We had to swap a talk for October with one that was scheduled for February.
So please note the change:

October 16- Raising Grateful Kids with Marianne Miller
February 19- How to Talk to your Kids about Race with Tara VanderWoude

A Beautiful Mess – Story of my life!

Well, the “mess” part anyway. The “beautiful” part didn’t come until recently.

I’ve always been kind of a mess, though the definition of that word has changed over the course of my life. In high school, I felt like a mess because my clothes never seemed quite right, and my hair was always frizzy. In college, I experienced some relational pain, and my heart felt like a mess. As I got married and moved out on my own, my house was often a mess – and to this day, please, please don’t ask me to see my bedroom (a.k.a. dumping ground) when you come over!

When I became a mom, I definitely felt like a mess. Not at first – I was on a high of just having moved back to my hometown of Indianapolis, quitting my full-time corporate PR job and having the baby we had just tried 13 months to conceive (with the help of a fertility specialist).

But as time went on, things got more complicated. Our eldest daughter, always a strong-willed one, began exhibiting behavior that led us to seek professional help. Six months ago, she received a diagnosis of Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). Her SPD is mild, we attend weekly sessions with an amazing occupational therapist and my daughter is really just all-around awesome. But in my darker moments, I find myself asking, did I mess things up?

Of course, the answer is no. The truth is, life is messy. One of my favorite authors, Madeleine L’Engle wrote,

“Maybe you have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light.”

In the same vein, maybe you have to know the mess before you can see the beauty. Seeing my house as a complete mess makes me really love those few occasions when it’s clean. And knowing where we started with my daughter makes me so thankful for how much progress she’s made. On a faith-related note, knowing the ugliness and depth of my sin makes it all the more amazing that God has redeemed me and loves me (in spite of my mess).

By the way, have I mentioned how glad I am you’ve found your way to Redeemer MOPS? In many ways, our little group personifies “a beautiful mess.” But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Since I joined MOPS four years ago, I’ve found lasting friendships, inspiration through our speakers, made some awesome crafts and received amazing encouragement in my journey through motherhood. I look forward to getting to know you better this year.

Nikki Reed

Redeemer MOPS Coordinator

My Beautiful Mess

For the last four years I have been a part of MOPS (Mothers Of PreSchoolers), the first two in Illinois and the last two at Redeemer Presbyterian Church downtown Indy.  I can't imagine where I would be in motherhood without the support of MOPS!  This year, the international theme is:  A Beautiful Mess.  "Moms live in messes. The toys, crumbs, and spit-up are their natural surroundings. Moms often feel like a mess. They are exhausted, under-showered, and hormonal. Their past and present circumstances and decisions can leave them feeling inadequate for God’s love and purposes.  A Beautiful Mess — reminds moms that beauty can come out of their difficult spots. The grime of mothering young children brings the beauty of motherhood. The bruises of life can bring God’s redemption" (www.mops.org).  My group came up with the idea for each table to display a mess created by one of the table members.  I was asked to contribute my papercrafting mess with a finished product, a card, to represent the beautiful creation that comes out of the mess.  I am excited to start my fifth year of MOPS this week, meet new friends, take a break from the mess, and reflect on the theme verse: "For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago" (Ephesians 2:10).     

Summertime Fun at Peewinkle’s

Are you looking for something different and fun to entertain your children during the long summer break? One of my daughter’s favorite activities, any time of year, is to go to a marionette show at Peewinkle’s Puppet Studio.

Peewinkle’s features family friendly puppet shows throughout the year, delightly young audiences and educating older children (and adults) about the art of puppetry. The cozy little theatre is adorable and the shows are always enchanting; great entertainment for children from toddlers through school age.

Currently playing is the Summertime Cabaret, which runs every summer and showcases some of Peewinkle’s best marionettes, all handmade with love by the puppeteer proprietors (Heidi Shackleford, Peggy Melchior and Debbi White). Some of the highlights include an egg-laying ostrich ballerini and an octopus that does the hokey-pokey. What could be more fun for young audiences than that?

My daughter and I have been going to every Peewinkle’s show since she was only 18 months old and the performances have always captured her attention and imagination. All of the shows are just exciting enough, and just short enough, to hold the attention of even the youngest viewer. And the free popcorn doesn’t hurt!

Inspired by these frequent visits, my daughter loves puppets. She loves to play with her many hand puppets and marionettes (which I spend a lot of time untangling), engaging them in dramatic adventures with her toy dinosaurs and princess dolls.  A good friend of the family built her a custom puppet stage, appropriately named the Ladybug Theatre, which she plays with all the time. She frequently sits me down to watch mini-performances, normally of the puppets singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or Disney showtunes. 

I know as she gets older this love of puppetry will help expand her creativity and imagination. I look forward to when she is just a little older and can take advantage of the educational opportunities Peewinkle’s offers with its workshops (sometimes offered after shows), summer camps and mini-camps offered throughout the year. During these classes, young students make their own puppets and learn how to operate them. Peewinkle’s truly celebrates puppetry as an art form.

This delightful little theatre is located right downtown, just a few blocks south of Monument Circle, at 25 E. Henry Street. The Summertime Cabaret is only running for a short time, with performances at 10 am and noon on Thursdays and Fridays through July 19. The cost is $8 per person (kids under 2 are free). The puppet theatre is wonderfully intimate, with only 50 seats, so shows can sell out fast. Get your tickets online at www.peewinklespuppets.com or call (317) 917-9454 for more information.