40 Days to A Joyful Motherhood: Devotions and Coloring Book to NourishMom (A Review)

Joyful Motherhood

Are you a mother who's become less than joyful in her calling? Have you become overwhelmed or slipped into the waves of despair, when life (and perhaps motherhood) isn't all you thought it was cracked up to be? Did you have a less than stellar example of motherhood in your own life, and you want to do better for your own children? Do you want to regain the joy and delight your new status as a mother brought to your heart as your newborn gazed trustingly into your eyes? Are you a new mother, who wants to protect and nourish that joy? If these don't describe you, do they resemble someone you know?

I recently received a book for review that *may* be useful to you, or as a gift. 40 Days to a Joyful Motherhood: Devotions and Coloring Book to Nourish Mom by Sarah Humphrey is filled with 10 minute snippets of friendly advice in the form of devotions, that can help you or someone you know navigate the sometimes placid and sometimes stormy waters of motherhood. Each devotional also has a facing coloring page, to give you some time to be creative, take a time out, or allow you to meditate on a truth you may have gleaned from the text. 
The devotions are broken into eight sections, with five days devoted to each topic: 

• Identity For Mamahood 
• Expectations, Pain, Hopes and Dreams
• Releasing Grief and Receiving New Life 
• Unworthiness and the Comparison Game  
• Self-Acceptance and Peace 
• The Cycles of Giving and Self-Care  
• Placing an Emphasis on Presence 
• Living a Lifestyle of Forgiveness

Each section also has an introduction, so I think this could easily be Eight Weeks to a Joyful Motherhood, if you read the introduction on the weekend, and then read the devotions on the weekdays.

Side note: I had somewhat mixed reactions to this book to begin with. I believe my ambivalence had something to do with the concept of giving this to a new mother who may actually already BE Joyful. My concern was that some of the devotions may introduce a topic that would bring them down if they weren't already dealing with that particular concern. If you're giving this to a new mom, I would suggest couching it in the terms of preventative maintenance ~ guarding against the negative experiences that may well show up. 

On the flip side of that, this could be the PERFECT gift for a mother who is suffering from PPD, or an overwhelmed mother of rambunctious toddlers, or patience-trying teens.

A word on the coloring book portion~ The designs are mostly flowery heart doodles. Most of them are fairly simple, with a few more complex designs thrown in for good measure. If you're looking for crazy complexity, this will be a disappointment, but if you would just enjoy a few minutes of quiet coloring, this will be right up your alley. The pages are like a "better" children's coloring book quality, smooth and slightly thicker than a normal book~ takes well to colored pencils (I think gel pens would probably show through to the other side).

If you're looking for a gift for yourself or a friend that will encourage and inspire, this could be a good option this Christmas, along with a nice pack of colored pencils.

$6.65 add- on
At Amazon
(Click the image)
My College-bound
art student loves these

$6.14 add-on
At Amazon
(Click the Image)
Haven't tried these,
but the price is good. :) 

Blessings~