Author: Jessica Marie

Professional copywriter, NASM certified personal trainer, mom of 2

October 18, 2016

DIY Lemon Balm Tincture

Pin it or forget it! 😉

How to Make an Anti-Anxiety Potion

I first learned about the anti-anxiety properties of lemon balm from a postpartum anxiety forum that I am in. Some of the women swore by its Xanax-like effect (I don’t know if I buy that, but it’s worth noting). I never realized that lemon balm had such medicinal anti-anxiety effects. You always think of lavender and chamomile when you think of herbs for anxiety, don’t you?

So, this spring, I made a point to plant an anti-anxiety garden for myself. Sadly, the chamomile and lavender got choked off by mad weed growth, but the lemon balm has been doing mighty fine. It’s a perennial that is pretty darn easy to grow. In fact, I’m pretty sure in a year or two, our whole front yard will consist of lemon balm.

But I digress…

We’ve loved having lemon balm at the ready. All through the summer, whenever Kayne and I had a cup of tea, we always put lemon balm leaves in it. It, of course, gives tea that lemony twist that is so delicious. But add it to my Tension Tamer tea, and it makes me feel all good inside.

Since we’re creeping up on frost season here in Wisconsin, I wanted to save whatever lemon balm I could before it freezes.

And by the way, I did this just in time because only two days later, we had our first frost!

I tried recording the process on Periscope, but our Wifi in the country stinks, so it didn’t work very well. But you can see the process on video here:

My exact process for making lemon balm tincture:

Gather lemon balm leaves in a colander. I only harvested the leaves that still looked healthy and didn’t have bug bites in them because that gives me the heebie jeebies.

Rinse the lemon balm thoroughly, but try to do it carefully as you don’t want to accidentally press the medicinal essential oils out of the lemon balm yet.

Load up a sterilized glass jar (aka, a jar that has gone through the dishwasher) with the rinsed lemon balm.

As the jar fills up, use the handle of a wooden spoon to really pack the lemon balm down into the jar. Be sure to “rough up” and muddle the lemon balm a bit to help it release its healing oils into the tincture. In fact, you may want to give your lemon balm a rough chop before putting it in the jar to release the oils even more.

Once you’ve filled the jar to about an inch from the top, fill the jar up with 80 to 100 proof vodka until it completely covers the lemon balm. You don’t want any of the leaves to be exposed. Using strong vodka and covering the leaves completely will help prevent potentially harmful bacteria from forming.

Screw the lid on tightly, label the jar with the date, and store the jar in a cool, dark place for about a month, shaking the jar often. After a day or two of settling, you may have to add a little more vodka to cover the leaves again as all the pockets of air fill in.

After a month, you can repeat the process to make the tincture doubly strong. Since we already had our frost and the lemon balm will likely be gone in a month, I won’t be able to do this. Otherwise, after a month, it’s ready to use. Just strain out the leaves!

How to use lemon balm tincture:

Common advice states that 1/2 to 1 tsp of tincture is the proper dosage for anxiety and tummy aches. There are other recipes out there for making this tincture with gelatin for a more kid-friendly tincture as well.

And there you have it…

I felt like some kind of medicine woman making a potion or something! I think it’s so cool that God has tucked so much “magic” away in nature for us to use. There’s nothing more fulfilling than making a medicinal concoction from something you’ve grown in your own yard.

I can’t wait to try it! The more natural remedies I can use for my anxiety, the better.

How about you?

Have you ever made or used a medicinal tincture before? Have you ever used lemon balm for anxiety? Any other natural remedies for anxiety that I should try?

*Please exercise caution and consult your own medical health professional before using this tincture. I am not a doctor or natural health practitioner and this article is purely based on personal experience.

October 9, 2016

A Trip to The Butterfly Gardens of Wisconsin

A few weeks ago, the kiddos and I, along with my sis and nephews, visited the Butterfly Gardens of Wisconsin in Appleton, WI. We only found out about the place last year when we visited and we’re huge fans now!

During Monarch migration, they always hold a butterfly release event, which is the best time to go! For your admittance, you get one butterfly for the family to tag and release out in their back butterfly garden. It’s magical.

It was raining the day we went, so it was a little bit more difficult to get the whole experience. The boys ended up having to coerce their butterflies off their fingers onto a plant to let them go. I think it made the boys feel more connected to their monarchs though, because the butterflies didn’t want to leave them.

Out behind the building is this giant butterfly garden with trails through it in the shape of a butterfly. It’s really something. And it was just full of all kinds of buzzing critters last year.

Inside the butterfly house, which is like a screened-in greenhouse, the butterflies were a bit chilled by the rain, so they were a little more difficult to find. But with patience, we found plenty of them. The docents give you a q-tip with sugar water on it to help attract the butterflies.

Stop and smell the……………butterflies?

Please take note of the bare feet. This girl is a nature girl at heart, through and through. You cannot keep a pair of shoes on her, even where there’s gravel. Bless her heart.

The butterfly gardens also have some other cool displays and exhibits too. They have this cool display of various butterflies from all over.

And turtles….

And frogs….
And bees…….. *shudder*

And we were lucky enough to be able to take two monarch caterpillars home to try to raise. We have milkweed everywhere by our house and a butterfly net, so we were equipped for the job.

If I would’ve written this blog post right after our trip though, I wouldn’t have to tell you that unfortunately, both of them are now resting in the ground. One died from the black virus and the other…we’re not sure.

But we are grateful for the time we had with them, because they were fascinating to watch. The tiny one grew literally before our eyes. Like, we’d go to work and come home, and he’d be bigger and there’d be huge holes in the milkweed we left for him.

We named him Eric Carle.

RIP Eric Carle.

If you’re ever able to make the monarch butterfly release during the monarch migration, I highly recommend it. The Butterfly Gardens of Wisconsin is definitely something to see!

So tell me…do you find butterflies as incredibly enchanting as I do? Have you ever paid attention to the monarch migration?

October 6, 2016

Free Client Pitch Tracker for Freelance Writers

This has been the season of up-leveling my freelance writing game.

I’ve been reading every book I can get my hands on about content marketing, contracts, pitches, SEO and anything else pertaining to the world of freelance. (Want me to share some of my favorite resources? Tell me in the comments below).

I’ve been sending out pitches like crazy.

I’ve been guest posting as much as possible.

I’ve really found my stride, in a way that I didn’t even know was possible. (That’s another story.)

So, today, I just thought I’d give out a freebie for you all.

This is the exact tracker that I use for keeping track of the businesses and people that I have pitched for freelance writing opportunities:

Here’s a little breakdown of the Freelance Pitch Tracker:

I track all my freelance writing gigs using a simple Google Sheet document.

(Were you expecting something more complicated? Do not make this more complicated than it needs to be!)

The first thing I would suggest is breaking the spreadsheet into chunks based on your pitching goals. Whether your goal is to send out 100 pitches a month or 100 pitches per day, you can bold the outline under the row of your goal so you know exactly where to stop each day.

The columns are pretty self-explanatory. You’ll notice my color-code key at the side. Color-coding helps me see at a quick glance who I still need to follow up with (still in white white), which contacts have given me a “no,” who I am in conversation with, and who I am currently doing business with.

This color coding system is a huge time saver. First of all, I can completely overlook the contacts that have said no (although, some of these come back and surprise you). A quick glance through another color helps refresh my memory about which clients I am currently doing business with, so I don’t forget any upcoming projects. And the white lets me know I should schedule a follow up.

The date column and follow-up column are used for the purpose of follow-up as well. Let me just tell you a little secret: there is magic in the follow-up. People get emails all the time and if they don’t know who you are, will likely delete your emails too. If you follow-up to the first email though, suddenly they take notice. Mark my words! I’ve nabbed more than one client through the follow up. If you don’t hear back, follow up until you do–just not in a pushy weird way. I could probably do a whole other post about this (and I just might!).

The Notes and Conversations columns are where I put little snippets of our conversation so I remember who I was talking to about what. I once made the mistake of emailing a customer saying I fit all the job qualifications on his page and he didn’t have any job qualifications on his page! I was mixing people up! No-no-no!

The second sheet is my article pitch sheet. If you’re a freelance writer, you are likely pitching guest posts to online publications (if you aren’t, you should be–it’s an incredible credibility- and portfolio-building opportunity). But you definitely need to keep track of the people and places you’re in conversation with.

There’s also a column for submission guidelines. Keeping submission guidelines at your fingertips is a good idea too, so you can pitch to those publications multiple times. Never give up after the first try!

Now, let me tell you why you need a freelance pitch tracker:

If you’re serious about freelance writing, you need to be pitching like it’s your full-time job.

But when you have sent out over 100 pitches, you WILL NOT remember who they all are or where you found them, no matter how good you think your memory is. It just won’t happen. Write down every single pitch you send, even if you think you’ll remember. This tracker will help you free up that mind space!

That first little “name” column has some special magic behind it, if you pay close attention. Let’s say you apply to a job on Problogger. The name of the person doing the hiring is typically not listed. So, once you do find out that name, make sure you list it. Or do a little digging to find out the name of the person. If you can speak to someone directly by name in your pitch, your pitch will be exponentially more powerful. Do whatever you can to fill in that NAME column.

Keeping track of where you found a contact is crucial too. It’s so much easier to make a connection to someone this way rather than coming at them out of left field. Plus, it’s something you’ll add to your pitch letter: “Hey, I saw your request on the [fill in blank] job board for a content marketing specialist.”

Funny story, I found one particular fitness personality after perusing the #BettyWhite trending hashtag on the actress’s birthday (such a sneaky little tactic to get followers). It was an incredible attention getter in my pitch letter. And I can’t tell you how many times I go back to look at that column wondering, where did I find this person again?

This “how found” column also helps when I need to brainstorm where to find new leads. I can look back and see “oh hey, I found quite a few people in this entrepreneur group on Facebook, I’ll look there again.”

You also need a quick at-a-glance reference like this tracker to remember who you’re working with, who said “no,” and everyone in between. You might even want to refresh your memory to see if you’ve already pitched a place in the past (this happens!). You don’t want to look like a fool sending a business the same pitch multiple times. The freelance tracker spreadsheet is so much more searchable than the heap of content that lies buried in your email.

I also like to keep a list of guest post submissions I’ve sent out as well so I can cross-submit. What that means is, if I have a great idea for an article, I might want to pitch it to another media site after the first one rejected it instead of letting it die.

The last thing I’d like to say about why you need one of these trackers is the infinite possibilities that lie therein. It’s validating and satisfying to see the tracker fill up and change color and become more vast every day. And I want the same for you!

To Wrap Up

Well, that’s about it. If you have any questions about what the columns or for or how to use this tracker, just hit me up with a comment or an email. I filled in one example for you so you can see what it’s like. Happy pitching!

Cool, so if you haven’t already:

October 3, 2016

GMO free vs Organic: What’s the Difference and Why Should You Care?

GMO free vs Organic

The issues behind food labels, particularly GMO-free food labels and organic food labels, are incredibly alarming and fraught with politics. Add in a dose of marketing hype and very little consensus about their dangers, and you can’t help but feel confused and overwhelmed.

Cripes! You just want to know what to feed your family!

Let’s break this down so you can make healthier food choices and avoid meaningless non-GMO claims and misleading organic labels.

Ok, so what exactly are GMO’s?

GMO stands for genetically modified organisms. What that means is, scientists literally alter the DNA in food so that crops are more tolerant, produce their own toxic insecticides, and/or exhibit more desirable traits.

Well then, what does organic mean?

To be considered organic, the USDA mandates that crops are grown without the use of chemical or synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Livestock must have outdoor access and have been given no antibiotics or growth hormones. In order to merit that label, crops must also be GMO-free. So an organic label is an umbrella that covers GMOs too.

How do you tell if something is truly organic or GMO-free?

The quickest way to tell is to look for the USDA organic label and the Non-GMO Project butterfly label. These are the two most trusted government and third-party regulation agencies, respectively. While the government has strict regulations about organic claims, GMOs are still largely unregulated, so it’s important to be leary. And the butterfly label is one of the only GMO-free food labels that require growers to maintain rigid standards, but there are plenty of other labels out there making the same claims. Non-GMO claims and organic food labels misleading consumers is a problem you can avoid with just a quick glance.

So, the big question is, should you be worried about them?

The short answer is, we don’t know yet. GMOs are a rather modern development, so no long-term studies have been done to show their effects. At this time, the government considers them “safe.” The effects to the environment, however, are much clearer. We know that GMOs have led to the development of superweeds and that they disrupt natural biospheres.

Similarly, even the amount of conventional pesticide residue left on non-organic food is considered “safe.” While that may leave you with a raised eyebrow, the positive effects of fruits and vegetables, organic or not, in your diet are unmistakable. And thankfully the presence of pesticides has declined since 1996 when the Food Quality Protection Act was passed.

Most of the data about the effects of pesticides on humans has come from studying farmers who have had first-hand chemical exposure on a regular basis. Certain pesticide chemicals are known to be carcinogenic or endocrine-disruptive.

Ok so, given this knowledge, what should you do?

Although your food choices are ultimately yours to make, and the jury is still out about long-term health effects, we have some tips to help you avoid GMOs and pesticides.

Opt for organic whenever possible: especially the Dirty Dozen, with foods bearing the USDA government label. Since GMOs are prohibited in organic food, choosing organic should cover both.
If you don’t see the organic or GMO project label, then check to make sure no derivatives of corn, soy, canola, sugar (except cane), or cottonseed oil are in the product. Those crops are the most likely to contain GMOs.
Check the PLU labels: the little stickers on your fruit? They are actually code for organic, GMOs, and conventionally grown produce. If the code starts with an 8, the food contains GMOs and if it starts with a 9, it’s organic.
Eat foods in their most natural state possible: avoiding packaged and processed foods is a guiding principle for any healthy diet, especially to avoid GMOs and other dangerous ingredients. I think we can all agree that real, whole foods will always offer the best nutritional value.
Shop at your local farmer’s market: Many small local farms are already using the principles of organic farming without the official label, so they are great places to shop. Don’t be afraid to ask stall owners questions and look for the USDA label. Shopping at the farmer’s market will also keep the cost factor of buying organic down.
Grow your own produce: gardening in the backyard can become both a meaningful family project and a way to ensure your food isn’t exposed to chemicals. Food from your own garden is the number one way to be certain about your food.
Join a CSA: even if you don’t have time to tend to your own garden, you can buy from someone else’s. Just do your research beforehand to make sure they use organic gardening methods.

Here’s a handy little infograph reference for you to pin that gives you a quick overview of GMO-free versus organic:

Sources:

USDA.gov
Non-GMO Project: http://www.nongmoproject.org/
Environmental Working Group: http://www.ewg.org/

September 29, 2016

If You’re Ever In Wild Rose, Wisconsin

The camping trip that was featured in my last article was in Wild Rose, Wisconsin. Since we’ve been there so many times, and Hubster practically grew up there in his family’s “second home” of sorts, I thought I would put together a little insider’s visitor guide, if you will.

Places to Visit in Wild Rose, WI

If you’re in Wild Rose, Wisconsin, make sure you pop over and visit the Fish Hatchery especially if you have kids. They did a really nice job converting their visitor’s center into an interactive play area. The little ones could’ve played in here for quite some time.

There are two large aquariums with live fish and a huge wall display of fish profiles. Rayna loved staring at and pointing out all the fishies.

They have an adorable little fishing area where you sit in a boat with your magnetic fishing pole, trying to catch fish. Imagination play.

They had all kinds of fish plushies.

And they had an entire section where you pretend to work at the hatchery. You start at the door and put your boots and lab coat on. Then, you make your way through the different stations. Kayne was dissecting a fish here.

Most of the hatchery isn’t run the way it used to be of course, so a lot of it is closed off to the public, but you can still feed some of their fish in the ponds. There’s a quarter feed dispenser that you can use to get their attention.

We’ve been coming here for years. Even last year, we went camping there when Rayna was only 1 months old.

For a little family picnic and a dip in the lake, check out Kusel Lake County Park. One day while we were camping, we took a family hike here through the lush trails and the following day, Kayne and I came back for a run/bike ride on the trails for my daily workout.

They also have a park with some fun old-school equipment, a picnic shelter, and a sandy beach for swimming. You could spend an entire day just at this little park.

Another place to visit is the Roseville Mini Golf & Shops, a mini golf range and attached ice cream shop. This little visitor-friendly site has a well-kept mini golf course, great ice cream and lots of souvenirs and treats.

We’ve also stopped here quite a few times in the past several years.

They have a few little farm animals out back next to the golf course now too. Rayna doesn’t really “play” golf, so we let her wander around, play with her own club and ball, and explore the animals.

There’s a carousel horse out front that’s a perfect photo opp.

Right next to Benny’s Grocery Store is a little thrift store that I sometimes pop into while Hubster grabs groceries. A few years back, it was one of those crammed, treasure-hunt-type thrift stores that I loved exploring. Now it has a more curated, pricey feel to it. But there’s one interesting thing at the back of the store, if you care to look: a real life electric chair. Yes, it’s absolutely creepy. I couldn’t even bring myself to sit all the way back in the chair or touch the sides even though I knew it was off and not working. But I thought it was worth mentioning;)

When Kayne was little, we went camping right during strawberry picking and got the whole experience at a local farm. I wish I could remember the name of it, but we just found the sign for it and pulled in on a whim!

There are a few other little shops in Wild Rose, if you care to stop, including a little flower/gift shop and antique store. We haven’t been in either of these, but they look like they’re worth the visit.

Places to Stay in Wild Rose, Wisconsin

While I’m not familiar with all the inns and cottages available, I can tell you that the camping in Wild Rose is so much fun. We like staying at Luwisomo Campground whenever we visit. But Evergreen is also very popular with all their various attractions. Hubster’s family used to have a trailer at that campground growing up, so he has many memories there. They’ve gotten a little too commercialized ($$$) and crammed together in the last few years, but it’s still a fun time.

Luwisomo is a nice understated place to camp that is a bit more spread out and much more tree-covered for those who like the actual outdoor experience. You can also rent a few cute little cabins there. They have a little playground, a little mini golf course and some nice trails. They also have decent bathrooms and laundry facilities in the public camping area which I appreciate.

Luwisomo also has this amazing horse stable for horseback riding.

We’ve started let Kayne go horseback riding every year. He’s still not old enough to go alone, but they do a guided tour with him and he loves it.

They also have other horses and goats you can pet while you wait.

Places to Eat in Wild Rose, WI

We haven’t eaten at all the restaurants, but we are fans of the Pioneer Pub & Grill. It has a log cabin look from the outside, and the view on the back deck is absolutely amazing.

Springwater Resort has a pizza buffet on certain days of the week (Wed and Sun, I think?). They’re situated right on Kusel Lake too. We’ve gone there several times and enjoyed the little buffet.

We generally bring our own food or stop at Benny’s to pick up what we need and go out to eat maybe one night of our stay. And we’re also mourning the loss of the restaurant inside the Ding. When Hubster and I were first dating, we stopped there to eat many many times. They had a greasy spoon vibe in their restaurant part, but the burgers were amazing! Last time we stopped in, the informed us they no longer served food.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this little tour of Smalltown USA. Wild Rose is a quick little blink of a town, but it still has enough to do for a day, or several, especially if camping and nature is your thing.

September 21, 2016

What It Really Takes to Hit 10,000 Steps a Day When You Work a Desk Job

Hint: there’s absolutely no TV involved, you can’t just sit at your desk all day, AND you may still need to hop on the treadmill before bed!

I have a little FitBit Zip that I take out of hiding every once in awhile to see how I’m doing on daily activity. It’s been awhile, so I was actually pretty surprised to see how much more I needed to move every day than I have been to hit the 10,000 goal.

What it really takes to hit 10,000 steps per day when you work 8 hours in a cubicle.

Ready for this?

9/8, A Workday

Run 2 miles before work.
Get up from my desk once an hour or so to use bathroom, run to the kitchen, put samples away, etc.
When I get home, I play with the kids and kittens outside for most of the evening.
Normal walking around while tidying up while we’re all inside.
Walk 8 minutes on the treadmill because I’m all ready to hop into bed and I still need 2k steps. Yes, I totally became one of those people.

Only a few more to go!

9/21, Another Workday (this time I paid attention to roughly how many steps each activity gave me).

Run two miles in the morning (5,000, only halfway there).
Go to work like normal and walk around when necessary (only 2,000).
Go home and play catch with my son, clean, take the garbage and recycling down our looong driveway (3,000, hit the goal right before bed).

The bulk of my daily steps are taken during a morning workout and after work, when I’m not lounging around.

The goal? To walk more at work. I’m going through 8 hours of barely moving. No wonder sitting disease is the new smoking!

Oh my goodness. I mean, I’ve done this type of tracking before, but I never realized how much you really do need to MOVE to get to 10,000 steps!

Ok, here’s another example from a weekend day, 9/10

Get up and run 3 miles.
Go to a nature preserve and walk around the trails and through the butterfly house for hours.
Go home and do normal walking/cleaning around the house.

Again, I NEVER would’ve gotten anywhere NEAR 10,000 steps if I had gone about a “normal” day. I had to take a run, another hike through a nature preserve, AND clean like a madwoman to hit my goal. That’s a lot of stuff to fit into one day! And who actually runs 3 miles every.single.day?

A day with just “normal” movement looks like this:

The moral of all this?

To hit 10,000 steps a day when you work 9-to-5:

You have to work out most days.
You need to make it a point to get out of your desk once an hour and/or take a walk on your lunch break.
When you get home, you can’t veg all night. You still have to move around the house cleaning, playing, or whatever it is you do. In fact, I rarely watch TV and still had to get on the treadmill that one time to hit my goal.
You have to work HARD to meet this goal if you work a sitting job all day. You can’t just guess when you might be getting close to 10,000 per day. You’re likely WAY off. Don’t kid yourself. Wear a tracker to figure out the number of steps you’re really taking and DO something about it!

Do wear a tracker regularly? Do you find it hard to meet your 10,000 steps a day?

Now that you know what it takes, how are you going to remedy your shortcomings?

September 12, 2016

Do You Leave Things Better in Your Wake?

When Hubster and I bought our first house, it was in a bit of disarray from the people who left. The upstairs carpet was just…beyond. The doors were horrible, like literally one of them fell apart at the hinges. The walls were marred by crayon hand prints and the like.

But the structure was sound. All the problems above? Were just superficial and easily fixable. That’s how I knew that house was perfect for us. I could see through the superficial to the underlying structure.

So, the first thing we did was hike up our pants and got to work, painting walls, installing carpet and brightening up the entire place. Over the years, as we went to fix things, we found that many things in the house were rigged. The dishwasher was hooked up all wonky, the front corner of the house wasn’t even resting on a stud, I could go on…

With each and every project, we took the time to repair them correctly. Even when we could’ve likewise just rigged them back up and ignored the underlying problems.

We installed a really robust fence, repaired the roof, installed soffit/fascia/gutters that were all missing. We fixed ‘er up. Even when the improvements didn’t quite match the quality of the neighborhood.

This is happening now in our new home. We’re slowly phasing out the old white appliances for solid stainless steel ones. We’re redoing outdated counters. We’re fixing troublesome wiring problems. We’re removing dumped garbage from the back corner of our lot. We’re making it better.

By the way, I have to say, we would’ve been the type of renters that any landlord would’ve dreamed of. We would’ve left their rooms nicer than when we moved in. Something that probably never happens.

But I carry this over in other ways in my life as well.

My mantra, and the guiding principle of this entire website and business is “better every day.” I try to better myself every day. I try to make my environment better. I try to make other people’s lives better. I try to workout better. I try to be a better mother and wife.

That’s just who I am.

Are you that way too?

Aren’t there so many ways that we can make things better, to fix what’s been left broken? To pick up the discarded napkin on the ground that everyone else is ignoring as “someone else’s fault/problem.” To leave friends feeling better after having been around you. To turn a weedy overgrown thorn meadow into a glorious fruitful garden. To leave a borrowed car with more gas than there was when you got in.

Isn’t that such a cool thing to aspire to? To leave things better than they were when you walked in?

So many people in this world walk around taking whatever they can, not caring about marring things as they pass through, and leaving things for the next person to clean up. Like discarded napkins at a picnic. Like tenants who lose their security deposit and then some within months of moving in.

Don’t be one of those people. We need more beautifiers and elevate-ers in this world.

Not only does this make the world a better place, but by being an elevate-er, you become a person that attracts more good things to you. You’re a builder and therefore become more built.

~Better every day~

So, tell me are you the rare type that actually leaves things better in your wake?

September 9, 2016

How to Camp with a Toddler

Just try it. See how it goes. And don’t worry too much.

How’s that for a canned, cop-out answer?

But really, try not to overthink this. If you normally go camping every summer, then normal camping you shall go. The sooner you make camping a part of your newer child’s life, the sooner it will just become “normal.” Having a baby or toddler in the house doesn’t have to change your normal family activities. And it’s really not as hard as you might be thinking!

We were worried about how our little girl would do too, but we went anyway and winged it. Actually, we went last year when she was only10 months old. Having a baby? Doesn’t stop us from enjoying our favorite past-times. In fact, having Rayna there enriched the experience tenfold. Try going camping through the eyes of a one-year-old. Fascinating!

This is our camper and set-up. As a side note, that there umbrella-tent thing, the Sportbrella is awesome! You can fit two normal camping chairs under there and hang out when it’s raining or super sunny (our overhang needs repair). BYOS, Bring Your Own Shade. In fact, my BIL uses theirs at my nephew’s soccer games.

Ok, now let me give you a few more legit tips for camping with a tiny human:

The sleeping situation

So, Rayna still sleeps in a crib. And she needs to. She is a rolly-polly sleeper and falls off normal beds still. She also doesn’t have the discipline to stay put yet. Problem is, all we have in the camper are normal beds. And they’re the type of beds that you can’t hook a toddler bed gate to, otherwise we would’ve done that.

Luckily, our camper has a cabinet that blocks part of the bed, so I put her as close to that end as I could. I also added a full-body pillow to that side of the bed so she would be kinda nested in there. We think she fell out a few times: once when the dog took over her space (#sillypuppy) and once when she had rolled to the opposite side of the bed. None of this was dangerous though.

So, I would suggest using a toddler gate if you can, making a nice sleeping nest, and putting something soft on the floor beside the bed, just in case. No biggie.

Also, since toddlers like to get up after you’ve put them down for bed, you have to be consistent about putting them back every single time they get up. It actually only takes several times before they get the picture. The picture you have in your mind of putting your child back 50 times over the course of 2 hours while pulling your hair is way exaggerated to what usually happens in reality. A few times was all it took for Rayna the first day, and it got easier every day thereafter.

The kids’ set-up: side-by-side beds with a pull-out table and a TV stand with their movie player.

The Itinerary

So, toddlers are not the greatest at kicking back in a camping chair and watching the fire. No, they are not.

So, we made sure we had a small excursion planned for each day (nothing too involved) that we were at the campground and we broke the day up into chunks.

Actually, each thing we did was like a mini event: prepare and eat breakfast, run to the showers and get ready (Rayna oddly LOVED this part), do a little excursion, come back and do lunch, go down for a nap, go down to the playground for a bit, gather wood for the fire, have dinner, wind down with a movie on the portable DVD player, go to bed.

All these little experiences were a great way to keep our toddler active all day along with us. while doing the things all of us like to do. Like I said, she doesn’t like to just lounge around, so we used what was available to us (playground, hiking trails, beach) to keep her busy.

She swam, collected seashells, looked at the fishies, jumped off the dock into my arms and explored the sand.

Taking a slow family hike, collecting fun things in her hands.

Old-school playground

Normal Routines

While camping, it’s important to maintain all of your normal daily routines, as much for comfort in a new place as for practical purposes.

We did all our normal routines like bedtime teeth brushing and back rubbing, our normal morning breakfast, after-lunch naps, and those kinds of things so our daughter understood what was going on and felt secure in her new environment. We brought along all her favorite stuffed animals and blankets too, for her comfort.

Even the times that we did things like naps and bedtime were pretty similar to at home, so we didn’t mess up her internal clock either.

Kid-Friendly Food

We brought along a lot of non-cook snacks for the kiddos to enjoy on our trip like applesauce, fruit cups, oatmeal, trail mix and things like that. These are easy to pack, keep fresh and grab when needed.

There’s no reason to get anxious about meal planning for camping. Keep it simple. We have a camper with an oven so we like to cook the same things we would at home. But we also camp at a place with a grocery store nearby so we don’t worry if we forget something either. Actually, sometimes we leave the bulk of the grocery shopping until we get there.

Cooking hot dogs and S’mores over the fire is like a rite of camping passage, so don’t forget those supplies;) It’s one of those things that your children will form memories around and likely pass on to their own children, so make it meaningful. It’s an entire experience in itself, everyone gathered around the fire, getting the browning down to a science, and enjoying the food at sunset around a picnic table. Mmmmmm. Such brilliant memories…

The Dirt

Camping trips are one of those times when it’s ok (and pretty hard not to) let your toddler get dirty. We could not keep shoes on Rayna for the life of us. Every. single. time. we put them on her, she had them off within minutes. And really, who cares? Even though there were pine needles and pinecones poking up everywhere, we weren’t the least bit worried. Think about all the sensations your child is learning, the closeness to the earth they’re experiencing, the earthing they’re getting to do.

In fact, I often wonder about the sheer magnitude of stuff that’s happening in a toddler’s head when they’re in a new environment. Can you imagine all the neurons firing and brain cells being activated when they’re experiencing all these new things?

Rayna even stole my contact case at one point and used it as a sand scoop on the last day. I wasn’t bothered in the least. Not only do I have plenty of them at home, but I was happy to see her exploring the earth.

On one of our hikes, Rayna helped me collect “pretties” for our signature #fingerbouquets

It rained one of the nights we were there too, and Kayne took his bike splashing through the puddles at the campground. Totally fine! There were free showers where we stayed and that’s just what camping is all about! Let them experience nature in all its dirtiness! We sweat, we kicked mushrooms, we played in the lake water amongst fishies, we walked barefoot through the sand, we went down wet slides, and just plain got dirty. It was fun!

After the trip, when I was cleaning out the camper, I was amazed at the sheer volume of sand that was left in there. I sure do love getting it squeaky clean afterwards, but during the trip, getting dirty is just a natural part of the whole experience.

Things To Do

Even if you don’t want to plan any excursions or just plain aren’t near any, there are so many little things you can do with your toddler at a campground to keep them busy and engaged. We didn’t bring along very many toys, and you don’t need to either. Here are just a few that I came up with, many of which we’ve tried:

Do a scavenger hunt. For small children, just ask them to bring you simple items like twigs or pinecones. For older children, print off a list of harder-to-find items that they can be on the lookout for and collect throughout the entire trip.
Create a finger bouquet.
Bring along a wagon or wheelbarrow for them to collect twigs for the fire.
Take walks around the campground (this could keep them busy for hours).
Walk the trails nearby.
Visit the beach.
Bring sand toys to play in the sand. Our campground had not only a beach but also a volleyball court where we played in the sand.
Bring a guitar or music player and play music around the campfire.
Create a nature mandala, like this one or this one.
Find a new secret spot to picnic for each meal.
Make a fort.

I hope these tips give you some insight into camping with small children. And if you’ve had any hesitations or reservations about going, I hope this inspires you to give it a shot!

Pin this article for later:

Have you ever tried camping with a baby or toddler? How did it go?

What are some of your best memories from camping as a child?

August 28, 2016

Polypro Tote Winner

Hey #flashers, just popping in on vacation to let you know who won my handmade Tote. My kiddos helped me do an old fashioned drawing as I only have access to my tablet today, haha! Congratulations to Rebekah Wolff!!! I will be in touch to get the bag in the mail! Thank you all so much for the kind words and encouragement!

August 23, 2016

What to Accomplish in Your 20’s

I was challenged recently to write a post about navigating your 20’s. And since I’m a 20’s graduate, working on my 30’s masters, I do have some thoughts on what I would advise someone to accomplish in their twenties. (There’s a fun conversation going on about this. Check out this and this blog for more inspiring 20s life posts.)

First, let me give you a quick idea of the major accomplishments of my 20s:

Graduated college Magna cum Laude with a Bachelor’s in English.
Got married and bought my first house at 23
Got my first post-grad job and then my first actual writing job.
Had my first baby at 25
Ran a half marathon–my first ever race!

All monumental things summed up in a quick matter-of-fact bulleted list, right? Ha!

Now, if I were to tell anyone in their 20’s what their 20’s bucket list should look like, I’d tell them this:

Start working toward your dream job: You might not land your dream gig right out of the gate, but there are always things you can do to MAKE It Happen right now! Start by volunteering in your desired niche, do some things for free. I created my own PR type writing volunteer job at a local museum. I didn’t just look for this opportunity, I quite literally made it happen by creating the volunteer spot itself. Doing so got me valid experience and portfolio pieces that opened me up to my dream job. You could always start your own business on the side too to transition into. I didn’t have any entrepreneurial people in my family willing to teach me about self-employment, and I wish I did because today’s digital business landscape is Fertile! (If you’re an English major, I’d love to be that person for you. Check this out).

Learn and master a few key recipes: Yes, this is one of those adulting self-reliance things, but it’s also about being healthy and budget-conscious. It will serve you well when you have a family, when you want to entertain, when you want to demonstrate your affection to a love interest;) You should learn how to cook more than a Pop-Tart and Easy Mac in your twenties. It’s good for your health, your bank account and your relationships. A few of the ONLY cookbooks on my bookshelf are listed on my Fave Resources page.

Start replacing hand-me-down furniture with quality: one of the rites of passages into adulthood is changing out your secondhand furniture for new, good quality pieces. Start with where you spend the most time: invest in a good bed, a nice couch, and a treadmill, for example. Furnishing your homes with quality lifetime pieces will really elevate you into adulthood. And your environment can have a strong influence on your wellbeing, so make a home for yourself that feels like you.

Contribute to your 401k: when I took my first post-grad job, I was amazed when the HR guy showed me the chart about what retirement looks like if you start investing in your twenties versus your thirties. It’s like exponentially different! Start now! Even if you think you don’t need to start thinking about it yet. Plus, your employer’s matching program? That’s free money, people! Just do it! You’ll thank me later. And if you have kids, do the same with their college fund. Start when they’re born, not when they’re 5.

Build up good credit: you think being in debt is just the norm because everyone around you is in debt. Well, it’s not going to serve you, ever. So, starting now, make sure you don’t spend more than you make, always pay your credit card balance off every month, and make payments on time. When you go to buy a house or a new car, you’ll be in the position to get the best rates possible. I had college paid off before my loans ever even became due. And by the time we went to buy our first house, I had near-perfect credit scores.

Spend money where it counts: The best things to spend money on? Experiences, education and other people. No material thing will ever come close! Travel as much as you can while it’s still feasible. Get your next degree right away while it’s easier for you to do so. And start creating space in your budget for giving back. You maybe did this a little as a kid, but it’s really an adult, humanitarian thing to do.

Try to value your Time: When my son was born, I said to a friend “when I used to say ‘I just don’t have the time’ before, what the heck was I talking about?” Because seriously? Kids knock your time down by about 1000%. I’m not saying that to complain, I’m just saying it will be a big shock and adjustment. Even if you don’t anticipate having children, the more responsibilities you take on in your career, the less time you’ll have. You don’t know it now, but you actually have the most time available to you as you ever will. Do something wise with it.

Start taking care of your body. You’ve likely stopped playing team sports and might even dwell in cubicle-land, so you need something new to challenge your body. Even though you don’t feel it yet, your body will become different in your 30s. Things will hurt that never did. And food will affect your body in ways it never did before. I know that makes me sound suuuuper old, but I’m not. And you’ll thank your 20s self if you start feeding it the best fuel and keeping it active now. Things will feel better as you grow older.

Read self-development every day: become a better human. It’s amazing how your life transforms when you fill your head with all these empowering things. Try it, you’ll see!

Shed the judgement and cattiness of your school days and embrace compassion and love instead. It will get you everywhere. Ahhhh, doesn’t that feel better, just thinking about it?

Listen to your mom: as I’m going through motherhood myself, I’ve noticed we go from adoring our moms when we’re little, to becoming angst-ridden parent-hating teens to adoring our moms again as adults. Especially after having your own child. Moms, amiright? The first thing I did after having a baby was contemplate in amazement my own mother. And when you start repeating phrases your mom always used, you realize that you really should’ve just listened to your mom this whole time.

Keep in touch with your friends: it takes a lot more work to get together with friends nowadays. Sometimes it takes great feats of effort to get together. You can’t just go and hang out on a whim like you used to. You have to make sure you make an intentional effort to connect and don’t leave it up to the other person. It’s too easy to become a hermit. And there’s a time for hermit-ness. But your friends are your heart, so don’t let them bleed away.

Find ways to give back: your twenties are one of the most selfish decades in your life. And I’m not saying that to be harsh, I’m just stating it matter-of-factly. It just is. Start taking time to find random acts of kindness, volunteer work, a cause to put your heart into. It will make you a better person.

DO NOT CONFORM: there are waaaaay to many people running on the normal, autopilot life. Don’t be one of those people. You have way too much beauty and rarity to offer this life. Figure out what and whom you love and run with it!

I know these are super fortune-cookie-simple pieces of advice, but they seriously sum up THE most important things about life in your 20s. I could go on and on about each one. They’re not simple at all. But given the context of this post, they’re straightforward as possible.

What about you?

If you’re past your 20s, what would you add to this list?

If you’re in your 20s, are any of these values ringing a bell?

~This blog was inspired by the fun minds over at Casper. Their Pillow Talk blog (love the name!) is really entertaining, check it out.