What Makes My Kids Cry Today

Real Life. Real Laughs. Real Jesus.

recent posts

✨ Join My Devotional List ✨

Get fresh devotionals every Mondays at 6 AM and Thursdays at 5 PM

Subscribe on Substack →

about

  • “I Don’t Know What a Yankee Is, But I Have Red Socks at Home”

    “I Don’t Know What a Yankee Is, But I Have Red Socks at Home”

    The Yankees made a great catch.

    My oldest son: “Boo!”

    I turned to him, eyebrow raised.

    “Are you going for the Red Sox?”

    Without hesitation:

    “Yes, why?”

    I smiled.

    “No reason.”

    Then he hit me with this gem:

    “I don’t know what a Yankee is… but I have red socks at home!”

    😆🙃

    That right there is parenting in a nutshell.

    Tiny humans forming big opinions… based on socks.

    And honestly, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

    How often do we, even as adults, decide what side we’re on — what we support, oppose, or believe — not because we’ve wrestled with truth…

    but because it’s what we’ve seen at home?

    What a reminder of the weight we carry as parents.

    Our kids are watching.

    Listening.

    Absorbing.

    Even when we think they’re not paying attention.

    Even when it’s just a passing comment during a baseball game.

    Even when it seems like “just socks.”

    Proverbs 22:6 tells us to “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

    But that training? It’s not just in the structured devotions or Sunday mornings.

    It’s in the little moments.

    The game nights.

    The offhand questions.

    The red sock declarations.

    They’re learning how to love people, how to respond to conflict, how to trust God —

    All from what they see in us.

    So today, I’m praying for wisdom in the small things.

    That I’d lead not just with words, but with example.

    That when my kids look back, they’ll remember more than socks —

    They’ll remember grace, truth, and a home where Jesus was lived out daily.

    Even during baseball season. ⚾

    💬 What’s one unexpected way your kids reminded you of a truth about God or life? I’d love to hear your story. Drop it in the comments and let’s encourage one another.

    #FaithInParenting #LittleHeartsBigLessons #RaisingThemUp

  • I Forgot the Pictures

    I Forgot the Pictures

    This week, I sent my mom a “thinking of you” card —

    and completely forgot to include the boys’ school pictures. 🤦🏻‍♀️

    She texted me later and said,

    “I got your card in the mail, but there weren’t any pictures inside.”

    I just sat there realizing what I’d done.

    I meant to send the pictures —

    I even picked the card, wrote the note, sealed it, and mailed it…

    but forgot the main thing.

    When I told my oldest, he just laughed and said,

    “Typical mom moment, Mom.”

    And honestly, he’s right.

    I can just picture my mom smiling and shaking her head,

    thinking, “She probably meant to forget those pictures.” 😆

    When Love Isn’t Perfectly Packaged

    That little moment made me laugh — but it also made me think.

    Because life is full of “typical mom moments.”

    The ones where we mean well, try hard, and still drop the ball.

    The ones where we do 90% right and miss the one thing we wanted to get perfect.

    But here’s the truth: love still gets through.

    Even when the details don’t.

    My mom wasn’t upset.

    She knew my heart.

    And that reminded me — that’s exactly how God sees us too.

    God Sees What We Meant

    Sometimes I think we assume God only blesses what we get right.

    But that’s not who He is.

    He blesses what’s real.

    He sees the mom who meant to pray but fell asleep.

    The one who meant to be patient but got overwhelmed.

    The one who meant to show love, even if it came out messy.

    1 Samuel 16:7 says,

    “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

    God doesn’t just see what we sent —

    He sees what we meant.

    Grace Fills in the Gaps

    Grace has a beautiful way of filling the spaces we leave empty.

    It steps in and says,

    “I know what you meant.”

    “I saw your heart.”

    “You’re doing better than you think.”

    Sometimes I think God even smiles and says,

    “You probably meant to forget the pictures.” 😉

    Because grace isn’t just serious — it’s tender, gentle, and full of understanding.

    A Reminder for the Week

    If you’re having your own “typical mom moment,”

    take a breath and smile.

    Your love still matters.

    Your effort still counts.

    And God sees the heart behind it all.

    Even when you forget the pictures,

    the message still makes it home. 💛

    Prayer

    God, thank You for seeing my heart even when I forget the details.

    Thank You for filling the gaps with grace and laughter.

    Help me rest in Your love, not my performance.

    Remind me that You know what I meant, even when I miss a step.

    Amen.

    Listen to the Full Episode

    🎧 Milk & Honey Moments — Episode: “I Forgot the Pictures”

  • Real Talk Sunday – These Saved My Sanity (and My Walls)

    Real Talk Sunday – These Saved My Sanity (and My Walls)

    Faith, foam spray, and five boys later… here are the tools I didn’t know I needed.

    By Lizzie @ What Makes My Kid Cry Today

    Real Life. Real Laughs. Real Jesus.

    “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord…” – Colossians 3:23

    I don’t need marble countertops or a self-cleaning house (though I wouldn’t say no).

    What I do need is:

    Jesus, caffeine, and a few everyday tools that work harder than I do.

    Because when you’re a mom of five boys, your walls, floors, and sanity are all in a state of spiritual warfare. And while I’ve prayed over my home plenty of times, sometimes God’s provision looks like a bottle of foam spray and a rag that doesn’t quit.

    These aren’t luxury items — they’re holy helpers.

    Here are three things I didn’t know I needed… until I had five boys and a hallway that smells like feet and forgotten applesauce.

    1. The Wall Cleaner That Made Me Want to Cry (Tears of Joy)

    My walls have seen things.

    Sticky handprints, unapproved art projects, crayon hieroglyphics, and whatever that was near the bathroom light switch.

    This foaming wall spray is like a miracle in a can. I spray it, wait a second, wipe it off — and the wall is basically born again. I’ve tried so many things, but this one actually works. It doesn’t mess up my paint or leave a weird residue.

    I spray, I wipe, I whisper a prayer of thanks.

    And just like that, I can see the original color of my hallway again.

    2. Scrubbing Cloths That Survive My Kitchen (and Me)

    I used to go through rags like diapers — and most of them weren’t strong enough to survive my kitchen, much less a spaghetti explosion.

    But these? These are different.

    They scrub without scratching, they rinse out clean, and they’re still going strong after weeks of hard use. I use them on everything:

    Counters Pots and pans High chair trays Random sticky surfaces I pretend not to notice until I step in them barefoot

    I didn’t know a dishcloth could make me feel this empowered, but here we are.

    Sanctification comes in many forms.

    3. Shaving Cream: My Secret Weapon for Boy-Bathroom Floors

    Let’s be honest:

    Little boys and toilet aim go together like toothpaste and mirrors — messy and often regrettable.

    One day, in a moment of holy exhaustion, I sprayed shaving cream all over the bathroom floor just to see what would happen. And what happened? The pee literally rose to the surface. I’m not kidding — it’s like it got called out by name.

    I wiped it all up, and suddenly the bathroom didn’t just look clean — it smelled clean.

    Fresh. Like someone respectable lived here.

    Yes, it’s messy at first. It foams up and looks like a whipped cream explosion. But once you’ve wiped it down? It’s like a sacred reset button for your bathroom.

    Bonus: my kids think it’s hilarious and want to help.

    Double bonus: I didn’t cry this time.

    🙌 A Word for the Mom in the Middle of the Mess

    These aren’t just products. They’re little bits of grace.

    They remind me that God sees the small stuff — the sticky, the smelly, the things we wipe up at 9:00 p.m. with tired hands and a heart that’s trying to stay grateful.

    He meets us in the mess.

    He equips us with strength and scrubbing power.

    And sometimes… He hands us a can of shaving cream and says,

    “Let’s fix this together.”

    What’s your unexpected mom-life lifesaver?

    Drop it in the comments — I’m always on the lookout for the next weird-but-wonderful tool that makes this beautiful chaos just a little bit more manageable.