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Kids Summer Outfits: 5 Phases of “Give a Care”

June 21, 2023 by Laura 10 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Kids’ summer outfits. They’re so cute and fresh after a long, miserable winter! But how long does it take to stop caring about matching clothes? And what is going on with all this laundry? Join me as I share the 5 Phases of “Give a Care.”

Summer Outfits Phase 1

It all begins with the precious coordinating shorts and tops. The adorable dresses. The bright flowers, pretty butterflies, and there are even the special days we can dress them all matchy-matchy. We are so good at this. We rock parenting.

We’ve survived the long winter with its muddy boots, cumbersome coats, crusty hats, and lost gloves. We made it through spring, in which we only broke three umbrellas. Now that it’s summer, we are in love with fitting them all with matching summer dresses. We are giddy over it. We can’t get enough.

We fix their hair. We put on cute sandals. We take too many pictures because they just look so very adorable.

We’re so proud of the fantastic Hawaiian shorts we scored off the Children’s Place clearance rack. We make sure that the shirt he wears with them matches just right. We make him stop playing long enough to turn around and let Mom get a quick picture.

We’re proud of how the bow matches the shoes. Seriously, will this cuteness ever stop? We can’t even handle it.

Wait a minute. Do the sunglasses match the entire outfit? I believe they do. Who cares that she’s playing in a hole and about to be covered in dirt?

Summer Outfits Phase 2

This leads me to the next summer outfit “give a care” phase. Things are starting to get messy. I mean literally, like everyone is getting really dirty. We have been playing outside for hours every day, so we are unable to keep up with the laundry. The shirt that matches the pants hasn’t made it to the drawer yet because it hasn’t been washed. Two of the three matching dresses aren’t hanging in the closet and we don’t feel like searching for them. So we give up on dressing them alike and simply appreciate that we are…dressing them. These children are their own unique persons, after all. We can get behind this. The babies and their non-coordinated outfits are incredible. And at least they are clean. We celebrate this.

It has come to our attention that some of the shorts we bought to go with the shirts are a couple of sizes too big. But we’re at the bottom of the pants drawer, pulling from what’s left before we can finally sort and put away the clean laundry. So we put on the too-big shorts and hope they don’t fall off when she walks around.

We are so in love with this sun dress!!!! But we do ask ourselves what we were actually thinking when we bought the white fabric print. Have we not been parenting for quite some time? Don’t we realize that white dresses don’t stay white? The handprints on the house behind the child remind us that things get dirty very quickly at our house. We decide to take a picture of the darling in her precious dress before it gets ruined forever.

NOTE: The child isn’t wearing shoes. Shoes, we’ve decided, are complicated. We pretend that the reason we often let them go barefoot is that we know something about “earthing” and claim that we are thrilled to sync our kids’ bodies to the rhythm of the earth. Bless.

Summer Outfits Phase 3

We aren’t sure about clothes anymore and we’ve decided to stop trying to pretend like we care very much. We’ve become far too busy trying to keep the sand in the actual sandbox, submitting as evidence the large pile of sand that fell out all over the couch last time we changed a diaper. We decide that as long as the children have actual clothes on, it doesn’t really matter if they match or not. Just get dressed, we say. Put on whatever you find in your drawer.

We can no longer find a matching pair of sandals. We do have a left shoe, size 5. But a right one? No idea. We think it might be under the trampoline or in the bottom of the clothes hamper, but there’s no time to look right now. So we grab the winter hiking boots because they are by the door and they still fit. Socks are optional.

The four-year-old has also given up on actual clothes because he is now obsessed with swimming suits. He decides to wear them all day and all night because they are very, very comfortable. We don’t turn on the sprinkler or go to the pool. (We did that last week; why would we do that to ourselves again?) We just let him wear his swimming suits – to the library, to church, and to the grocery store. Bonus points: they don’t require him to wear underwear. He is thrilled about this convenience.

Meanwhile, the three-year-old has chosen to wear a pair of last winter’s pants that are now a size too small. We don’t care though. We decide that they have become capris and chalk it up to a parenting success because at least the child is wearing pants. I’m so serious.

After about three days in the blue suit, he decided to change to the green one. Because it has a matching hat. To complete the ensemble, he has found that his winter mittens are good for digging. We’re all so tired at the end of the day that he falls asleep as-is, coated in dirt, and we don’t argue about this. We note that his outfit does actually match, from hat to shirt to trunks. So we feel like this is a win.

Summer Outfits Phase 4

We have completely given up on keeping the children clean. Baths are worthless. Clothes are becoming disposable. We no longer pre-treat stains because what even is the point? We decide to strip the children down outside before heading to the bathtub in hopes that all the dirt inside the diaper will stay outside where it belongs. We’re tired of vacuuming the couch.

The matching dresses from earlier this summer? Well, those sure were cute. The dresses have turned brown now, as have the children who wear them. What do you have to say for yourself, child?

Every once in a while, we actually accomplish pajamas. As in, sometimes we proudly bathe the children at night and put them in appropriate sleepwear like all the good parents are doing. The next morning, the kids inevitably head outside before getting dressed but we find that we’re actually thankful that they are covered in pj’s and not riding their bikes in their boxer briefs.

Summer Outfits Phase 5

We have completely given up on clothes. Dirt is their garment. We turn our entire focus on simply keeping the children alive. We plan to dress them in clothing again once the weather turns cold enough to make it a requirement.

We feel quite sure that when the leaves turn and it becomes sweater weather, we’re going to be amazing at finding all of our children a wardrobe full of adorable matching sweaters and boots. They’ll look fantastic in their new jeans and trendy flannels. Their vests will match their khakis and their loafers will be fresh. We’ll belong on the cover of a magazine.

Yes, just let us get through summer and we’ll start anew in the fall. You can count on us.

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Subscribe here so you don’t miss the follow-up post in which I share our kids’ faultless fall outfits. :)

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What phase are you in with your kids’ summer outfits? Tell me we aren’t the only ones letting our kids wear dirt as an accessory.

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How to Say “Thank You” to a Teacher

May 1, 2022 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Need to say “thank you” to a teacher? Let’s talk about ways to do that…

Teachers work incredibly hard. As the school year winds to a close, let’s talk about ways to say thank you.

Note: Homeschoolers! Oh, moms and dads, you deserve so much thanks! You work so very hard and I will tell you from experience that your work pays off. Take care of you. Take time for you. Take time for rest. Nurture your relationship with God. Take some time this summer to reflect and refresh. It is needed and good. :)

Our littles go to public school right now.

Will they always? I have no idea. But God has made it very obvious that this is His plan for our 8 and 6-year-olds while I care for all of their little siblings all day. We’ve needed this and it is good. Brayden and Bonus Girl’s teachers have been fantastic and we want to thank them. Help us with ideas!

How to Say “Thank You” to a Teacher

I’d like to put several items into a gift bag for our kids’ teachers this year. Here are some ideas I have, and I’m hoping you’ll add your ideas in the comments. :)

  • Gift cards – for coffee shops, specialty shops, movies, and/or restaurants
  • Pamper Yourself items – like lotion, lip balm, and soap (these are our favorites!)
  • Handmade thank you notes from the kids
  • Summer Fun items – like sunscreen, a fun water bottle, and a new beach towel
  • Journal and pens – for the little bit of downtime teachers get; hopefully they can sit and journal in the sunshine!
  • Grilling supplies – like marinades and fun spices
  • A good book to read
  • A pretty indoor or outdoor plant
  • Homemade goodies that the kids help make*
  • Fun drink mixes
  • Homemade Vanilla – if you have some ready to share!
  • Variety of coffee and fun ice cube trays so they can make iced coffee

*Here’s a list of fun treats kids can help make to give to teachers:

  • Butterscotch Bars
  • Caramel Brownies
  • Cheesecake Brownies
  • Chocolate Chip Brownies
  • Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
  • Monster Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
  • Oatmeal Butterscotch Chip Cookies
  • Snickerdoodles

What ideas do you have for teacher thank you gifts?

P.S. You might also want to gift coaches, piano teachers, special ed teachers, secretaries, custodians, and bus drivers. Who am I forgetting?

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That One Time I Didn’t Die

October 11, 2020 by Tasha Hackett Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

You’ll love this edge-of-your-seat story by Tasha about that time she didn’t die. I never knew this had happened!! And be sure to read all the way to the end because there’s a lot in this that we need to remember as we walk this journey of life. :)

That one time I didn’t die

by Tasha Hackett

Hi! It’s Laura’s friend Tasha. I really want to tell you a story about how I accidentally almost died, but I didn’t die. Have you heard when I fell off a cliff? Literally. And when I say literally, I mean I literally fell off a cliff. Not figuratively.

Spoiler: I didn’t die.

The summer after my senior year, I attended camp, WCYC, for the last time as a camper. This final year, I was one of the privileged few, the proud, the fearless, who were honored to spend two class periods with the game-coordinators, assisting in preparations for the evening games. We were gifted matching white T-Shirts with permanent markered logos: SAAC (Special Activities Assistant Corps). As it turns out, this was code for filling water balloons. Not nearly as exciting as you were expecting. I know. Me neither. 

One particular morning, we had no water balloons to fill, so our leaders took us for a little treat. We went to The Rocks. These are fantastic outcroppings hidden in a dense Wisconsin forest. The tallest is roughly 35-40 feet high, one side is sheer cliff, while the other is tucked into a hill with an easy incline with trees and shrubs that suddenly ends—at the cliff. I had been to The Rocks before, and I usually spent my time hopping around the small ones, crawling through tight crevices between the larger few, or playing King of the Rock with other campers—nothing potentially fatal. That year, sadly, I was suffering from the Invincibility Fallacy. Please do not be overly concerned by this diagnosis. As I learned in my college psychology classes, this is a normal occurrence in adolescents.

The Invincibility Fallacy can be blamed for just about every stupid thing a young adult does.

To be frank, the Invincibility Fallacy is the reason people take unreasonable risks. This is why some teenagers free-climb thirty-five feet up the side of a sandstone cliff. In almost every human brain there is a voice whispering, “You are not making a wise decision. You need to rethink this. You could get in some real trouble here!” But while this is whispered, another voice comes along—a loud, friendly voice, a voice so powerful that the pesky Whisper of Caution is pounded to the dust. This second voice is the manifestation of the Invincibility Fallacy. 

If you’ve ever heard it, you know. You may be familiar with it. It’s the one that simply states: Yes, but it won’t happen to me!!

The honest truth is that sometimes it does happen to you, and those are the times you remember for the rest of your life. So let’s say you fall off the cliff. Do you learn your lesson? The Lesson? The don’t-ever-do-stupid-things-again-because-you-could-die lesson? Does the little Whisper of Caution dust himself off, pick his hat out of the gutter and grow strong enough to keep you out of trouble next time? Ehhhh…. Well, that’s not really the point of this story. So we’ll just skip over that and move on. 

Have you been snatched from the fire?

I ponder my existence here on earth because of the cliff event, and I now have a psychological fear of heights. Verdict: I will no longer ride roller coasters. And this aversion isn’t, “Oh, I don’t care for roller coasters. They make me nauseous.” No, no, child. For me it’s akin to Death. I rode Tower of Terror at Disney World the year after my cliff-falling incident. This is the ride that goes up and then drops you, and takes you up again, and drops …. up… drop… and up… Death. 

Hot News: Sleeping Beauty on Tower Doesn’t Wake

The instant the ride began to drop I felt this rush of, (wait for it…) terror that I had only ever felt once before in my life. The difference is the ride kept going. I didn’t happily blackout before slamming the ground like the first time I had this feeling. Screaming did not help. Tears filled my eyes, and I knew, I knew, that if this ride did not stop in the next three seconds, I would be dead when I got off. Rather, I wouldn’t get off, because I’d be dead. The eleven other passengers in the haunted hotel elevator ride would think I had fainted. Perhaps they’d snicker and comment, “Wow! She must have been really scared,” and perhaps, “How beautiful she is now she’s not screaming anymore.” My boyfriend, having the time of his life I might add, never noticing that his sweet and adorable girlfriend was about to seriously die, would never have become my husband. Geez Louise, the event would hit every major news outlet in America. Nay, the world! “TERROR KILLS WEAKLING ON TOWER” Weellll, good news for you. The ride must have stopped in the next three seconds, because I did not die.

So, back to pondering my existence and when I didn’t die…

I ponder this because I have a fall-off-the-cliff story. It isn’t being told by someone else. I fell off a cliff and I’m here to tell it. You’re probably wriggling in your chair with anticipation, “So tell us already!” Right? Okay, I’m getting there. … camp, the rocks, Invincibility Fallacy…

So I looked up the side of the cliff and thought to myself, “I could climb that.” So I did. I scaled at an astounding rate, racing myself to the top. Perhaps that cautionary whisper I ignored was at least urging me to get to the top as quickly as possible to escape the reprimand of the group leaders or fellow, wiser, campers. But I could almost see over the top, I was that close! At this point I was already self-congratulating myself. You know, basic things any average eighteen-year-old-sandstone-cliff-climbing-camper might think. Then it happened.

Sandstone is a tricky thing.

Sandstone can be found all over the world. It is formed by the compression of tiny grains of sand, held together by other common earth substances like silica, calcium carbonate, iron, etc. It’s basically earth smashed together. Sandstone has been used in the past for building materials, but was found not to be durable and needed more frequent repairs than other stone. Because of its composition and the way it’s formed, it has a habit of breaking apart. And this is what it decided to do while I was depending on it.

Coincidentally, I knew all about sandstone, but not Wisconsin sandstone. Growing up in Kentucky, we had tan, multi-colored, yellow-orangy sandstone that popped up into the yard every spring—like wild flowers. If you can imagine needing to harvest the flowers from the yard before mowing. Over winter, the ground froze and thawed, magically pushing rocks into our Kentucky yard in the middle of a forest. Having lived there for many years, I wasn’t aware of the trickiness of climbing sandstone. My little brain had not made the connection that fantastic gray cliffs made of sandstone would have the same qualities as the small rocks that appeared and broke from each other in my Kentucky yard. 

Even though I didn’t die, sandstone cliffs should not be scaled foolheartedly.

When the rock broke off in my right hand, I was reaching up with my other one. This left me flailing, grabbing the air around me, frantically reaching for anything and everything that might save me. Uh, hint: There was nothing. I was clearly falling.

Instinctively I kicked my feet in the air to keep myself upright. The last thing I needed was to land on my head! Early in childhood, I remember watching an old episode of Tarzan with Mom. I remember Mom’s soft and wavy brown hair that came past her shoulders. Tarzan was tan, and strong. I remember he was flying through the jungle, fleeing from something, when he came to the edge of a cliff he simply leaped without a second thought. As a young child, I remember thinking he looked so funny kicking his legs around in the air while he fell. Mom explained he did this to keep his head upright. He resembled a man walking in the air. He splashed harmlessly into the water at the base of the cliff and swam gracefully to safety, I’m sure. Maybe it was this old TV episode that saved my life, or maybe it was an inborn human life-saving technique, but I kept my head upright as I fell from that cliff. 

Flashes of my surroundings are ingrained into my memory from that fall.

The sun was bright as I frantically turned my head, searching for help—I tried to grasp the foliage of a skinny tree nearby, the leaves silhouetted against the bright white sky. My thoughts at the time were as follows: This isn’t really happening. This can’t really be happening. It’s not happening to me. It’s not really happening. I knew that it must not be happening, for if it was, I was dying. There was not going to be any surviving this. Reality hit me. Okay, it is. It is really happening to me.*Panic* *Panic * God save me. Those were my thoughts, and in that order. Intelligible words aren’t available to me to describe this, so I will not try at this point in my writing career.  

It’s not as easy as it looks. 

Did you know I wanted to grow up to be a novelist, a writer, perhaps a poet? I was twelve and three-quarters when I started my first novel. When I was simply twelve, I wanted to be a Marine Biologist. Then we went to the ocean. I was attacked thrice by the Jellyfish Infantry off the coast of Florida. I decided I’d rather not be a Marine Biologist after all.

Please understand I waited until the third attack on the same day before I surrendered my dream. And I really meant it; I did not plant a pinky into that ocean. Marine Biology was out, the next best was writing. I was already in the habit of journaling. I figured anyone could do it. Write, that is. So I began. I wrote frantically for two months, completing seven chapters of a fantasy novel starring Jessica and Tony who ran off into a field of daisies, thereby entering the world of fantasy. They met a kid named Jasper who told them about the prophecy concerning their arrival and henceforth set off on their quest. It would have been the next best seller, but alas, I never finished. Apparently twelve year olds get bored of things like writing novels. 

But poetry!

My mom decided we should read poetry aloud to each other once a week as part of some homeschooling activity. I jumped at this chance and asked to go first and I picked, The Raven by Poe. Remember, I was twelve. I knew Poe was famous and his poems were good or something… and this one sounded great and the Nevermore bit was cool. That’s all I knew. I read this poem in its entirety to my family and I will admit they sat quietly, but for some reason we did not continue this trend. I guess I was just that good. For the most part I stuck to reading novels and I left the writing about boys in my journal. 

When I am rich and famous, I will attempt to put words to the overwhelming emotion that can now only be described as *Panic.* The last thought I had before hitting the ground was, “God save me.” And he did, because I am here now at 9:30 pm sitting at my desk, in my home in Nebraska with my husband loading the dishwasher and my four children sleeping in their rooms. 

I do not remember hitting the ground, just the falling and then being on the ground with nothing but my consciousness. The world was black, I could feel nothing. It did not hurt, at first. All I knew is I could think, therefore I was… but I could not breathe. I’ll have you know, when air rushes into the lungs after the muscles around the chest cavity force it out, it wants to come back in, but when all of the air has been dramatically smashed out of your chest, it is extremely difficult to get air back into them. 

No pain, movement, or light.

I knew I was dead, and I, whatever was left of me, was just stuck somewhere dark, and scary… because of the dark and the nothing. This was my world. Then I realized I could feel my chest and I could move it and the air came back and I began to breathe. This made me very happy when I rationalized I was not dead! I had broken my neck! 

A few seconds went by and I could feel everything, and everything hurt. Recalculating, I decided I had not broken my neck, but only every other bone in my body. Soon I opened my eyes and saw the face of my friend John. He was talking to me, and whatever it was made me feel better. He was calm. But his face was scared. A face of true fear like I had never seen before. 

John was scared because he had just seen me topple like a tower of Jenga blocks. I found out later that it took him at least half a minute to climb around to the base of the cliff where I had landed and that I was still unconscious when he arrived. A fellow camper watched me fall from the top of the cliff (he had walked safely up the hill on the other side), and screamed to everyone, “She’s dead!” #fakenews #notdead #ididn’tdie

Yeah, no. I didn’t die.

As the story goes, I landed on my feet, crumpled and rolled before settling on my side like a rag doll tossed out of the crib—one leg curled haphazardly to the side and an arm crushed awkwardly under my back. But when I woke up enough to take note of my surroundings, it was just like the movies. A ring of faces stared down at me.

Aaaaaaand… turns out I was cool. I sat up. Stayed like that for a minute and then walked to the van. Yes, I hurt all over. I had scratches on my face and arms where I demolished an old blackberry bush. My chin sported a bruise where I had pounded it against my sternum. Not even sure how that’s possible. My ankle was sore where I scratched it on a rock. But the camp nurse went all crazy pants on me when I walked into her office and told her that I didn’t feel so good. She called 911 and they strapped me to a board and, listen to this fun fact, rolled my gurney over a gravel parking lot to the ambulance. $7000 of X-Rays and two CT scans later, I was sent home with the diagnosis of Whiplash. 

In Conclusion about how I didn’t die:

Just in case any of this is lost on you, let me highlight a few neat facts: I fell 35 feet and didn’t die. I did not land on the pile of rocks to my left, nor the woodpile. My skull didn’t hit the ground first and crack open. I did not break a bone. For some crazy reason I was given a pass at life again.

What about this exciting idea: What if you have no idea how many times your life has been spared? By some miracle of God, people are saved from disaster on earth every day, but what about all the times you don’t see him working for you? Can we give him credit for that too? If you think about how many cars don’t wreck, how many planes don’t crash, how many roller coasters don’t malfunction, it’s phenomenal! You were deliberately formed in your mother’s womb. On purpose. Created, designed, and planned. 

You’re supposed to be here. 

Four weeks after my cliff incident, I drove myself to college and I went for a ride on the back of a strange kid’s motorcycle; he kissed me two months later and married me two years after that. We’ve been pregnant five times and have four living children. 

I get it, not everyone has a fall-off-a-cliff-survival story. But even if you don’t, I can tell you: Your life is not by chance.


homeschool momTasha Hackett is a friend of Laura and pretends to be a ballerina in the small space between the sink and stove. Sometimes she writes 3000 word essays when a 600 snippet with a recipe for stir-and-pour-bread will do. Her debut novel is currently being evaluated by a publisher. Even though the story lacks a fantasy world of daisies, she has high hopes it will bring a smile to you anyway. 

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Learn How to Do a French Twist

March 16, 2020 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I know that many of you have super-long hair, so that doing a French Twist may be a little tricky. I found this fun tutorial, provided by Paula, our Lilla Rose consultant, to be super helpful!!

Here is a quick and easy video tutorial showing you how to do a French Twist in any length of hair, from medium to extra long. This is so simple that you can easily do it for every day to get your hair up and out of the way, yet look classy at the same time!

Click the image below to watch:

How to Do a French Twist

 

The Flexi Kathleen is wearing in this video is the beautiful Turquoise Tranquility…so pretty!

If you’d like to get more simple hairstyling tutorials like this, be sure to sign up for Paula’s 7 Days of Quick and Easy Hairstyles. Most can be done in a minute or less!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Books I Would Love for You to Love with Me

March 8, 2020 by Tasha Hackett 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

One of my favorite things is a fresh crispy salad with bacon, feta cheese, and thin homemade ranch with extra garlic. Mmmm. And also: books! My house is full of many kinds of books. Every year I purge stacks of them and yet my collection continues to grow. I’m going to share a few of my current favorites, listed in no particular order.

I’ve included the link to each. (Budget tip: Don’t buy them new! If you can wait a week or so, snag a used copy if available.) Keep scrolling to read my comments on each!

  1. The Nesting Place by Myquillyn Smith
  2. The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson
  3. Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
  4. Finding Your Purpose as a Mom: How to Build Your Home on Holy Ground by Donna Otto

Bonus Novels: Two Ways Home by Sonda Kraak (Sequel to the equally delightful One Plus One Equals Trouble in the Love That Counts Series) and our favorite cookbook of course.

The Nesting Place by Myquillyn Smith

Among all the books I own, I’ve never read one on interior design! Gifted to me by my sweet sister-in-law for Christmas, I have devoured it. While reading it, I became aware of how poorly I was speaking of my home:

“I hate having the laundry in the kitchen,”

“My bedroom on the main floor is annoying because the kids are so far away,”

“The toilet in the basement is so old, I can’t stand to use it,”

“This house is so big I can’t keep it clean!”

Myquillyn Smith says, “Don’t apologize for what you have. It makes guests feel uncomfortable, it encourages discontentment, and if you’re married and your husband hears you apologizing for what he’s provided, it could be hurtful.” That hit home for me and my list of things that were “wrong” with my house. She showed me how to begin loving my home, and how to use my “lovely limitations” (like the laundry in the kitchen) as springboards for creative action.

She gives step-by-step guides to making your house a home. No, she doesn’t tell you what colors to use or designers or type of furniture or decor. She goes a step deeper and gets you asking, what is the purpose of this home? This room? This couch? She is always reminding us that a home is there to serve people, not the other way around and it doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful.

I’ll be the first to admit, interior design is not my strongest skill, but this book is SO MUCH MORE than a decorating book. It’s a confidence-building, take action, bloom where you’re planted, seize the day, kind of book that I will be returning to for years to come. She has another I haven’t read that I will get my hands on soon: Cozy Minimalist: More Style, Less Stuff

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson

I was not excited to read this when my Dad gifted it to me. “Yay… a book about prayer…” But, let me just say, “WOW.” The growth in my faith that I have today was watered by reading The Circle Maker. I have underlined passages in every chapter and filled margins with notes. Batterson uses his own personal experiences and biblical miracles to show God’s ever-present ever-listening qualities. He says, “Nothing honors God more than a big dream that is way beyond our ability to accomplish.” After reading this chapter, I fell on my knees and spilled out my dreams of paying down $20,000 of our debt in one year. This was June we weren’t even close to the $10,000 mark. I began circling that dream. By December we had paid back $29,000. Whaa?? God gets full glory for that one.

What it boils down to is believing that God is able and yet the answer will always be “No,” if we don’t ask. He encourages us that we “don’t worship the Great I-Used-To-Could.” We worship the Great I Am. If you want a book to energize, inspire, and fuse hope back into your relationship with God, this is a great choice.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Um, no, this book will not inspire you to be a better homemaker or teach you better ways to pray. But yes, really, really, it’s one of my favorites! When my baby girl was two days old I began reading aloud to her as something to do. I had a long and slow postpartum recovery, spending upwards of seven hours a day sitting and resting for months. This book was one of the few we owned that I had never read. Why would I want to read a book about dinosaurs?! Gag! But the husband insisted I give it a try.

Once I started, I couldn’t put it down. There is a lot of blood and some language, the dinosaurs and the gagging, remember? But the story is incredibly fascinating, the science is intriguing, and the characters are interesting. All around an exciting and thrilling read. I also love his sequel The Lost World. And we won’t talk about the movies. They’re fine. But the books are fantastic. If my daughter needs therapy someday because her mother read aloud Jurassic Park her first week of life… send me the bill.

Finding Your Purpose as a Mom: How to Build Your Home on Holy Ground by Donna Otto

I own almost every one of Donna’s books. I stumbled upon her podcasts, Modern Homemakers, after searching, “Organization.” Apparently she was teaching about organizing before it was trendy! Though this book isn’t about your physical home as much as your role as a spiritual leader in your home. (The one she wrote about managing your physical house is called “How to Get More Done in Less Time.”)

Is your home peaceful? Are you a thermometer or a thermostat? Is home a place where everyone feels safe? She gently teaches you what to do when you’re overwhelmed and don’t know what to do.

While this is not a quick read, it is worth the energy. I find I do best reading a couple pages at a time and letting it sink in. It is packed full of wisdom. Finding Your Purpose would make a fantastic book for a bible study or book club. I have read through it twice in the past four years, each time feeling more empowered in my roles as a woman, wife, mother, and homemaker.

BONUS books:

Two Ways Home by Sonda Kraak and the rest of the Love That Counts Series.

Reading novels was my main hobby. At least a couple hours every day. Growing up, I read so much that I didn’t understand there were people who didn’t read. What sort of life would that be… I was such a reader all my life I didn’t know it was to be classified as a “hobby,” it’s just what I did.

Not surprisingly, I went to college and got a degree in English because… books.

In Middle School, I blasted through all the Janette Oke novels and fell in love with anything Historical Fiction with clean romantic tension, but also fantasy and dragons and epic adventures (and dinosaurs apparently). I tried to give up reading a few years ago when I had too many kids and not enough time or sleep. But recently, I started again. Bless my baby who doesn’t sleep through the night and the hours I spend awake when I should be sleeping. I bought Sonda Kraak’s novel on my phone’s Kindle app for free with my Amazon points and I read it in 1 minute, 3 minute, 5 minute, and 7 minute intervals while letting my baby work through his emotions, if you know what I mean. Also, I find I can read in night-mode without disturbing the baby while he nurses in the evenings.

So, bla bla bla… I love books. Let me tell you about Two Ways Home and how much I loved reading it. Girl meets Boy and … well, if you’ve read an inspirational romance book ever then you know the drill. EXCEPT, Kraak’s writing is topnotch. The characters are funny and witty and do silly things that make them realistic. The hero is swoon-worthy, yet has his own demons to slay. The heroin is strong, yet she learns the beauty of having someone love her and pray for her.

Your turn!

Outside tales of how Laura had to chase down her taco, what do you read? I’d love to hear about any great books you’ve stumbled upon. Are there stories that have just stuck with you? Non-Fiction you keep thumbing through and pick up again and again? We all know that your newest favorite cookbook is Simple Real Food Recipes (#sorrynotsorry) but is there anything else you’ve been reading lately? Let me know!

-Tasha


Tasha Hackett, friend of Laura, lives in the middle of Nebraska where God has blessed the earth with extreme versions of all four seasons. When she is not feeding her family of six, including her Middle School science teaching husband, three sons and a daughter, she can be found sewing, painting, sneaking Jalapeno Cheetos, dreaming of forests, staying out of debt, Instagramming for Laura at @heavenlyhomemaker and looking snazzy in a vintage tweed blazer while attempting to write a novel in 1 minute, 3 minute, 5 minute intervals.

 

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That One Time I Had to Chase my Taco

January 12, 2020 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I figured you’d surely like to hear about that one time I had to chase my taco. Yes? Ok.

That One Time I Had to Chase My Taco

T’was the month of December, and every time I went to Walmart I inevitably filled my cart to the max. Sure, I was Christmas shopping, but also, there were nine of us living in our house at the time and the groceries required to feed nine people plus a frequent surge of college friends always results in a very full cart at Walmart.

(Asa has since moved away to enjoy his wonderful new job; Justus moved back to the dorm; so now there are “only” seven of us. Not to worry, my grocery cart still overflows.)

So there I was, alone at Walmart with a cart filled to the top. Mmmm, we shall pause a moment to reflect on the fact that I WAS ALONE. This is a miracle in and of itself because of the aforementioned nine people in our household. Ahh, Mama was shopping alone.

With my list almost fulfilled and then some, I decided that since I was alone I should consider what I needed for Brayden’s upcoming birthday party. We’d be feeding quite a crowd – tacos, one of Brayden’s favorite meals. And we needed some games and activities to keep the kids busy…aha. A pinata. That would be fun!

I muscled my very full cart to the back of the store to search for pre-made pinatas. While en route, I had a conversation with my frugal-minded self: Couldn’t I just make a pinata myself for very little money? Great idea! But no. Seeing as there were nine in our home and two of them are babies and one of them was a busy 5 almost 6 year old – pinata-making would not fit into my day. Just fork it out, Laura. Just buy the pinata.

I found many pinatas hanging in the party section. Ooh, a Minion pinata. Brayden would love it! Ouch – I took a look at the price tag. $19. Ugh. Keep looking, keep looking…aha! A taco! It was a pinata in the shape of a taco, and who wouldn’t want to take a swing at a taco after eating a taco? I shook my head at myself for finding this to be so clever. The price was lower, but still a cool $14 for a flimsy chunk of cardboard with tissue paper stuck to it.

Still, it was a pinata and it was completed and I would not have to make it. Plus it was a TACO {chuckles quietly to herself as she ignores the price tag and puts the golden taco on the bottom of the cart}.

Somehow I made it through the checkout with my incredible load of loot. God bless the cashiers who draw the short straw resulting in their turn at scanning and bagging my trillions of items.

My cart was heaping full of bags so after paying my bill, I slid the taco back into the bottom of the cart – the only place it would fit.

Bad idea.

I took only three steps outside with my heavy cart, which placed me smack in the middle of the main drive for ALL THE CARS. And that’s when it happened.

My taco. It got caught by the wind, got whipped right out of the bottom of the cart, and began tumbling across the parking lot to the north. The wind in Nebraska is something to brag about, and somehow at Walmart it’s always worse. I know this, and yet I still failed to protect my taco. {hangs head}

Within the course of only three seconds, my taco had tumbled many yards away from me. I didn’t give my loaded cart a second thought, but abandoned it and began chasing my taco. I had just paid $14 for it so you better believe I wasn’t going to let it get away.

As typically happens when one is trying to chase something that is blowing away, each time I almost reached my taco, the wind whipped it farther from me. This happened at least four times, carrying it almost all the way to the wide-open field beyond the parking lot. “I WILL NOT LOSE MY TACO! I WILL NOT LOSE MY TACO!” is all I could think of as I ran after the flyaway pinata.

Finally, it bumped into a curb which slowed it down just long enough for me to pounce. I grabbed that taco and hugged it close – you know – so it wouldn’t blow away again.

Relieved and significantly winded, my mind snapped back to the reality that my loaded cart still sat far away from me in the middle of the main Walmart driving area. Clutching my taco, I ran (or did whatever verb fits the description of a woman in boots hurrying toward a cart while hugging a large taco). Wishing for an inhaler, I made it back to my cart and began looking around to see how many car accidents I had caused or at the very least who might have found the entire lady chasing taco show extremely entertaining.

No one. Nothing. Nada.

This, on a busy Saturday at Walmart during the month of December. Not one person had noticed, moved my cart out of the way, or cheered for me as I chased my taco toward the cornfield. Apparently people were too wrapped up in their own holiday preparations.

Or perhaps it’s more common than I realize that women chase their tacos through the Walmart parking lot. Hmm, I had no idea.

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Summer Activities for Kids: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

July 9, 2019 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

Yum

As I was remembering this fun summer activity idea, I decided it would be much more fun to do if we invited friends over to join us! So we sent out the invitation, got our supplies ready, and had a little Ice Cream Making Party!

By the way, we are SO CLOSE to final adoption day for Bonus Boy that I almost waited to post this so that I could show you his precious face. Soon and very soon he will officially be a Coppinger and then all stickers come off!

This “make ice cream in a bag” idea is one of those we always WANT to do, but never seem to get around to ACTUALLY doing. Somehow inviting friends to do it with us made it much more doable, you know? Afterward, the kids played and the moms visited. Bliss! And also, there was ice cream to eat, so double win!

Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

5.0 from 1 reviews
Summer Activities for Kids: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 3 droppers full of liquid stevia, or 3-4 Tablespoons real maple syrup, or 3-4 Tablespoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup rock salt or coarse sea salt
  • Ice
  • quart and gallon sized freezer bags
Instructions
  1. Measure cream, sweetener, and vanilla into a quart-sized freezer bag and seal.
  2. Fill a gallon-sized freezer bag half-full of ice.
  3. Add ½ cup rock salt to the ice.
  4. Place the sealed quart-sized bag filled with ice cream ingredients into the bag of ice and salt. Seal.
  5. Toss the bag back and forth, shaking and tossing for 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens to ice cream.
  6. Remove the quart-sized bag and rinse the salt off.
  7. Open the bag, scoop out the ice cream, and enjoy!
3.5.3229

We moms found that the ice cream shakers needed a little bit of help to get the mixture shaken vigorously enough to turn into ice cream! Also: be sure to do this activity outside!! The bags tend to get drippy. :)

Here are some of our other Simple Ice Cream Recipes.

Use any of these with the above Freezer Bag Toss idea!

  • Low Sugar No-Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Vanilla Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Strawberry Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!
  • Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles
  • Go Apple, Berry, or Peach Picking
  • Create Blessings for Father’s Day
  • Find Ways to Serve Together
  • Plan and Host a Party
  • 77 Screen-Free Activities for Kids
Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Summer Activities with Kids: Plan and Host a Party

June 18, 2019 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Plan and Host a Party!

No need to wait for a birthday or other special occasion for an excuse to host a party! Why not host a party just for the fun of it?

But I’m NOT a Party Planner!!

Not a party planning kind of person? ME NEITHER!!!! For me, planning “parties” with my kids has been more about planning fun get-togethers with their friends. When you see the list of ideas we came up with below, I think you’ll get excited about wanting to plan a “party” too!

Today we’re talking about ways to host a party while keeping it super simple! Remember, this is about finding fun ways to spend time with your kids and love others this summer. You can work with your kids to plan a party, but if you do it right, it won’t cost much or be very difficult either!

Here’s an example of something our family did a few years ago:

When Malachi was younger, he LOVED everything Lego! So just for fun, one summer we worked together and hosted a Lego Party with his friends. (It is important to note that his birthday is in December and we hosted this party in July. Because it was just for fun! No gifts, no pressure – just good ol’ Lego fun!)

We spent some time on Pinterest together, looking for fun ideas others had already thought of. We spent just a few dollars to put together some small treats and activities…

We “went all out” and made a Lego-shaped pinata and guess what we filled it with? Well, Legos, of course! (In a ziplock, oy!) Once the pinata had busted open, the boys dumped them out on the living room floor and had fun building together. Cost for this fun party game? Um, practically nothing. We already had the Legos. We covered the box with construction paper. It was so simple!

Just for kicks, if you’d like to learn more about How we Hosted a Lego Party on the Cheap, here are the details!

Another time, our boys decided together to host a Nerf Gun Party. They planned the whole thing themselves, which ultimately meant that they called and invited their friends, then everyone came over and shot nerf bullets at each other. And because my boys were into making cakes back in those sweet days, after the gun war, they fed everyone cake. Ah, the love language of boys. :)

What about Teens?

I really wish I had pictures, but none of us can find them on our phones! Last summer though, Elias decided to have a very belated birthday party – even though he’d turned 16 earlier in January. He invited a bunch of friends and helped me plan what to do and what food to serve.

We got a fire going in our Fire Pit (we have this one – such a fantastic investment, by the way!). The kids made their own brats and smores, they played lawn games, they kicked a soccer ball around. It was a blast and WHY CAN’T I FIND PICTURES??? Ah, I guess the memories will live forever in our hearts.

Inexpensive Summer Party Ideas

What do your kids and their friends love to do? Just like Malachi loved Legos and planned and hosted a Lego Party, select what your kids love and go with it! No need to be fancy. No need to spend money. Just pick a theme, invite your friends, and have some fun!

Here are a few ideas to get you and your kids started on brainstorming for fun party plans!

  1. Water Games and Watermelon Party
  2. Sack Lunch on the Lawn Party (everyone can bring their own packed lunch!)
  3. Sidewalk Chalk Contest
  4. Badminton and Brownies Party
  5. Princess or Super Hero Dress Up Party
  6. Lego Party
  7. Popcorn and a Movie Party
  8. Smores Making Party
  9. Crafts and Snacks Party
  10. Cooking or Baking Party
  11. Cookie or Cupcake Decorating Party
  12. Swimming Party
  13. Book Swap Party
  14. Trampoline and Treats Party
  15. Popsicles and Play Party
  16. Board Game Bonanza
  17. Bike Trail Party (ride bikes together, ending in a special location for a treat!)
  18. Card Game Tournament
  19. Ice Cream Sundae Bar Party
  20. Lawn Games and Snacks Party

If you and your kids start brainstorming, there’s no end to the ideas you’ll come up with! See how easy? See how fun? See how inexpensive?

Need some fun Lawn Game Ideas?

  1. Ultimate Disc Game
  2. Kubb
  3. Lawn Bowling
  4. Yard Dice
  5. Ladder Ball 
  6. Molkky 
  7. Washer Toss
  8. Ring Toss
  9. Frisbee Golf (Disc Golf) Set
  10. Floating Pong

Need some fun Board Game and Card Game Ideas?

  • 5-Second Rule
  • Spot It!
  • The Game of Things
  • Rummikub
  • Settlers of Catan (With extentions, which you’ll need if you have more than 4 players.)
  • Settlers of Catan Cities and Knights (This is an expansion of Settlers of Catan. This is our favorite add on to regular Setters.)
  • Seafarers of Catan (Also an expansion of Settlers.)
  • Ticket to Ride
  • Carcossonne
  • Bohnanza (This one is unique. Great for older kids and adults. We love this one!)
  • Life
  • Risk
  • Manhattan
  • Guestures
  • Taboo
  • Blink (Malachi and I play this quick card game a lot while the older brothers are at basketball practice.)
  • Headbandz
  • Acquire
  • Sequence
  • Clue
  • Apples to Apple Junior (This is probably our favorite group game. We don’t recommend the regular version of this game because the cards are less familiar to the kids.)
  • Scattergories
  • Pictionary
  • Cranium
  • Boggle (This game totally counts as school work, but no one knows they’re learning.)
  • Monopoly
  • Sorry
  • Quelf (I’ve actually decided that I very much dislike this one. The kids like it though.)
  • Racko
  • Balderdash
  • Yahtzee
  • Farkle
  • Pass the Pigs
  • Huskerdu (great for younger kids – still fun for adults)
  • Mastermind
  • Skipbo

Need some fun Party Food Ideas?

  • Brownie Sundae Bar
  • Butterscotch Bars
  • Caramel Apple Dip
  • Cheesecake Brownies
  • Chocolate Chip Brownies
  • Chocolate Whipped Cream on Strawberries or In Your Coffee
  • Death By Chocolate
  • Homemade Ice Cream
  • Ice Cream Sandwiches
  • Monster Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars – no flour!
  • Peanut Butter Brownie Cups
  • Pineapple Cream Dessert – Low Sugar!
  • Pudding Pops

Ready to Plan and Host a Party with your kids this summer?

What food, game, and theme ideas do you have?

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!
  • Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles
  • Go Apple, Berry, or Peach Picking
  • Create Blessings for Father’s Day
  • Find Ways to Serve Together

Stay tuned for more fun Summer Kid Activity ideas!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Summer Activities for Kids: Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

May 28, 2019 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

There are many glorious reasons to make smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles with your kids. What are these reasons, you ask? Oh, I am more than happy to share:

  1. Smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles are obviously perfect to enjoy on a hot day because they are so refreshing and cool.
  2. When you make food WITH your kids, they are much more likely to want to eat it.
  3. You can sneak all kinds of nourishing foods into smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles – so basically, you are making treats that are very healthy!
  4. Making smoothies, milkshakes, and popsicles are a super simple way to get all your kids – from tiny to big – into the kitchen to learn some kitchen skills!

When our 5-year old Bonus Boy first moved in with us, one of the first fun activities we did together was to make “milkshakes.” (They are really considered smoothies, but he “doesn’t like smoothies – he only likes milkshakes.” Call them whatever you want! We load them with fresh greens, frozen strawberries and bananas, farm fresh whole milk, and sometimes even an avocado. He drinks these “milkshakes” right up! And he loves to help us make them, so we aren’t sneaking the healthy stuff in. He puts it all into the blender himself!

Below are 13 of our favorite smoothie, milkshake, and popsicle recipes. Take note that you can make a smoothie and then freeze it into a popsicle – a double good treat! Or look there at #13 – make homemade wholesome pudding, then freeze it into Pudding Pops! Creamsicles anyone? Yep! There’s a recipe for those too!

Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles!

  1. Pineapple Mango Smoothies
  2. Pineapple-Orange Slushies
  3. Creamy Orange Cooler
  4. Strawberry Peach Slushies
  5. Icy Cold Milkshake Treats
  6. Green Machine Milkshakes
  7. Easy Peppermint Milkshakes
  8. Fresh Peach Milkshakes
  9. Strawberry Milkshakes
  10. Strawberry Creamsicles
  11. Mock Frozen Yogurt
  12. Orange Creamsicles
  13. Homemade Pudding Pops

Sky’s the limit on the variety of milkshakes you can make with different fruits and fun combinations. The same is true for smoothies! Use whatever you have in your freezer or fridge. Use up odds and ends of leftover fruit that is starting to go bad. Use milk, cream, kefir, yogurt – whatever you have. There’s hardly a way to go wrong with these ideas!

HINT!

Do you think your kids would enjoy the taste of these milkshakes and smoothies? But they are turned off by the color of these goodies when you add greens to your blender? Yep, I hear ya. We’ve learned to pour the mixture into a solid cup so that it isn’t see-through. We top it with a lid and let the kids choose a fun straw. Ta-da! Problem solved. The kids can’t see the funny-looking mixture – they just know the contents inside their cups are delish!

Looking for the perfect blender?

Any ol’ blender will do. But nothing is amazing as a Blendtec or Vitamix if you want a perfectly smooth smoothie. Your family is much more likely to guzzle down their smoothies and shakes if they are seedless and chunk-less. :) Here are more details on why I love my Blendtec.

Looking for great homemade popsicle makers?

I just invested in the double-set of these. They are fantastic! Why the double-set? Well, because 6 popsicles just isn’t enough. Making 12 popsicles at once is much better, don’t you think!?

By the way, while the above 13 recipes are beyond great and extra full of nourishment, it is worth a mention that I often pour 100% juice into our popsicle molds to make simple fruit juice popsicles. Incredibly easy and a super money saver!

Looking for more help as you pull your kids into the kitchen with you?

  • Join our Kids Cooking Camp – it’s amazing!
  • Our Learn to Cook eBook has just been revamped and is perfect to hand over to your kids. :)
  • Grab our new and improved Teaching Your Kids to Cook eBook!
  • Here’s our Kids in the Kitchen discounted eBook collection.
  • This Kids Cook Real Food eCourse is fantastic! It is well worth the investment for all that it offers to your family!
  • Our Chocolate Covered Kids Cookbook and Resource Pack is filled with helpful tips, instructions, and of course, recipes!
  • Our Heavenly Homemakers Club Members get access to ALL of our eBooks and eCourses for an incredibly low price. Join here!

And if you really want to go all in and teach your kids to cook this summer, I encourage you to invest in Katie Kimball’s Kids Cook Real Food eCourse. I used this course with Malachi and plan to use it with Brayden too. It is FANTASTIC!!! Get the details here.

Psst! Did you see our other Summer Kid Activity ideas so far?

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!

Stay tuned for more fun Summer Kid Activity ideas!

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Summer Activities for Kids: Have a Reading Party!

May 26, 2019 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Have a Reading Party!

This idea will last you all summer long! Ready to get started? (We’ve got a packet of free printables for you – see below!)

At our house, we’ve just hung up, put away, and close the door on all of our “assigned reading” for the school year. Who cares that we actually loved almost every book we read this year? Summer is coming and that means we can read…

Just For Fun.

Why does it feel different to read in the summer compared to reading during the school year? I have no idea. There’s just something about the freedom of it all, with its “I can read whatever I want and walk leisurely down all the library aisles while inhaling all the air-conditioned book smells…”

We always check out huge stacks. We can sit in the sun and read. Or we can sit in the air conditioning and read. We might lay on the trampoline and read. I will definitely sip iced coffee and read. The kids can drink sweet tea and read. Ahhhh, summer reading, how I love you.

~~~ Ooooh! I must pause a moment and share some wonderful Iced Coffee and Sweet Tea recipes
for these wonderful sipping and reading occasions! ~~~~~

Summer Perfect Coffee Treats 

  • Cold Brew Coffee – Make this, then add cream or other favorite coffee add-ins!
  • Homemade Chocolate Frappe – This is incredible and healthy at the same time!
  • Low Sugar Coffee Milkshake – It’s a no-guilt version!
  • Chocolate Whipped Cream for your Coffee – So good, you just might shed a tear.

Sweet Tea anyone?

Here are some super simple fruity tea options!

  • Sweet or Unsweet Mango Tea
  • Sweet or Unsweet Peach Tea
  • Sweet or Unsweet Raspberry Tea

Tell me about this Summer Reading Party!

Well, you can make this whatever you want for your family, but to get you motivated…

First, we have a huge packet of free printables for every family who signs up for our Summer Reading Party. Use these however you wish – for incentives for your kids, for activities for your kids, for a challenge for everyone in your family – however you want. They are free for you and you can use them in whatever ways you like!

previewweb2

Sign up here to join our Summer Reading Party and to get the free packet of printables!

My Favorite Party Favor

Included in this printables packet is a suggested Bible reading check-list for you to use with your family. Read these passages with your family during breakfast. Or read them at night before bed. Or read them at whatever time of the day works best for you. Because reading the Bible with your family is more important than any other reading you can do.

summer bible reading

This Summer Bible Reading Guide is included in the Summer Reading Printables Packet. Get yours here.

Read as a Family

A few summers ago, after our oldest boys headed to counsel at church camp, I picked All of a Kind Family off our shelf and read through it with Malachi during the hottest parts of the day. We finished that one and ran to the library to get the next in the series. We loved the books so much we read every book in the series and cried at the end because the series had ended. (To be fair, Malachi didn’t actually cry. I did though, because I always cry at the end of a good book. You already know this about me.)

Soon, I’ll get to read that series to our Bonus Boy! Ah, the love of books just keeps on keeping on!

Here’s another favorite series:

ralph moody
I definitely cried at the end of this one.
Then we plowed through the entire series.
It’s a favorite for sure!

How about a HUGE list of great book ideas for everyone in the family?

We can’t very well encourage you to read without giving you suggestions of books to check out! Here’s a list my friend Kim help me put together. It’s fantastic!

Books for Infants and Toddlers

  • I Spy Board Books
  • Goodnight Moon
  • Runaway Bunny
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar (and other books by Eric Carle)
  • That’s Not My…series from UsBorne (some of which are available on Amazon)
  • Sandra Boynton’s Greatest Hits
  • DK Touch and Feel Series

Books for Preschoolers

  • Mouse Paint
  • Bittle
  • Little Pink Pup
  • Richard Scarry Collection
  • Elephant & Piggie Collection
  • Knuffle Bunny Series
  • Lego City Book Set
  • Lift the Flap Bible Story Books from Reader’s Digest
  • Little Golden Book Collection

Books for Early Elementary Kids

  • Kiss the Cow
  • The “I’m” Book Series by Kate and Jim McMullan
  • Mr. Putney’s Quacking Dog
  • Bad Case of Stripes
  • Uff Da!
  • Pinkalicious Storybook Series
  • Gigi Book Series
  • Little Bear Series
  • Frog and Toad Book Collection
  • Dr. Seuss Book Collection
  • Make Way for Ducklings
  • Madeline Book Collection
  • Curious George Book Collection
  • Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel
  • Click, Clack Moo Book Series
  • Henry and Mudge Book Series
  • Skippyjon Jones Book Collection
  • Amelia Bedelia Book Series
  • Fly Guy Book Series
  • Diary of a Worm Book Series
  • I Spy Books
  • Where’s Waldo Book Collection
  • Otis the Tractor Book Series
  • Daddy, Could I Have an Elephant
  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
  • Lego Beginning Readers

Books for Later Elementary Kids

  • Bill Peet Books
  • Magic Tree House Book Series
  • Magic School Bus Book Series
  • Box Car Children Book Series
  • Encyclopedia Brown Book Series
  • American Girl Book Series
  • Tales of Young Americans Book Series
  • “I Survived” Book Series
  • Sarah Plain and Tall Book Series
  • Chicken Squad Book Series
  • Mr. Popper’s Penguins
  • Clyde Robert Bulla Books
  • Books by Andrew Clements

Books for Middle School/High Schoolers

  • Books by Cynthia Voigt
  • Mysterious Benedict Society Book Series
  • Penderwicks Book Series
  • Storm Runners Book Series
  • 39 Clues Book Series
  • Secret Cipher Book Series
  • LOST (involves magic and wizardry)
  • Anne of Green Gables Book Series
  • Cooper Kids Book Series
  • Mandie Book Series
  • Grandma’s Attic Book Series

Books that make great family read-alouds

Any of the above books are great for reading aloud as well. In addition, I’ve found that if my kids have a hard time getting into a book or a series, I start out reading it to them and they take it from there!

  • Mrs. Piggle Wiggle
  • Charlotte’s Web
  • All of a Kind Family Book Series
  • Little House of the Prairie Book Series
  • Little Britches (Ralph Moody) Book Series
  • Swiss Family Robinson
  • Chronicles of Narnia Book Series

Join our Summer Reading Party!

We want to encourage the beauty of family reading this summer!

Malachi and I look back on the summer of reading All of a Kind Family series as if it was the summer of perfection. All my boys and I can look back with joy on summers of reading together back in the days they were littler (and actually home). On the days they are home this summer, we will definitely spend time reading. I just got a few books delivered a few days ago that the boys had requested. Perfect timing!

Let’s all do this together and make great memories with our families!

Get your FREE Reading Party Printables here!

Psst! Did you see our other Summer Kid Activity idea? Make Donuts! Get the details here. :)

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