Jamie Janosz

Cosplay?! What's that? When I tell people that my teenage daughter loves to cosplay, they often have no idea what I'm talking about. About five years ago, my daughter created her first costume to attend a cosplay convention. What I quickly learned is that her love for "cosplay" (defined as costume play) would definitely involve her mom! Together, we have made countless trips to the fabric and craft store as I learned to sew, trace, and glue, create patterns from scratch, and apply stage make-up. In the photo to the left, you can see my husband and I, with our daughter, in full Pokemon cosplay. Attending ACEN (Anime Central) at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, two mild-mannered parents were instantly transformed into Team Magma. Our daughter had full design control, helping me create our group costume. Apparently we did it right, because the moment we entered the conference center, we were stopped for photos. Milt and I had to fake i...

I've heard you say that you don't think you ever want to be a mother. And, I get that. Being a mother doesn't make a lot of logical sense. There's the pain part, of course, and the crazy amount of weight gain. My last month of pregnancy, everything was bloated and puffy - from my face to my feet. Delivery was no fun either. Maybe you've heard too many stories about the day you were born. I didn't get the epidural as promised, and it was long and grueling, a blur of pitocin and pain. You arrived at the same moment they kicked off Monday night football - your dad remembers. What seemed to go on for hours and hours ended in a crazy, climactic blur. I don't remember the moment you were born very clearly, but I do remember when they handed you to me, and I held you for the first time. You were messy and wrinkly - but also the most precious being I had ever seen. I knew immediately you were my daughter. You snuggled right up to me. You were so vulnerab...

I asked you to nominate brave women for my book giveaway. Wow! I am inspired and humbled to hear their stories - and the obvious ways they have nurtured your lives. While my book was about inspiring women who lived in the late 1800s, it is clear to me that God continues to show Himself today (in 2014) through modern-day women, who live quiet, faithful, and generous lives. In my own life, I have watched my sister (Julie Storms Lunt) and my mom (Jan Storms Czapla) go through incredible trials and yet remain strong and loving and beautiful. Julie survived a brain tumor that could have taken her life - but today she is a walking miracle: thriving, married, living in Chicago, and teaching school. My mom faced the loss of her husband (my dad), and her parents in an incredibly short span of time, yet she kept pushing forward, completing a lifetime of teaching and inspiring children - and even daring to find love again. I admire them both deeply and love them beyond words. Let's ce...

Was there a woman in your life who nurtured you? A teacher who told you how great you were at math or writing? The Sunday School teacher who prayed and listened? Your aunt who took you to her workplace? Your grandmother who showed you how to make a recipe? It might be your mom, a best friend, a neighbor, a sister? What woman in your life would you like to honor? I'd like to giveaway two copies of my book, When Others Shuddered: Eight Women Who Refused to Give Up - one to you and one to the woman you admire. Write a comment below, or on my Facebook page , telling about this brave wonderful woman! Also, please share this post or my  Facebook page on social media! On Thursday, May 1st , I will draw a winner and send the book to both the winner and the honored nominee. Let's celebrate the important and wonderful women in our lives!

An 18-year-old sat in my freshman orientation class. She had wavy, light brown hair, stood about 5 feet tall, and wore her clothing in a pretty, but not flashy, conservative style. Her classmates were taking turns with introductions, talking about where they were from, why they came to Bible college, and where they saw God leading them in the future. Stephanie was agitated. I noticed she kept staring down at her desk, and that her socially-responsible Tom’s clad foot was wiggling back and forth. When it was her turn to speak, she looked up but cast her eyes down. “I’m not really called to anything,” she said quietly, shrugging her shoulders. “I just want to be a mom and a wife. Nothing else.” The group responded positively encouraging Stephanie that her vocation as wife and mother were appropriate and God-honoring. A few of the guys cast her admiring and speculative glances, wondering if perhaps they had just found the perfect wife to complement their pastoral callin...

Good Friday Synchroblog with Convergent Books About five years ago, my family traveled to Japan. When the last day arrived, we were reluctant to leave the tropical island. Standing on the shore of the East China Sea, my husband urged me to take a long last look. “After all,” he insisted, “we will probably never return to this place.” That day, I stopped what I was doing and carefully examined the exotic scene: the green moss covered coral reefs, the grey blue water stretching as far as I could see, the sea shells littering the white sand. I took a deep breath and concentrated…this was my last glimpse of Okinawa. Last moments are meant to be savored because they may never happen again. But all too often last moments have a way of sneaking up on us. We don’t realize they are the “last” until they are gone. In 1998, my dad died of a heart attack at the age of 60. His death stunned my family. There were no last moments. No last chances to say good-bye, to tell him h...

The yellow light on my car’s dashboard illuminated just as I was turning onto Route 30 for my Saturday morning grocery dash. My heart sank. This was not the first time that pesky glowing signal had appeared. I had already had our Kia Soul into the dealer’s repair shop three times. When I first saw that strangely shaped yellow light, I frantically dug the user manual out of the glove box, trying to decide what that little puzzle shape represented. Ahhhh. Check Engine. “This indicates a concern with the emission system. Take it to the dealer as soon as you are able.” May I just say that I hate having things go wrong with my car. It throws my life out of kilter. My husband gets all cranky and irritable, and my already-busy schedule has to be adjusted. Suburban moms depend on our vehicles. We shuttle kids to activities, load up groceries, head to work, or make our requisite stops at Target. I have absolutely no time for disruptions – yet, here it was. Later that day, the ...