“How DO You Do It?”

When I meet someone new for the first time, maybe at a gymnastics class or on the sidelines at a soccer field, and we get to talking about kids and schedules, there is often the moment when I have just shared that I have 6 kids between the ages of 6 to 11, that they turn to me and ask with an incredulous look, “How do you do it?” And I always answer the same way…. I just take it one day at a time.

Even though that I can tell you that any one of my children is not over-scheduled because I typically limit them to just one sport per season or one after-school activity at a time…. for some of them that one activity is travel soccer which practices three times per week and has a game on Sunday. So the cumulative effect of having multiple kids with various activities is that you are always trying to get someone somewhere (on time of course!) as well as helping other kids with homework and trying to make dinner. My afternoons and evenings are busy (yep- that’s an understatement)!

Take my “typical” Thursday afternoon for example….

And if perhaps one child also has a dentist appointment, or a playdate to be picked up from…. it just adds to the “chauffeur runs”! Now it would be easy to look at all of this craziness and tell me that I just need to learn to “say no” once in awhile, right? Certainly kids can lead happy lives with less activities and playdates, can’t they? Well of course they can. But the way I look at it- the decision to have this big family belonged to my husband and I, and we don’t want each individual child to be denied the chance to participate in something that is important to him or her simply because they are blessed with all of these siblings. So I look at it as- this is what I “signed up for”! And a lot of running around, mutli-tasking, and preparing meals on the go are a part of the deal!

Now when I am looking at a schedule like the one above, one of the challenges is giving my kids they fuel they need to play sports when their practice occurs right smack in the middle of our dinnertime. What we have found works best is to have a healthy mini-meal about 45 minutes before we leave for practice and then to follow it up with another mini-meal when they get back home. But this is a challenge for me to execute as I don’t have time to prepare that mini meal when I am off driving other kids to their activities or helping out with homework. So my kids need something that they can prepare on their own- simply and safely (without using the stove). Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches get old pretty fast!

That’s why I am jazzed about Tyson stuffed mini bread bowls. My kids can grab them out of the freezer, pop them into the microwave to warm them up, and be fueled by the 100% white meat chicken with cheese in a delicious bread bowl. And since the kids actually eat the (bread) bowl it is served in, there isn’t a mess for me to clean up when they are done! You gotta love that!

And right now Tyson is sponsoring the Goodness-On-The-Go Sweepstakes where you have the chance to win a 2013 Ford Explorer or 1 of 5 on-the-go prize packages including: an iPod Touch, NOOK Tablet, and a one-year supply of Tyson® Stuffed Mini Bread Bowls to help keep your family moving!

From soccer practice to PTA meetings, feeding an active and busy family can be hard. Tyson®  Mini Bread Bowls help you get a little goodness on the go.

Reply below to let me know what activities keep you and your family eating on the go and you could win $500 cash from Tyson Foods!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tyson. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules.