RESCHEDULED: MOPS @ Night!!

UPDATE: MOPS @ Night kickoff has been rescheduled due to weather. We will be meeting on Monday, Feb 23, 2015. 

So, so excited to announce that beginning in just a few weeks, Anderson MOPS will be hosting evening meetings! Please come! Invite your mama friends!

Many Anderson preschooler moms aren't able to attend our regular morning meetings due to work, homeschooling, childcare issues, etc. So during February through May, we're doing a pilot run for a new monthly meeting option called MOPS @ Night!

Here are the details for our MOPS @ Night KICKOFF!

• When: KICKOFF is Monday, February 23rd at 7:00pm! After the Feb meeting, our regular MOPS @ Night meetings will be the 3rd Monday of the month, Mar through May.
• Where: Boulevard Baptist's Christian Activities Center (brick building behind the church) in the Upstairs Multipurpose Room
• Who's Invited: These meetings are open to ANY mother of a preschooler (pregnancy through kindergarten), whether you attend the morning meetings or not!
• Cost: FREE!!

Want more info? Here ya go...


Will childcare be available during MOPS @ Night?
No, childcare will not be available during our evening MOPS meetings. These meetings are for moms only! :)

Will the evening MOPS meetings be just like the morning meetings? 
Nope! The evening meetings will have a completely different agenda from the morning meetings, so please feel free to come to both. And bring a friend! Or three!

What will we be doing at MOPS @ Night?
We'll have a chance to get to know each other, enjoy appetizers, desserts & coffee, learn through video teaching & discuss thought-provoking topics that are relevant to this stage of motherhood... It's going to be kinda fabulous!


Free is awesome!! Will MOPS @ Night always be free?
Our pilot run during February through May will be completely free... this is a chance for you to check us out & decide if MOPS is for you. After the May meeting, the MOPS planning team will figure out if MOPS @ Night should be a permanent thing!


Have more questions? Please email me at sarahrettew@gmail.com. Hope to see you soon!

need help with dues?

We don't ever, ever, EVER want finances to be the reason that you can't join Anderson MOPS!

If you'd love to be a part of our MOPS community & the dues are just not possible for your family, we have full & partial scholarships, as well as payment plan options.

. . . because accepting help from your fellow mamas is sometimes the bravest thing you can do!

Click HERE to download our scholarship application & contact our Finance Team (Sara or Sarah).

pay your dues ahead of time!

**After you enroll online:

Please mark your calendar for our first ever REGISTRATION EVENT! 

This will be a chance to pay your dues ahead of time, register for MOPS International, & get all those details out of the way so you can just breeze right into your first meeting on Sept 11th!

Click here for directions to Boulevard Baptist. Boulevard's Christian Activities Center is the brick fellowship hall behind the church.

2014-15 Enrollment is open!

Our first Anderson MOPS meeting is Thurs, Sept 11th, & online enrollment for Anderson MOPS is now open!

Please click HERE to enroll yourself for the MOPS 2014-15 year.

Please click HERE to enroll your children in MOPPETS for this coming year.

a little more about our theme...

One of my favorite things about the "Be you, Bravely" theme is the feather.

Why, you ask?

Well, it's a great design, in my opinion...
Modern, but classic.
Fun, but fierce.

And then I read this explanation of the significance of the feather in the MOPS theme, & I was completely sold.

Click here to download this lovely printable.

Introducing our 2014-15 theme...

"At MOPS we believe that you were meant to live deeply
and so we have created this year's theme to inspire you to choose the extraordinary."
(from MOPS Int'l)

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.  Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV)

At any moment in our lives, each of us has...

• conversations we've been putting off.
• reasonable risks we've been avoiding
• goals we want to achieve.

Yet the more significant an action feels, the easier it is to put off. We get distracted from the big decisions by the immediate needs or the days. What all of us seem to have in common is that we need a nudge, a nudge to help us get out of our ruts & routines so that we can begin risking bravely.

"Be you, Bravely" is designed to help us become more ourselves. To remind us that courage is always worth it & that we are all in this together. Cheering each other on toward our futures is the gift of community at MOPS.

We are so excited to journey alongside you this year as we ask one another what it means to "Be you, Bravely"!

Click below for the MOPS theme launch video from MOPS Int'l:

 

October meeting recap... the Mom Comparison Trap!

Last Thursday was our second MOPS meeting of the year... so much fun! So glad to see all you ladies... we're averaging 56 moms per meeting this year, which is pretty much awesome. Y'all keep inviting your friends... we'd love to have them!

Quick business recap:

• Semester/yearly dues were due at the Oct meeting. It's $30 per semester or $60 per year. If you invite someone to MOPS & they decide to join, our trusty treasurer Melissa will calculate a prorated amount. And if you love MOPS & want to join, but the dues are an obstacle, pleasepleasePLEASE let us know & we'll work something out. Money should definitely not be a reason for someone to miss out on our mama fellowship.
• We had sign-ups for the MOPS photo sessions, which will be on Friday, Oct 25th. The cost is $40 per 30-minute session. All of the slots are booked (yay!), but we have a waiting list available as well. Please contact me (Sarah) if you'd like to be added to the waiting list. I'll be in touch with everyone who booked a session with location details.

For our craft, we made votives that are perfect for fall! Tutorial to follow soon...

This month's speaker was Rozalynn Goodwin, who is the Director of Policy Research & a lobbyist for the South Carolina Hospital Association. She's been recognized as a rising business leader in The State Newspaper's annual "20 under 40" feature, & has been published on the MOPS International website as well as MOPS's MomSense Magazine.

Rozalynn spoke on the dangers of the Mom Comparison Trap. I capitalize it because it's a big deal, people. We've all felt it at some point, we've all read Facebook statuses or looked at pictures or perused Pinterest & felt inadequate, even if it's only for a brief, fleeting second.

Rozalynn writes:

I wanted to be a SAHM yesterday... or at least a WAHM. Anything but a WAWM (work at work mom -- I just made that up).  

I make this statement having fully accepted that it may result in my name being crossed off the guest list for the Supermom Soiree that I assume occurs annually. I have not yet been invited. Quite frankly, I don't care if I am invited to join ladies discussing how they grow their own fruits & vegetables, cook & can them, all after a typical 10.5 hour day in the office; just in time to give four children baths, pedicures & manicures, & make wild passionate love to their husbands.  

I "don't do" fake people well.  (click here to read complete post)

She went on to share the challenges of being a working mom, the guilt of not being able to be in two places at once, the drama of potty-training & the story of Lola the Monkey (which she also shares in this blog post).

Rozalynn shared 2 Corinthians 10:12, which says that we should not classify or compare ourselves to others... that it isn't wise.

She writes:

Mommy guilt is real and often the result of unrealistic self-expectations. No mom can have it ALL. There are trade-offs and seasons for every aspect of work and life.  

And no other mom, whether at home or in the workplace, has it easy. The quicker we recognize that, the quicker we can get on with our lives and the fulfillment of family and individual purpose that awaits us.  

Click here to check out Rozalynn's blog, "Spit Up On My Blazer."

time to enroll for MOPS 2013-14!

Only a little over 2 weeks until Sept 12th, & as you can imagine, the first MOPS meeting of the year can get kinda... well, messy!

We have lots of new moms... YAY!
We have lots of new kiddos.... YAY!
We have lots of paperwork.... not yay.

So in an effort to make things more efficient, we're putting the forms out there for you ladies to get a head-start. We're attempting online enrollment for the first time, so if you have technical issues, please let us know on the facebook page!

Option #1: Online Enrollment (preferred!)

• Click here to complete the MOPS enrollment form.

• Click here to complete the MOPPETS enrollment form for your children.

Option #2: Paper Enrollment

• Download the paper MOPS enrollment form. (Print, complete & bring to the meeting)
• Download the paper MOPPETS enrollment form for your children (Print, complete & bring to the meeting)

2013-14 MOPS dues

At Anderson MOPS, we do everything we can (literally, like, EVERYTHING) to keep our expenses as low as possible. But we do need your financial support.

2013-14 annual dues = $60

(Breakdown: $23.95 to MOPS Int'l + $4 per meeting for 9 meetings)

What are your local dues going toward, you ask?

• safe, reliable childcare so you can enjoy the meetings without chasing your toddler... not that chasing your toddler's not fun & all. & also, it's the same price whether you have 1 kiddo or 17.
• crafty crafts... even for the craft-challenged among us, those little pretties we make during the meetings are just kinda awesome.
• all those fabulous raffle prizes & giveaways... nothing makes a meeting more fun than walking away with a little gift certificate or cute surprise!
• meeting supplies... handouts, kitchen supplies, cute centerpieces, favors, the thank you gifts for our kind speakers, the childcare labels. These things seem rather small, but they definitely add up!

And did you know that we pay dues to MOPS International for each member? Yep, it's true. In order to be an official MOPS chapter & support the international organization, we pay an annual membership fee of $23.95 per member. 

I know, $60 is a lot of money for most of us. But we have a couple of options to make it as painless as possible...

Option #1: Pay per Semester

Pay $30 now & $30 again in January.

Option #2: Pay per Year

Pay $60 now & get it over with. This covers everything for the entire year & you don't have to worry about it again until next September!

And now you may have questions...

• When is my money due?
  Your membership dues are due at the Sept 12th or Oct 10th meeting.
• How do I pay?
  Dues can be paid at the registration table at the Sept or Oct meetings. Checks should be made payable to "Anderson MOPS."
• What if I don't join MOPS until after October 10th?
  If you join us after the October meeting, please let Melissa (our treasurer) know & she'll work out a prorated amount.
• What if I miss a meeting & I've already paid?
  We hope you won't have to miss a meeting, but all moms know that sometimes kids wake up sick or things just kinda fall apart (beautiful mess, anyone?). When you pay your dues, your contribution is immediately put toward the costs of making our meetings fabulous. We can't give refunds for missed meetings, but please know that we'll miss you!
• What if I really, really want to join MOPS, but my family just can't afford it?
  Please know that money should not keep you from coming to MOPS! If money is an issue, we'll figure out how to make it work.... we have scholarships available if the fees are just not possible for your family. Please talk to us & let us help!
• Why should I want to support MOPS International?
  Because you & I & all moms are worth investing in! Through MOPS membership, you make it possible for moms all around the world to get the support & encouragement of MOPS. We are part of a community of moms doing life together & supporting MOPS Int'l makes this possible. Together we're reaching 90,000+ moms & truly creating better moms who make a better world. And it wouldn't be happening without the help of mamas like you!
  
  Oh, & also you get fun stuff from MOPS Int'l... a super-cute reusable bag with the MOPS logo, a DVD featuring Boz the Bear for your littles, & a subscription to MomSense magazine!
  

  

  mops welcome package!

introducing our new theme!

MOPS International has published the theme for the upcoming year, & I love it! Check it out:

It's based on Ephesians 2:10, which says (New Living Translation):

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.

Moms live in messes. The toys, crumbs & spit-up are our natural surroundings. Moms often feel like a mess. We are exhausted, unshowered & hormonal. Our past & present circumstances & decisions can leave us feeling inadequate for God's love & purposes.

A Beautiful Mess -- reminds moms that beauty can come out of our difficult spots. The grime of mothering young children brings the beauty of motherhood. The bruises of life can bring God's redemption.

Embrace Your Story -- reminds moms that our past, present & future can be used for good. God knows where each of us has been, where we are today & has set in motion where we are headed.

(adapted from mops.org)