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How I Plan To Keep My Kids Reading This Summer

May 28, 2015 by Laura 7 Comments

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All four of our boys enjoy reading. However, we often find that summertime lends itself to a more flexible or on-the-go schedule which sometimes makes us forget about important activities like reading books (and combing hair).

Last summer we tried offering a fun reading challenge that worked amazingly well. Why wouldn’t it? There were rewards involved.

How did it work? We kept it simple. For every five hours each child read, they received a reward. These were inexpensive and sometimes even free. But they are rare treats for our kids – so they picked up a book frequently.

Keep The Kids Reading This Summer

This summer, our three older boys will be gone more than they are home (mission trip, church camp, church camp, and church camp). During the few weeks they are home, they will be more than welcome to take part in this. However, it is our 10 year-old that is really diving in and taking the challenge. Summer Reading Challenge

I created a fun chart for Malachi – which he promptly put on the fridge. (Again, the other boys will take part too – they just don’t have enough weeks during the summer to warrant a chart.)

Here are some of the rewards we’re offering for 5 hours of reading time:

Pick a movie from Redbox.
Get an ice cream cone from Runza (89¢ – yes, I can handle that
Pick something from the dollar store
Go to Captain Red Beard’s with Mom (this is our local coffee shop)
Lego surprise ($4.00 mini-figure) You wouldn’t believe how much this motivates Malachi to get to the 5th week of reading 5 hours (25 hours total).
Choose a meal for Mom or Dad to make
Choose a dessert for Mom or Dad to make
Choose a board game (from our stash) for a family game night

If by chance Malachi reads more than five hours in a week, he will be allowed to move on to “the next week.” This chart is flexible because our summer is flexible.

I created two “open” charts for you to download, print, and fill in with rewards that will motivate your own kids if you like.

Download and Print Summer Reading Challenge Printable 1

Summer Reading Challenge Printable 2

Download and Print Summer Reading Challenge Printable 2

Below is a chart without the “weeks” filled in so that you can make it work to meet your needs:

Download and Print Summer Reading Challenge Blank Printable

How do your kids do with reading in the summertime? Do they need extra motivation or do they naturally pick up a book and go for it?

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Why I’m Excited About Homeschooling After a Challenging School Year

May 25, 2015 by Laura 14 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

malachi_bug_3

This was Malachi a couple years ago during a math lesson.
You’ll want to read the entire story.

As much as I love schooling our kids at home, I will admit that the past homeschool year was one of the most challenging of all the previous 12 years. Some years are just tough – and this one was a doozy.

God is bigger than all of it, proven by the fact that we not only survived – we graduated our oldest child successfully. He ended his high school career with 24 college credits, persevering through some very difficult online courses with overwhelming expectations. There were many learning curves this year with the ACT, FAFSA, scholarship applications, and weighty decisions to be made. Praise God: we did not die (not even a little bit). There were several times I thought we might. But here we are, kicking and smiling and half passed out on the couch.

It goes without saying, then, that the thought of school coming again in the fall has made me feel a bit woozy. School books? I couldn’t stand the thought. Educating children? Not today, please. Bring on summer break! Yesssssssssssssssss!

While I am praising God for the next several weeks of refreshment and revival – I am also thanking Him for what He just provided. This is actually making me excited about taking on another school year. (After a lovely break, of course.) I wasn’t sure it was possible. But what was I thinking? God always provides the encouragement and resources we need so that we can do what He has called us to do.

I just had a chance to look through all of the packages being offered in the 2015 Biggest Homeschooling Sale of the Year (available this week only). It definitely helps awaken my school book interest simply because all of these are marked down up to 90% off. But it’s not just that. These packages contain so many great items that will bless our 2015-2016 school year.

The 2017 sale is here. Take your time. Have a blast. Equip your family and home with all sorts of learning opportunities at a huge discount! Sale ends May 30, 2017. :)

Praise God with me that He always provides exactly what we need, exactly when we need it. He is faithful.

Are you enjoying summer break? Still, does it just make you a little bit excited for next year when you see all these great resources?!

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Raising Thoughtful, Hardworking, Servant-Hearted Kids

October 8, 2014 by Laura 9 Comments

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You know those kids who don’t think about others, who pout when they don’t get their way, and who sometimes are not even a little bit aware that the world does not revolve around them?

Yeah, those are my kids.

But kids nothin’. That’s me too (all 41 years of me) when I forget what I know to be true. Indeed, God made us in His image, then Satan swooped in and works to destroy all that is good. We are, our kids are, all of us are in a battle. Jesus already won the victory (shout hallelujah!) but Satan works all the harder to win anyway (ever heard the definition of crazy?).

malachi_apple_pie_344

You know those kids who speak politely when spoken to, who aren’t afraid to visit with the older folks at church, who run up ahead to get the door for the lady carrying a box, who happily join the leave-raking crew with the youth group, who sit by the one no one else seems to notice, who remember that their mama likes purple wild flowers and grabs a handful for her whenever possible?

Yeah, those are my kids.

Our boys don’t always get along (see first paragraph). They are not always excited to clean out the dishwasher (see first paragraph). They sometimes do things that make me wonder who in the world raised them and what in the world they could possibly be thinking when they did such a thing (Lord, help us).

crazy family

But after lunch today, as Asa left for his college class he hollered back, “Thanks for lunch, Mom! It was really good.” After church last week, Malachi ran up and hugged one of our ministers and told him he loved him. While we picked apples recently, Justus grabbed the ladder and climbed up so his brothers and I could have the easier job. When the compost bucket overflowed this morning, spilling tomato guts all over the floor, Matt asked Elias to please clean it up before starting school – and he did it…without a complaint, even though he hates tomatoes and their guts.

Oh my dear fellow parents. Our jobs are not easy. In fact, let us, in unison, throw ourselves down onto the carpet as we sprawl out in full surrender. Raising kids is hard – harder than I ever thought, imagined, or read about in books. But we are not alone. We have each other, and more importantly, we serve a God who loves our children like none other. God wants our kids’ hearts, and we can be sure that He is fighting for them. Isn’t that the best parenting news you’ve heard…ever? (Remember this truth the next time your child disobeys you for the 82nd time in one hour. Keep on it, Mama. God’s on your side.)

I have something for you.

See, my kids are mostly big now. Two out of four of them have man voices, and the third is working on his with an occasional crack. Our car insurance rate is growing in scary ways as more drivers of the teen boy variety are being added to our policy. This is where we are now. Car insurance rates aside, I love this place.

It’s easy for me to reflect back on when our boys were little and have regrets about what I wish I would have done differently and better. This is a wonderful way to waste time and be miserable, but do feel free to join me in this activity if you enjoy unproductive awfulness.

I have not parented perfectly, mostly because I’m clueless most of the time and because of that Satan swooping in thing I mentioned above. Welcome to being human, Laura (and everyone else). God is ever gracious and my kids are very forgiving. Here’s how I know this about my kids. While I’ve been busy crying over all my parenting imperfections, here are some recent conversations my boys have started around our dinner table:

“Remember those charts we used to have on the fridge? The ones with the stars or fruit? That was a good idea, Mom. I used to love those.”
“Oh I remember the girl you’re talking about. We took a toy to her on ‘Tt Week‘ when I was little. That was really fun.”
“I used to love it when we made Monkey Bread. I always wanted to be the one to punch the dough.”
“My favorite Blue’s Clues episode was the one where they made the banana bread, and I don’t even like bananas. I just like food. Good thing you like cooking with us, Mom.”

True story. And here I thought they’d surely be offering statements like:

“Mom, remember those times you yelled at me and it wasn’t even my fault?”
“Mom, remember how busy you were those times I wanted you to sit down and play a game with me?”
“Mom, remember how many times you’ve failed me and why I’m going to need counseling and be bitter toward you forever??!!?”

God is so much bigger than you and I!!! Not only that…our kids are amazing! Remember these truths as you parent your babes. You focus on loving them and being Christ-like. The rest will all fall into place. I wish I would have understood this earlier.

So here’s what I have for you. Most of these resources have been available on my site for a very long time. They’ve blessed our family so much – more than I ever realized based on our boys’ teenage hearts looking back at their little boy days. (Thank you, God, for making those convos happen over the past few weeks. You knew my heart needed to hear it.)

I’ve heard from many of you that our Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve curriculum has been a blessing as you’re teaching your kids academic basics and more importantly, the heart of service. I’ve heard how much you’ve enjoyed our Character Charts. I’ve heard how much you’ve loved time in the kitchen with your kids as you teach them cooking skills.

I also know that for some of you, money is holding you back from enjoying these ready-made resources. This week, we’re putting together a package we pray will be a great big blessing to your family – financially, spiritually, and parentingly (don’t forget, I make up words). Check it out…

Bless Your Parenting Packet 2

~~$78.80~~
$49.00

The “Bless Your Parenting” Packet includes:

~ Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve 183 page complete downloadable curriculum kit for early learners, $45.00 value
~ Teaching Your Kids to Cook 111 page downloadable guide and cookbook, $12.00 value
~ What to Do With the Kids in Your Kitchen recipe eBook, $5.95 value
~ Heavenly Homemakers Guide to Holiday Hospitality for Kids eBook, $6.95 value
~ Fill ’em Up Bible Lessons and eCookbook, $5.95 value
~ “Be Imitators” Kid Character Chart, $2.95 value

Total value of this package: $78.80
“Bless Your Parenting” Package Price: $49.00
Time teaching and enjoying your kids: priceless :)

Here’s what we’ve done: We took the price of our Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve down to just $49, then we threw in five other products for just $5 more.

May God bless each of us as we teach, train, and love these children He gave us!

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I Love Being a Mom! It’s Being a Parent That Knocks Me Flat.

January 7, 2014 by Laura 31 Comments

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Oh, my boys. Sometimes at night, I tip-toe into their room and watch them all sleeping like angels. My heart swells, I forget to breathe, and I wonder at a God who could be so amazing as to bless us with such perfect gifts.

When we all play games together, we laugh and hoot and participate in all varieties of crazy antics which means that we’re making memories that we will all hold dear (and will likely bring up during their wedding rehearsal dinners). When we pray together and I hear how they are growing in the Lord, I marvel at their faith. Like Mary, I treasure these things up in my heart.

I remember meeting them for the first time, trying their chosen name on for size, watching them dream. I look back at their baby pictures and can still feel their silky skin and downy hair on my cheek. I revel in the memory. Ooh, baby, I love being a mom.

Yes. Being a mom is glorious. But being a parent? It’s challenging enough to make a no-nonsense military commander pass out cold.

family_4_sm

Ahhhh, motherhood bliss.
As this picture clearly shows, my life as a mom is free of issues such as
sibling arguments, vomit, rules declared to be unfair, and head lice.

Parenting involves so much more than simply being a mom (or a dad). If only it was all about picking out cute little clothes for a baby, giggling with a precious chunky toddler, and snuggling with a little guy who is first learning to read. Those mommy moments are delicious. But teaching a child to obey, training a child to be respectful and to listen, disciplining in love, gracefully handling differences and arguments, being consistent, and growing a child up in the Lord? That takes more work, energy, effort, and ambition than building an ark. Not that I’ve ever built an ark. I mean, how could I? I’ve been too busy trying to parent my kids.

I didn’t quite know what I was signing up for when I became a mom. This parenting gig is hard. Walking our kids through relationships, loving them through heartbreaks, cheering them on through losses, and taking time to listen when we’re so tired we can’t think straight? It’s hard. Developing their character, teaching them to manage money, preparing them to be independent, and having patience with them when we are correcting them again for the same thing we just corrected them for five minutes ago? It’s hard.

It’s much easier to plop the kid in front of the TV to watch shows all day to avoid having to deal with being a parent. It’s much easier to ignore the defiance and bad attitudes so that we don’t actually have to come up with an appropriate discipline for the behavior. Or is it?

Our parenting years are hard, but so is anything else that is worth doing right. The truth is, we’re much more capable of rocking this job than we think we are. After all, God has equipped us. He continues to equip us.

So stand tall. Sit up straight. Muscle up, and put on a confident smile. Our most important role as parents is to surrender ourselves and let God work through us.

And never forget to tip-toe into their rooms at night to admire their adorable sleeping faces. God gave them those faces because He knew how much we’d need the heart-melting reminders of our love for them after we see boogers smeared across the wall above their beds.

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Thanks For Letting Me, Mom

August 31, 2013 by Laura 23 Comments

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Matt had been gone all day with the York College soccer team at an out-of-state game. The boys and I stayed home to get school work done, can tomatoes, and forget to put our shoes where they go. (It happens so regularly that I figure I might as well put it on our to-do list. “Leave shoes in the middle of the living room floor…check.”)

It was late-afternoon, right around Mom’s starting to get really tired and not able to make rational decisions anymore o’clock. The school work was all finished, the tomatoes were in jars and their lids had said “ping.” I was finishing some work at the computer and about to get up to start dinner. That’s when my eight year old asked the question.

“Mom? Can I make a ‘Welcome Home’ sign for Dad and put it on the front door and then can I turn the living room into a Lego Adventure Land by bringing all of my Lego platforms with the Lego guys and the clone bases down and set them up on the big white table in the middle of the floor {by the shoes we didn’t put away} so that when Dad comes home tonight he’ll be so excited and he’ll get to see all of the Lego Adventure stuff we set up and he’ll love it so much!”

With joy, I smiled and grabbed him up in huge bear hug and said that I could think of nothing better so please start bringing down every Lego we own and let’s also get out glitter.

But what I actually did in real life was give him a look which clearly stated, “Did you forget that it is now half past Mom can’t stand the idea of seeing one more mess?” And then out loud I was able to mutter, “Probably not but let me think about it.” Since that was so very nearly a “yes” he ran upstairs to start making Lego zip lines.

After dinner, he brought up his idea again, which had now developed into a bigger attraction since his original idea about transforming our living room wasn’t quite big enough and now the kitchen table and countertops needed to be included as well. Dinner had helped my mental state significantly, but no amount of protein can make me excited about turning 1000 square feet of house into a Lego Adventure two hours before bedtime.

Together we came up with a compromise. He could make the signs for the door. I would help. And he could use the kitchen table if he helped clear it off first and if he promised that I wouldn’t be finding Lego bricks in the butter two weeks from now.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him so excited. Some of his brothers even joined in. They set up the entire table with a Lego Adventure any dad would be pleased to see after being away from home, on the road, and in the hot sun for 16 hours.

Once the set-up was complete and we were headed to bed, Malachi grabbed me and squeezed the life out of my mid-section saying, “Thank you so much for letting me. That was so much fun. Dad is going to love it.”

I am happy to share that not only did saying yes to Malachi’s request bring him much joy, it didn’t even kill me a little bit. Perhaps I should get past my I love how creative you are but can’t we just this once sit down and read books quietly feelings more often.

The next morning, God and I were able to share our quiet time with no less than 47 Lego guys, some of whom were balancing on one leg even better than my yoga instructor.

legos_with_breakfast

Matt had loved his welcome home – from the sign on the door to the Lego Adventure that made us all hold our breakfast plates in our laps as we ate together that morning.

welcome_dad_sign

Would you look at that. We forgot the glitter.

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Gratituesday: The (Less Than) Perfect Day

June 17, 2013 by Laura 16 Comments

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Our boys’ schedules have been pretty full so far this summer with mission trips and camps. Our oldest two have been gone more than they’ve been home, and their summer fun has just begun.

I’m thankful to have them home for a couple of weeks after missing them while they’ve been off having grand adventures. Today, I had a great day planned (in my ideal mind). Malachi and I had appointments in Lincoln, which is about an hour away, and all of the boys needed to do some shopping, which required their feet coming along to Lincoln with me so that they could try on shoes.

Therefore, I thought that having all four of my boys together for a special outing sounded like a perfect way to enjoy time together since we’ve been so scattered for the past few weeks.

Uh-huh. Well, parts of it were fine and fun. And of course, I always love being with my kids even when they don’t act like angels. I don’t always act like an angel either, so I can’t fault them for being less than perfect. But wow. Today was a bit of a doozy.

There were too many feet and too many shoes that needed my “here let me feel your toe” expertise all at the same time – not to mention the fact that some of them weren’t looking at price tags before trying on shoes, so even if the toe was in the right place, it didn’t matter because $59 for a pair of shoes was not going to come close to making the cut. Then while one was trying on shorts, the others didn’t seem to know what to do with themselves so they found ridiculous ways to occupy themselves within the racks of clothes.

That was all before lunch. You don’t want to know what happened after that. I’m not kidding.

I’m sharing this on Gratituesday because while it’s tough to be grateful for a day that didn’t go the way I wanted it to go, and while I’m a bit discouraged and so tired I can barely type, life could be so much worse. It’s all a matter of perspective and hey, I still got to spend the day with all my boys. I’ve learned through parenting that it’s best to let go of the “ideal” and just embrace reality and be thankful for God’s grace. Today (especially the after lunch part) was a lesson in humility. It was good for me (she says as she chokes down pride).

For the record – and I may feel differently after a good night’s rest – I’m not sure I plan to take them shopping ever again so help me…or until their feet grow another shoe size, whichever happens first. So I think I should be good for about another two weeks.

Share how God is working in your life on your blog, then come link up with us here. If you don’t have a blog, be sure to leave a comment letting us know what you’re grateful for! Please read through the Gratituesday Guidelines so that you understand what kinds of posts you can link up to share here. Posts that are linked but do not fit our Gratituesday theme will be deleted.

If you are linking up a blog post for Gratituesday, please copy and paste the following sentence into your post! Thanks!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

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How to Handle a Defiant Child

March 6, 2013 by Laura 64 Comments

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strong_willed

I received this email a few weeks ago:

Hi Laura,

I have a 4 year old who is by nature defiant. I say turn right and he says “no, left.” Everything is a battle from putting on the seat belt to especially bedtime routine. I have other children who are obedient and well-mannered so I know it is his temperment. I am a supernanny queen and do 800 millon consequences to his bad behavior. I am very consistent with following through. It is starting to escalate and affecting me in the home. I’ve started to feel like a failure and started feeling apathetic towards the rest of my responsibilities. Where is the joy? I’m wondering if you had any wisdom on guiding a boys heart?

Well, I will never claim to be a parenting expert, but I do have a few years of experience dealing with strong-willed boys. Here’s what I emailed back:

Rest assured, you are not a failure! Out of four of our boys, three of them were (are) very stubborn and strong-willed. Here are three points I’d like to share:

1. Don’t forget that you are the parent. Don’t feel bad or guilty about insisting on obedience. You win the battle, no matter what – even when it’s hard and exhausting. If you win now when he’s four, you’ll find it much easier to win when he’s bigger. My two most stubborn preschoolers are now my calm, mild mannered teenagers. (We’re still working on the 11 year old, who didn’t become strong-willed until he turned 7. Sheesh! We’re getting there, though.)

2. We have worked with our boys to help them understand this strong will that they have. Having a strong will isn’t a bad thing – not at all. But when one of our sons uses it for ugliness or to defy us – that is bad. We’ve explained that God gave him his strong will (kind of like his very own super power!) to use for good, to stand up for what is right, to be a leader – and helped him understand that he has to be careful to use that super power for God’s glory – not to get his way. If nothing else, maybe this idea will help you as the parent (if it’s too difficult a concept for your 4 year old). A strong will really is a good thing when used properly. Oh, but it’s exhausting sometimes when you’re in the heat of the battle with a child! (Undoubtedly, it’s best to have the full conversation during a calm time, so that you can give quick cues like, “Use your super power for God’s glory!” for the moments your child is struggling to obey.)

3. Obviously, do everything out of love. But when your child is being defiant, don’t feel like you need to coddle, reason with, explain yourself, or ask him “how this makes him feel” (at least generally speaking). I did too much of that, wondering where I had gone wrong to make him behave that way. Therefore, I felt like we needed to discuss his feelings in depth each time he was defying us. Finally, I just realized that the stinker was being downright naughty, just wanted his way, and needed discipline – not discussion. I saved a lot of energy once I realized that – and went straight to consequences because ultimately, that is what he was asking for and needed. Discussion took place later, if necessary. It worked so much better!

And then, any time he is being sweet and kind, praise him and enjoy that time with him. Those happy times will come more and more often, I promise!

What have been your experiences with defiant children? What advice would you give to parents dealing with strong-willed kids?

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The Joy of Boys

August 21, 2011 by Laura 79 Comments

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The following is an article I wrote for our local paper a couple of years ago, but never actually posted here. I’m often asked if I regret not having daughters. Though my life is void of pink hair bows, sweet dresses, paper dolls and braids (all things I dreamed of enjoying with my little girls before God gave me this passel of boys), I can answer truthfully that I do not for a minute doubt that God knew exactly what he was doing when he continued to bless us with boys. My life is full of joy – The Joy of Boys…

The Joy of Boys

When our first baby was born a boy, I was very happy knowing that any other children we would have in the future would be under the protection of an older brother. When our second baby was born a boy, I was glad our oldest son now had a brother to play with. When our third baby was born a boy, I decided that God must have something special in mind for our family. THREE boys?

When I was pregnant with our fourth baby, you can just guess what everyone around me was saying. “Finally going to have a sister for all those boys?” or “I bet you’re sure hoping for a girl this time!”

When our fourth baby was born a boy, they laid him on my chest, and all my husband and I could do was laugh for joy that God had given us yet another son!

Boys are so sweet. Boys love their Mamas like crazy. Boys think their Daddys are the best. Boys….ah boys. Boys bring such joy.

The Joy of Boys

I love how boys play (now that I’m used to it!). Our house is usually noisy, rough and fast – there’s not a lot of tip-toeing or sitting down quietly to color pictures at the table.

Generally…I find that the male greeting (between my boys and all of their friends who come over to play) has little to do with words and a lot to do with grabbing onto and pulling one another down to the floor into an immediate wrestling match.

I’ve learned to look the other way, smile, and shake my head about so many things that I used to fear would turn into a trip to the Emergency Room. Boys play rough – they can’t help it. They make noise. It oozes out of their pores. Rolls of wrapping paper become swords or light sabers. Toast and grilled cheese sandwiches are chewed into the shape of little guns. Math books become drums. Little pink erasers become race cars.

Everything (everything) becomes a competition: who can finish their milk first, who can put their jammies on the fastest, who can get from the kitchen to the living room without touching the floor.

It’s one big, loud, ball game at our house all day long – and I wouldn’t trade it for all tea parties in Boston.

I consider it a huge honor to be the mama of boys. Boys who we pray will grow up and be Godly leaders some day. Boys who we pray will be Godly husbands and daddys some day.

Oh, and some day, when my boys grow up and get married…I’ll have daughters. I’ll take them shopping and we’ll cook and do hair together.

Until then, I’ll just continue to feed mountains of mashed potatoes and huge stacks of pancakes to all these boys while they make all the noises with their armpits that they are so good at making and while they laugh at all the things boys can’t help but think are funny.

They are…boys.

Boys who have completely and totally won my heart.

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Do You Have Time to Home School?

August 10, 2011 by Laura 112 Comments

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geographysm

How do I find the time to home school my kids?

This is a question I’ve heard quite a bit recently from some who are considering home schooling – or from several who looked at our home school schedule for this year and felt overwhelmed.

Yikes, I sure didn’t mean to overwhelm anyone. Nor did I mean to make you picture me slaving away beside my children all day. I simply shared my schedule because many requested to see it, and because I personally needed to outline my day for the sake of my own organization.

What you need to know is that while we try to hold to this “ideal routine”, there is lots of wiggle room in there. I schedule in thirty minutes each day to read History/Geography to my two middle boys, but sometimes it only takes ten minutes of my time before they take off on their own to finish the lesson. Sprinkled all throughout our routine is plenty of dish washing, cooking, laundry folding and other household chores. I just school my kids around and during our daily life activities. And guess what? They are home to help me with these chores, which means I can actually accomplish more while we home school than if they were away at school!!! Mwoohaha – their laundry folding ability is the real reason I like having them home with me all day. (Not really.) (Except that it really is nice.)

asamathsm

I truly don’t believe that home schooling has created extra work in my life. Yes, it is work. Yes, I have to put forth the effort and spend dedicated time educating my children.

But I’ve been reading to and teaching my kids since they were newborns, and I didn’t consider that “home schooling”. I considered it parenting.

When our oldest son became a home schooled kindergartner, not much changed in our lives. We continued to read together and squeeze in all varieties of lessons and activities during the days, just like we had done before – working around nap times and meal times and play times and grocery store visits and all life activities.

I do have to schedule home schooling into my days, so that we can be more productive. But what I don’t have to schedule in? Getting my kids up and out the door with matching shoes and combed hair each morning by 8:00 (or earlier). Driving my kids to and from school. Preparing and packing lunches. Figuring out how to be a room mom (especially back when I had napping babies at home). And homework. When I hear my friends talk about how much time they spend helping their kids with homework at the end of each school day, I often think, “Wow – we spend the same amount of time (or less) on our entire school day.”

Because we’re so flexible and laid back about our home school routine – I actually consider my life to be quite “cushy” and easy compared to moms who have to get up at the crack of dawn to get their kids off to school, and stay up late with them finishing the reports and projects have to be turned in. I personally consider my home schooling life to be easier than the alternative, simply because I get to run the day the way I want to run the day.

So yes. I have time to home school, and it’s not because I have more hours in my day or more patience with my kids or more energy than any other mom. I am simply doing what I’ve always done with my kids – except for instead of reading books about shapes and gingerbread men and the little engine that could, we’re now reading about the constitution and the way a marsupial feeds its young.

I love it.

P.S. Did you know that you could fit twenty baby opossums onto a teaspoon? That’s how tiny they are when they are born before they crawl into their mama’s pouch to continue their development. We read about that just today. See how smart I’m getting to be?

This post was written in an effort to dispel some of the many misconceptions or fears people might have about taking on the task of home schooling. As with all my home school posts, my intention is to simply share my thoughts and offer encouragement – not to convince everyone that home schooling is the best and only way to educate your kids. You do what you do, and I’ll do what I’ll do and we’ll all do it to the glory of God!

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Keep The Kids Reading This Summer

Here is the Peppernut recipe – you’ll want to give these a try!

Total value of this package: $78.80 “Bless Your Parenting” Package Price: $49.00 Time teaching and enjoying your kids: priceless :)

May God bless each of us as we teach, train, and love these children He gave us!

The Joy of Boys

Total value of this package: $78.80
“Bless Your Parenting” Package Price: $49.00
Time teaching and enjoying your kids: priceless :)