Encouragement 101- 5 Day Blog Hop

Welcome to our last day of 5 Days of Homeschool 101!

Can I just take the liberty of addressing ALL the moms out there?  After all, we are moms first and teachers second.

Days can be hard, life has troubles.  None of us, no none of us, have it easy.  

Just because you may not see it does not mean that others are not dealing with "stuff." We all have STUFF!

So here is my simple encouragement to you.

You are not alone!  Ever.  The Bible says there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9) I believe this is true for many things, including our worldly problems.  It may be new to you, but it is not new.  Someone else has experienced it, therefore you are NOT alone!

Someone cares! A spouse, a friend, a co-worker, someone.  But more importantly, God.  Really, He does. 1 Peter 5;7 says, "...casting all your anxieties on him, because He cares for you."

School is just a little detail.  Or work.  Or that other problem you are dealing with.  Whatever it is, it is not the end-all-be-all.  Deal with what you can the best you can and move forward.  In the end, most of the things we worry about are just mere seconds of our lives.

Nothing is forever.  Not the math problem you are trying to teach or the overwhelming problem you are facing.  Not anything of this world.  Only our faith in Jesus Christ and our submission to Him will allow us anything eternal.

If this is your first year to homeschool, I would encourage you to have fun.  Enjoy your time with your child and don't stress over the little details that don't matter in the end.  

If you are embarking on what seems like your 100th year of homeschooling, let me cheer you on to finish the race strong.  You are indeed making a difference in your child's life.

If you are are not a homeschooler but need encouragement in some other aspect of your life, I am honored to be your personal cheerleader!  Consider this your "you can do it" speech!  If you need it to be more personalized, contact me and I will make that happen!

Regardless of your needs- be encouraged!  You are loved!

Blessings, 

Traditions 101- 5 Day Blog Hop

Welcome to day 4 of the 5 Days of Homeschool 101!  We are thrilled you are back!

Today is all about traditions and so I am going to start with a little confession.

I am not big into traditions.  At all.  Call me lazy or just a bad mom, but we tend to change things around a lot and don't adhere to many traditions.  But there are some fun ones out there for homeschooling and IF I was going to be inspired here's what I would do-

Assign each child a color for the year.  Ok, this one I do, but only recently.  Color coding notebooks and school supplies is fun and relatively easy as long as you are smart on your color choice.  That's about where my traditions stop.

Make a special breakfast.  I have seen some moms go all out on this, even taking the children out for a fun breakfast.  I love the idea, just never do it.

Take first day of school pictures.  I know, I know, bad on my part, but it doesn't happen here.  I do, however, look at all the cute pictures you all post on Facebook and feel bad for my kids!

Celebrate the 100th day of school.  Yes, I do keep track of what day we are on, but not once have we treated it any differently.  Again, I love all of the fun ideas I see online, but the thought of collecting 100 of anything goes against my 34 Days of Clean principles and makes me cringe.

Celebrate the holidays.  OK, we do celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas and Easter but after that, not so much.  When I taught preschool I actually gave thought to Valentines Day, St. Patrick's Day, Presidents Day and such, but now, not so much.  I do dream of a theme decorated room and love seeing yours! ;)

Take off the child's birthday.  Yay me!  I have been known to do this occasionally.  When it fits my schedule well.  Again, I love the idea, but the thought of taking off a random day in the middle of the week makes me cringe.

I am sure there are so many more, but for the sake of my pride I will stop.  I also want you to still like me!  :)  The point is, traditions can be fun and if they fit your family, then have at it!  

Enjoy your time, but most importantly, enjoy your kids!

Blessings,

Home Management 101- 5 Day Blog Hop

Welcome to Day 3 of the Schoolhouse Review Crew's 5 Days of Homeschool 101 Blog Hop.  If you missed our posts about Curriculum and Planning, we would love for you to catch up!

Home Management... I have a love- hate relationship with those two words.  On one hand, I love calendars and charts and organization.  When my home looks and feels peaceful, I look and feel peaceful.  On the other hand, sometimes getting to that peaceful place can be a hard road.

Anyone else agree?

Take for example- many moms do their housework during the day when their children are at school.  Not a judgement, just a fact.  For homeschoolers, that "down" time is not quiet, it is full of lessons and tests and experiments and art and...well, you get the point.  My time is not my own during the day.

It takes work to get it all done.  A little planning and some ingenuity keeps our life semi-organized. So how does a homeschooling mom succeed on the Home Management front?  

Wake up first! If I can get just a few things done before the kids wake up I feel like I am one step ahead.  This was especially true when I had littles in the house.  If I could get quiet time in before little feet hit the floor, I felt like the day was a success.

Assign chores! You cannot do it all!  There, I said it.  Our rule is chores first and then breakfast.  No, they are not my personal slaves, but yes, they are a part of this team.  And teams work together to get things done.  Like laundry and dishes!

Meal plan! Even working moms will tell you that dinner is the hardest meal.  After a long day, whether in your home or outside of it, when you are ready to start dinner is not the time to pull out a pound of frozen beef and decide what to do with it.  I also cook and freeze breakfast foods on the weekends for the kids to pull out of the freezer to reheat on school days.  There is no need to be elaborate but you must be deliberate!  

Love your crockpot! There is nothing easier than popping meat into a crockpot and pushing start in the morning.  Not only will your house smell good but when it is time to eat you will have very little dinner prep left.  

Keep a family calendar! And more importantly, hang it where everyone can see it.  We tend to color code activities and appointments, but you do not have to be that crazy.  Just put all the activities in one place so there are no last minute surprises.  When everyone knows the plan for the day, life tends to go more smoothly.

Minimalize activities! Yes, your child can do three sports and have two lessons, but do they really need to?  Unfortunately the more kids you have and the more activities they are in the crazier your life will be.  Just do the math.  By limiting our children's activities we hope to teach them that our family is priority over anything else.  It is that good, better, best principle- concentrate on the best.

Simplify Life- One thing I learned through our 34 Weeks of Cleaning series was that more things in our lives and homes not only cluttered the living space but cluttered our heads.  When my house is a mess, I feel out of control.  When mom feels out of control, the kids usually follow next.  It is a crazy cycle that can just run out of control.  The less clutter we have surrounding us, the fewer un-needed activities we participate in, and the more we focus on our family and those we love, the better our house runs and the happier we are.

Home Management may seem like a monumental task to many, but it is a task you can conquer...or at least tame!  By taking control of your home, you can have more control of your life.  And your kids will be blessed!

Blessings,