A Time for Church Nursery

But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. ~Mark 10:14

A friend of mine on Facebook posted a link titled 7 Reasons to Serve in the Church Nursery. Click on the link and read the post for yourself, it's very interesting especially if you are someone who attends church and uses the nursery.

I'm sure it will come as no surprise to you that the topic of church nursery is sort of a hot button issue with Ben and I. When you have little children, especially when you have a lot of little ones, the nursery ministry is very important to you. I know there are some of you who feel children should never be in the nursery and can get really heated about parents needing to train their kids from infancy to sit in church...I've heard it all before. I'm not going to say I disagree. I think that if you do not want to put your kids in the nursery then you shouldn't and no one in the church, Pastor or otherwise, should make you feel bad about that. Our children are all very close in age so pretty much we have had two babies to take care of on top of the other kids. Ben is also the piano player in our church for every service so I am alone to train the kids to sit still for about 30 mins of a 60 min. service. Maybe I'm doing something wrong but it's near impossible to have two babies in my arms all while trying to train my older ones. Currently I have 5 sitting with us in church and a couple still need some direction. So I use the nursery...unashamedly. Because selfishly, I want to be able to attend at least one service on Sunday where I am able to pay attention and not constantly be "training" a child. I do try to have them out of the nursery by age 3. This is when we have started having our children sit with us during the evening services, a couple of the kids were 2 years old. Sunday mornings there are age-appropriate classes for them to go to and I will say that our kids are blessed to have some really great Sunday School and Jr. Church teachers.

As I was reading the list from the post, numbers 5 & 6 were the ones I was silently screaming "Amen!" to. The author says, "a growing Christian is always a serving Christian". This is so true. As Christians we should be driven by the Holy Spirit to serve. Too many today are not doing this and it is evident in churches of every shape and size. As it relates to church nursery I can attest to having been told more than once by more than one person, "I've done my time taking care of kids. I worked in the nursery for X amount of years and raised my own family. Now its someone else's turn." I can understand needing a break from a particular ministry. It is very easy to get stuck in a ministry and get burnt out. I've seen it happen and it's really unfortunate. Once a person becomes too exhausted to serve anymore they very rarely come back to the ministry after a period of respite. When it comes to the nursery I think this is what happens. There are so few willing to serve in this ministry that the burden of it falls on only a few. And to make it worse, often times of the few that are willing only some of them are consistently reliable and show up when they are expected to or take the time to find a replacement when they cannot...which means it falls again onto the faithful few. It is so easy to lose your joy in serving which is why I felt #6 was so important to be pointed out.

The author says, "The church nursery is the first contact young families will have with your church. Your friendly greeting and exceptional care for their children can make a great first impression for your church. If they don’t feel like their children are safe, they will not return – and rightly so." This is absolutely spot on. This goes for Sunday School teachers, Jr. church workers and anyone else who will be working with my child for the morning. Churches want young families to come and to STAY but I feel a lot of times they forget that in order to get the young families to stay (there is always the exception...some will stay regardless but this is the EXCEPTION, not the rule) their children's ministries need to be well staffed and organized. Too often Ben and I have felt like a burden to people when we show up needing the nursery and folks are scrambling to find someone, anyone, who is willing to stay and watch the kids. This is NOT a good first impression. Personally I feel that there should be a nursery worker in the nursery at least 10 mins before the service starts to greet any family who will arrive to drop off a child. I don't feel it is a good testimony when a family arrives to an empty nursery and is waiting around for a worker who is running late. But that's just my opinion!

I know that as a mom who is using the nursery this post might seem a bit self-serving. I want to assure you that is not my purpose. My purpose is to give you a moms perspective. I've been putting children in the church nursery for 10 years straight now so I have a little experience with it. Some good, some bad. I have the perspective of what it is like to be a visitor needing the nursery and as a mom who works in the nursery. I want nursery workers to understand how vital this ministry is to us moms and what a blessing it can be when it is run properly and effectively. I want to encourage you to find joy in serving in this way because whether you think so or not you are having an impact on young lives...and it can be a positive one or a negative one. The choice is yours. I know my younger kids have all had their favorite nursery worker. It's been neat to see how each of them has bonded and found something special with different ones. What has also been a blessing to my heart is seeing the nursery workers bond with my kids and learn what they love. Jena for instance has always loved purses. Ask any lady in our church about this...chances are they have a story to tell you about her going through their purse looking for either mints, chapstick or an Ipod! So a couple of the workers began bringing a purse just for her and filling it with things they new she would like when it was their turn for nursery duty. That is love and that is how I believe we are to serve and minister to children in the nursery. If you are currently a worker in the nursery and are finding it hard to find joy in serving then I would encourage you to not give it up all together but rather pray that God would change your heart and help you learn to love the children and the ministry. If you are a mom who is discouraged because of your church nursery ministry then I want to encourage you to pray and ask God to help you. It may mean He starts by using you to set the example in the nursery. Ben and I know all about discouragement when it comes to this and I will admit it is very hard at times. But prayer is more powerful than you know so I would encourage you to commit to praying for your church nursery workers and the ministry that God would work in the hearts of the workers. Pray also for yourself that you will not allow discouragement to turn to bitterness. Ask God to help you see what is good, pure, true, etc. (Phil 4:8). Then wait patiently and see how God will work it out! I believe there is a purpose and a place for the church nursery and I believe that God can use the workers in the nursery in a very mighty way if they would only allow him to...and some are! Look to them as your example. I promise others will be blessed by it...especially the children and their parents!

A Time to Set Goals

I really can't believe another year has ended. I will say that for myself, 2013 was a blur! Our year over-flowed with blessings! God has been so good to our family. I'm just thankful that I am able to say 2013 was a good year because I know that for many 2013 was filled with difficulties, heartache, challenges, and loss. I have no idea what 2014 will bring to our family, only the Lord knows, but our prayer is that whatever we are asked to face we will do so with grace and a complete reliance on the One who establishes our days.

Not knowing what the future holds is not, however, an excuse for me to not set some goals for myself. I hesitate to set New Year's resolutions because I am terrible at keeping them, even the ones that seem easy to keep! I do want to set goals though because that is how I operate best. When I know what I am trying to accomplish and what I am working towards, that is when I function most effectively. So what are some goals I am setting for myself this year? Well number one (as it is for many of us) weight loss. But, I don't have a specific amount I am trying to lose, I am not planning to follow a specific diet and I don't plan on getting a gym membership. Because life is still incredibly busy and I still do not have a lot of free time I know that if I set a rigid goal I will get discouraged quickly. So my goal is basically to make healthier choices. I plan to eat healthier but not count points or follow rules. I'm keeping it simple...instead or reaching for the cookie I'm reaching for the carrot. I'm also planning to start exercising. A friend lent me P90X so if you don't hear from me it's because I've died.

Also on my list of goals is to read more. I don't read nearly enough and I enjoy it so much. I also want to be more deliberate in my parenting and interactions with the kids. In the business of this particular season of life where there are so many little ones I feel sometimes my older kids don't get 100% of me. I'd like to change that. And of course, the goal that is always on my list and will continue to be is to know my God better. To spend more time with him in His word and in prayer. I haven't figured out how I'm going to accomplish all this yet but I'm at least going to try.

I have so much to work on and I can easily get very discouraged when I sit back and think about all the things I would like to do better or work on or change. I'm going to take baby steps this year and not put a lot of pressure on myself. I'm going to be deliberate about making healthy eating choices but not beat myself up when I cheat (because you know I will), I'm going to make a conscious effort to read more but that might mean that I read for 30 mins a week...that is more than I do now (as far as fiction reading goes) so I'd be reaching that goal. I'm keeping it simple but at the same time giving myself something to strive towards. And hopefully by putting it out there and telling you all about it that will be enough accountability for me to stick to it!

A Time to Tell You Why I Blog

I hope you didn't click on this to get some profound reason for my efforts! My reasons are not at all juicy either. First let me tell you why I DON'T blog.

I don't blog...
Because I want to make money on it...clearly
Because I think I have all the answers 
Because I am an excellent writer and you all should know it
Because I am super talented in the craft/cooking department and everyone should benefit from my abilities
Because I want to make a name for myself...or "brand" myself

So why do I do it? Honestly, the idea to start a blog was not a thought out one. It's not something I contemplated for months and then put a dream into action. I never read other peoples blogs until I started my own. I didn't even really know what blogging was. One night I was home alone because Ben was out of town for work. I had 5 kids and was struggling to get rest and feeling very cooped up. I was desperately seeking some sort of outlet for myself that didn't involve me cleaning a house or taking care of kids. Not because I don't enjoy those things I just don't enjoy ONLY doing those things. And when you have little ones at home the feeling of doing nothing else besides changing diapers and constantly training can become overwhelming. I was looking through the adult ed classes trying to see if something would strike my fancy. Anytime I would see something of interest I would find it was on an evening or time that didn't fit our schedule. The Lord was clearly shutting the door on that option as much as I was desperately trying to open it. He was stronger and it slammed in my face. Then this idea, out of nowhere came to me, "what about blogging?" So I looked into it, decided to try and create one, watched some Youtube videos on how to do some things and there it was... a blog. But it was a blank blog. What would I say? What would I write about? I prayed and just asked God to direct me. I didn't want this to be a waste of my time and just something I did that would lose it's luster in 2 months. I wanted to take a leap of faith and see what happened but I was skeptical. The driving force behind me actually continuing and publishing the first post was a feeling that God was asking me to. As crazy as that may sound, it's the truth. So why do I blog? Here's why:

I blog because...
I love to write. It's an outlet for me and I find it very therapeutic
It's something I can do other than my day-to-day mom/wife stuff that doesn't require money or me leaving the house
I love connecting with people
I enjoy sharing what God is doing in my life, the good and the bad, successes and failures
I believe God brought this opportunity to me and I want to glorify Him through it

All of these reasons are true,real reasons why I blog but the main reason I believed I was doing this when I first began was so our families, who we do not live near, could keep up with our family and see how we were doing . I really thought God brought this to mind so we would have an easier time feeling connected to them, while at the same time filling that need I had to do something "else". The funny thing is though, that is not how God has used it. In fact, most of our family doesn't even read this blog. God has done something totally different and unexpected with it. I have met new people, built relationships, helped new moms, encouraged the discouraged, been transparent (with Gods help) when that is what others needed. God has given me a boldness with this blog and shown me the importance of letting go of pride and appearances and just being real about life. I will admit that its not always easy for me to transparent. My pride fights that. But those are the posts that God has used the most to help others as evidenced by the number of "hits" it gets and the emails and comments I receive. I truly am amazed that anyone reads this blog never mind the way it reaches people. Don't misunderstand...my circle of influence is very small! But that is ok since my goal was never to have a following. I write for the few, not the masses but mostly I write for me and my kids. Ben always mentions how these posts will be a great resource for our kids when they are older and can appreciate them. So if nothing else I am building a library of wisdom (and I use that word carefully as I know I have so much to learn) for my offspring.

I have said all of this to be clear of my goals with this blog as I present an idea I have. And I need your help! I have noticed in the blog world that many bloggers create a facebook page and their readers "like" it. What I really love about this idea is it's a fun way to connect even more with those who read your blog without making your own personal facebook page all about your blog. Again, my goal is not to "brand" myself so that is not at all why I am thinking about this. I want a fun easy way to encourage and edify others without the pressure of writing a blog post. As much as I enjoy writing, it is time consuming and I don't have a lot of time these days. A facebook page I feel would allow me to write a line here and there, share quick thoughts, give recommendations on books & blogs, share my own blog posts when I have one...you get the idea, without taking up a lot of my time. How can you help? If you read this blog, even if it's just once and awhile, "like" my facebook page. It's called To Everything There is a Season. Click on the link and it will take you right to it. Every person who likes my page will be entered into a drawing to win something hand-made by my friend Karen from Our Picket Fence. I own a few of her creations and they do not disappoint! If you take the time to visit her Etsy shop and tell us what your favorite item is in the comments here, your name will be entered twice! Who doesn't love two chances to win? The winner will be able to choose between the Lavender Filled Sachets or the Yellow Chevron Rice Hand Warmers. The winner will be announced by January 4, 2014 (2014, seriously!?). Alright, get busy "liking" the To Everything There is a Season's facebook page and visiting with Our Picket Fence...and let your friends know!

A Time for My Thoughts on Christmas

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder:and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor,The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. ~Is. 9:6

It may come as no surprise to you when I tell you I like to keep it simple. These are the things I enjoy...the simple things. With a little luxury thrown in here and there, when God and means allow. So for me (and Ben), Christmas is about one thing: Jesus. And this is what we teach our children. All the other stuff, which I will get to in a minute, are just extras that do not MAKE Christmas what it is. The birth of Christ, our Saviour, the one who would one day die on a cross to save us of our sins, and offer us a place in heaven. HE is what our Christmas is all about.

That being said, we do enjoy the Christmas season in other ways but they are not the priority and they are not the focus. There are 5 things that I do all I can to make time for because I want my kids to have these memories and traditions. I want them to grow up and look back and say, "at Christmas we always..." Those kinds of memories and traditions are special and I feel, worth the extra effort to make happen.

1. The tree. No matter what is going on, no matter how busy life is, we always make time to put up the tree. Even when we had our first apt. and no money, before kids came, we had a tree. It was a pathetic, Charlie Brown tree but it was a tree. Now we have an artificial one because it's just easier right now. Eventually I think we will get a real tree but for now the one pictured above is our tree and we love it. The older kids help us assemble it, Ben and I string the lights, then all the kids who are able start putting on the ornaments. We were not allowed to help with the "real" tree growing up. We had our own tree in the basement that we were allowed to decorate. Growing up I never thought that was a bad thing...till I tell people this story and you can just see the pity for us in their eyes! I want my kids to feel like this tree is theirs too, not just mine, and perfect is not my goal. Memories are. If they showed no interest in putting the ornaments on the tree then sure, I would do it myself but they really look forward to this.

2. Making sugar cookies and decorating them. We did not have this tradition in my house but I think its so much fun so we make sure to do this with our kids. This is another thing they really look forward to! This year I let Jena help me make the cookies. The boys are only interested once the frosting and sprinkles come out! This tradition I will admit is time consuming. I also don't love baking so this is a real labor of love for me. Not to mention the mess...this is a messy tradition. By the end of this everyone was covered in flour, frosting and sprinkles...but it all washes and the memories made are worth every bit of mess.

3. Sticky Buns. Oh my, these are so good. This is one of the traditions Ben had growing up that he was not at all willing to leave behind...and none of us are complaining! We all look forward to our Christmas morning sticky buns! The kids ask for these throughout the year but I only make them on Christmas morning. Whether we are home or away I always plan to make these. They are so good and everyone looks forward to them so much that its usually a hard decision when the kids are asked if they want to eat first or open gifts!

4. The Christmas Story. And I'm not talking about "Twas the Night Before Christmas", though that is a great read. I'm talking about the story of Christ's birth. I will never forget the first time I heard the Christmas story. Of course it is possible I heard it at a young age but I mean the first time I really heard it. It was the first Christmas I spent with Ben's family. Christmas morning Ben's mom told me that the seat reserved next to Ben's dad was for me. That was so special to me. I know that seat was a place one of her 6 children look forward to having but she purposed to reserve it for me knowing this was my first time listening to it with a changed heart. I will never forget that morning. So the tradition continues in our home. On Christmas morning before we do anything else, we sit down in front of the tree and Ben reads the Christmas story. As much as I love our other traditions and would miss them if they were gone, if we could only choose one I would choose this one.

5. Christmas pajamas. This is a tradition we had growing up and I love this tradition but when you have 7 kids this is not always a tradition we can afford. The past few years I have chosen to go with something most of the kids already had, like the red tartan patterned ones we all have, and just buy the one or two sizes I need. This year we had a little extra in the budget and I found Star Wars pajama bottoms at a great price for the 4 boys. No they are not exactly "Christmasy" but the boys are going to love them. For the girls I only had to buy one pajama, for Jena, and got it match what I already had for the younger two girls.

So how does a family with 7 children in a difficult economy afford Christmas without breaking the bank? We get asked a lot and my answer is simple: Christmas is not about the gifts. It just isn't. From the time Noah was born we determined that Christmas would be small when it came to gifts. As parents we set the bar. So even though we only had one child and could afford to do more, we didn't. I'm thankful that we had this perspective early on because we had no idea we'd have 7 and that a small Christmas in the gift department was going to become a necessity. We don't have a strict policy per say but basically it has been one gift per kid (within our budget, which is $50 per kid) plus *stocking stuffers. The past couple of years we purchased one big gift for all the kids to share and if there was any money left over (there usually is) from our budget (which is still $50 per kid, we just combine it for the big gift) we purchase a small item for each of them so they have their own individual gift to unwrap. This year, thankfully, our family members are putting money toward bigger items for the kids to share and we are grateful. This not only helps them but it helps us. When you have 9 people living in a modest home you can only have so many toys! I know to many reading this our budget seems ridiculously small and the idea of only having one gift each under the tree is crazy. This is how we keep it simple. This is how we remain stress free at the holidays and are able to enjoy each other and the things that really matter. Having a small budget for our family at Christmas not only helps us keep perspective but it also allows us to GIVE during the holidays. There are so many with so much less then us and its important for us to get our kids involved in giving and help them see how much they have compared to others. A couple ways we do this are by putting together shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child and picking stars from the tree at the kids school, and donating to Toys for Tots. There are so many ways to give and each year how we give is a little different. I hope that you all are able to experience the joy this holiday season can bring. Even when difficult times fall upon us, if we keep perspective and remember what is really important, we can have peace and contentment. Enjoy your families and your holiday traditions and more importantly...breathe! Enjoy the season, don't stress and focus on building memories!

Still waiting for Emma's
stocking to arrive!

*Stocking Stuffers: This is something I love. As a kid stocking stuffers were my favorite! So I really want to fill stockings for my kids. The problem: this can get really expensive! Not only expensive but I really dislike spending money on trinkets and things that will break a day later just to fill a stocking. So this year what I am doing is putting the Christmas pajamas in the stockings with a couple other things. And I will likely keep it this way for the years to come. Two things my kids love are chapstick and soda. They very rarely get soda and if they do its half a glass maybe three times a year. I buy the small cans of soda (the ones that are half the size of a regular can) and they each get one in their stocking...they LOVE this! So pajamas, a can of soda and a chapstick are what my kids are getting in their stocking. I'm not kidding when I say its very important to us that Christmas remains simple and focused on what is important. I always tell my kids the story my grandmother told me when I was a kid. When she was young her and her siblings received fruit and a few pieces of candy in their stockings. Fruit was a luxury for them apparently and not something they got often. She would talk about how much she looked forward to getting that orange and I remember thinking, "really, excited about an orange?!" I haven't spoken to her about this story since I've been an adult. It's very possible she exaggerated in the hopes it would make me more thankful for all I received. In any case, I tell my kids, and it does make them realize how much they have so its a good story regardless!

A Time for Friendship

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down 

his life for his friends. ~John 15:13

Friends are people I feel we should all have. Friends, if chosen well, can be such a blessing. Some people, like myself, enjoy several close friends of all shapes and sizes. Others of you prefer to keep your close friends and confidants to a minimum. Some of you may even only have one person you would call a close friend. Whatever your preference, having friends is important. Even more important than having good friends is being a good friend. Some people are gifted in knowing how to be a good friend. Others, well, they need a little encouragement in this area. Since I have an over abundance of wonderful friends who have taught me so much about what it means to be a friend, I thought I'd share what I've learned. I would like to preface this by saying that the Bible teaches us clearly about friendship...the kinds of friends to look for and avoid as well as showing us that Jesus is THE friend and our example. This post isn't a Bible study on friendship...just some practical advice from a girl who thinks friendship is important and tries hard to be a friend worth having.

The first thing I've learned is that in order to be a good friend you need to be available. Trust me I know what you are thinking, "I don't have time to be there every time my friend needs me". I get it. I have a family and I am not able to just drop everything in an instant. Being available is more than just physically being there. Distance, for instance, would prohibit even the greatest of friends from being available physically. We live in a time where technology makes it easier than ever to be available. With things like texting, FaceTime & Skype, and email it is so manageable for us to be there for our friends even when distance and time prevent us from being able to hold a hand or give a hug. Being available just means you are willing to set some time aside from your busy schedule to make a phone call, send a quick text, write an email or Skype. This is especially important when you know your friend is going through a difficult or challenging time. I can't tell you how encouraging it is when I am having a hard day and I suddenly get a text from a friend letting me know they are praying for me. Or a friend I haven't heard from in awhile will send a card or email letting me know they've been thinking of me. Another thing I've learned is you need to learn what your friend's need. Have you ever heard of the book, "The Five Love Languages"? In it the author is speaking to married couples but I think it translates into all types of relationships. The 5 love languages are:

Words of Affirmation

Acts of Service

Receiving Gifts

Quality Time

Physical Touch

Knowing the ways in which the people you are in relationships with feel loved will help you be a better friend (and wife, sister, mother, etc.). For me my love language is Acts of Service with Quality Time a close second. I feel most loved when people give me their time (which is valuable) and help me with a task. I have friends who are amazing at making me feel loved. I have one friend who is always reminding me she will come over and help if I have a project to work on. Today in fact she was here helping me core, peel, and slice A LOT of apples that were given to me. It meant so much to me that she was willing to take time out of her day to spend it here with me chatting and working on something I desperately needed to get done yet could not have by myself. When my sister was recently here visiting for the week she made me feel loved by cleaning...every time I looked she was cleaning something that I

never have time to do like the oven. Another friend ALWAYS folds my laundry when she comes to visit. She doesn't even ask anymore. She sees it and does it automatically while we are chatting. These kinds of friends are a blessing and make me feel loved because that is my love language. Not that the other things on the list are not appreciated...they are very much appreciated. Because Acts of Service is my love language it is how I most easily show love. My first thought is to bring you a meal, watch your kids or help with a project. But that might not be my friends love language so its important that I learn what is so that I can be there for
them in a way that lets them know I care and makes them feel loved.
I've learned that being a good friend requires me to be accepting of others for who they are and not expecting them to change to suit my preferences. Do all of my friends and I think alike or act alike? No. How boring would that be! I had one friend say recently, "I thank God for each of you ladies, and the way our different personalities complement each other". Differences are good and we should be willing to accept our friends and love them for who they are. I'm thankful for my friends who are patient and gracious with my imperfect self and keep me around despite my undesirable qualities that I know at times drive them crazy!
Lastly, and maybe most importantly, I have learned that my children are watching me and the kind of friend I am to others will have an impact on them. I am their first example of what a friend is. Not because I am trying to be their friend, (that's a post for a different day), but because they see how I treat my friends, how I speak to them or about them and whether or not I make time for them. I am the first person who teaches them what a friend is and what it means to be a friend. I want my kids to make wise choices when it comes to choosing friends and I want my example to be one that they can emulate. I have found the best training they can get in learning to be a good friend is with their brothers and sisters. These are their first friends and learning to be a good friend to each other will give them just the practice they need to be a good friend to others.

A Time for Thankfulness: Revised and Updated for 2013

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. ~Psalm 100:4

November is the time of year everybody starts thinking of things they are thankful for, leading up to Thanksgiving. It's all over Facebook with status' each day of something one is thankful for. So I decided, because consistency is not my greatest strength, that instead of each day posting one thing I'm thankful for I instead would just make a list of 30 things, one for each day of the month!

I am thankful for:

1.First and foremost I'm thankful for Christ dying on the cross and forgiving me of my sins. I don't want to think of who I would be or where I would be without HIM. 

2. My husband. I am amazed every day that God gave me such a good man. He is my best friend and loves me unconditionally...good days AND bad days! I love him so much and am so thankful for him.

3. Seven healthy children. WOW! With so many stories lately of children who are sick and dying I am thankful each day for how God has blessed us in this area.

4. For Noah. Everyone needs a Noah. He is a love and could sit and chat and hug all day. He is  just so thoughtful. He is a good friend and so good to his siblings. He makes me laugh because he is as awkward as I am and he frustrates me because we are so much alike!! But I wouldn't change anything about him.

5. For Owen. He is so much like his dad, I love that. He's our goofball and always knows how to put a smile on my face. He is determined and hard working but loves making everything in life fun!

6. For Gabe. Gabe is all boy & all personality. He never stops thinking, or talking or moving. He's our most exhausting one but always makes life interesting with his unpredictable ways. He's a born leader & strong willed and so interested in the world around him.

7. For Will. He's my "sweet William". He is so kind and gentle. He is the first one to pick something up if you've dropped it. He's also very organized, always making sure things go where they belong. He loves to laugh ,even if he has no idea what he's laughing about! I can't imagine our family without him.

8. For Jena. She is a girly- girl with a side of tom boy in her. Truly it just depends on her mood and I love that about her. She loves to tease, her brothers especially, and loves it when she is teased back. She's also such a big helper. She loves to help fold laundry and load/unload the dishwasher...and is actually very good at both! So thankful for her helping spirit. 

9. For Tess. My little Tessie-Lou is the happiest, smiley-est baby there is...after Will, because he was too. She has a smile at the ready almost constantly. You will hear a lot of people say that they've never heard her cry. While she does cry, I'm not surprised some haven't heard it because it is so rare. She adds so much joy to our house and we're so thankful for her.

10. For Emma. Though these first couple of months have been tough since she is a baby more on the fussy side I'm so thankful that fussy is the worst I can say because so many parents face very real and scary ailments with their kids. When she does smile she has the most adorable dimple, just like Noah's and it makes my day. I'm so thankful God blessed us with a 3rd little girl and I'm looking forward to seeing her personality come through.

11. For the fact that I can be a stay at home mom. There are many challenging and tough days but there are more great and rewarding days and I'm thankful I'm able to be home with the kids.

12. For my husband having a job. In this economy the fact that he has a stable job cannot be taken for granted. 

13. For friends who are unbelievably loving and supportive. I'm so blessed with so many great women in my life. 


14. For family. My kids are blessed to have all their grandparents and 3 great-grandparents, lots of aunts & uncles and cousins. 

15. For coffee. It has to be said! I'm thankful for very, very strong (preferably Starbucks) coffee. 

16. To be an American. Despite everything that is happening and going on in our country...some things very scary...I'm still proud to be an American.

17. For the Bible and for the freedom to own as many as I want, read it whenever I want without fear of being thrown in prison or losing my life.

18. For our home. It's warm and safe and full of love. It's a place where there is always an over abundance of all of life's necessities-Praise God!

19. That Ben and I are healthy. It sure makes taking care of this family a whole lot easier!

20. For modern conveniences! Life is a lot easier today with things like indoor plumbing, electricity, dishwashers, cell phones, computers, etc.! 

21. For Facebook. That may seem like a strange thing to be thankful for but when you stay home taking care of a lot of little ones it's hard to get out and F/B has helped me feel connected to people. So many of my friends have been a huge source of encouragement.

22. For nature. Mountains to climb, trails to hike, lakes and oceans to swim in, animals to watch. God's creation is amazing!

23. I'm thankful that Ben's parents give us beef each year! Sure helps our grocery budget!!!

24. I'm thankful for how God has gifted Ben with so many skills & talents-have I mentioned how just plain awesome I think my husband is??

25. I'm thankful I have eyes that see and ears that hear. This is definitely something I take for granted, and shouldn't!

26. I'm thankful for things like make-up, hair color, hair straighteners, and nail polish. These may be frivolous things but they  are things that are sure to put a smile on my face when I'm feeling frumpy and less than pretty!

27. Music!! I love that there is music for every mood and occasion. I especially love the way it can prepare our hearts to worship God and express our love to him.

28. I'm thankful for the way God has provided for our family. A lot of people say it is too expensive to have a big family but we have seen God's provision for our every need and almost every want and I am so thankful for that. What an awesome God we serve!

29. Fire. Not only because it heats a home and cooks food but because of the way it brings people together to talk and laugh around a campfire eating s'mores. This is one of my most favorite family times!

30. The fact that I woke up today and so did my most precious gifts, Ben and the kids. I'm thankful for the gift of each day.

A Time for Pinterest Hits...and Misses!

If you are not on Pinterest by now, you really should be! I think whoever came up with this idea is a genius; it has made my life a lot easier on several occasions! When I'm in a funk meal planning, the first place I go is Pinterest. I pin a lot of things. Most of us on Pinterest do. But how many of those pins do we actually try or do? I've been making an effort over the past few months to take some of the things I've pinned and actually make them. Since I haven't exactly had a lot of time for crafts or DIY projects but I still HAVE to cook, the pins I've made lately are recipes. So here are some of the ones we enjoyed...and some not so much!

1. Breaded Ranch Chicken 

This recipe was a hit! It was so tasty and very easy. I'm one who almost always has some packets of Ranch dressing mix on hand so this is a recipe I can make in a flash. Though I did recently pin a recipe for DIY ranch seasoning, which I hope to try soon. If it turns out to be a hit then I can make this recipe with my own seasoning. 






2. Vegetable Mac n Cheese

This recipe was another hit...in fact, it's on the menu for this weekend. I first made this recipe when we were having guests over for lunch. I know it's risky to try new recipes when company's coming but I took a chance anyway. I'm glad I did. It is such a fun take on mac n cheese, has lots of veggies, which I found you can choose the ones you like and eliminate the ones you don't (I did not put squash in mine). It has nice flavor and the red pepper flakes give it just the right amount of kick to make it interesting!




3. Crock Pot Chex Mix

This one I am going to have to say is a miss...for me anyway. Not so much on taste, because it tastes fine. My problem with it is that it makes a mess of your crock pot! And I don't find it easier to do it in the crock pot then in the oven. I prefer my oven method so I'm going to stick with it. I guess my suggestion would be if you decide to try it then invest in some crock pot liners and save yourself a lot of scrubbing!





4. Chicken Pot Pie Cupcakes

If there is anything I love, it's finding a recipe that the kids devour. And this recipe is one of them. Another item I always have on hand are refrigerator biscuits. I grab these when they go on sale and freeze them (yes, they freeze beautifully!) so all I have to do when I've got some leftover chicken to use up is thaw some biscuits and we've got ourselves a meal everyone will love! This is one of those recipes too that you can play around with. Make your filling to your liking and then bake them up. It's an easy recipe and a neat way to use up some leftovers!




5. Buffalo Chicken Bites

This one I'm afraid to say is a miss. None of us cared for this recipe...and we're big buffalo chicken fans. I can't quite put my finger on what it was about this recipe that made it not to our liking but even after 3 or 4 attempts, we still didn't like it. Maybe you'll have better luck than I did!







6. Sweet & Sour Chicken

This is by far the BEST recipe I've pinned on Pinterest to date! Everyone I've made it for has also raved about it. It's not exactly a quick and easy recipe...there's some prep work and planning involved. But it is so worth the effort. This recipe also freezes very well. Prepare it up until the baking stage. Freeze it. Then when you're ready to eat it stick it in the oven and let it finish cooking. You will not regret taking the time to make this, I promise!


7. S'mores Bars

I do not do a lot of baking. It's not my favorite thing to do. I would much rather cook a meal. But I do try to bake for the sake of my family so I like recipes that are quick and easy. This one is that...it's very quick and easy if you have everything you need. But I'm calling it a miss. It just wasn't as good as you'd think it would be. I guess there's just no beating a real s'more by the campfire so my suggestion is this...if you have the ingredients for s'mores, make yourself a campfire and enjoy the real deal because these pale in comparison!




8. Strawberry-Yogurt Cake

This recipe is a huge HIT! It takes some planning because it calls for a few ingredients I don't always have on hand but it's definitely worth making. It's so yummy and very easy to make! I highly recommend this recipe!






9. Poppy-Seed Chicken Casserole

This recipe I just recently tried when my in-laws were visiting and we say it's a hit! It is really yummy and the poppy seeds give it a great flavor. This one Ben even talked about days later...that's when you know you've found a recipe that's a keeper! The instructions say that some add rice to the bottom and I absolutely did. I added 2 cups of cooked rice to the bottom of the casserole. I think next time I might experiment by throwing in some veggies. I love recipes I can be creative with and this is definitely one of them.



10. Coconut Rice

This recipe I have not tried yet but I plan to this weekend. It seems super simple. I even bought minute rice, which I never do, to ensure it comes out just as it's supposed to. I love coconut and I think this fun take on rice will go nicely with the shrimp I'm planning to make to go with it. It seems too simple to mess up but we shall see!






So here you have it! A few of my "pins" that have proved successful and not so successful. Maybe you can incorporate some of these recipes into your menu planning this month. I hope to have some time in the near future to try out the more crafty & DIY type pins I have waiting for me...and when I do I'll be sure to let you know how they turned out!