Brazil Bound

"You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all of your heart." -Jeremiah 29:13

My precious daughter, Alexis, shared her heart and recent journey with the Lord at LNO North on September 14th. Just weeks before college was beginning Alexis still had no college plans as all doors were slamming shut. Unsure as to God's plan, she continued to seek out His complete and perfect will for her life. Eventually God and His sovreignty directed Alexis to BRAZIL where she will be moving in just 2 short weeks!!! Talk about a child leaving the nest!!! Even so, I am proud of Alexis for perservering with God's plan and abandoning her will (going to Belmont) for God's will. We are thrilled to see her journey with the Lord play out while in Brazil as she will be teaching there, learning photography, and investing in the life of the family in whom she will be living with. To end the night, all of Alexis' sisters (and brother via cell phone) told her how much they loved her and will miss her. What a precious sight for a momma to see. That is my prayer for all of you! Your family CAN share those same memories if you as a mom become intentional about dealing with your child's heart.

People Skills

"So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." -Matthew 7:12

September 13 kicked off the new LNO year where the topic of People Skills was presented. Together we learned how to eliminate self-absorption and be about others. A few areas touched on include...

*Show signs of interests to others by smiling, nodding, leaning in, showing eye-contact, asking questions, etc.
*Strive to be a "there you are" person, rather than a "here I am!" person
*If you think something nice, say it!

I loved catching up with you all AND making new friends!

LNO Freezer Cooking

"She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy...She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness."
-Proverbs 31:20, 27

On June 15th, LNO was privileged enough to hear Ashley Shaddock talk about FREEZER COOKING! Freezer cooking is the practice of cooking more than you need for a meal, and then freezing the rest for later. It can mean anything from cooking a double batch of spaghetti sauce to making an entire month's worth of meals in a single day, and freezing each entree individually for suppers over the entire month.

I learned so much at my old age and wanted to share a few of my learnings:

*Less time at the grocery story usually means less money spent
*It's no harder to make 3 lasagnas at one time in an assembly line than a single dish with leftovers frozen to use later
*Print coupons from coupons.com, smartsource.com, redplum.com
*Start by shopping your pantry. You may find great inspiration from the ingredients you already have on hand
*Unexpected houseguests will not be a burden to prepare a meal for if you already have a stash of healthy freezer meals

Here are a few websites Ashley recommended for us to view regularly:

*http://www.iheartpublix.com/

*http://moneysavingmom.com/

*http://recipelink.com/copycat.html

Thanks, Ashley!

Respecting Dad

One of our main roles as a Mom is to teach our children to love, respect, and honor their father. What we say and do when he is not in our presence and when he is in our presence plays a big role in learning to respect Dad. We are the main ones to make our home a place he looks forward to coming home–a castle in which he is the king. The Lord and I did some serious talking about this issue of respect years ago. I realized I was the number one key to my children showing respect to their Dad.

Although I would get tired of my husband working long hours nearly every day, my children would hear me say, “I am very grateful that your dad works so hard and enjoys his job.” Believe me, I’ve had my share of times when I’ve handled this incorrectly. In fact, I had to go to my oldest son and do some serious repair work, telling him I was making a significant change to hold my tongue and show support. I had to say that although we might think Daddy is wrong for x, y, or z reasons, we are in control of how we use our tongue and we must communicate with respect.

Here are some ways to teach children to honor and respect Dad:

* On occasion we will send a letter or card to Dad at work, or we may pick up the phone and all say “We Love You” when he answers. Sometimes we make “We Love Daddy” signs and hold them up for his arrival home. Sometimes we leave love notes on his pillow.

* Sometimes I’ll have a discussion about Dad. “What do you really like about Dad?” might be a topic we talk about over lunch. We’ll pray for him, thanking the Lord for him and for needs he may have and asking the Lord to help him be successful at all he does that day.

* In front of other adults, my kids might hear me say, “John is an excellent cook” or “I’m so proud of the way he handled…”

*An opportunity to build up our husbands is to talk about them in a respectful and loving way during the day while they are away. Little comments here and there that point out ways you love him rather than why didn’t he do ‘x’?

* Smooching him in front of the kids is an idea I’ll bet your husband will enjoy. Or loosening up and saying, “WooHoo, my honey bun is home.” While it’s sure to embarrass your kids, it will also build stability and security in them.

* Do your children come to you for advice rather than their father? Simply saying, “Let’s ask Dad what he thinks” could be a statement you make. “Honey, what do you think?” By going to him, it shows that we need him, and we all need to be needed. It also shows that he is the authority and provider, not ourselves. Some of us are independent women, and we need to make sure we don’t plow right over our spouses.


We as moms do play a huge role in the tone of our home. Spend time with the Lord, asking Him for wisdom in this area. He’ll give it to you. He’ll guide you. He wants us to build up our husbands and our home, not tear them down.

“The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her.” Proverbs 31:10

Respect LNO

What a lovely time we had at LNO East, learning about respect. But first, please know that I am now short $11.70 thanks to my daughter Laura. The story goes.... My sweet 10 year old left flyers all over the house about her new business: Laura's Spa. I got my feet massaged and the bill came to $1.50. Silly me forgot to pay her right away, but paid her today, only for her to quickly recalculate my bill-$11.70. Apparently there was small print on her flyer that said, "additional ...10 cents per hour if not paid at the time of service." Wow, can you say business savy?

Back to LNO, do your children enjoy one another? Would they say that they are BFF? If not, check out the audio & join me in praying that God would give us ideas on how our children should respect one another. Fight for each heart in your home, ladies! "We urge you, brethren admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people." -1 Thessalonians 5:14-15

For the audio, click on the link below & then download the download.

Summer Goal Setting LNO

Last Tuesday night at LNO NORTH (May 11th), I talked about setting goals for the summer so that you THINK THROUGH and PLAN for both a productive and a fun/relaxing summer.


In addition, I talked about setting goals for yourself, by spending time with the Lord and getting HIS WISDOM & discernment over the PRIORITIES He would have for you to focus on this summer with yourself, your husband, and your children.


I also handed out & emailed various ideas for specific goals you & your family may want to accomplish. If you did not recieve an email or handout & you would like to, shoot me an email.

To hear the full scoop, click on the link below & then download the file.
http://www.zshare.net/download/79145500f1035ff2/

A Peaceful Home LNO

1 Thessalonians 5:17 goes something like this, "pray without ceasing." Are we praying for our children? Are we praying up our husband? When is the last time we prayed & asked God to reveal ways in which we could establish a peaceful home? Thankfully, someone mentored me in this area & as a result, I was able to share my discoveries with the southside of Jacksonville on May 10th. Here is a peek at what we talked about & what you'll hear on the audio...

-Train to the heart. For example, rather than saying, "La-ia, stop slamming doors!" politely explain to them that slamming doors is disrespectful.

-Gather your children together & have them learn a Bible verse. To take it 1 step further, put a tune to the verse. One of our family faves is Proverbs 12:16, "A fool shows his annoyance at once (clap-clap clap-clap... clap-clap clap-clap), but a wise man overlooks an insult (clap-clap clap-clap) OVERLOOKS AN INSULT!"

To hear the audio, click on the link & download the file. The file will take about 10 minutes to download so why not use that time to pray yourself up for what your about to hear?
http://www.zshare.net/download/79145201260ec5d8/

Parenting to the Heart LNO

This time LNO was hit up on the east side, where I spoke about Parenting to the Heart on April 20th. May I give a shout out to the women wearing the aprons? Dinner tonight was deep dish delish! (Do I sound hip?) Here are a few learnings from tonight...

-Let's train our kids to be behind the scenes when they see a problem i.e.just clean it up quietly.

-Whether it be eating dinner at home or at a fancy restaraunt like Taco Bell, role play BEFORE how to act & respond appropriately.

-If a child cannot show honor & respect at home, they cannot be trusted to spend the night anywhere else.

All this & more can be heard by clicking this link & then downloading the file.
http://www.zshare.net/download/7914540793316f81/

75 Came Russian Over

All 75 of our Russian friends made a 2nd appearance at my home and we had nothing less than a STELLAR time! Thanks to the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad I have a few rental houses & in 1 of those houses 14 Russian college students currently reside. Getting to know all 75 & their presh (short for precious) personalities, my family and I decided to have them over for a night of food & games.


Hoping and praying that my family and I would be a blessing to them, they were an absolute blessing to us! My family, as well as other friends invited, were so encouraged by their adament faith & love for the Lord. How presh (are you catching on?) they were to come prepared with a time of worship and praise to God, as well as a few ab fab (absolutely fabulous) skits. Loved it!

Giving LNO

Is it April already?? I guess so, because on APRIL 12th, we chatted about the topic of "Giving" at LNO South. Proverbs 22:9 reads, "He who has a generous eye will be blessed." With that being said we want to make it our aim to teach our children the JOY of giving. A few helpful hints from the night include...

-Teach your children to give up their TALENT, TIME, & MONEY to be about others.


-Kids, even small ones, can give respect to others by displaying people skills, showing eye-contact, & can go as far as tell others truthfully how they have particularly impacted their life.

-Always check your motive for giving. Perhaps we should give anonymously.

For more information, click here & download the "Giving" file.
http://www.zshare.net/download/791447537b6cc74a/

Disciplining Children LNO

On March 16th, the topic of "Disciplining Children" was confronted at LNO East (not to be confused with LNO North or South). Here is a snippet of what went down...

-As parents, grandparents, teachers, etc. we are to discipline CALMLY, because no one deserves disrespect.

-Our children should obey right away, all the way, & with a cheerful heart. (teach this to your children)



-Train to the heart of your child. If their heart is not dealt with, it is easy for them to become self-absorbed. Remember, nothing comes out of our mouths that's not directly from our hearts. Jeremiah 17:9

-Don't allow ANYONE in your family to go to bed angry with another member of the fam.

Also, find out 1 way to respond when a particular child decides to show disrespect over the food being served at a buffet line. Personal experience, people.

To give the audio a listen to, click on the link and then download the file:
http://www.zshare.net/download/7914460296200037/

Singing Scriptures

My children and I like to put Scripture verses to random tunes that we come up with. For years we have recorded these treasured made-up tunes onto a cassette tape. Recently, a friend and I were laughing together at my ancient technology, and she suggested we video our singing. So we did!

“Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth. Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips.” Proverbs 27: 1-2

We thought it would be fun to put similar words to the tune of a familiar song from the musical Annie. “Tomorrow, Tomorrow, don’t boast about tomorrow.. for we know not what a day may bring..Let another man praise you and not your own lips.”

On one particular home school day, I was watching a friend’s children while she was caring for her mother out of town. I was also homeschooling my nephew, and this whole process was new to them. We had a good time, but none of us expected this to be shown anywhere–or we would have performed better. Here we are sharing it with you just to be real and encourage you to invest time and Scripture into your children’s lives.

Homeschooling LNO

As mentioned before, God has blessed me immensely with the ministry of LNO (Ladies Night Out). Just to refresh, LNO is a gathering of women, both young & old, to come and be mentored on the topic of parenting.

On March 26, the subject of homeschooling was dissected. I opened up the night by sharing God's perspective on children, a parent's responsibility for training children, reasons why my husband and I decided to homeschool, the benefits of homeschooling, the challenges of homeschooling, among others.

Denise Ingoldsby, a mother of quintuplets, & a newbie to the homeschooling scene also shared her homeschooling journey. After 7 years of having her kids attend public school, she felt the Lord directing her to homeschool all 5. Openly she discussed the heart adjustments she needed to make, the relaxing time of enjoying one another's company, as well as the unexpected benefits they are all experiencing.

A college student who worked in my home & helped me homeschool my children, Mel Hewiett, discussed a snippet of her days as an intern in the public school system. She explained that teaching character is no longer an option in school, but teaching children how to emulate Christ is available when homeschooling.

My eldest son, John, ended the speaking by warning the audience of death traps as a result of homeschooling. He also revealed insight into homeschooling perks, such as teaching people skills and real life skills.

To give all audios a listen to (there are 3 parts), click on each link & then download the files.
1. http://www.zshare.net/download/79144941425f3090/
2. http://www.zshare.net/download/7914498255ed5086/
3. http://www.zshare.net/download/79145385c2c4feb6/

Ellis, Party of 8!

My FAMILY, minus me, is basically a party on legs! I am nothing but thankful for the family that God has blessed me with. Almost 25 years ago, I married a hunk of a man I like to call Big Papa aka John. We have 6 kiddos named John II, Alexis, Daniel, Kelsey, Laura, and La-ia (you pronounce the dash). No, but seriously, my youngest is Heather and all have been homeschooled. Each have brought to our family a unique personality and talent that makes for a stellar fam.


To give you a peek into my family, John III is our oldest and an engineering student at UF. In his free time he fishes, hunts, and performs what they tell me is a "superman seat grab" off the bike ramp from our dock.

Our 2nd is Alexis who is a senior in high school. She is super talented in the area of music & photography is her focus (no pun intended).

Next in line is Daniel. He drums the night away and his favorite food is drum sticks. Ba dum tish!

Kelsey devotes much of her time to the middle school praise team at our church. She plays the guitar and begs us weekly to take her to PICadilly. Okay, sorry I'm so punny!

Little Laura is my technology teacher. When she's not teaching me how to send a text message or create Excel spreadsheets, you can spot her doing an arts & kraft... with cheese. Sorry again, that was cheezy.





As mentioned Heather is our youngest and adds a little pizazz to her daily routines. Why just last month I found her doing her school work in our dog cage!!! We had some explaining to do when HRS came over! Oops!

As for me I have a business in which I can thankfully work from home. As a result, I'm able to homeschool my children while pouring into their lives Biblical truths that will encourage character development. A few times each month I teach parenting classes to women of all ages, encouraging women to get to the heart of their children and train them up to be godly men and women who stay true to the cause of Christ. Truly, I am humbled by God's grace in allowing this ministry to become possible. My passion lies in MENTORING, especially since so many have devoted their energy and time investing in my life!


Thank you for listening,
Rhonda Ellis