WOULD YOU RATHER? Ask either-or questions and require moms to move to opposite sides of the room based on their choice. They must pick one! Here are a few to get you started: Would you rather ... breathe like Darth Vader or talk like Yoda? bungee jump or deep-sea dive? be super strong or super fast? go without the internet or without a car for a month? be in your pajamas all day or be in a suit all day? TILE MESSAGE BOARD Create a message board by using a tile and rub-on decals. Use this for notes to the family or inspirational messages to yourself. Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more about this activity and for downloadable instructions. COURAGE TO RISK Dr. Raleigh Washington has lived a lifetime of adventures involving risk, difficult choices and even some regret. He was better able to tackle risk when he had people beside him believing he could succeed. From military life to marriage, Dr. Washington has a story to inspire us and spur us on to encourage others. When has someone told you “I believe in you”? How did that impact you? When have you had the courage to take a risk? Is there a risk you wish you had taken that makes you say, “I wonder what would have happened if ...”? What do you want to teach your kids about risk? How will you do that? Experience 11 Experience 11 Experience 11 Experience 11
Transcript
WOULD YOU RATHER?
Ask either-or questions and require moms to move
to opposite sides of the room based on their choice.
They must pick one! Here are a few to get you started:
Would you rather ...
breathe like Darth Vader or talk like Yoda?
bungee jump or deep-sea dive?
be super strong or super fast?
go without the internet or without a car for a month?
be in your pajamas all day or be in a suit all day?
TILE MESSAGE BOARD
Create a message board by using a tile and rub-on
decals. Use this for notes to the family or inspirational
messages to yourself.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO RISK
Dr. Raleigh Washington has lived a lifetime of
adventures involving risk, difficult choices and even
some regret. He was better able to tackle risk when
he had people beside him believing he could succeed.
From military life to marriage, Dr. Washington has a
story to inspire us and spur us on to encourage others.
When has someone told you “I believe in you”? How did
that impact you?
When have you had the courage to take a risk?
Is there a risk you wish you had taken that makes you
say, “I wonder what would have happened if ...”?
What do you want to teach your kids about risk? How
will you do that?
Experience 11
Experience 11
Experience 11
Experience 11
ONE MINUTE, PLEASE
Ask for volunteers who are willing to talk for one minute
on any topic you select. Time each and see how long
she can go before running out of thoughts. Have a
good prize ready for the one who can talk the longest
on her given topic. Some topic suggestions: my earliest
memories, my favorite computer game, why beans are
good for you, 10 things you can do with potatoes, fun
things to do on a rainy day.
CLAY MAGNET
Use modeling clay and pressed flowers, leaves or other
foliage, to create unique magnets.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO BE TOO MUCH
Jayne Spear’s own mother lived big. From big emotions
to big meals she wanted everything in life to be fully
experienced. Yet Jayne has struggled with living an
edited life, one that is reigned in and less risky. She
shares how she gives herself permission to be messy in
order to live courageously as her true self.
Share about a time when you’ve replayed a conversation
in your head and scrutinized what was said. Describe
how that played out.
Is there a part of motherhood where you want to color
outside the lines — go against the grain?
What do you think your approach to life, how “big” you
are willing to be, models to your kids?
What is one thing you can do this week to encourage
someone to be “too much”?
Experience 12
Experience 12
Experience 12
Experience 12
REACT AND ACT
Have moms select a sheet of paper with a situation on
it then react using animated expressions, gestures and
words. After a set amount of time, other players try to
guess what happened. Some actions could be:
you were surprised by a bear in the woods.
you just won the lottery.
you have just received a marriage proposal.
make the game-winning pass to win the Super Bowl.
DIY CALENDAR
A picture frame and colored sticky notes quickly
becomes a dry erase calendar.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO BE A STICKY FAITH MOM
Mother and seminary professor Kara Powell offers
practical tactics moms can take to pass on their faith
to their kids. From simply talking about one’s own faith
to connecting with other adults who invest in and
have relationships with their kids, moms will see that
though they can’t control their kids’ faith, they can set
up structures that encourage a healthy and honest
development for a faith that sticks.
Do you talk to your kids about your faith? If so, what
does that look like?
What would you consider when choosing five other
adults to surround your child?
How can you create a safe place for your child to
express doubt about his/her faith?
How can you move from focusing on behavior to
focusing on the heart when disciplining?
Experience 13
Experience 13
Experience 13
Experience 13
IF
Write ‘IF’ questions on cards and place them face
down. Take turns answering questions and giving
explanations. Here are a few to get you started:
if I gave you $10,000, what would you spend it on?
if you could talk to anyone, who would it be?
if you could wish one thing to come true this year,
what would it be?
WIRE-WRAPPED PENDANTS
Three beads and flexible wire become a beautiful
pendent.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO BE BROKEN
Author and mom Bonnie Gray struggled with reconciling
a high-achieving track record with a broken past. In
the midst of bouts of depression and PTSD, she created
space in her life, freeing her from the constant need to
achieve. This vulnerable journey of brokenness leads
her to a place of finding God in the midst of pain.
Has mothering made you more aware of your
brokenness? If so, share an example.
Have you ever tried to make up for your downfalls
through your accomplishments?
Have you heard from God in painful periods? What did
that sound or look like?
Experience 14
Experience 14
Experience 14
Experience 14
DESERT ISLAND
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island,
what three things would you take with you? (You can’t
take people — so just focus on the things you would
take.)
DECORATIVE TRAY
Put fabric under the glass of an inexpensive picture
frame to create a tray — cute for a bathroom, bedroom
or a place to keep your keys!
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO REST
Life is intended to be a pattern of work and rest, and
yet the 24-hour demands of motherhood can derail any
hopes of refueling. Deidra Riggs reminds us to reset
our priorities to include the things that uniquely
rejuvenate us. After all, even God rested on the seventh
day!
What in your life “feeds you” and fills you back up, so
you feel refreshed to manage your daily responsibilities?
Deidra talks about rest mimicking God’s day of rest
after he created the world so he could appreciate all he
had created. What are you unable to appreciate when
you don’t get enough rest?
What is one trick you can share about catching some
rest during this season of parenting young children?
Experience 15
Experience 15
Experience 15
Experience 15
NAME GAME
Have everyone stand in a circle. The first person starts
by giving their name, plus an alliterative adjective.
For example, Marvelous Molly, Jumping Jennifer ... The
next person in line repeats this before introducing
their own descriptive name. (For example, if you were
the third person in line, you would point to the first
person and say, “This is Marvelous Molly,” then point to
the second person and say, “This is Jumping Jennifer.”
Finally, you would say, “I am Sharing Shannon.)
BURLAP WREATH
Take Styrofoam wreaths and add burlap in loose loops
to make a wreath for the door or table.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO FORGET COMPARISONS
Gayle Pottle had built a life around comparisons. Her
relationships were a competition of sorts where she
intended to “win” in order to maintain a sense of
control. When she began to courageously look at her
true self, she began the process of loving the woman
she actually is instead of working to maintain an outward
appearance, gaining richer relationships for it.
Do you ever find you’ve set up a relationship to be a
lose-lose rather than a win-win? If so, how can you
stop that cycle? If not, what do you do to prevent that?
Who are the people in your life that appreciate you for
who you are and not your accomplishments?
Gayle talks about the compliment challenge she had
with her friends where she asked them to focus on her
“be” rather than her “do.” Practice this compliment
challenge now. What unique qualities do you appreciate
about the women sitting around you?
Experience 16
Experience 16
Experience 16
Experience 16
DESCRIBE YOURSELF
Get in circles of three or four and have each woman
describe herself in three words. Be creative! If there
is time, have one person from each group share what
she learned about her circle with the rest of the group.
SCRAPBOOK IN A TIN
Using Altoid-style containers, use decorative tape and
scrapbook paper to create a unique on-the-go photo
album.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO BE YOU, BRAVELY
Jackie Alvarez is learning to be the truest version of
herself. As an extrovert in a family of introverts, she
grew up thinking something was wrong with her. It
wasn’t until college that she realized she was unique
and OK. Through stories of losing and finding, Jackie
shares about the courage required to continue
journeying toward being her, bravely.
What does it mean to you to be the truest version of
yourself?
How has motherhood changed your understanding of
who you are?
How can you celebrate and nurture your kids’ unique
qualities?
What is one thing you can do this week to embrace how
God uniquely made you?
Experience 17
Experience 17
Experience 17
Experience 17
A SIMPLE QUESTION
Sometimes the best icebreaker is just a simple
question. Ask moms to get into groups of three and
answer this question: When was the last time you did
something for the first time?
PINTEREST PARTY
Ask each attendee to bring a food item they found on
Pinterest and then pick a craft or two from Pinterest
to create. Have the leader select a couple of crafts or
pre-select a few and let moms vote at the meeting
before your party or on your group’s Facebook page.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO TRY
A self-proclaimed control freak and people pleaser,
Kimba Langas says she is the last one she expected
to try a new venture with uncontrolled risk. But after
saying “yes” to one opportunity, she soon found herself
organizing an international aid campaign and being
interviewed on CNN. Her story challenges us to watch
in wonder as our seemingly small “yeses” can grow
into life-changing ventures.
On a scale of one to ten (one being easiest), how
difficult is it for you to try something new?
What prevents you from trying something new? How
can you tackle that fear?
How does trying something new fit in with your life as
a mom?
What is one new thing you can say “yes” to in the next
month? How do you feel at the thought of saying “yes”?
Experience 18
Experience 18
Experience 18
Experience 18
HAVE YOU MET MY MOTHER?
Name the mom and have the attendees guess the
baby. Give points for the right answers.
Alligator — hatchling • Alpaca — cria
Bee — larva • Camel — calf
Pigeon — squab • Swan — cygnet or flapper
Porcupine — porcupette
Prizes could be animal crackers, a copy of the children’s
book Are You My Mother? or a pass to the local zoo.
CHORE CHART
There are dozens of Chore Chart options available online
— some are pre-printed, some make-it-yourself. Do a
quick search and find one that fits your group’s time and
budget.
COURAGE TO BE A MOM
News anchor Jenny Dean Schmidt was on maternity
leave when she found out her contract had not
been renewed. Accustomed to the affirmation of the
public eye, she suffered an identity crisis as she tried
to find significance in her new role as mom. Immersed
in a bout of postpartum depression, Jenny heard God
answer her prayers through her child.
What has given you significance in the past?
Do you struggle with believing motherhood is
significant and important? Why or why not?
Have you had an experience where you felt God was
close or beckoning you?
Experience 19
Experience 19
Experience 19
Experience 19
MOVIES
Get into a small group and answer this question — If
they made a movie about your life, what would it be
called and who would play you?
SPECIAL DAY PLATE
Buy plates from the dollar store. Use sharpies to
decorate them before baking them for one hour to set.
Visit mops.org/groupexperiencekitonline to learn more
about this activity and for downloadable instructions.
COURAGE TO SEE GREATNESS IN OTHERS
When musician Caitlin Crosby started making necklaces
from recycled keys, she had no idea they would become
a tool for people to see and affirm the beauty in each
other. Caitlin walks through life with eyes wide open to
the greatness she sees in every person she encounters.
Does it come naturally for you to see the best in others?
What do you think contributes to that?
Has motherhood changed your ability to see greatness
in those around you? If so, how?
Caitlin talks about loving your flaws. What flaws do
you love about yourself?
What’s something this week you can do to show
somebody their greatness?
Experience 20
Experience 20
Experience 20
Experience 20
FIND YOUR NEIGHBOR
Call out the following sentences and have members
find people with similar answers to theirs’. Encourage
them to find more than one person with similar traits.
The more people in a group, the better. Find someone ...
who grew up in a similar neighborhood to you.
with the same color eyes as you.
with the same number of siblings as you.
born in the same month as you.
SERVICE PROJECT
Do some research and set up a service project in your
community. Check with women’s shelters, crisis
pregnancy centers, and food pantries. Another option
is to combine this with a MOPPETS field trip and go
visit your local firefighters. Be sure and take some
cookies! These ideas are just to get you started.
COURAGE TO BE A NEIGHBOR
Father-of-four Dave Runyon decided he wanted his
family to be better neighbors to those living right
around them. From the moment they had the idea to
get better acquainted with their neighbors to the messy
relationships and block parties that have come from it,
you will be anxious to get home and meet the people
who live next to you.
Describe your relationships with your neighbors. Would
you like them to be different? If so, what would that
look like?
Do you think it’s important to teach your kids about
being a good neighbor? Why or why not?
What kind of courage is involved in being a better
neighbor?
What is one thing you can do this week to be a better
