Monday's Mommy Minute

Today is the first time we're hosting
"Monday's Mommy Minute."
Each week we'll be featuring a Christian Mom and sharing a little bit about her faith and business.
So, I thought I would start it off with an amazing woman and friend: Shara Lawrence-Weiss.

Shara is the owner of Mommy Perks and the founder and owner of Personal Child Stories. Mommy Perks is an online community for moms to receive "Perks & Discounts, Reviews, Giveaways and More!"  Mommy Perks offers some amazing PR packages to help you brand and get the word out about your business! Mommy Perks offers FREE listings for non profits and mom's groups, too!

 Personal Child Stories are hand-crafted books using your own personal photos and information that can be created "for children of every learning stage, including children with special needs." Price ranges from $20-30 depending on number of photos and pages.  After Shara's young son was diagnosed with Glaucoma and had to have his eye removed, he was having some trouble adjusting to the changes in his life. Read the rest of the story:


"My mother suggested that I create a personal book for our son, addressing each issue. I searched for a company that might be able to help me, but came up empty. I decided to create two books at home. One book addressed the issue of my son’s new eye, the other focused on his need to keep his glasses on in order to protect his left eye. Each story page featured photos from our personal collection: photos of the prosthetic eye, of our son, of family members who love him. Photos of his glasses, of family and friends who also wear glasses, and of the objects and items that could potentially damage his left eye if his glasses were not worn. I had each book laminated and bound.

I read the books to my son daily. They impacted his behavior dramatically and we soon passed through that season of our lives…and into another. When our son entered preschool, I requested that his teacher read the prosthetic eye story to the class – in order to open up the lines of communication between my son and the other students.

Oftentimes fear of the unknown is all that separates us from those we do not understand.

Again the book was read in Kindergarten and in first grade. By second grade, all of my son’s friends were well aware of his situation; so much so that it no longer mattered to any of them. It was old news.
The books have been an invaluable tool in our son’s life. If you choose to order a Personal Child Story, it is our hope that it (or they) will also bless your child’s life in countless ways."




Interview with Shara

Share a little about your faith:
"I was raised in a home of faith but did not fully embrace that faith, myself, until after my first son was born. My father was (is) a minister and missionary. He ran a homeless shelter for about 3 years during my youth. My three sisters and I had prayer, faith and generosity modeled for us from the time we were born. I spent quite a bit of time attempting to reject the faith that my parents modeled but in the end, God pierced my heart and left me reeling with His truths and promises. I haven't looked back since :-) "


How does your faith help you in business?
"Honestly, I could go on and on and on about this. However, I will touch on the one main key philosophy that has gotten me through countless difficult days:
I try to remember, at all times, that every person is hurting in some way or another. Every human heart has been broken and needs mending. Every person on this earth is fighting some sort of battle inside. From anger or depression to porn or shopping addictions. From self loathing or rage to past childhood burdens or gambling addictions. Christ's job is to mend those hearts - my job is to simply model His love. I can't fix people. I can't be responsible for healing them and I can't TAKE it personally when they don't behave the way I want them to. It's not about *me.* It's about their own journey through this broken world & all I can do, and all I am called to do, is to be a witness to them in love. To model for them what Christ has done for me. The rest...is up to God.
That viewpoint, in and of itself, has allowed me to carry on day after day. In business, in my community, in my home and in this world."
 
Please take a moment and check out Shara's links. She is an awesome Christian mommy and she would be happy to help you in any way she can!