Lemon Balm - Help With Allergies AND hyper active kids

Lemon Balm Leaf Steeping in the French Press God Blessed us with!

My daughter (EE) has pretty bad environmental allergies that came out of no where this year. A friend on the local homeschool group told me about Lemon Balm. She used to have to take Clartin if she planned to survive the day, but since drinking lemon balm tea, she has not had to take a single Clartin pill!!

Fill a pot of water 3/4 full and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add enough Lemon Balm Leaf to cover the bottom, and then some. Cover and steep a minimum of 20 minutes. The longer you steep the more nutrients are drawn from the herb. Dip into and serve in cups throughout the day. Of course by the end of the day, you have more of an infusion than a tea because the herb has steeped for so long (which is a good thing, it means more nutrients)! :)

We add local honey as local honey is really good to help with environmental allergies. EE has to have a minimum of 3 cups (one with each meal) or she still has sneezing and itchy nose/eyes. But as long as she drinks her three cups, there are no signs of allergies whatsoever! :)

We had been on the lookout for a french press to help with the tea. I had been asking at garage sales for three weeks. Either they were not selling theirs OR it had just sold. I never gave up though and believed if God wanted us to have one, He would provide one. 

Well, a couple weeks ago, I asked at another garage sale. He was talking about how I need to look for a certain brand because it is the best. He was so thankful he had bought one because the one he had previously bought was not very good and did not work very well. I told him that I was on the lookout for one for herbs to help my daughter with her allergies and if he might be interested, since he isn't using the other one, getting rid of it. He went it, brought it out, and when I asked how much, he said just take it! FREE!!! I could not believe it. And while it may not work well with coffee, it works WONDERFULLY well with herbs!!!! :)

Shortly after we started giving EE the tea, we noticed an added benefit. You see, while EE is not ADHD, she can get pretty hyper at times and lose self-control quite easily. We noticed that she was much calmer and able to regain control of her self much more often since starting the tea! Turns out that is because lemon balm leaf has a calming effect!!!

It is perfectly safe for children, and even recommended for infants who need calming.

So what better, and more fun way, to get some lemon balm into the kids than with popsicles!!
Pictorial How To Make Lemon Balm Popsicles

I hope you enjoy the benefits as much as we have!

Current Web Readings

A Day Redeemed
I got there when Merideth pointed me to this great blog. On the side bar it said "losing my temper." I thought, man I do that way too much with my children. So I clicked. I am glad I did. I LOVE how God uses our children to teach us! And I am so glad that another mom shared what her children taught her about our relationship with the Lord.

Best Stain Remover Ever
I LOVE this tip, and the tip that you can get this from the DOLLAR STORE! :) THANK YOU FOR SHARING!

July Is NO Spend Month
Can a family of three spend less than $250 this month or better yet, not spend anything at all? This is the first of some weekly posts sharing some VERY thought provoking ideas on why and how we spend and how to avoid spending so much. REALLY good stuff!!!

Ten Things That Don't Make Sense To Me
A very thought provoking post for such a simple one! I have printed out this list and put it up in my home.

Paper Rooms
HOW CUTE ARE THESE?? They are a bit more complicated than a five year old can do, but WOW WHAT FUN!!! Pretty sure I need to thank How About Orange for this link (but I honestly cannot remember)

Live

Live in this moment, for this moment is your life.

Click image for credits and to read journaling.

PLEASE Read This...

Today we went to the zoo and right near the otters, where it is easy for the parents to become preoccupied watching a cute otter play with a stick, there was a strange young man (20-30) who was eyeing my girls. When my girls went over into the cave next to the otters, he bent down to go inside with them. THERE IS NO REASON FOR AN ADULT to go into that small kids cave. Right before he was about to go in, he looked around to see if anyone was watching. **I** was watching. I called my kids out and we left the area, but he followed us. We went into the hut (where the new Rocky Mountain Exhibit is). He waited outside, and I stayed INSIDE WITH THE KIDS until he was got bored waiting and left. I mentioned to one of the staff about the incident. They asked me a few more questions and then broadcasted it to the other employees over the walkie-talkies to be on the lookout for a man following the description I gave them.

They then gave me the zoo phone number to put into my cell phone so I can call them (they said to press 0 to get to the operator right away) if I saw him again (or for future visits if something similar happened).

I am kicking myself that I had my camera and did not take a picture of the creep! I did not even THINK about it! And the zoo staff did not even ask (they didn't think about it either).

Just a warning to keep an eye on your kids when you go anywhere. It is a good idea to put the main number to the park in your cell phone just in case there is a creep who is eyeing your children. Take a picture of him with your camera (your cell phone if you have to), in order to help identify the creep. (Still kicking myself for not thinking to a picture).

Better safe than sorry (but don’t be paranoid)!!

TWO wonderful sites to see

As I wrote that title, I realized that it can be taken two ways. Site, as in web site (which is what this post started out to be), or site as in some wonderful spot in nature, creation of God.

I was recently looking back over pictures of our trip to the Grand Canyon. I am awestruck every time we go there. Gods hand and majesty can be seen at every step and around every corner. But I must admit, that there is something about the canyon at sunset that really leaves you breathless and truly in awe of God. It truly IS a site to see!

And then there is the whole state of Colorado. With the beautiful mountains and the gorgeous wildflowers and lakes and ... OH, that too is a wonderful site to see.

I think it is sad that we can trivialize something as awesome as God's creation by saying that something as simple as a web site is something to see. I was totally convicted as I wrote out the title, that I have been spending too much time on web sites and not enough time on God's sites. I have been wanting for a couple of years now to goto the local garden and take pictures of the girls (now CHILDREN because we have our boy JJ). But it seems that something is always getting in the way. No more. I am going to call and set up a time to take the girls...ugh, still after 2 years I forget to say CHILDREN...and get some pictures of them.

And depending on beloved's back (which the doctor said was healing, thank you for your prayers and please continue them as she said he still has about 4-6 more months of healing), we might try to get some camping in too.

What about you? What are some God sites that you love to see? Have you been spending too much time on other sites? Can you make a time to go and see some local God sites soon??

CIJ: The Presents

I have always been good and gotten my presents WAY ahead of time. There have a few RARE times where this was not the case, but being a frugal mom, you learn that if you do not doing your shopping throughout the year, you end up overspending. Sometimes I overspend because you are trying to compensate for the fact that it is so late in the holiday season before I am thinking of the person I am shopping for, and part of the reason I overspend is because I have no idea what to get the person (which is why it is taking so long to get their gift).

But as I said, I almost ALWAYS have presents before Christmas, and most always before the end of October. My biggest problem is in getting them wrapped and sent out on time.

So for the rest of the month, I will be getting presents wrapped and sorted out. Especially the gifts for the kids. All the girls have the same interests and don't mind their gifts being from garage sales (I HAVE THE BEST KIDS!). So I buy and buy and wait until the night before Christmas to sort out. Not this year. This year I am wrapping ALL gifts before hand. Stocking stuffers will be sorted out so I will know if I need more DAYS before and night the night before Christmas. And all the gifts will be ready to be packed in the car and brought over for Christmas (instead of shipped out, we are driving down early this year and will be brining the gifts with us)! WOOHOO!

All in all, I have really enjoyed CIJ and think I will do this yearly. I know it has helped me be more prepared for Christmas this year than in years past.

CIJ: the FOOD

My MIL makes the BEST treats and brings them out from the day after Thanksgiving all the way through New Year's. I don't know HOW she does it, but BOY I LOVE spending the holiday's at her house.

I always have the best of intentions to do the same, as it is important and meaningful to my beloved. But time always gets away from me. Partly because the kids cannot eat most of the treats (because of dietary restriction). Yes, I am lazy enough to use that as an excuse. :( BUT NOT LAZY ENOUGH TO DO CIJ! :D

I am going to gather up a few recipes. Some for the kids and some for the adults. That way I have them ALL READY when the time comes to make them. I am also going to write out an ingredients list to take with me. HOPEFULLY, with my stockpiling, I will have most if not ALL of the ingredients! :)

Beloved really enjoys giving goodie baskets to the neighbors, so I will be sure to make that happen this year (especially since I am planning SO EARLY!). :) This will allow me to find baskets at garage sales (MUCH cheaper than thrift stores) as well as pretty linens to line them! :) It feels good to know that my beloved will be pleased we were able to give baskets instead of being silently disappointed that another year went by that we didn't do goodie gift baskets.

I am also going to make a menu up so that way I am not rushed the week before Christmas. :)

CIJ: Books!

I LOVE to read.

And I love to read books on simplifying life (and Christmas). It is kind of an oxymoron that I want to simplify Christmas and yet have over 45 books in my library just on how to celebrate Christmas (crafts, focusing on Christ, finances and Christmas, simplifying Christmas, and on and on). And yet because I do have SO MANY books, I get completely overwhelmed and don't read any of them! :) LOL!

So this year, I have pulled out a small handful of books to read through in the coming months. And I do mean a handful. I have a habit of biting off more than I can chew. And I see my children doing the same. AA, who became a bookworm out of nowhere, has now fallen into the bad habit of beginning to read one book, only to pick up another book and not really finish either. Unless it is either a SMALL book or very interesting. I am the same way. But hopefully by starting EARLY, she will see that I can finish a book before starting another. :)

CIJ: Thanksgiving

SO yeah, I am throwing in Thanksgiving here. Why? Because for of all, Christmas in July sounds so much better than Thanksgiving in July. And secondly, because it seems that Thanksgiving gets rushed through just as much if not MORESO than Christmas. Of course come Thanksgiving time, I will share links with games and tradition and such.

But for NOW.....

this link from Family Life Today has some GREAT resources, including articles to read, recipes, and audios. But the cool thing is I got the Time To Remember Audio Book at a garage sale a few weeks back! This is TWO CD's: one is a dramatized version of why we celebrate Thanksgiving, and the other is hymns for Thanksgiving. Today, I am putting it onto the computer so we can listen to it around and on Thanksgiving!

We also found The Legend of Squanto by Focus on the Family. I LOVE FOTF's Radio Broadcast dramatizations! And this one does NOT disappoint. It has been GREAT to use with our history (we are reading The Light and the Glory right now). But I want to make sure we have this one on our computer as well to listen to as we get closer to Thanksgiving.

Check and check! :) Ready for the children to have some good LISTENING time (away from the TV and computer and all that) as well as learn why we truly should and do celebrate Thanksgiving. Plus it will be nice to have some THANKSGIVING music/stories, not just CHRISTMAS music, to help us focus on being thankful while we do all that cooking! :)

CIJ: Christmas in July - Newsletter

Seems that Christmas is always here before I am ready. And I wonder how things got SO RUSHED again. I bring out all the books about simplifying Christmas RIGHT after Thanksgiving. But the stores are already filled with Christmas and once again, I get sucked in. The hustle and the bustle keep me from getting presents out on time (even though I had them all bought months before). And most importantly keep me from getting a newsletter done! ARGH!

NO MORE!

This week I am making it Christmas in July. I am going to get things done that need to get done in order to make the season a simpler one. One where I am able to focus my AND my family's attention on the reason for the season.

And it starts with the newsletter. Not only am I MAKING the newsletter, but I will be SENDING IT OUT too. Yes, a bit early, BUT it will be a nice catch up for everyone. AND, considering that no one is rushing about this time of year, they will have time to sit and ENJOY the newsletter! :)

Click image for credits and to make larger.

Names have been changed to protect privacy.

Template can be found here. It is 8.5x11 PERFECT for printing!

Yes, I have gotten comments on where is MY picture. I am the one usually TAKING the photos, the one behind the camera. :) And the template only had five bottom pictures (and yes, that IS an excuse). ;)

I like this so much that we might make this an annual tradition of sending newsletters in July rather than December! :D Any thoughts??