Family Stuff - Faith and Family Reviews

Tag Archive for Family Stuff

Keep the Faith – Berenstain Bears Book Review

Posted by html404 on March 17, 2014
in Books, Family Stuff, Gift Ideas, Kids Stuff, Reviews, Uncategorized

This post contains affiliate links to support our family.

If you spend any amount of time on my site you know we love books! I stopped getting children’s books to review just because we have so many books already but I couldn’t resist The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith (Berenstain Bears/Living Lights) book.

Our younger children all love this book and have asked to read it over and over again. The message is simple. Brother and Sister Bear come across a friend, Ferdy Factual, who does not believe in God and they are not quite sure what to do or say for that matter. They were kind to their friend, though they asked him questions. I thought Mama and Papa handled the issue quite well, though they could have done a better job of explaining what faith is themselves rather than going to Preacher Brown. However, I understand that may have just been there to help children know when mom and dad do not know the answer a member of the clergy is there to consult with on the tougher questions.

This book was a good reminder to me to help our children understand that not everyone believes the same way or the same things as we do.

I give it two thumbs up for Keep the Faith for any family of faith with young kiddos in the home.

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MommysClub Flu Pack Giveaway

Posted by html404 on March 14, 2014
in All Natural Products, Children's Health, Eco Friendly Products, Family Stuff, Giveaways, Health, Health and Wellness, Organic, Reviews, Uncategorized

As moms we are always concerned with the health of our children. That means we want to feed them healthy foods and use products that do not harm them or cause adverse affects. MommysClub knows moms. They offer a variety of products that are organic, non-GMO, EcoCert & BPA free, toxic-free ingredients made right here in US. All their products are vegan, cruelty free. MommysClub are animals lovers and are a part of the Leaping Bunny community, which means they do not test on or use any animal products!

MommysClub is offering to giveaway one Flu Pack to one of you! Beat the flu this spring by using the flu pack products.

Mommy’s Club Perfect Touch Sanitizer and Daily Cleansing Foam – are your two best friends in the fight against germs. These products are perfect to hand out at Churches, Schools, Places of Work and even Gyms. Perfect Touch Sanitizers make great ice breakers for Mommy’s Club pitches. Replace soaps in Bathrooms with the Daily Cleansing Foam.

Our Flu Pack Sampler Small contains

10 Perfect Touch Sanitizers 1 oz
2 Perfect Touch Sanitizers 4oz
2 Daily Cleansing Foams

Look for our family’s review of the MommysClub All In Bundle next week!

Enter MommysClub Flu Pack Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Monday Motivation or Lack Thereof

Posted by html404 on March 10, 2014
in Animals, Blog Stuff, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Monday Motivation, Uncategorized

I have actually lacked motivation lately, thus the infrequent posting, that and the fact I have been extremely tired. Nope not pregnant, just lacking sleep! My brain doesn’t function well with little sleep. The two paper routes are killing me but I said I would give it two months and I still have a couple weeks left. Plus, it has been a long winter making the driving time so much longer than it should be.

What’s Motivating Me?

This past weekend was extremely busy for us with Liberty Day (I was solo with the younger four) and a CSA (Consumer Supported Agriculture) Expo for our farm. I have follow up to do from the expo, plus our farm newsletter. We have to pick up 120 meat chicks and 150 young laying hens on Thursday or I should say my husband and son will be doing that task. Friday we are picking up a pair of White Chinese geese that were given to us, plus our children have piano here at our home. Saturday we have a green market for the farm….let’s just say it’s farm week!

In addition to the farm stuff, I have blogging stuff due and overdue, plus I want to start getting ahead on blog posts in preparation for spring planting, etc. I get tired and overwhelmed just thinking about it all. Ever feel that way?

What’s motivating you this week?

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Changing a Flat Tire

Posted by html404 on March 3, 2014
in Automotive, Family Stuff, Parenting, Uncategorized

Changing a Flat Tire

On Friday my daughter and I were doing the paper routes and got a flat tire. At four o’clock in the morning. That’s right, AM. I have never changed a flat tire in my life. I’ve watched flat tires be changed and know the basics but we still had my hubby call AAA since I wanted to keep my cell line open for the warehouse manager to call me back. We ended up needing his and his son’s assistance in getting the papers delivered because we had to wait 3.5 hours for AAA to get someone out to fix the tire. There was no way I would get them delivered in time.

My daughter and I watched a YouTube video of how to fix a flat tire. It was informative but we still laughed at the common sense tips the man provided. Things like don’t let the lug nuts roll in the grass – to which we responded, what about rolling away in the snow or melting in the snow? We were being silly at this point due to the long wait, boredom and lack of sleep. Another tip he gave was not to put your tire in the road….seriously? Anyhoo….we had no worries over that happening as we got our flat at the front door of the funeral home. Yep. We deliver to the funeral home and that’s where we discovered our flat, though I suspected at the previous stop as we were coming out the driveway.

We tried to change the flat tire. We had the car jacked up but after all that we could not get the lug nuts off, even with the little X-bar thingy. Don’t you love my automotive vocabulary?! Hubby is not here to give me the correct terminology right now. My dad would roll over in his grave. He was Mr. Car Man himself.

That was our excitement for the weekend because after that rough start on Friday all I wanted to do was sleep. Not really, I just need more sleep. I do have plans for my husband to teach our older children and I how to change a flat tire, to change the oil, how to check the air in the tire with a tire gauge etc. I think it’s important we all learn these basic automotive tasks.

Hubby got the tire fixed, but the tires still need to be aligned and a tie rod replaced. Goodyear just didn’t have time to do it on Friday.

Have you ever changed a flat tire? Will you teach your daughters (and or sons)?

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Meet Juno Our Babydoll Lamb

Posted by html404 on February 26, 2014
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Kids Stuff, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

Photo compliments of Hill Bunker Farms

Meet Juno our son’s new Babydoll lamb! Two weeks ago we received word from the breeder that she discovered black twin lambs. Apparently, a ram jumped the fence in September and helped make these cuties so she had early lambs. Since we were the first to reserve 2014 lambs, we were offered one of these black ones! For a bit more money we said yes! Our son is excited that Juno should be able to come home in six weeks, depending on if our other lamb is born or if there is a companion lamb available to keep Juno company until our second lamb is ready to come home.

Oh and she’s a ewe (female sheep). We thought we were going to get a ewe and a ram (male sheep) but are kind of leaning towards another ewe….we’ll wait and see what sex the next lamb is I guess. We need warmer weather to get more fencing up! Eeeks….so much snow to melt too.

Isn’t Juno adorable?

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CBR – Cord Blood Registry

Posted by Brande on February 23, 2014
in Children's Health, Family Stuff, Guest Post, Health, Parenting, Pregnancy and Birth, Uncategorized

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Dad Central Consulting for CBR (Cord Blood Registry).”

Guest Dad Blogger: Scott

Did you know that Cord Blood Stem Cells have been used for treatment for more than 80 conditions? I never knew this.

Here’s another interesting fact:

“Newborn stem cells can trigger natural repair processes in the body by reducing inflammation and increasing blood flow to injured or diseased areas. They can also stimulate the growth of new blood vessels and other tissues.”

It just goes to show you how important it is to choose a Cord Blood Registry. More treatments are being evaluated by FDA-regulated clinical trials to help with common health issues including autism. Yet, 90% of blood cord is discarded and goes to medical waste.

With the capacity to create diverse cells for our own immune system, tissue, blood and organs; stem cells are often called the body’s “master cells”. If your family decides to make the decision to bank your child’s cord blood, you need to do this before the due date. Obtaining the blood cord cells is very simple and painless. After the umbilical cord is clamped and cut, the blood cells are then transferred to a “collection bag”. You have options with banking cord blood cells, you can private bank or donate to a public bank.

During February CBR is having a promotion of $200.00 off of banking services. Log onto cordbankingbasics.com for more information.

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Week #15 Saturday Top Five Laughs

Posted by html404 on February 8, 2014
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Fun Stuff, Humor, Kids Stuff, Saturday Top Five Laughs, Uncategorized

We are joining Mel over at The Mommyhood Chronicles for week #15 (for us) in the Saturday Top Five Laughs of the week.

5. Crushed Bones and Poison Bloody Death compliments of Amelia Bedilia when I told her to label it “Baking Soda”. She’s been hanging out with B, can you tell?

She’s not our best speller…takes after her dad and yes, he’d say the same thing! 😉

4. “Picture it, Mommy, picture it!” Jr. said about his “school work”. My phone crashed this week and I think I may have lost the photos of school work, as I could not find them on my phone or computer. 🙁

3. Goats are very curious. They got a hold of our son’s glove and then were fighting over it. They tried to nibble on our oldest’s iPod. They thought the stiff brush B was trying to brush them with was something to eat. They were trying to catch sunbeams on each other’s backs. When the dog got loose and ran down to the barn and jumped on the goats stall, all they did was paw the ground and shake their heads at him.

2. We went to the mall for a girls day out yesterday and because of traffic etc. I had the girls watching for cars and people as I backed out of the Panera Bread parking lot. Amelia Bedilia goes, “Ah mommy, the snow bank!” I told her I didn’t care about the snow bank or the curb because I didn’t have to pay for those if I backed into them. I cared about people and cars! Yeah, can’t tell money is on my mind…sigh.

1. The other day I napped in the afternoon and woke up around 4:15pm when my husband came into the room. I jumped up and said, “I’m late for the newspaper!” My husband said, “It’s 4:15 in the afternoon.” I was so dazed and disoriented it took me a few minutes for that to sink in. I just stood there trying to focus…it was weird. Robert and the children laughed and teased me about that one for the rest of the day!

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A JOLLY TIME Pop Corn Recipe for Valentine’s Day

Posted by Professor on February 6, 2014
in Family Stuff, Food and Treats, Fun Stuff, Holidays, Recipes, Uncategorized

There is nothing like snuggling up with your loved ones around a classic bowl of good ole popcorn! Jolly time might even inspire you to write a love poem around those light , fluffy kernels of buttery goodness!

This Valentine’s Day why not treat your family to some Jolly Time Pop Corn! Try out the recipe below for a special Valentine treat for the kids or any loved one! We sure did! We made the Choco Cherry Hearts for the family… and don’t worry if you do not have a heart shaped cookie cutter … we made ours into balls instead and put them on the sticks and they turned out great as popcorn pops! So any way you “pop” it this is a great Valentine’s treat! Throw them in the children’s lunch or surprise a loved one with a bouquet!

Choco Cherry Hearts Bouquet Recipe

Makes about 8

Ingredients:

12 cups popped JOLLY TIME® Smart Balance Butter Light Microwave Pop Corn (about 1 bag)

1-1/2 cups dried tart cherries

1 (1-pound) bag mini marshmallows

1 cup white chocolate chips or chopped vanilla candy coating

¼ cup butter

Red food color

Long lollipop sticks or thick bamboo skewers

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate morsels

Here’s How:

Mix popcorn and cherries in a large bowl.

Place marshmallows, white chocolate, and butter in a large saucepan. Cook over low heat until melted and smooth. Stir in a few drops of red food color to tint the mixture pink.

Pour marshmallow mixture over popcorn; toss gently until well coated.

With wet or buttered hands, press mixture into a 3-1/2 to 4-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter (place cutter on a foil-lined baking sheet; press in popcorn, then lift cutter off).

Insert a lollipop stick in the base of each heart.

Allow popcorn hearts to cool completely. Meanwhile, melt the dark chocolate. Drizzle over hearts.

Allow to harden.

Wrap hearts in cellophane and tie with ribbon; stand them up in a vase or jar as a centerpiece or gift.

You can find more flavors, recipes, and inspiration from America’s first family of popcorn ~ celebrating its 100^th birthday this year! Please visit Jollytime.com for more information on this product, coupons and free offers!

Link to Jolly Time Pop Corn promotions (coupons and free offers with UPC submission)

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More Kids – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on February 5, 2014
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Kids Stuff, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

Nope, we are not having a baby! We just got our second oldest daughter’s goats over the weekend! We were suppose to get her a goat last year but the one we found fell through. We took the summer off from looking and started our hunt back up in the fall. We found them in Wisconsin in November and because we wanted them bred, the owner kept them for the last two months to make sure they had ample time with the billy goat.

B decided on Oberhasli dairy goats. They are sweet natured and docile. The males (or wethers a.k.a. casterated males) may be used for meat. She named them Annabeth and Hazel. If both goats successfully give birth we could have anywhere from 1-4 kids come spring, as twins and even triplets run in their family and many goat families. That means our goat flock could grow from 2 to 6 or more very easily this year. B will probably keep one, give one to her sister for her birthday and sell any others. At least that’s what she’s thinking right now. We are looking forward to having our own goat milk as it is very hard to find for B’s soap making business.

Excuse the watermark on my photos, they are for our farm and I just didn’t want to take the time to make new ones for this blog.

B and Hazel getting better acquainted.

Annabeth and Hazel traveled very well. It was a bit of a struggle to get them in the dog crate we used to transport them but once they were in there together they settled in nicely. By the time we got them home they were curled up together and hard to get OUT of the crate! Once we got one out, the other pretty much followed.

We have an old barn. It’s all open in the bottom so there were no real stalls. We have had to create each of the stalls for the horse, the cow and now the goats. My husband built their stall out of free wood pallets. A friend gave us the idea to use wood pallets to make the goat’s pasture and then we came across the idea for the stall when googling “goat stalls”. 😉 It is very rough looking but it does its job, was cheap and I think my hubby did a good job. I’ll post about the DIY goat stall separately. I have to try and get better photos. The barn is so dark that it’s been a challenge.

Here’s to our “new” kids!

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5 Ways to Save on Time and Money at Healthcare Clinic Chicago

Posted by html404 on February 4, 2014
in Children's Health, Downloads, Family Stuff, Health, Health and Wellness, Men's Health, News Worthy, Parenting, Saving Money, Uncategorized, Women's Health

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser. #HealthcareClinic #CollectiveBias

It has always been important to us to do everything we can to keep our family healthy. In the past when our large family has been under the weather it has taken us a l-o-n-g time to get over colds, the flu and even the chicken pox (7 children had it one after the other!). We are very grateful for our current health. It isn’t very often we get sick but when we do there are things that help us get healthy again. For example, when my husband gets wax build up in his ears to the point he can no longer hear, he goes to the Healthcare Clinic Chicago to get his ears candled or cleaned out. He has done this a couple of times, dropping by the clinic while out on errands or after work. No appointment necessary. It is very convenient and time saving for a busy parent.

The Walgreens Healthcare Clinic in Crystal Lake, IL has been very clean when we have dropped in and the Healthcare Providers have been courteous and personable. Both of these things has given us confidence in the professionals caring for our needs.

5 Ways to Save on Time and Healthcare Costs for Parents

1. As stated above, the Healthcare Clinic takes walk-ins. No appointment necessary, though you can schedule one should you desire to do so.

2. Use the Walgreen app to find a healthcare clinic nearest you.

Put in your information, customize what you are looking for and a list of clinics near you will come up:

3. Save on costly and unnecessary trips to the ER by visiting a Walgreens Healthcare Clinic, since they are open on weekends and evenings.

4. With Walgreens Prescription Savings Club, club members receive 10% savings on all Healthcare Clinic services. Please note Walgreens website states: This discount cannot be used in conjunction with insurance.

5. Healthcare clinics have on-site pharmacies. No need to go elsewhere for prescriptions.

As you can see, Walgreens Healthcare Clinic is very convenient and affordable. The next time we visit a Healthcare Clinic Chicago it will probably be to see if our youngest daughter’s ears need to be candled because we have a funny feeling she’s taking after her dad in that department!

What about you, have you ever visited a Walgreens Healthcare Clinic?

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