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Grace Blossoms

SniffleEase

SniffleEase #graceblossomsblog #SniffleEase #youngliving #essentialoils #kids #respiratory

The Problem

The reason we love SniffleEase is for a situation just like this:

Your kid starts what you know will lead to weeks of hacking, running to the drug store, getting to the doctor, shoving {harmful and pointless} colored liquids down his/her throat all for little to no improvement until two to three weeks, when it passes.

“The Sniffle.”

I don’t know about you, but I cringe every time I hear that first sniffle because so much can come with such a little sound.

The Solution

The best action we can take as parents is quick action.

Not to grab the nearest synthetic OTC off the shelf, but to instead support your child’s body as fast as possible, so it can go into defense mode and start waging its own war on whatever has invaded your little one’s body.

Get your nonGMO first line of defense here: Young Living Starter Kit

We love to use SniffleEase at the first sign of a sniffle, especially the way kids are with sniffing instead of blowing their noses.

We have to get in there and help defend that precious respiratory system STAT!

SniffleEase is a rejuvenating and refreshing blend formulated just for kids that will get them headed in the right direction–wellness–in no time!

Convenient

The best part about having the KidScents line added to your Essential Rewards wellness box is that you’ll have a wonderful and convenient addition to your wellness arsenal at all times.

What makes it so easy to use is the fact that it is pre-diluted, which means that it is ready to go as soon as you crack open the bottle.

We like to keep the KidScents oils in the boys’ bedrooms on special oil shelves (our boys are 5 and 7 as I write this), so they are on hand any time (especially during the night).

How to Use

Take a couple of drops and rub it clockwise on their little chest/airways. I like to also add some to their back where their lungs are.

Cup your hands and show them how to breathe deeply, so they can have this unique blend going through their nasal passages as well for added support.

For littler ones, they can breathe it in off your cupped hands, but for someone like my seven-year-old, I would add a drop to his own hands and let him rub his hands back and forth then breathe deeply.

He’ll even rub it on his pillowcase before bed, so he can keep breathing it in throughout the night.

What About Infants

I get this question all the time: What if I have a baby? How do I know what to do? 

Please remember that you’ll need to find a Young Living specific resource since our oils are the safest on the planet and can’t be compared apples-to-apples with any others.

Please also watch out for people who sound more fear-mongering than helpful.

Staying on sites like Young Living’s blog with help keep you grounded and confident in your oil usage.

This is what the Young Living blog gives us about using oils in the nursery:

Diluting Oils in the Nursery Young Living #youngliving #graceblossoms #babies #essentialoils

Guidelines to Oils in the Nursery Young Living #graceblossoms #youngliving #essentialoils #babies

Oils with Caution in Nursery Young Living #essentialoils #youngliving #graceblossoms #babies

Final Thoughts

Getting your Premium Starter Kit is the biggest health decision of your life. Getting on Essential Rewards is the second. (Click either of those two links to read more about each!)

This means you’re choosing a life of nonGMO wellness for your family.

You’re choosing to always have an answer.

A support for your body to do what it was designed to do: be well.

Adding SniffleEase and the entire KidScents line is setting your child’s cells up for success.

We work so hard as parents and grandparents to train their brains for success, but rarely are we looking to our products and solutions for wellness as a part of that equation.

Young Living changes that mindset to one of staying above the line of wellness.

A life of proactive living instead of reactive.

I hope this has blessed you like it has our family!

~Andrea

Filed in: Babies + Kids + Pets, Natural Remedies + Immune Function, Toxin-Free Home • by Andrea •

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Backpack Essentials 2+3

We often think of supplements as something only adults take, but you’ll find that the more you give your kids as a part of their backpack essentials, the simpler their school years become!

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Filed in: Babies + Kids + Pets • by Andrea •

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Backpack Essentials 5

TOOL: A Well-Stocked Backpack

Back to School Toxin-Free Bookbag Essentials1

Lets continue with Backpack Essentials 5!

Below are the some great ideas to help kids take charge of their own wellness and to know they are having a toxin-free experience at school.

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Filed in: Babies + Kids + Pets, Toxin-Free Home • by Andrea •

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Backpack Essentials 6


How to Get Through the School Year

Backpack Essentials 6 is all about the oils Young Living made just for our children!

Our family loves the pre-diluted KidScents oils!

Here’s a quick rundown of each of the oils for you!

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Filed in: Babies + Kids + Pets, Toxin-Free Home • by Andrea •

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Grace Speaks

No matter the struggle you endure, no matter the time in your life, look to God and listen to what He says you are. Listen because grace speaks.

Grace Speaks


“Give yourself a year’s worth of a lot of grace.”

I heard these words come out of my best friend’s mouth about me leaving my job of the last 11 years to be a stay-at-home-mom.

In my head it didn’t make sense. I’d have all the time in the world. Literally.

I was in for a rude awakening.

Learning Curve

All those things other people chipped in to help with when I was teaching like laundry, vacuuming, dishes, childcare, errands became my new time crunch.

And on top of it, because I was a stay-at-home-mom, I felt the need to jump into the PTO, take on a new business to help out with finances, and pitch in more with our non-profit. 

On its own, motherhood within the home is a huge job, but add in all those extra features to it, and here I am feeling confused and lost like a fish out of water.

No schedule. No “This happens now” and “That happens then.”

Just time.

The Stuff

And stuff.

And in that “stuff,” no matter what it is, it is so easy to get distracted and land in this place of confusion and disappointment.

The kids aren’t getting enough of my attention. I didn’t make that call. I missed that appointment. The house isn’t clean as it should be. The laundry isn’t caught up. The blog hasn’t been written lately. I haven’t worked out in months. I’m behind on Bible study. I. Am. Such. A. Failure.

I am floundering, it’s true, but I’ve got one thing that keeps lifting me up. 

Jesus.

Never Alone

I’m not wandering aimlessly.

Best of all, I have a purpose and a calling.

I can lean on Him as hard and as often as I need to.

Lord, what have You put in front of me today?

This pile of laundry? A game of Sorry with my four-year-old? A random blog post You put on my heart in the middle of loading the dishwasher?

Then I consider it joy.

Because it is so unbelievably easy to see it as being scattered or lost or even failing. 

But all I needed was a little perspective and a big reality check, that came in the form of advice from another wonderful friend.

Perspective

Reality: Satan saw an opportunity to chip away at my heart, and I let him.

Satan says:

  • I’m not good enough
  • Not worth it
  • Should do more than I can handle
  • I’m a failure
  • It’s okay to be lazy because being a mom is hard

BUT. JESUS.

Grace says:

  • I’m right where God has placed me after answering a six-year-long prayer.
  • Exactly what my family needs.
  • Have enough on my plate, and He will guide me.
  • Not alone.
  • Succeeding. Learning. Growing.
  • Pull strength from the Lord when being a mom is hard.
  • Trust that He is sufficient and His grace is enough.

I don’t have to worry.

I’m no longer a slave to fear.

For I am a child of a graceful, loving, peaceful God.

Amen.

No matter the struggle you endure, no matter the time in your life, look to God and listen to what He says you are. Listen because grace speaks.

Filed in: Walking • by Andrea •

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Fearless in Times of Suffering

When your faith is weak what do you do? How do you shake it? How do you dig in and become fearless? Good news: you can't possibly do it alone.

Fearless

If there’s any time I need God’s grace, it’s when I am mustering up faith in Him to become fearless.

When I don’t know how things will work out.

Don’t have control over the situation.

Just can’t make things go the way I want them to.

When I just. Don’t. Know.

Today was one of those days.

BELLA+CANVAS

Hospital Scare

I was at the hospital for a routine checkup with Hudson.

Our oncologist was saying how the disease he once had, Neuroblastoma, usually ends up okay for kids like him.

One who has favorable genetics, but he wanted to let me know that there could still be some cancer left over in my child.

What do you mean, left over cancer? You said it was out.

Long story short, he was speaking of calcified and dead cancer and also in generalities.

He ended the conversation by saying Hudson is okay and will most likely have a totally normal life expectancy.

I should be fine, right?

I was.

I am.

But the devil totally saw his opportunity to mess with my head.

What if?

Dr. Martens UK

Get OUT

Get out, Satan. Not today. Not ever!

My God is greater. My God is stronger. My God is higher than you and your lies.

I know the Truth.

I know God is the ultimate healer, and my son is clean from this disease.

I know that even if something does happen, that the Lord will see us through just like He did three years ago.

But most of all, I know that I don’t have to fear anything because I am not a slave to your fear, Satan.

Scholastic Teacher Store Online

Who I Am

I am a child of God.

I don’t have to wallow in the piercing fear that immediately gripped me when Dr. Dole began talking about Neuroblastoma.

I don’t have to let myself get caught up in the past trauma of how it feels to be a mother of a very sick child.

I don’t have to camp out there, because my identity is not traumatized mother.

My identity is daughter of God– Heavenly Creator and Healer.

Alibris: Books, Music, & Movies

He > I

He has done a perfect job of being Him. Walking me through all the pain, all the joys, triumphs, and all the fears. 

God’s grace goes far beyond what I could ever be capable of doing myself.

If it weren’t for grace, He would’ve been angry that I could second-guess what I know in my heart to be true, and He would’ve washed His hands of me completely.

But that’s just not our God.

He loves so abundantly and so grand– bigger than we can comprehend.

So, instead of kicking me to the curb, He drew me nearer to  Him.

I felt myself being drawn up into His arms and comforted.

I know what is true: I can trust You, Lord.

Grateful

Thank You Lord, for being a merciful Father.

Who sees my fears and disbelief and triggers of past pain and uses it to pray, connect, and delve deeper in my relationship with You.

Thank You for being a God whose number one mission is to care for His children.

Sitting here in my motherhood fears, You love me so tenderly that I am able to feel calm and peace in my heart.

To be overwhelmed with Your love through grace, to rest in the fact that You are good.

You are God.

You are Truth.

When I Fail

Is it always my first fleshly reaction to trust?

Unfortunately, no.

I wish I could say that every single time I’m met with adversity I was fearless, but fear does get a hold of me–especially when it comes to my children.

However I never have to live in that fear because I have my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Even More

Because of this, I can enjoy my motherhood. I can enjoy my family. I can enjoy this precious gift of life the Lord has given me. I can be fearless.

Best of all, I can share His grace with you with the hope that you, too can open your heart to it as well.

Never would I ever want to hold all this to myself. It’s too big not to share.

It’s too amazing.

It’s the only thing in this world worth calling perfect: God’s love.

When your faith is weak what do you do? How do you shake it? How do you dig in and become fearless? Good news: you can't possibly do it alone.

Filed in: Walking • by Andrea •

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Laid Bricks on My Heart

As a little girl, I used to daydream about motherhood.

What would it be like to have a baby of my very own? To hold, change, carry, and snuggle.

What would it be like, I wondered from as far back as I can remember, to be the mommy?

 

How I hoped I could be like my own mother.

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Filed in: Uncategorized • by Andrea •

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Let ’em Fly!

In response to sickness and the Ohio weather shifting from mid 70s to upper 30s overnight, we present to you some indoor fun…

**drumroll please**

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Filed in: Uncategorized • by Andrea •

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It Rained Until it Shined

SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 2014

The snow day Monday, Steve stayed home from work and couldn’t play with the kids at all or come near me because he was feeling so bad. This was a bummer, but boy oh boy did we have quite a week in store for us. This was truly the calm before the storm.

Tuesday was another snow day, and I did have such a great morning with Cohen, but then it was off to the hospital with Hudson for an I.V. and an injection.

This radioactive substance attached to the Neuroblastoma in his body and let us know, head-to-toe, where everything was for sure.

Checking into Medical Imaging Jan. 7. There were so many sick kids out there, and they didn’t have a room for Hudson, so we had to hang out in the back hallway.

Hudson and Mommy waiting on his IV

Finally, after one blown vein, they put his IV in his hand using a red light and a hand-warmer to spot the vein. Poor guy. Sweeties and a hospital lavender-scented pacifier always do the trick to help ease the pain, though. The only time he will take a paci is when he is in pain. My sweet boy.

We finally made it home and Steve was feeling sick still. He went on a run to get some medicine, but never made it there because there was a pipe burst in our rental property.

condo.png
A pipe burst near the water heater causing it to dump its entire contents and everything it was trying to refill onto the ceiling causing it to cave in.
All flooring on the first floor, the entire ceiling on the first floor, counters and cabinets in the kitchen must be replaced.
While I was on the phone with the insurance, I had Hudson screaming wanting to nurse, Cohen grabbing my hand to play, and Hattie dropping a ball on my lap to throw. All in all quite a stressful evening, I must say.
Oh yes, and earlier that day I realized Hudson is losing his hair.
Chemo will do that, and we totally expected it. So, I took some pictures before it started falling out to celebrate and remember the hair he was born with.
We also did a little at-home hair cut the day I found the first of it in his bed and some that came out in my hands.
After crying for quite a while, I called my sister, who had these simple yet all too true words of wisdom, “He may be losing his hair, but if you didn’t have this treatment you’d lose Hudson.”
Talk about perspective.
So, I gathered myself up after mourning the beautiful hair I was so (foolishly) proud of and decided to celebrate it instead.
Though I feel good about everything, I will admit I even shed tears writing this and looking at the pictures, still. I don’t know why this one little thing is so hard for me.
Most babies don’t have this much hair anyway, and it will grow back, but for some reason it strikes such a spot in my heart and makes me ache every time I think about it or more hair is left behind on his sheets, carseat, or my shirt.
That was the hair he came into this world with. It was such a wonderful day, and his hair was quite the topic of conversation as I was delivering him. I just remember how beautiful my baby was upon entering this world almost four short months ago, and I guess I’m selfishly not quite ready to give that up. Stupid, I know, but it’s the (ugly) truth.

Check out that studly hairdo

 

First haircut. I only trimmed up the ears and back. I left the top long figuring it’d be short soon enough, and we could still just enjoy his sweet little curls a bit longer.

 

Big brother helping while Mommy pumped before Hudson’s scan. He couldn’t eat anything before his MIBG.

This scan required light sedation (which he’s already had twice now) to double check and make sure everything (head-to-toe) is right where we think it is. This first picture is of our nurse getting his Broviac line ready for the sedation and me helping to keep him calm.

Our respiratory therapist (who is wonderful) snuggling Hudson to help him sleep and our nurse administering thesedation while our technician in Nuclear Medicine got the scanner ready. I had to step away because he was trying to stay awake to look at me. When he finally fell asleep, I fell apart crying because he just goes so still. I know he’s okay. I hear the monitors. It’s just a not-so-great thing to watch.

If you look closely you can count three butterflies. The butterfly is the symbol of the lost baby, of which we have three in heaven. Just a little God thing to give me a bit of comfort during a really tough day.

His oxygen levels didn’t dip too low, but they put in tubes just to be extra careful.

They strap him in really tight to keep him safe. In the middle of the scan, he wet his diaper. When they had to change him because it was blocking the view of the scanner, he woke and they had to sedate him more. I cried and cried. When every part of you wants to hold your baby and help him, but you can’t, it can nearly drive you crazy and most certainly will break your heart.

Home. Sleeping and sleeping and following the family rule of never waking a sleeping baby.

Hudson came out of the scan and nursed like a champ. That night at home, however he was not able to get milk from me.

This was so upsetting. My mom went to make a bottle of my frozen milk for him, and I had to leave the room because he will refuse a bottle if he can see, hear, or smell me at all.

I went into my room, laid on my bed, and sobbed. I was just so drained emotionally from the day, from what was to come Thursday with chemo, and I just fell down on the bed and let it all out.

I think I needed to. Doing all of this by myself at the hospital, I have to hold everything together, and I’m glad in a way that I finally had something that made me release those emotions.

Then, I got to thinking about what I had eaten that day with all the stress and being at the hospital had brought. About 500 calories.For the entire day.

I wiped my tears away, ran downstairs and started grabbing the best foods I could to replenish my supply. I pumped that night around 10 so my body knew I still needed to produce milk, and by morning we were back in business.

Thank goodness this happened with my second baby, so I knew how to process what was happening, and I didn’t think I was just drying up! Thank you, Lord!

Thursday morning we were back in the clinic for a full day of chemotherapy. This was Hudson’s second round, and this day made everything else we had been through (and would go through in the next couple days) totally worth it.

Our sweet nurse hooking Hudson to the chemotherapy.

Dr. Dole. A gift from God.

At Hudson’s exam, Dr. Dole immediately said that the tumor was MUCH smaller! He had me feel it to show me! He said two weeks ago when he pushed on his tummy it was “Right there to greet me,” but Thursday it was harder to find, but I definitely felt it.

 Dr. Dole told us the following news: Hudson’s tumor has gotten considerably smaller, his genetic testing all came back favorable and low-risk, and Hudson will have a normal life expectancy! Tears of joy!
 Thank you, thank you thank you, LORD!!!

My momma took the day from work to be with me during this day of chemo. She snuck this picture of us when I heard the great news about genetic testing. I’m so glad she did. I want to remember everything about this wonderful moment forever!!

Mommy and Hudson ready to take on another round of chemo!

Listening to Grammy read “Mr. Brown Can Moo” and making my heart happy.

Before Hudson was born, I wondered how I would give one-on-one time to this new baby like I did Cohen. I thought  Hudson’s time with me as a newborn would be so different from Cohen’s. While it is different in many ways, look at all the extra Mommy-Hudson time we are getting!

Every hour we change a diaper for each day of chemo and for 48 hours after the round of chemotherapy is over. So thankful my mom came with me for this six hour treatment that turned into ten hours in the hospital before we got to go home. With Steve working and Cohen needing him, I have been doing all treatments and appointments alone, and having her there to take care of me was really nice.

Can’t hold this guy down. Tummy time during treatment to keep up with his milestones.

Such a beautiful Thursday, but we would quickly realize, tough times were not quite finished in the Marshall house.

Friday, Steve took both he and Cohen to the doctor. The night before, while in the middle of hourly diaper changes, Steve told me he was just so cold. His temperature read 101.7. I grabbed Tylenol and a half hour later it read 103!

Got the Motrin, but fifteen minutes later it read 105.1! I was so scared. He was shaking and shaking, Hudson needed me, and Cohen was coughing so hard in the next room, I just knew he had something, too.

With help from a sweet friend, who is a nurse, we chugged some Rehydrate and brought his temperature down to where he could finally sleep. The doctor says it’s an infection possibly sinus or bronchitis.

Our babysitter has a sinus infection, and Cohen tested positive for the flu after waking with his own 102 temperature.

Hudson and I took to the nursery with the air purifier and camped out in there for a few days. The hardest part is seeing Cohen (with a mask on and changing my shirt every time I come in contact with him, which isn’t that often) and not being able to help my baby at all.

Through all this sickness, we still had to be on top of Hudson’s treatment. Back to seven days of the bone marrow rebuilding drug, Neupogen that goes in the blue pump. Also pictured are the flushes, primer, and all the other goodies Momma has to hook together to heal our baby boy.

And all of it…no matter how stressful, how tough, how emotional; all of it I’d do all over again for moments like this.

boys-playing

Thank you, Lord that we will raise these brothers together as it should be. We praise You for this beautiful gift!!

PRAISES:

-Wonderful genetic testing!!!
-Tumor shrinking!!!!!
-Loss of more nodules!!
-Growing and gaining weight!
-Family and friends who leave food on our doorstep and in our infusion room, call with concern, text with love, and rejoice along with us!
-Wonderful jobs for Steve and myself that are so good helping us still through this
-Amazing doctors who go above and beyond. Dr. Kim Kohsla and Dr. Dole are a Godsend.
-Sweet Anna, who we prayed for last week, is home safe and recovering…thank you, LORD!!

PRAYER REQUSTS:

-Chemo. last Thursday will knock the tumor down even more!
-Wonderful bloodwork this Thursday
-Steve, Cohen, and Ruthanne (our babysitter) get healthy enough to be around Hudson by the doctor’s Wednesday estimate
-Me going back to work (still nervous a little!) Tuesday
-Hudson and I do NOT catch any of this sickness!

 

Thank you for sharing our journey with us.

 

Andrea 🙂

Gi (6)

Filed in: Uncategorized • by Andrea •

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Life after Chemo 1

Living This Blessed Life

January 1, 2014

I think what I’m most surprised about is how normal our life is right now.

Other than Hudson sleeping more than usual, we are just the same as we were before December 10.

It’s not like our life has come crashing down on us. It’s not even like I think about it all the time. It’s just a part of our new lifestyle.

We check his Broviac when we change his diaper to make sure the dressing is still properly attached. I flush his Broviac once a day with Heparin, and I wipe him down with Chlorhexidine before putting him into his jammies each night.

This may seem like it’s not normal at all, but after just two short weeks, it’s just our new normal. No biggie.

We still play, laugh, talk with friends, watch movies, celebrate little things here and there that the boys do each day, and go to work. We still do everything we used to, it’s just got a few more steps to it than normal.

reading with daddy time.jpg

Hudson is so happy, and is getting close to rolling over back to belly. He loves looking at his big brother and staring at the fireplace. He loves when we talk to him, and especially when we read to him. He’s loving being a thumb sucker, and I secretly love it, too.

When I look at the big picture, we’re going to be okay, and we are okay.

We have to keep positive to make life fun and healthy and loving for our boys. If anything, we’re growing closer as a family each time something new comes up with Hudson. Best of all, we are growing in our faith in the LORD though our walk with Him has taken this unexpected turn.

big tough guy.jpg

Prayer Requests:

~Hudson has lost many of his nodules, but he still has four major ones that are yet to go away.

~That Hudson and Cohen will do just fine when I go back to work on the 6th.

~That a little girl named Anna, whose momma has posted about her heart surgery coming up on Friday will be laid on the hearts of everyone reading this blog, too. Lord, please heal her sweet little heart!

~That the body scan will show Hudson’s tumor has shrunk considerably.

~Good chemo session on the 9th

~That my students aren’t affected by my need to leave and be with Hudson when I need to be with him. That they will still learn a lot from me and take important lessons with them that will help them in high school and beyond. That I can be a good teacher for them even though my heart and mind are here with my boys.

PRAISES!:

~Friendships that the Lord has given us. I cannot believe how many people are so compelled to pray for Hudson and our family, write us sweet messages, and just stick by us through the tough and celebrate the good with us. What a blessing every single day!

~Another nodule that was on the back of Hudson’s head, and a source of constant concern is GONE…GONE GONE GONE!

~That I found a homemade recipe for wipes that I love and will feel so much more comfortable combating “chemo rash” with after our next treatment on the 9th.

~That Mommy and Daddy shared our 10th Happy New Years smooch on the couch after both nearly falling asleep before midnight.

Songs. Books. Tummy Time. Comb-overs.

All in a day’s work.

tummy-time

~Jeremiah 29:12

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

hanging-with-mommy-and-daddo

Thank you for sharing our journey with us.

Andrea 🙂

Gi (9)

Filed in: Uncategorized • by Andrea •

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This Math Card Game is Rubbish!

This Math Card Game is Rubbish!

We have played the math card game Rubbish approximately one billion times, and I’ll play it 1 billion and one if it means our boys practice the skills this game sharpens.

My five-year-old loves it, my three-year-old wants in, and we all enjoy the time together.

It’s quick, and super simple, too!

The Rules

1.) Lay out two rows of five cards, horizontally for each player. The rest of the cards are for the draw pile.

2.) Choose the first player. We rock-paper-scissors for it. 🙂

3.) The first player chooses a card. Each of the cards you laid face down represent a number (left-to-right) Ace-5 in the top row; 6-10 on the bottom row.

4.) If the card drawn is Ace-10, pick up the face-down card in the corresponding spot, and replace it with the card drawn (lay it facing up).

5.) The face-down card you pulled to replace with the drawn card is now the next card you play. If it fits in to what’s left, you pick that spot’s card up and lay the one in your hand down in its place. Your turn continues until you don’t have any more spots available for the switch out.

Example: I draw a 5. I pick up the card face down that’s in the 5 spot (top row last card on the right) and lay the 5 I just drew where it was. The card that was face down was an Ace. I pick up the first card on the top row and lay the Ace down in its place…keep going until you run out of spots to fill.

A math card game called Rubbish teaches your child base ten, numbers, and strategy with a bit of luck thrown in for lots of laughs.

The first to fill all his or her spots is the winner!

Other Handy Rules:

1.) If you pick up a Jack or Queen, you automatically discard into a discard pile next to the Rubbish draw pile.

2.) If you  pick up a number you already have face up, discard.

3.) If you pick up a King, it’s wild and can be used as any number Ace-10!

4.) When you run through the entire deck of draw cards, shuffle the discard into a new draw pile and keep going until you get a winner.

The Best Part

The best part about Rubbish is that it looks exactly like the ten-frames my oldest is learning in Kindergarten math!

He works with numbers, placement, and I was really surprised by how quickly he learned the numbers associated with the face-down cards.

For our three-year-old, this has been great to help drive home learning his numbers.

Final Thoughts

I love this silly game called Rubbish and how it helped the boys’ skills grow so quickly, how it’s teaching and reteaching number sense, and most of all how it always brings us together.

A bowl of popcorn, a game of Rubbish, and our two boys makes for a great time in our homeschool day!

A math card game called Rubbish teaches your child base ten, numbers, and strategy with a bit of luck thrown in for lots of laughs.

Filed in: Schooling • by Andrea •

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Marshmallow Numbers Game

Marshmallow Numbers Game

Our boys don’t have a particular love for sitting still or being serious when it comes to learning, so this marshmallow numbers game is great!

Learning Numbers 1-5 with Marshmallow Yummyness!

I noticed one day while reading with Hudson that he just didn’t seem to have a great grasp on his numbers 1-5.

I had the next day at home on Christmas break, and I happened upon some of those K-Cup- type filters in my cabinet.

How We Do The Marshmallow Number Game!

I wrote 1-5 on the inside of each filter with a Sharpie.

We could’ve gone to 10, but if there’s one thing I know about Hudson (and a lot of kids in general) is that overwhelming him in the beginning can shut him down completely.

Also, I know I have to scaffold (or break down) the game and build up to the final goal for better success.

So, I grabbed some marshmallows, my kid, and asked if he wanted to play a game where he’d win a marshmallow if he won. Um, yes! He was definitely in.

 Teach your child with this fun and easy numbers game featuring every kid's favorite: marshmallows! You'll both love it!

The Break Down

Here’s how I broke down the marshmallow number game for Hudson, my three-year old.

He had mastered the numbers 1-3, so we were ready to move up to five.

He was having some success by the end of our first try, but it was slow-going, especially since he happens to be the particularly ornery type, who think it’s funny to eat the marshmallows Elf-style.

Patience is a virtue, my friends. 🙂

Steps

1.) I asked for his pointer finger, and we tapped the numbers in the filters as we recited them. We did this about five or six times. It is important to keep the numbers in order for a while.

2.) He was really interested in those marshmallows by that time, so I had him drop one in each cup as he looked at the numbers. We did this five or six times.

3.) We dropped one in each cup reading them backwards five or six times (5,4,3,2,1).

4.) I started asking him to put a marshmallow into the cup with the number I called out.

If he got all five right, I gave him a mini-marshmallow.

He was starting to lose focus, and the marshmallows were pretty much the whole reason he showed up to the party, so I figured by then it was time to let the kid eat a couple. He agreed.

5.) There were some times when he got them mixed up. If so, we’d take his finger or the marshmallows and repeat the verbal recognition together. “1,2,3,4,5. 1,2,3,4,5..”.and backward, “5,4,3,2,1…” Repetition is key.

Just Keep Swimming…

From there we kept at the guessing for a while until he started to get most of them right.

After that I switched two of the filters around, went back through steps 1-3, and then started guessing again.

Once he got those I moved a couple more filters around so they were all mixed together.

This was tougher because he was so used to seeing them in order. He can also count aloud really well and was using that to help him, so this made it tougher.

Building Confidence

Each step of the process helped build his confidence.

If he lost that confidence, we’d just go back to me helping him with tapping the numbers with his finger over and over until he was ready to try again with guessing.

I will get this game out only every once in a while. In between, I’ll try different games with numbers.

Patient Pants

It takes a lot of patience, a lot of practice, and a lot of repetition, but it’s worth it in the end.

Our next step, once he’s mastered 1-5, is to slowly add in filters up to ten for this marshmallow number game.

I will also use pennies the next time that he can add to his piggy bank.

I find that changing up the way I teach is important for our boys.

They like activities much better than workbooks.

They like movement much better than sitting.

And they really, more than anything, love when the game is over and Momma lets them set up a marshmallow catapult.

Left over marshmallows, a spoon, and a block is all you need to laugh and laugh as the marshmallows fly, zip, and zoom across the room!

Teach your child with this super fun and easy numbers game featuring every kid's favorite: marshmallows! You'll both love it!

Filed in: Uncategorized • by Andrea •

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