Our family has been working on map-drawing for a couple of years now. When we were studying American history three years ago, our family only traced the US Map, and our oldest (as a 7-year-old) learned to draw in the U.S. physical features free-hand from memory. We first focused on the world map and started […]
A Stick and the Sand and Your Essentials Guide
This year marks Stephen’s fourth year in Essentials (which means this will also be my fourth year in Essentials – because we started in 3rd grade, back when Essentials was recommended for 3rd-6th grade). I have thought so much about words of wisdom I could offer to others who have asked, but it really has […]
Notebooking on a Shoestring & Scheduling Simplified
As we prepare for a new school year, can I take a moment to share what I’ve not been doing? (Actually, there’s a lot I’ve not been doing…) I’ve not been thinking much about paper, printables, and organization of papers and printables. I’m afraid I just can’t bring myself to battle the paper wars in […]
A Humbling Reality Check
“Comparison is the death of contentment.” Before I write any more posts about what we do (or plan to do) as a family, it is ultra-important to me that anyone who reads this blog knows the truth of our reality. [You probably remember that I’m not very good at cooking and cleaning? Yes, I’m much […]
When you’re not sure you measure up
A little girl digs deep inside trashcans at the local park to find bottles and cans that can be recycled for money. With grimy hands and a happy grin, she looks up at her mother, who is doing the same thing in the trashcan a little farther down the sidewalk. Together, they take their tattered […]
Plan vs. Reality: When You Spend All Year “Tapering”
I always look forward to sharing our plan vs reality at the end of each year. It’s my chance to show you just how much we don’t have it all together. So… here we are once again, looking back on another year gone somewhat awry. About this time last year, we were welcoming a fourth baby […]
Dealing with joy-stealers? Me, too.
bloom /blo͞om/ n. a flourishing, healthy condition; the time or period of greatest beauty, artistry, etc. -v. 1 to produce or yield blossoms 2 to flourish or thrive 3 to be in or achieve a state of healthful beauty and vigor 4 to glow with warmth or with a warm color. Today, I’m going to […]
A Trip through All About Spelling
Our family LOVES All About Learning products! But before I tell you why, let me provide a little background… As a Kindergartener, our second son spent four months struggling to use a reading program that was not working for us. When at the end of those four months, he still could not blend letter sounds into words, […]
A Journey through the Old Testament (with Stick Figures)
When Levi discovered I had printed and bound his Old Testament Bible Study, he grabbed it and shouted, “It’s my Bible study! I love it! I love it! I love it!” He had been asking all summer about when we were going to draw Jesus again. That night, he fell asleep while clutching his new […]