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  • Kari Kampakis, Writer

    10 hours ago

    Kari Kampakis, Writer
    One of the biggest things that holds people back is a fear of failure. While I didn’t have sports to help me overcome this, I did learn this skill during the 7 years of rejection that preceded my first book getting published. Looking back, I realize how I needed to toughen up, I needed to get over the fear of failure that is especially common when you are a perfectionist🙋🏻‍♀️ So to all of you who are taking chances and trying things you may not succeed at - keep doing what you’re doing. Failure isn’t the end of your story, it’s part of your story, and when you learn to see it that way, it won’t scare you the way it used to🤍 ... See MoreSee Less

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    Kari Kampakis, Writer

    16 hours ago

    Kari Kampakis, Writer
    Today marks 3 years since my mom passed away. I miss her and need days like this where I let myself really “go there” in having a good cry. (Listening to “Amazing Grace” always does the trick in opening the floodgates 😢). I spent a lot of time at first wishing to go back in time, even visiting my childhood home, but now when I think about her, I feel grateful that I had a mom who loved me so much. I still remember the way she looked at me, how she lit up when I came in the room, and it’s those little moments that hit deep in the heart. She inspires me to love my daughters better and to keep showing love even when it’s hard because in the end, it’s the consistency of a parent’s love that stands out. Even at my worst, she still loved me, and that’s just a small reflection of the enormous love that God has for each of us. My sister @danawolterinteriors shared a beautiful message today that she heard at church. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever read about heaven, and if you are grieving a loved one, I hope it comforts you❤️ “When we finally enter into the Beatific Vision, we will understand why our days unfolded as they did, and why we experienced the crosses we did and why we experienced the blessings we did.We will also see why we made the choices we did, what graces God gave us and what spiritual battles took place around us as we ate and slept and worked and played.In heaven, our lives will make sense to us.Our greatest experiences of love, connection and friendship here on earth offer us only the tiniest foretaste of the love, connection, and friendship we will experience in heaven, where every story will be shared and every story will be endlessly fascinating.In heaven, we are also going to see how the choices we made affected others, shaped others and blessed others in a way that is beyond coincidence, beyond happenstance or chance.” Scott Hahn ... See MoreSee Less

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    Kari Kampakis, Writer

    1 day ago

    Kari Kampakis, Writer
    Moms in Milton, Georgia: I'll be speaking at the annual EXHALE event on Tuesday, March 21. Tickets just went on sale, and we'd love for you to join us for a mom's night out where we celebrate you and I share a message from MORE THAN A MOM about why your wellness matters beyond any role you play. So grab a friend or two and purchase your tickets here: bit.ly/3JJ8uZV Would love to see you there! ... See MoreSee Less

    A Night to Exhale featuring Kari Kampakis - Birmingham United Methodist Church

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    Join us for our 6th Annual "A Night to Exhale" Event! We are so excited to introduce author & speaker Kari Kampakis to Birmingham UMC on Tuesday, March 21st!Kari Kampakis is an author, podcaster, and ...
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    Kari Kampakis, Writer is at ESPN Wide World of Sports.

    2 days ago

    Kari Kampakis, Writer
    4th in the nation! 🏆🏆 Another record win for the Mountain Brook Dorians!!! We are unbelievably proud of these girls and their hard work and commitment. The Dorian moms had the best time cheering them on in Orlando at the UDA National Dance Team Championship and watching them rise to the challenge of competing against insanely talented dancers. So many fun memories made with Marie Claire and her team! Go Spartans Go!💚💛 ... See MoreSee Less

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    Kari Kampakis, Writer

    3 days ago

    Kari Kampakis, Writer
    For my prayer warrior mama friends, especially those with high school seniors🙏🏻 ... See MoreSee Less

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    One of the biggest things that holds people back i One of the biggest things that holds people back is a fear of failure. While I didn’t have sports to help me overcome this, I did learn this skill during the 7 years of rejection that preceded my first book getting published. Looking back, I realize how I needed to toughen up, I needed to get over the fear of failure that is especially common when you are a perfectionist🙋🏻‍♀️ So to all of you who are taking chances and trying things you may not succeed at - keep doing what you’re doing. Failure isn’t the end of your story, it’s part of your story, and when you learn to see it that way, it won’t scare you the way it used to🤍
    Today marks 3 years since my mom passed away. I mi Today marks 3 years since my mom passed away. I miss her and need days like this where I let myself really “go there” in having a good cry. (Listening to “Amazing Grace” always does the trick in opening the floodgates 😢). I spent a lot of time at first wishing to go back in time, even visiting my childhood home, but now when I think about her, I feel grateful that I had a mom who loved me so much. I still remember the way she looked at me, how she lit up when I came in the room, and it’s those little moments that hit deep in the heart. She inspires me to love my daughters better and to keep showing love even when it’s hard because in the end, it’s the consistency of a parent’s love that stands out. Even at my worst, she still loved me, and that’s just a small reflection of the enormous love that God has for each of us. 

My sister @danawolterinteriors shared a beautiful message today that she heard at church. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever read about heaven, and if you are grieving a loved one, I hope it comforts you❤️ 

“When we finally enter into the Beatific Vision, we will understand why our days unfolded as they did, and why we experienced the crosses we did and why we experienced the blessings we did.

We will also see why we made the choices we did, what graces God gave us and what spiritual battles took place around us as we ate and slept and worked and played.

In heaven, our lives will make sense to us.

Our greatest experiences of love, connection and friendship here on earth offer us only the tiniest foretaste of the love, connection, and friendship we will experience in heaven, where every story will be shared and every story will be endlessly fascinating.

In heaven, we are also going to see how the choices we made affected others, shaped others and blessed others in a way that is beyond coincidence, beyond happenstance or chance.” Scott Hahn
    4th in the nation! 🏆🏆 Another record win for 4th in the nation! 🏆🏆 Another record win for the Mountain Brook Dorians!!! @mbdorians We are unbelievably proud of these girls and their hard work and commitment. The Dorian moms had the best time cheering them on in Orlando at the UDA National Dance Team Championship and watching them rise to the challenge of competing against insanely talented dancers. So many fun memories made with Marie Claire and her team! Go Spartans Go!💚💛
    For my prayer warrior mama friends, especially tho For my prayer warrior mama friends, especially those with high school seniors👩🏻‍🎓
    One of the biggest problems in friendship today is One of the biggest problems in friendship today is expecting perfection from our friends.

Just as we expect perfection of ourselves, we expect it from those around us. And when they slip, we get stingy with grace.

Pope Francis has defined modern society as a “throwaway culture” marked by disposable relationships. He says we’re quick to say good-bye, and I agree. Many relationships today have very little loyalty, and so it’s no surprise why people get clingy and insecure.

Expecting perfection makes it easy to write people off. While relationships certainly need standards of kindness, respect, and consistency, they also need grace and forgiveness. Any relationship that lasts long enough will have highs and lows, and learning to hang in there when conflicts arise help keep things afloat.

This is how relationships survive - and how friendships go the distance for 20 years or more.

A mentor of teen girls once wisely observed that what begins as an issue between 2 GIRLS often escalates into an issue between 2 GROUPS as word spreads and people takes sides. Someone’s feelings get hurt or they get angry, and rather than talk with the person who hurt them, they talk it out with everyone but that person.

This breeds drama.

This blows issues out of proportion.

This gets everyone puffed up, turning friend groups into gangs.

Issues can often be resolved (or partially settled) if the 2 people involved have a calm conversation that’s not an attack. Nobody teaches this life skill, yet they should. When 2 people learn to sit down, hear each other out, listen, and see the situation from each other’s perspective to get the full story, they both benefit.

My favorite advice this mentor gives her girls is: “You’ve got to give your friends room to have a bad day. We all get moody and grumpy sometimes, and you have to create space for your friends to be themselves.”

We all have bad days - and we all need friends in our life who allow them. If that’s the friend we want in our corner, then that’s the friend we should aim to be🤍
    Where are my boy moms??? The ones trying to raise Where are my boy moms??? The ones trying to raise godly young men and speak to their heart in ways that feel relevant to the challenges they face?

This latest episode of the Girl Mom Podcast is for YOU. I get so many messages from boy moms searching for resources to help them and their sons, and I’m thrilled to share this conversation with Will Hudson titled “5 Things Teen Boys & Young Men Should Know.”

Will is a member of Samford University’s football team and currently getting his MBA. He is passionate about his walk with the Lord and has a great testimony about coming to Jesus not by getting it all right, but by first making many of the common mistakes that teenage boys and young men make. I met @will.hudson12 through @marylauren777 after the two of them recently started dating, and you will love his wisdom and humility that is so similar to Mary Lauren. Young adults like these two give me hope for the next generation and are powerful voices for those coming up behind them (my kids included!).

Share this episode with your favorite teen boys and young men and have your daughters listen too. This one is a great conversation starter for anyone hoping to grow in faith and build healthy boy/girl relationships.

Listen to this episode by clicking on GIRL MOM PODCAST through the link in my bio 🎧

#boymom #raisingboys #raisingteens #empoweringboysthroughfaith #girlmompodcast
    Today we give extra thanks because our Sophie Bear Today we give extra thanks because our Sophie Bear is 18!🎉 🎉🎉 She’s officially an adult, yet forever our baby, and lately I find myself just looking at her and wanting to cry because I can already feel how much I’ll miss her at home next year😭

Sophie, you came into this world as an unstoppable force, a fast-and-furious delivery in the middle of the night where I barely made it to the hospital in time for anesthesia. Since then, it’s been full speed ahead! You were born with extra grit, extra strength, and extra determination, and while that made you a handful as a toddler, it makes you amazing as an adult. You are brave, smart, kind, funny, perceptive, and beautiful inside and out, and daddy and I have always envied the inner strength and courage you showed even at a young age. I feel so lucky to be your mom, and I can’t wait to see the mountains you’ll move and the lives you’ll touch as you let God work through you. Always stay close to Him and know that we are cheering for you, praying for you, and enjoying our front-row view to your life. We love you with all our heart and feel so grateful to call you ours!!!
    A huge thanks to Amy McCarthy, Katie D’Alessandr A huge thanks to Amy McCarthy, Katie D’Alessandro, and Prince of Peace Catholic Church for hosting me yesterday here in Birmingham. I loved every minute! For years I’ve heard about the wonderful MOMS group at this church, and getting to meet those women and the others who joined us deeply blessed me - it felt like an afternoon of hanging out with dear friends❤️

Here was the other highlight: The person who started this MOMS group was my childhood priest, Father Fallon. He married Harry & me, and we were his last wedding in Tuscaloosa before he moved to Prince of Peace 25 years ago. Having Father Fallon introduce me - and hearing him talk about my parents, my grandparents, and how they raised us - was a full circle moment that reminded of God’s goodness and sovereignty. I wouldn’t be doing this work if it weren’t for people like Father Fallon who taught me about God’s unconditional love and impacted my spiritual formation. Just a reminder to everyone that the seeds of faith you plant today do matter and may take root in a deeper way 20 or 30 years from now 🌱 

Thank you to every woman who came on a very rainy Sunday afternoon to hear a message about mercy. It was a joy to see a variety of ages and even have a cute teenage girl ask me to be in her Be Real. Reminded me of my girls and brought a big smile to my face:)

#princeofpeace #momsgroup #mercy #morethanamombook #loveherwellbook #likedbook #10truths
    Two people can face the same scenario yet make opp Two people can face the same scenario yet make opposite choices. They can be a protector or a predator. The defining factor is whether they live by a moral code. 

These slides come from an article called “Today, More Than Ever, Girls Need Good Guy Friends” that has relevant stories to share with your daughter or son, especially before they go to college. It’s often hard for young adults to believe that evil exists and people can do terrible things, so have frank conversations and remind them to look out for their friends, not leave friends alone when they go out, trust what their good friends tell them, and know that predators don’t always look like predators. 

The opposite of love isn’t hate: it’s using people. And the hallmark of a predator is using someone for a selfish purpose, seeing them as an opportunity rather than a sister or brother in Christ.
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