Mercy River blog tour and CD Giveaway! (+edit at end)

Welcome to Thoughtful Thursday!

 I have a treat for you today! 

We have been blessed to be part of Mercy River's blog tour! 

For those of you who may not be familiar with Mercy River, well you are in for a treat!

 Mercy River is a contemporary Inspirational Christian music artist group. 

Their facebook page says  "We are just 3 moms who love to sing"

You will see here today and on their website & blog that they really are 3 amazing moms, who are incredibly talented and love to sing.

These wonderful gals recently released their new album 

"Higher". 

I have personally enjoyed this cd and can tell you their music is amazing! 

 

They also have offered to one very special reader a signed cd of "Higher".

Details on the giveaway contest at the end of this post.

(this is where you say "YES!" in a super excited "I wanna win it" kind of way.)

Now for the really good stuff...

I asked these ladies a question to share with you today:

How do you manage being wives, and mothers and meet the demands of family life while still pursuing their dreams/career?

Brooke, Soni, & Whitney from Mercy River created an awesome post giving great tips on this topic. When I say AWESOME, I mean it! I LOVED these tips. Thank you Mercy River! 

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We’re often asked how we balance music and family. There are points in our lives when we DON’T have a lot of Mercy River duties. We keep our summers fairly open for time to run through the sprinklers, construct lemonade stands, and go camping, but during busy seasons? Heaven help us. We HAVE to find some way to balance everything or we go crazy. We’d love to share some of our tips with you! So, without further ado, we give you…

15 LIFE BALANCING TIPS FROM 

MERCY RIVER

 (Brooke’s Tips)

1) Let The Kids Help Themselves: I have space in my fridge AND in my pantry that’s completely dedicated to my kids’ snacks. In the fridge I have yogurt, string cheese, and fruit. The pantry has granola bars, graham crackers, marshmallows, and raisins. The kids know it’s there and it’s within their reach. So anytime I get asked for a snack, the answer is, “You know where to find it.”

2) Use the Village: I have a babysitting group with two of my friends. Every Monday, our kids go to a different house from 9:00-12:00. They’re all the same age, so to them it’s just a playdate. For me? It’s heaven. Two out of every 3 weeks I get 3 hours to myself to run errands, clean my house, even take a nap. We’ve also done this on Friday nights for dates. It’s just…AWESOME.
 
 3) Embrace The Morning: I’ve learned to really love early mornings. I’m usually up anywhere between 5:00-6:00. I go to the gym, do my grocery shopping, get my scripture study in…all before the kids are awake. It makes my day so much smoother.

(Whitney’s Tips)

4) Make Dinner Before Lunch: On super hectic days, this helps me a TON! As soon as breakfast is over I make dinner , whether it’s a crockpot meal, a casserole, a soup, whatever--and I stick it in the fridge to be reheated in the evening. This was truly a revolutionary discovery for me.

5) Think of Time as Tithing: We tithe 10% of our money to the Lord...should our time be any different? My days--busy or not--always run smoother when I make time for the Lord. He helps me run much more efficiently and productively. Give Him some of your time each day--and He will make the rest of your day better.

6) Over-the-Door Shoe Organizers: I have 5 of these hanging on the inside of doors in my home, and only 2 of them are actually FOR shoes. One is dedicated to seasonal "stuff." In the winter, each member of the family has their own "row" for hats, gloves, scarves, and mittens. No more searching for mates! In the summer, we replace winter gear with sunscreen, swim diapers, bug spray, sunglasses, water goggles, etc. I've used these "pockets" in so many ways: church ties, hair bows, small toys, emergency supplies, the list goes on. (Oh, and in my kids' rooms--where I DO use them for shoes--I "decorate" each pocket by slipping in old birthday cards they've gotten over the years. Having those on "display" brightens up their closet with memories and color.)

7) Listen to Audio Books: This doesn’t exactly save time, but it DOES help me include something I love that I usually do not have time for. I love to read, but when things are busy, I just can’t. Listening to audio books while I clean the kitchen kills two birds with one stone: it makes me WANT to clean my kitchen--and it gives my weary brain a much-needed escape.

(Soni’s Tips)

8) Crockpot Breakfast: I like to send my kids off to school with a breakfast that will fill them up better than cold cereal, but 4 girls out the door before 8:30? Insanity. When I know we’ll have a particularly crazy morning, I like to stick steel cut oats, water, with almonds, cinnamon, brown sugar, raisins, etc. in the crockpot the night before. I just turn it to low, and the next morning a hot breakfast with no mess! (And my house smells amazing.)

 9) Make a Meal Plan: Every Sunday I make a plan for meals for the week. This not only helps me with grocery shopping, but it helps me avoid that 3:30 PM brain stump of “what do I make tonight?” I can also be on top of any meat that needs to be defrosted, vegetables that need to be prepped, etc.

10) Choose Velcro or Slip On: I go for shoes my kids can put on themselves. For some reason, not having to tie shoes up a billion times a day helps my sanity.

We hope these help you find some balance in YOUR life!

xo!

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Thank you so much ladies!

Now, a few treats for you!

First, here are two awesome videos to check out. One Is just adorable and prompted my question to them. The other, is their new Music video! Please check them out then you can enter the contest to win their cd "Higher"!

 And Their New Music Video

 "Beautiful Life"

You will love this. So creative. So beautiful and way fun!

Today's Giveaway will allow you a total of two entries.

YAY!

 Each entry must be separate in the comment section below.

 (example, comment, then leave one more separate comment telling us you tweeted it or linked it)

Entry #1 : Leave a comment below telling us one tip of how you balance family life.
Entry#2 :  tweet this on Twitter making sure to tag @Mercy_River and @momentsbyJL
There is a Twitter button below each post here on the blog.
OR
 You can link to this post on facebook or your blog if you do not have a Twitter account.
 (Please let me know as well!)

Contest Ends Wednesday March 28th 2012, midnight
 and winner will be announced Thursday March 29th.

PLEASE make sure you attach your email to your blogger profile or leave it in your comment so I can get a hold of you. If you do not then I might have to choose a new winner.
That would be sad right?
(Click here to learn how to do that)

Thanks for stopping by! Good Luck!

hugs,
 

EDIT :My sister has a awesome music blog UpliftingNotes.blogspot.com and posted today on a song from Mercy Rivers,Higher, "Better than a Hallelujah" and how that song has impacted her. click here for more inspiration!