Regardless of the world around them, our kids can still be a powerful influence for good! #DoubletheBatch

How to Arm Our Children with Light

*Be sure to check out my quick and simple Family Night idea at the end of this post!

Raising children is a little different for each generation. The trials I faced growing up are different from the the trials my children now face. The world is moving at a faster pace each and every day and it’s mind-boggling. It is amazing the tools we have been given and how fast technology has grown. While we have been given an immense amount of tools to do good in this world, those same tools can be used against us and our children! With the same effort that it takes my child to swipe their finger on a screen to play an educational app or read their scriptures, the filth of the world can also be accessed by just about anyone anywhere.Regardless of the world around them, our kids can still be a powerful influence for good.!

Sometimes it feels like no matter how hard I try to make my home a little more like heaven, Satan is doing his best to sneak in a little hell around every turn! It comes through the radio, through tv, through the internet, and can even come through friends outside the home. How do we keep up the fight? How do we arm our children with light so that they are equipped to fight the darkness that seems to lurk around every corner? How do we help them understand the importance of not giving in when the world offers what seems to be an ‘easier’ road?

The One-a-Day Rule is about as easy as it gets for keeping a clean home! #DoubletheBatch

The One a Day Rule for Keeping a Clean Home

**Reminder! If you are doing holiday shopping, don’t forget to activate your cash back from your Ebates account. This is the time of year when I get the most back (if I actually remember to activate it!) You can install this button on your browser and it will remind you every time you go to an eligible site for cash back! I also highly recommend ZULILY for great deals and discounts on gifts for kids!

The bigger my family gets, the trickier it is to keep a clean home. The laundry pile keeps getting bigger, the dishes multiply, and the streaks and smudges on every wall and doorknob seem to appear overnight! It can be overwhelming! I could spend countless hours cleaning everyday to keep my home spotlessly clean, but I’ve got better things to do with my time folks! I’m a mom of 4 and as I’ve said before in my post How to keep a House Clean with Kids, I want to actually spend time with my kids more than I want to impress the world with my ridiculously clean home!The One-a-Day Rule is about as easy as it gets for keeping a clean home!

From now on, when my children say I'm a mean mom, I'll smile to myself and think, "Well good. I must be doing something right!" #Doublethebatch

How to be a Mean Mom (and why your kids will thank you for it!)

Ever wondered how to be a mean mom? Yeah, probably not. You might want to look into it! Here is why…

I don’t remember a lot about when I was really young, but I do remember the particular night when I made my mother cry. In my little 5 or 6 yr old world I was completely oblivious to the long and exhausting days my mom was enduring to raise 3 young children. I remember the words that came out of my mouth like it was yesterday.

“I hate you! You’re a MEAN mom!”

Evidently, it was  just enough to send her over the edge that day because I heard her sobbing in the next room and my little kid heart felt like it was going to break!

I am now that mother raising 4 young children. My heart still aches for my young mother, only now even more as I experience some of the same emotions that she did raising me. When I scrape Cheerios off of my kitchen floor I think of my mom and all the Cheerios she scraped off the floor for me, all the diapers she changed… for me….and all the times I was un-grateful and disrespectful…and yet she still never gave up…on ME! That kind of perspective helps me to get through the rough times of raising my own kids.From now on, when my children say I'm a mean mom, I'll smile to myself and think, "Well good. I must be doing something right!" #Doublethebatch

my family loves to eat these mini german pancakes for dinner!

Berries and Cream Mini German Pancakes

Here is my simple recipe of the week! My family loves to eat german pancakes. I know it’s a recipe meant for breakfast, but at my house it has become a favorite dinner! One time I decided to add berries and whipped cream, and my family loved it so much that is how we make it EVERY time now! I usually make german pancakes in 2 13×9 pans, but recently I tried the mini version and it was a hit! If you haven’t tried these for dinner, do it! Your family will love them! Here is our recipe for Berries and Cream MINI German Pancakes!

my family loves to eat these mini german pancakes for dinner!