Within a few days this week, our house grew noisier, messier, and happier all at once. That’s what happens when two college-age daughters return with all their worldly goods. To be fair, the mess has mostly disappeared (they’ve been in wash/unpack/organize mode). But most of the noise and all of the happiness have remained. I’ve done a lot of thinking in this first year as a pseudo-empty-nester (pseudo only because these two youngest daughters [of the five no-longer-little Piepers] still live here and come home during breaks). And I’ve realized that what I used to take for granted, I now cherish: Buying or making snacks and other food items I know my kids like (the grocery cart looks different when only two of us live here). Letting one of them serve as DJ while I drive (my playlist looks different, too). Having them go to the grocery store or post office (errands take way too much time IMHO). And this one (ohhh, this one): Being able to hug and kiss them whenever I want (I just have to stretch up instead of down to do it). And I wish I had known. I do remember moments when the kids were younger when I would think, “Someday, it won’t be like this,” or even “Hold this moment in your heart.” But I’m not sure I did. I know that often, I was too caught up in the day or the drama or even just pure survival to pay attention to the wonder of these boisterous gifts of grace. To appreciate the extra noise and laughter as signs of real life. To know that the sometimes-hard decisions we made would have long-term positive effects. To find out that who I was as a person and the way I lived my life before my kids mattered much more than whether the house was spotless (never), the dishes done (usually), or the laundry folded (what is this thing you call “fold”?). Other people have said it in all sorts of ways, but if I could go back twenty years or so (My children are 28-18), here are five pieces of advice I’d give myself: Sleep. I know you don’t think so, but you need rest more than you need the dishes put away or the lesson plans tweaked. And the long-term benefits will astound you. Walk.* What you will start in your early forties should be mandatory now. Even just half an hour a day to walk, pray, and think will help more than you know. *Others might substitute run, dance, swim, etc. Focus. Pay more attention to God’s desires for your family and less to what others think. Keep Him as your first,...

During this Mother’s Day week, as I find my way back out of the land of deadlines, I have a special blog to share. It’s written by an author who, like me, has an adopted daughter and who, like me, prays for her adopted daughter’s birth mom especially at this time.  I hope you’ll enjoy Tricia’s insightful words and check out the Pearl Girls™ contest information as well. Blessings! Welcome to Pearl Girls™ Mother of Pearl Mother’s Day blog series. The series is a weeklong celebration of moms and mothering. Each day will feature a new post by some of today’s best writers (Tricia Goyer, Megan Alexander, Suzanne Woods Fisher, Beth Engelman, Holley Gerth, Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, and more). I hope you’ll join us each day for another unique perspective on Mother’s Day. AND … do enter the contest for a chance to win a beautiful hand crafted pearl necklace. To enter, just {CLICK THIS LINK} and fill out the short form. Contest runs 5/1-5/8 and the winner will be announced on 5/11. Contest is only open to US and Canadian residents. If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace or one of the Pearl Girls™ products (all GREAT Mother’s Day gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls. And to all you MOMS out there! Happy Mother’s Day! Adoption, a Mother’s Greatest Gift by Tricia Goyer I held the small baby in my arms, wrapped up in a receiving blanket to keep her warm from the chill of the delivery room, and a voice spoke to me. “Congratulations, Mom.” The congratulations came from an unlikely source—the grandmother of this child, the mother of the sweet birth mother who chose adoption for her baby girl. To say I was overwhelmed is an understatement. Thankfulness filled my heart—to God who’d answered my prayers and to the birth mom who’d chosen our family for her daughter. I also ached that my joy would be another’s heartache. Working with teen moms for ten years, I was often an advocate for the young mother. I knew that while the weeks and months ahead would be a time of celebration for our family, they would be ones of heartache and grieving for this woman. Adoption is a wonder and the beauty, and the sacrifice of it is never so clear as on Mother’s Day. My new daughter is one year old now, and she is a huge part of my heart. Her life is a...