At this time a week ago, I was in Orlando, Florida.
Nope, not visiting the “House of Mouse”—I think I D.O.D.’d (Disney overdosed) when my kids were little.
Instead, I was with 4,400 moms of preschoolers, at the MOPS (Mother’s of Preschoolers) International Convention. MOPS is a great organization that provides support and resources to mothers of young children. Local chapter meetings bring together other moms who are in the same challenging season of life.
The convention is always fun. Think of thousands of young moms, giddy at the prospect of an entire three days without having to change a diaper or deal with spit up. Three days of letting someone else cook. Two nights of not being kept awake by a needy child, or a needy husband. No wonder the atmosphere is electric.
This year’s speakers included Elisa Morgan, CEO of MOPS; John Ortberg, author and pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church; and Laurie Smith, designer from the hit show Trading Spaces and the mom of a ten month old and a five year old. I got to meet her and she was so terrific–very funny and down to earth, and a beautiful person.
MOPS International as an organization publishes magazines, books and lots of web resources to help those same young parents. It’s a Christian organization but many of the moms who come to MOPS don’t attend church regularly (at least at first). They’re just looking for help and support with their preschool kids.
I had the opportunity to connect with friends and fellow writers. I visited with my editor from Revell, Jennifer Leep. She’s was my editor for Breathe & Listen. She’s an amazing woman and a talented editor, and a joy to work with.

And I got to meet author Trish Berg. We’ve been connecting through e-mail and blogs for at least a year or two, so it was fun to finally meet in person. She was also presenting a workshop on her book The Great American supper Swap, along with another friend and fellow writer, Beth Lagerborg.

This was my second visit to the MOPS Convention. Two years ago, when it was held in Dallas, I was there to teach on my book Breathe. This year, I did a three-hour (yikes!)workshop on my newest book, Oxygen. Both books were co-published by MOPS with Revell Books.
This “intensive” workshop was actually a blast, because the women had time to explore the six spiritual practices I write about in Oxygen. The moms actually got to try each of the practices (so they didn’t have to listen to me for three hours!). Moms rarely have time for things like journaling, solitude, prayer. But I get to give the moms in my workshop the gift of time, and the gift of coaching them through these practices.
This is the kind of stuff that makes my heart beat fast. Because if you can bring a mom closer to Jesus, affirm that what she’s doing has eternal significance, that’s huge. You influence not just that mom, but her children as well. So I’ll be speaking to sixty-six moms, but they represent sixty-six families—so the impact is multiplied in their families and their circles of influence.
Most of you Boomer Babes readers are beyond the pre-school years (although I know a few of you still have little ones). But even if your kids are older, MOPS still has something to offer you: a chance to share the wisdom and strength the years have brought you.
Every MOPS chapter has “mentor moms”—women who are a few years beyond the pre-school parenting phase. They offer a listening ear, a bit of wisdom, to the young women who are in the midst of one of parenting’s most exhausting seasons.
I’ve blogged here before about mentoring. I’m a firm believer in the value of older women instructing the younger ones. I often hear people my age or older complaining about the younger generation. Good grief, we sound like our parents did when we were young. I think we have no right to complain if we are not spending a bit of time building into at least one young woman. MOPS provides an opportunity to do that—to be a loving presence in the lives of young moms.
If you’re an empty nester, or if your kids have yet to provide you with grandchildren, being a mentor mom is a perfect opportunity. You can dispense advice to young women, encourage and love them, and often, you get to hold babies. If you’re the mom of teens and you wish you knew when they were pre-schoolers what you know now, here’s your chance to share that wisdom.
I have kids on the cusp of the teen years, and while I’m not a mentor mom through MOPS, I try to be mentoring and encouraging at least one or two younger women all the time. And I make sure my speaking schedule includes several MOPS groups each year.
If you are a mom, consider being a mentor mom–whether formally through MOPS, or informally by just encouraging other women.

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