The Importance of Reflection, Prayer, and Rest in Homeschool Planning
Alright, so, I don’t know about you – but I’m an A-type, go-getter kinda girl. So, as a homeschool Mom, it is so tempting to just jump from one ‘school year’ to the next. You know, it’s June – shouldn’t I be gearing up to start again in a few weeks with next year’s plans? (laughs) I have done this so many times – I would go all year, never stop, and be continually implementing new plans as I went along. Rarely did we take more than 2 weeks of a ‘break’ from homeschooling. It is exhausting, even if you implement a more relaxed, gentle approach. As the…
Planting, Growing, and the Wonder of the Well-watered Garden…
Well, hello there! It’s Spring. *does dance* Here in Southern Ontario, Winter is LONG. Like, 6-7 months of cold, wind, snow, ice, muck, very little sunshine but lots of grey days – long. Over the past years I have worked hard at embracing Winter and being thankful IN it – but boy, am I happy when Spring finally comes. When the sun comes out and the grass grows green and its planting season again, I am just giddy. When we moved to the country five years ago, I was determined to have a big ol’ country garden. And we did for a couple years – with moderate success.…
Finding Hope and Purpose in the ‘Ordinary Life’
Can I whisper something to you? Yep. There truly is no greater calling than the one God has already put you right in the middle of. I’ve learned this the hard way. We seek the big time before we’ve mastered little league. I’ve sought the big time, and boy have I sucked at little league. I’ve quested for the big dreams, the big calling, the BIG MINISTRY, the big business, you name it – I’ve lusted for it. It took me a long time to figure out what I thought I wanted wasn’t what I needed. God already has me right where He wants me. When you’re a stay-at-home Mom…
Embracing the Biblical Feasts and Celebrations (our family’s journey…)
I get so many messages asking if I could share our journey towards the Biblical Feasts and Celebrations. There is no possible way I can personally respond to each friend with the love, care, and detail they deserve, so, I thought I would do one big response right here. I don’t feel at all qualified to write this post, but… here goes. Our journey is ours, and I in no way want my thoughts/beliefs to offend or upset anyone else. This is simply one girl sharing the journey God has taken her and her family on… flawed, imperfect, and struggling to live and love God in the only…
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What I’ve learned about Curriculum and Charlotte Mason’s Philosophies
If you’re like me, trying to embrace a Charlotte Mason education, I understand your journey. Or at least, large parts of your journey. And, please, trust me when I say this – If we are embracing a Charlotte Mason home education, our days with our children should be (mostly) – freeing, spiritual, joyous, authentic, peaceful, natural, and inspiring a love of learning in us all. If our days are not doing these things (at least most of the time), there is probably something wrong with our approach to implementing this beautiful philosophy into our homes. (And I’ve been there… more times than one…) When I first started trying to wrap…
Little Lessons from a Morning Walk…
Its sunrise on a misty morning. I can hear the birds singing through the window loud and strong. Two escaped hens beckon me outside to shoo them back to their enclosure and the moment I step outside my whole being is filled with a fresh awakening. Two days of cold, hard rain and stormy skies has brought a much needed warmth to the air. The atmosphere hangs moist and sweet around me. The end of a long, long winter, I think its finally here. I decide to go jogging instead of retreating to the basement for my morning exercise. I have no proper jogging clothes, but I don’t want to…
Why it’s truly a Black Friday and where we find Light.
I find it deeply ironic that it happens on the day after the American Thanksgiving. Yes, on the day after a nation sits around the table of thanks – that table cloth is quickly yanked from under the piled plates. And the race begins to buy, buy, buy. People pour into stores snatching up the latest gizmos, gadgets, toys, clothes, stuff. Because don’t we all need just a little more stuff? It’s one of the biggest ‘shopping’ days of the year as retailers compete for the first real burst of Christmas shopping insanity. And it’s insane alright. The scenes look like a bunch of crazed, starving animals attacking their prey.…
Whispers from our first Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot)
If you aren’t familiar with the Feast of Tabernacles, can I whisper a suggestion to consider reading my last post, written as we prepared to celebrate? I stall miserably in taking down our Sukkah. I watched through the back window as my husband disassembled the last of our beautiful ‘tabernacle’ this evening. The back deck is eerily solemn and empty now without the curtains and lights and flowers and banners and all the beauty we created for our celebration of The Feast of Tabernacles. So many memories were made in that tent out the sliding door. But by day 9 our pumpkin lanterns were sagging and the table…
The Illusion of the Perfect Mom – and why we desperately need to be real…
We live in the age of Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram. We live in the age of perfectly posed and edited family snapshots. We live in the age of illusions. As a homeschooling Mom, I’ve lived the closed-off life, the all-too-often-isolated life. The no-one-can-see-my-mess life. I’ve walked through years, trying to maintain the illusion that I had everything under control, when truly, I never did and never have. Control isn’t in my hands at all – it’s in the hands of the One whose same hands created the whole of this earth. I’ve come to realize most Moms are in a constant battle with the illusion of perfect. Either we fight…
Unplugging, time, and who is my Master?
After six months unplugged… here we go… It’s 8:36 am on a cool August morning and the kids are making a fleet of paper airplanes to ambush Daddy. I glance out the back window – a small row of golden sunflowers sways in the breeze and the quiet cluck-cluck of five hens warms my heart right up. The leaves are already falling, we’re picking tomoatoes, and the pumpkins swell. I’m reminded to smile, to breathe, to give thanks. I jot the gifts down in my journal, usually open somewhere in the kitchen. I’m reminded of the truth that has shaped the past several months, if not years, of my life. Time is…
