Family Fun
Giveaway: CVS Gift Card
I am thrilled to announce a new giveaway on Blessings Multiplied! The winner of this giveaway will receive a $10 CVS Gift Card! As a parent August is the month we are wrapping up our final days of summer break, gearing up for the new school year, and preparing ourselves for the first time we have to take our little ones to the doctor. Thankfully as the kids get older they are getting healthier but it is always good to have a good stock of Kleenex’s, Vitamins, and other essentials items you can find in your local CVS. Shop the deals and you can really make this gift card stretch. Here’s how to enter the giveaway:
- Sign up to follow my blog (if you haven’t done so already) and leave a comment below telling us how you follow Blessings Multiplied. Sign up to receive Blessings Multiplied via email or like on Facebook.
- You can get a bonus entry into the drawing if you leave a separate comment below sharing your best tip on keeping your kids and yourself healthy through the school year.
All comments must be made by August 31st at 10:00 PM EST to be entered into the drawing.
CONGRATULATIONS to Our “More Than Enough” Book Winner!
The name has been drawn for the giveaway!
CONGRATULATIONS to
Lynette
for winning a
“More Than Enough” by Dave Ramsey!
Thanks for making a comment in honor of our Giveaway!
An email has been sent to you with more information*
Enjoy your new book!
Don’t forget to enter our next Giveaway (the next giveaway will be announced later this morning)!
*Giveaway must be claimed within 5 business days of the prize being announced. Failure to claim the prize within the allotted time frame means you forfeit the prize.
Heart Reflections: Living Life in the Fast Line….Going from 0 to 70 in Seconds
So often I feel like I am living life in the fast lane……zooming through life faster and faster. I don’t necessary hit the top speed but I am holding steady at a high pace for days and there is always some where to be or something to do. It is possible to fill up every blank space in your calendar (believe me I have seen it). There are those days, weeks, or months when I am just waiting for life to slow down a little bit so I can catch a deep breath, but when that glorious day arrives I realize that all the stuff I couldn’t squeeze into the schedule before hand has spilled over into that time that was once reserved for a quiet day.
Notice in the top right corner of the picture the “service engine soon” light is on. One of the things I found myself skipping (which is kind of embarrassing to admit) is my quiet time with God. Much like the “service engine light” on the van I need to be recharged or have a tune up as well. My relationship with Christ has a significant impact on all my relationships, yet there are days when I choose to neglect the most important relationship of all because life simply just gets too busy.
When life gets too busy and I get stuck running full speed in the fast lane God has a way of slowing me down and getting my attention. Earlier this summer my husband was in a car accident. If you just looked at the vehicle the damage looked devastating, but thankfully God spared his life and he walked away with only minor injuries. I am truly grateful for God’s protection and goodness in this situation. Over the past couple months as we’ve been juggling one car, looking for another vehicle, and spending some extra time together I am reminded of His amazing grace and mercy for me. I love my husband so very much, but God loves me even more and longs to have a personal relationship with me. Why would I hold back from the most awesome relationship in my life?
I make time for what is important in my life – God, family, work, ministry, friends or whatever else that may be. Every person gets 24 hours a day. How do I spend my day, what are my priorities, am I making a positive impact on the lives around me, or am I just rushing through the “to do” list and jammed packed schedule while trying to catch my breath in between? How are my relationships being effected by my decisions?
Sometimes the best thing I can do is stop, take a break, and enjoy extra time focusing on the what’s truly important. When my heart is in the right place, my relationship with God is open and honest life seems brighter because I don’t have to live life in the fast lane or have to be the one in control because He holds my life and future in his hands. Being a Wife, Mom, Friend, and everything else can be tough some days, but when you have your priorities in line it really can be quite enjoyable. We all need to take some time every now and then to slow down, relax, and service the check engine light of our soul.
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
We were blessed with the opportunity to spend a long weekend away with the St Clair side of the family. All my extended family was able to make it out this year and it had been awhile since all of us were together for a weekend. It was great catching up with everyone. Thankful for the amazing blessing of having a family that gets together to relax and enjoy each others company.
Last week’s goals:
Family Goals
Attend Family ReunionRead regularly to the girls and have them read to meParticipate in at least 2 fun Summer Activities with the Kids- Plan out the Girls “Swim Into Reading” Summer Reading Goal (total 2,000 Reading minutes) Grand Prize for Completion – have a plan that I need to execute once we get settled back in at home from our travels
- S
pend time with extended family Narrow down what type of vehicle we want to get
Personal Goals
Spend extra time helping and making memories with my extended family
Home Management Goals
Put mail on hold for when we are awayLine up someone to come by and check on the house / pets while we are away
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attentionWork on projects with the family business
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4- Emergency Fund – save 6 months worth of living expenses – temporarily on hold
- Car Fund – save money for another vehicle to replace the one that was totaled – currently looking at cars and praying the perfect one comes along
- College Fund – put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes – temporarily on hold
My goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Read regularly to the girls and have them read to me
- Participate in at least 2 fun Summer Activities with the Kids
- Plan out the Girls “Swim Into Reading” Summer Reading Goal (total 2,000 Reading minutes) Grand Prize for Completion
- Spend time with extended family
Personal Goals
- Spend extra time helping and making memories with my extended family
Home Management Goals
- Check in with the person coming by and check on the house / pets while we are away
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work on projects with the family business
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Emergency Fund – save 6 months worth of living expenses
- Car Fund – save money for another vehicle to replace the one that was totaled
- College Fund – put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results.
Book: “Starlight” by Kristin Earhart
The girls enjoy the book Starlight by Kristin Earhart. This book is about a little girl named Haley and her foal called Starlight. Haley did her best to train Starlight but it seems like Starlight was too busy having fun to listen until one night Starlight gets lost in the woods. Our girls really enjoy these books. They are great for the early readers especially if they like horses.
Kids in the Kitchen: Easy Parmesan Chicken
The girls have started making dinner for the family once a week. It has been fun coming up with easy and fun recipes for them to put together. My husband actually came up with this idea after the girls suggested they make chicken nuggets for dinner one night. This is a super easy recipe to put together and the only thing you really need to help the kids with is taking the hot pan out of the oven. It is really neat to see them get excited about cooking dinner!
Easy Parmesan Chicken:
- 20 to 25 Chicken Nuggets
- 8 slices Provolone Cheese
- Small can or bottle Pasta Marinara Sauce
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of a 9 x 13 pyrex dish. Line the bottom of the pyrex with one layer of chicken nuggets. Place the slices of cheese over the chicken nuggets. Spread the pasta sauce over the cheese slices and bake uncovered in the oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Happy Birthday to My Handsome Man!
Wishing Jake a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
I am so thankful for my amazing husband and all he does for our family. He is generous, kind, and loves me despite all my craziness. Wishing him many more awesome years packed full of great memories. I am looking forward to celebrating this special day with him.
Another really cool part about Jake’s birthday is he shares it with two other family members – his Grandpa Conklin and my Uncle Rick! Happy Birthday to Grandpa and Uncle Rick! May it be a wonderful birthday for both of you!
Travel & Vacation: Road Trip Snack Bins
Brina and Karlie’s Road Trip Snack Bins loaded and ready to go!
Our family loves traveling and going on road trips together. Road trips have always been one of the exciting adventures our girls look forward to every summer. It is pretty common for us to pack up the suitcases, snacks, and hit the road with the entire family. We have done several 40 plus hour road trips with the kids and they still look forward to them. We try to make the road trips a fun adventure for them. No we don’t take them to fancy restaurants, hotels, or amusement parks along the way…..we do this without adding a bunch of extra costs to our family. We pack picnic lunch / dinner so we can eat on the road. We bring along snacks, books, games, audio books, little goodies and more. We used to pack a basket full of snack items for the girls but it never failed that the basket was always out of reach for someone so that’s when we came up with the road trip travel bins for the girls.
Delicious treats ready to be eaten on our upcoming eighteen hour road trip.
The kids have LOVED having their individual containers of snacks that they can eat as we drive. The containers are smaller and snap shut so they can be stored right beside the girls seats in the car so they can always reach them. Each kid gets their own snacks and they can choose what to eat first, second, and so forth. The girls enjoy having the nuts with the shells to peel off and the majority of the time those are the first items they munch on. It is hilarious hearing them in the backseat cracking open a peanut! We try to give them a mix of sweet and salty items, nothing in the bins need refrigeration. Our kids don’t eat all of these items on a daily basis but when you are doing a 5, 10, 20 or 40 hour road trip it’s important to keep everyone in good spirits and this is an easy way to help.
Items that we packed for this road trip:
- Homemade Apple Chips
- Snoopy Fruit Gummies
- Chocolate Covered Cherries
- Foot Long Fruit
- Pack of Oreos
- Mixed Berry Granola Bar
- Cheese & Dipping Sticks
- Twizzler Stick
- Fruit Punch Powdered Drink Mix Package
- Mint Chocolate Swirl Marshmallows
- Pink Frosted Animal Crackers
- Pink & White Heart Shaped Marshmallows
- Chocolate Covered Raisins
- Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers
- Multiple Flavored and Colored Miniature Marshmallows
- Sweetarts
- Box of Nerds
- Rice Crisps with Chocolate Drizzled
- Dried Fruit
- Raspberry Chocolate Covered Pretzels
- Whole Shelled Peanuts
- Dried Cranberries
- White & Pink Flowered Marshmallows
- Pecans
It is a lot of fun finding a variety of items to fill the Road Trip Snack Bins. We fill it after the girls are in bed and stick them on their car seats to find when they get into the van and buckle in for the trip. It is a special treat and gives us a positive start to the road trip too.
Brina and Karlie’s snack containers ready to be put into the car!
When we travel we typically stop only for gas and potty breaks. We have most of the food, drinks, and snacks we need to eat in the car. Occasionally, we’ll use a coupon to get a free drink when we fill up with gas but otherwise we try to keep the costs to a minimum which make road trips more affordable and doable. The girls get to watch DVD’s, listen to audio books and we play games as a special treat. The trip must be longer than 5 hours for us to get out the DVDs! Here’s a little more information about the Road Trip Snack Bins and what to pack.
We picked up the containers at Walmart for a couple of dollars. The stickers were at Hobby Lobby in the scrapbook section and we used a 40% coupon. We have used these Road Trip Snack Bins for several road trips with our girls and they have held up well. Once the trip is over and they have finished eating the items in the bins all you have to do is wash them and store until the next family adventure. It is a blessing to be able to travel with our family. We have created many amazing family memories on the road together.
Travel & Vacation: We Made it to Bangalore! (part 2)
A little critter on their porch…..thankfully the little lizard is on the outside of the house! One of them did make it into our room but thankfully Jake and the kids were able to catch it quickly.
A little critter on their porch…..thankfully the little lizard is on the outside of the house (at the moment)!
Fresh watermelon stand, you can buy a whole watermelon or a slice from the box.
Burning the fields and underbrush, you see this often in India! You will often see a pile trash burning on the side of the road or paths.
A village near Bangalore
Monkeys on the side of the road!
A lady walking on the side of the road carrying a pile of sticks on her head. A common sight in India!
Two ladies carrying potted flowers on their head.
PVP Indus Day 2011 – 2012…..Respect, Love, Discipline, Empathy. The kids school put together an amazing presentation. It was really neat to watch all the performances that the kids had worked so hard on over the past couple of months.
Rachel dressed as the wind!
Erica all pretty in her beautiful costume!
David up on stage
Mike up on stage as a panda bear….his class did Noah’s ark!
Rachel on stage as the wind!
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Song: “The Marriage Prayer” by John Waller
This week Jake and I celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary! YAY! It is hard to believe it has been 12 years it has gone by so fast! We have created so many amazing memories together and I look forward to making many more as we journey through the years together. God has been good to us and faithful even in the storms. I am very thankful for a wonderful husband. Jake has been extremely loving, kind, and patient with me even when I don’t deserve it. I am very blessed. As I was thinking about all our years together I wanted to find a song in celebration of our anniversary week. I want both our marriage to continue growing stronger as well as our personal relationships with God and this song says it well.
