A Time for the Nap Time Battle

The other day Jena was pretending she was a princess and came up to me and asked me to read her the pretend letter that I apparently had written her. I played along and made up some things that could have been in the letter. I ended the letter by saying I hoped she would have a good nap that afternoon because it's important for princesses to get their rest. She stopped me and asked me to change the ending because she was not a little girl princess, she was a grown-up princess. I changed my ending to instead say that I hoped she would take a good nap that afternoon because grown-up princesses need to get their rest too. She was not at all amused by this and proceeded to rip up the pieces of paper, which contained the pretend letter, and throw it in the trash. I laughed so hard.

Jena does not like nap time. None of my kids have liked nap time after the age of 3. Before that age, most of my babies have been very good sleepers and done well at nap time. For some reason though there comes a point where they no longer feel they need sleep to function. Ben and I are night owls so it makes sense all our kids are. I'm also someone who does not need a lot of sleep and a few of our kids definitely take after me for that. Regardless of genetics though kids need sleep whether they think they do or not. If not sleep, then definitely some quiet, down time....this I am a firm believer in.

We can't force kids to sleep...at least I haven't figured out how yet. What I can do is try as best I can to keep them on a healthy sleep schedule and hope that in time their bodies will adjust and that they will learn to relax and enjoy the time of rest. Sleep training babies is so different than toddlers. If you are at all interested in learning about the method I have used for all my babies then I recommend reading the book Baby Wise. For now I just want to share with you how I have dealt with the tireless toddler who fights nap time.

First, nap time isn't really nap time anymore. I call it rest time. Even if the child tells me they are not tired they have to go down for rest time. I require this of all my kids until they start school. It is at the same time every day, typically. I allow the child to listen to a CD and look at books quietly. They are not allowed to get out of their bed and they are not allowed to make noise. The noise part isn't so much an issue with the girls but it really was with my boys....there is always noise coming out of a boy! Then set a time limit. Our rest time is 2 hours.  If they don't obey those rules there is a consequence. This is something you have to decide for your child. Whatever your consequence is for disobeying in other areas, should be the consequence for disobeying at rest time.

Some of my kids did this very well and others (ahem, Gabe & Jena) not so much. The key is to remain firm in your expectations and be consistent. There will be some days (or weeks) that you spend the entire rest time going up there and reminding them to obey and getting them back in their bed and you will be exhausted! I promise if you remain firm and don't waiver on what you expect from the child they will get it and when that moment happens you will be so happy you made the commitment to train them to have rest time. It is amusing to me that it is usually the child who fights it the most who ends up falling asleep!

Now if I could only train myself to take naps, we'd be golden!

A Time to Freeze Rice

I feel like all I've been focusing on the past few weeks is how to simplify things, how to make things easier and how to do things as efficiently as I can. I need more time saving tips and tricks....freezing sandwiches for school lunches....AMAZING! I'm still in awe that I never did this before!

A year or so ago, when I had just had Tess and found out I was pregnant for Emma I was a bit overwhelmed....just a bit. A friend of mine was so thoughtful and brought me a meal to put in my freezer to help me! In that meal was a bag of pre-cooked rice that had been frozen in a freezer bag. All I had to do was thaw it in the microwave. It tasted amazing and what a great time saving tip to freeze rice! I always meant to do this myself and just never got around to it. Till now!

I don't know about you but we eat rice a lot here. At least twice a week. It goes with everything...stir fry, stroganoff, fish, and this crock pot dish I'm making for dinner tonight: Crockpot Shrimp Creole. Rice is not at all hard to make but on a busy night, when you don't have a minute to spare, it can seem like it's a torturous task. I'm thinking that I am going to love being able to go to the freezer and just grab a bag of already cooked rice and pop it in the microwave!

Here is how my friend did it...its so simple you'll be wondering why you didn't think to do this yourself!

Step 1: Cook your favorite rice as you normally would. I use Basmati and I made 20 cups of rice, which will give me about 5 meals worth of rice, not counting leftovers.

Step 2: Let it cool.

Step 3: Place in freezer bags in the portion size you need. I did 4 cup portions.

Step 4: Put the bags in the freezer.

When you are ready to use the rice all you have to do is take it out of the freezer, vent the bag a little and put it in the microwave for 3 or so minutes.

That's it! So easy and it tastes great too. I am savoring every tip and trick to save time these days and this one is by far one of my favorites! From the reading I have done, it seems rice will keep in the freezer for up to a month. Making rice once a month compared to twice a week sounds much better to me!

A Time for School Lunch Madness!

School has begun and with that comes school lunches. I have always sent the kids to school with a lunch from home with the exception of last year...two babies meant I just couldn't handle the extra work of making lunches so the kids got hot lunch. Paying for school lunch adds up though and it is cheaper for me to make them a lunch. I haven't done the math of what I spend but I know I don't spend $200 a month, which is what paying for school lunch for 4 kids would cost me. Plus my kids prefer cold lunch to hot lunch and with cold lunch I know there is way less waste because I'm sending them with food they like.

This is the first year I have 4 lunches to make and I know it shouldn't seem like that much more work but for some reason it is. I have felt the need to be way more prepared then I have in years past and I have found I need to give myself more time to prepare the lunches. I was reading a blog post I found on Pinterest, (which I didn't save and can't find now otherwise I would reference it), and her tip was to make sandwiches ahead and freeze them. She does this with her kids and they said the sandwiches taste just as good. I thought this was genius and so I have started doing this. It doesn't require a whole lot of time. In an hour I was able to make 24 sandwiches. I made sunbutter & cinnamon, PB & J, and PB & Honey with Cinnamon. I wrap them in freezer plastic wrap and then label them. I also made some Ham & Cheese sandwiches to freeze. I have given the kids these frozen sandwiches for a week now and they don't even know they've been frozen! Not one complaint that they taste weird or the bread is soggy or anything so I'd say this is working for us! Thankfully we have two chest freezers in the basement so I am able to devote a good amount of space in my refrigerator freezer to keep the sandwiches. In the morning I pull it from the freezer and throw it in the lunch box. By lunch time it's thawed and ready to eat.

Then there is everything else to think of. They need a snack and other items to round off the lunch. In order to save my sanity in the mornings I pre-package all the snacks, chips & crackers for about a 2-week period so all I have to do is grab the bags in the morning and throw it into the lunch box. I have three separate baskets (I got them at the dollar store) that I use for school lunches (these are separate from my home snack basket, which you can read about HERE). One is for snack time items, one for chips, crackers or pretzels to go with the sandwiches, and one is for dessert. The snack basket has items like almonds & peanuts, cheese & crackers, applesauce, granola bars, rice cakes and graham crackers. My chip basket has bags of chips, cheez-its, pretzels, wheat thins, etc. Then the dessert basket has animal crackers, fruit snacks and any homemade cookies or brownies we have at the time. This system has been such a life saver. My kids also know to save all their baggies so we use them again and again. When it comes to the fresh fruits and veggies I don't pre-package those because I don't really have the room to devote in my fridge right now but also because at the start of school I bought these divided lunch box containers that I can just put the fruits and veggies into without pre-bagging them. These came in a pack of 4 and are great quality. Another thing I like to do is buy the bulk size blocks of cheese and cut up slices ahead of time. This makes putting together a cheese & cracker snack much easier.

Do you have any tips and tricks that help you get through the busy morning rush when it comes to making school lunches? What are some of your kids favorite school lunches? I know Pinterest is loaded with ideas but I like hearing from you!

A Time for Essential Oils

And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick,

and healed them. ~Mark 6:13

I have recently entered the world of Essential Oils. I will admit that I tend to be on the skeptical side when it comes to things like this. I am by no means a natural, make-it-all-myself kind of mom. You will not hear me talking down doctors or hospitals because I do not believe they are bad and I don't believe that all medicine is bad. We are so fortunate to live in a time when there is so much available to us. So many lives are saved because of what God has allowed men and women to achieve in the world of medicine. When my 3-year-old needed open-heart surgery you better believe I was thankful for the skilled & compassionate surgeon we had to repair his heart and for the advancements that have been made, making this surgery possible.

My interest in EO's started about a year ago when I became very sick with high blood pressure during the end of my pregnancy with Tess, which continued for months after she was born. The medicines they had me on to bring my pressure down, while necessary and life saving, came with some pretty severe side effects, including depression. It was a really difficult & scary time for Ben and I. Once I found out I was pregnant with Emma I had to be taken off the medicines and God was extremely good to me and allowed my blood pressure to come down to a safe number throughout my pregnancy with Emma. I did, however, start reading up on some natural ways to help high blood pressure in case I would develop the same issues once I neared the end of my pregnancy because I did not ever want to go through what I did before while being on those medications. I was still very skeptical though and never pursued EO's any further until I found out my friend was not only using them with her family but also selling the oils. She came to my house, taught me about them, answered my questions and helped me purchase some.

After a little over a month of using only EO's to treat our family, I am a believer. I can't say Ben is as convinced as I am but he is getting more so every day. Just today he asked me if I had anything for a sore throat (we have a nasty cold going through our house). I wasn't sure what he meant so I said, "well...I have an oil for that". I made him a gargle and when I asked him to tell me honestly how it worked he said it made the sore throat go away. (You have to know that it was very hard for him to admit that to me!) I've had him gargling a few times today and it's helping him a lot. Here are a few other ways we have had the opportunity to use Essential Oils in our home over the past couple months:


1. Bee Stings: it just so happened that shortly after receiving the oils two of my kids got stung. On both of the stings I immediately put a couple of drops of melaluca and a drop of lavender on the sting and both the kids said the pain went away almost instantly and a few hours later you couldn't even tell where they had been stung.

2. Snoring: Someone in our house snores and it keeps me awake. I will not say the oils have cured the snoring but it definitely helps. The snoring is not as loud or as prolonged. He will snore for a minute or two then stop. I can now tell which nights he uses the oil and which nights he doesn't. What I did was filled a roller bottle with 20 drops of Thyme and filled the rest with Fractionated Coconut Oil (a carrier oil). He rolls this on the bottoms of his feet at night (targeting specifically the big toe) and it truly helps! I also make a rub of doTerra's Breathe oil blend with some coconut oil and massage that into his chest.

3. Headaches: This is what sold me completely on the oils. I suffer from headaches. Really bad headaches and almost every day. I had been taking a lot of Ibuprophen and suffered a lot with headaches during pregnancies when I couldn't really take anything except Tylenol, which doesn't work for me. When I feel a headache coming on I put a drop or two of Peppermint oil on the back of my neck and rub it in. Then I use what is left on my hands and massage it into my temples. In 20 minutes my headache is gone. I haven't taken any over the counter medicine for a headache in a month and I am someone who took something on an almost daily basis!

4.Earache: Last week one of the boys got sick with a bad head cold and was complaining of an earache. I put a couple of drops of melaluca and lavender on a cotton ball and had him place it on his ear for 10 minutes. I also put a few drops of lemon around the outside of his ear and throat. I repeated this 3 times that day and by the next day he no longer was complaining of any pain and even his cold had improved significantly.Oregano is also supposed to be really good for this but his earache never got worse so I didn't need to use it.

5. Immune Building: I have been having the kids rub doTerra's oil blend, On Guard, to help keep them healthy this school year. I can't say for certain yet how much this will help or work since we are only a week into school but I have confidence we will see results. My friend uses this regularly on her children and has seen results.

These are just a few of the ways we have seen results with EO's so far...and we are only a couple months into it. I'm still learning as there is so much to learn. Finding which oil works best for you for a specific ailment also requires a lot of research since there is usually more than one oil or combination of oils you can use to treat something. One website I have found extremely helpful to me is the Everything Essential website. Click the link and learn about how you can treat some of the ailments you are experiencing with EO's. While I am a believer in the oils I also believe that there will be some things that oils cannot treat. I just wanted a way that I could treat my kids naturally, without running to the Dr. for everything. If you are at all interested and want to learn more I would be very happy to put you in contact with my friend who sells doTerra oils, or you can do some reading and shopping on your own! I just purchased the book, Modern Essentials, which my friend
recommended I do because of all the valuable information it has in
regard to EO's. I can't wait for it to come in!


***One note I will make is that not all essential oils are created equal. Do your research before purchasing. I was curious for myself if I could get the oils for a cheaper price and ordered one oil made by a different company. The quality was not comparable. Compared to the lower priced oil I bought, doTerra was a superior oil. In most cases, you get what you pay for.

A Time to Share a Big Struggle!

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. ~I Sam.16:7

I try, I've tried, I'm trying to get back into shape & eat healthy but it has been a real tough road for me. I know I'm not alone. The fact that I have had 7 babies has nothing to do with the fact that I have not lost all my baby weight. I refuse to use that as an excuse because I am the only reason I'm not back in shape. I am the one who makes the food choices I do and I am the one who chooses how to spend my free time. I and I alone am responsible for shedding these extra pounds I have. One of my biggest pet-peeves is people who make excuses for their circumstances and behaviors...just ask my kids! The pressure I feel is the time frame in which I perceive others think I should be in shape by. A few weeks ago I overheard a couple of ladies talking. They didn't know I could hear and I was not meant to hear this but one said to the other, "Is Melissa pregnant again or is that just left over from the last one?". Wow. Yeah that hurt. For the record, I am not pregnant. I do however understand why she asked her friend. If you know my history, the time frame would be just about right for another baby to be on the way and I have really struggled after having Emma to lose that baby belly that keeps me looking about 4 months pregnant.

I do want to lose the weight. I do want to make better food choices. I do want to exercise more. What I can't do is everything .There are a lot of things I want to do but I just can't right now. The fact that I have 7 kids, 2 of them under 2, is not irrelevant. I'm busy and I'm tired...exhausted actually. The last thing I have the energy for is exercise. I know that I will get the extra weight off because I want to. What I have to allow myself though is time to breath. I am in a very busy season of life that doesn't allow me much free time at all. What I know for sure is there will come a day, a season in life when I will have more time on my hands, I will be more rested. My kids will grow up and I will be able to do a lot more of the things I want to. This is not to say that I have given up trying in this season...Jillian Michaels and I have become good friends. It just means that it's going to take me longer than other's think it should for me to get back to where I was before I had babies....or at least some semblance of that. And that has to be okay. It just does because there is only so much of me and so many hours in the day and way too many little ones needing me for it to be any other way.

If you struggle like I do then I want to encourage you and I want you to know I understand! I know how hard it is to try and raise little ones AND take care of yourself. It's hard to find a balance. Pray and ask God to give you wisdom to know where you can fit in some time for yourself. Ask your husband to pray with you and share with him how you are feeling. I'm one of the fortunate ones who has a husband who understands my need to have time to exercise so he is willing to watch the kids for an hour so I can fit in an exercise class or do a video at home. I also have to pray a lot and ask God to give me the will power to make healthy food choices....man I love my sweets!!! Ask a friend to be your cheerleader or accountability partner...this helps so much! Most importantly though you need to understand that these things don't happen over night. It takes time to get back into a routine of exercise and finally seeing those extra pounds come off...especially when you've just welcomed a new life into your family! That's okay. Give yourself a break. Just keep trying...."little by little, inch by inch!".

A Time for Boys, Camp and Funny Stories

"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:" ~Matt.7:24

We are back from a really great week at Camp Good News! If you can believe it I was so busy I didn't have time to take even one picture! I need to thank all of you who prayed for our family last week...your prayers were felt. Emma did amazing! I was so shocked, considering how she would not go to anyone the week we were up at the lake with family. She took right to everyone and slept great and I know it's all because of the power of prayer. Thank you!

The three boys were all in different cabins this year. For Noah and Owen going to camp was old hat as this was their 3rd year, but for Gabe it was his first. He was in the "Mighty Mohawk" tribe, the youngest boy cabin at camp and Ben was his counselor. I really need to give props to my husband. It's not just any man who could be a counselor to that age group of boys but he does it so well and is such a trooper about it! I was given the job of "Dining Room Hostess" and I loved it! We worked hard but it was fun work and I got to make several new friends which, thanks to Facebook, I will now get to keep in touch with.

A couple of funny stories. I am probably the meanest mom ever for doing this but....I forced Noah and Owen to put down "swim lessons" as their #1 choice. You see at camp every camper gets to choose a skill to do for the week. You write down your top 3 choices, #1 being the one you want to do the most. They try hard to give the campers their #1 choice but there can only be so many in certain classes so not everyone gets their #1 choice. My reason for forcing them into swim lessons is because, if I can be frank, swim lessons are expensive AND time consuming. I feel it's wise to take advantage of FREE swim lessons since we are at camp anyway! Plus I want my kids to be more comfortable in the water. So they both went to camp with the understanding that they would be putting down swim lessons first. So after all the campers had been assigned their skills I found Noah and Owen on my break and asked them which skill they got.

Noah says to me, "I got swim lessons but not WILLINGLY!" Haha. That made me laugh. Not only did he get it "not willingly" he ended up the only boy in the class! This momma felt really guilty! He will tell you though that even though he started off not wanting to be there he is glad he did it because he learned to do the back stroke! He has asked to be allowed to choose whichever skill he wants next year and I said yes!

Owen says to me, "I got swim lessons but I really wanted wood working because they are making a candy dish. I put woodworking as my second choice and on my sheet of paper I wrote, "please choose wood working!". I laughed so hard! I can imagine what the staff member who was in charge of placing the kids in skills was thinking. Probably something like, "if he wanted woodworking, why didn't he put it as his first choice?". Little did she know his mom was forcing him to take swim lessons. Little did mom know he would try to get out of swim lessons like this! It didn't work though because he got swim lessons. He too, is glad he did it because he does feel more confident in the water now. He was the only boy in his class too...seriously! He has decided already he is putting woodworking as his first choice next year!

Because it was Gabe's first year at camp he was allowed to choose whichever skill he wanted. He chose archery and really loved it. By the last day he was hitting the target like no ones business! He asked me if I will force him to do swim lessons next year and I said yes. He's in the process of convincing himself this is what he wants anyway!

On the last day of camp there is a banquet dinner and an awards ceremony. The campers are awarded different things by the recommendation of the counselors. Noah was given the "Leadership" award, which is the second highest award you can receive. We were really proud of him and he was thrilled to have received it. I'm so thankful for what all three boys learned at camp last week. They got to hear from the camp Pastor each night and the missionary that week also spoke to the kids each day. There was a lot of valuable Bible teaching given to the kids and I pray that what they heard and learned will sink in and stay with them. I'm thankful for how much they enjoy camp and how they are already planning for next year! I'm thankful for the teaching the staff received each day in devotions from Matthew 7 and what a challenge and blessing it was to me. I'm thankful for the full-time staff at camp who give so much of themselves and are so willing to allow God to use them however he asks. They are certainly an example and encouragement to us.

Now we are home and I have started tackling the boys laundry. It's not for the faint of heart!

A Time for Camp Good News

It's been a busy couple of weeks. We have just returned home from a wonderful vacation at the lake visiting family. There was lots of unpacking and laundry to do when we got home! Now all that freshly washed clothing is getting packed up again as we head off to Camp Good News. If you are not familiar with CGN please click the link below:

Camp Good News/CEF of Maine

Ben grew up going to Camp Good News every summer. He even went through the CYIA (Christian Youth in Action) program. He loved camp and it was always something he wanted to share with his kids some day. The first time I ever went to camp was as an adult and I was there for a cousins wedding. It was only a few years ago that I got to attend camp and see it in action. It really is a great place for kids and the staff there truly love God and want the kids to know God. The first thing you are told when you arrive is, "camp is about the camper", and it really is! 

Some of the things I love about camp...


One, it's affordable! I realize $175 is still a lot of money for many families, especially if you are sending multiple kids but compared to other camps out there and what they offer, CGN is a bargain. Not only do the kids get fed well, they also get to choose a skill to learn while they are there. In the past our kids have done archery & riflery as well as swim lessons. This is what my kids talk about all year long...what skill they will choose! The day is jam packed with fun, Bible teaching, swimming, making new friends, eating, singing & playing games! They sleep well at night, lets just put it that way. 

CGN also offers scholarships to children who want to attend but whose parents cannot afford to send them. People donate money throughout the year to sponsor a camper...I LOVE THIS! Kids who would otherwise not have an opportunity to go to camp are given the chance. 

The other thing I love about camp is that you can volunteer to be staff. Because Ben and I are volunteering, we get to send one child each to camp for free. Of course there is a process to being a volunteer...background checks, references, etc. They carefully screen the volunteers so you can be assured your children are in safe hands. Of course they have regular staff too, but the volunteers help to fill in the holes and that allows CGN to keep their costs down so that they can offer a week at camp for an affordable price.

I'm putting this plug in because our hearts are with CEF (Child Evangelism Fellowship). CEF is a ministry Ben grew up with and over the years we have both come to love it. We have such a burden to see children know God and we are thankful for ministries like CEF. We share their vision and want you to experience it for yourself! If you've considered sending your kids to camp but haven't been sure which one, I would recommend you look into Camp Good News. If you currently do send your kids to Camp Good News but have never volunteered for the week then I would encourage you to pray about doing so. Yes, it's an exhausting week. Yes, you have to give up vacation time to do it. I promise you though, you will be blessed and you will not be sorry you did it! I realize that I should have done this at the beginning of camp season. We are now at the last week of camp for the summer but that doesn't mean you can't consider camp. There's always next year. You have lots of time to pray and see how you can help this ministry. If you want to send your child, you have a year to save. You have a year to pray and see if God is calling you to volunteer for a week and save up some of that vacation time! Maybe he will ask you to send money to support a camper or just send money to the camp for any repairs or updates they need to make. There are so many ways you can be involved with camp! See for yourself by clicking this link: Opportunities. 

One thing everyone reading this blog post can do is PRAY! It's free and it's so powerful. Pray for the staff at Camp that God would strengthen them and continue to use them to reach children for Christ. Pray that God would continue to provide for the needs of the staff and the camp itself. Pray for us this coming week as we go and volunteer. We need prayers for strength and wisdom as we interact with the campers. We will need clarity of mind and the ability to leave our own struggles and stresses behind so that we can focus on the campers and focus on how God wants to use us that week. Pray for our 3 oldest children who will be campers that they would have a great week and that God would speak to their hearts. Pray that they would make new friends and stay safe. Pray for 3 of my younger ones who will be staying with my in-laws for the week...my MIL will need your prayers! And lastly pray for Emma. She will be coming to camp and staying with me and is going through a phase where she is very attached to mom and will not go to new people. This could make it stressful for me to do the job I've been assigned so pray she would warm up quickly to the babysitting staff! Pray she would sleep well too...if baby doesn't sleep, mommy doesn't sleep. 

I'm always so thankful to anyone who reads any blog post I write but I'm especially thankful to you for taking the time to read this one! Please share and get the word out about Camp Good News!