Designing a home-centered life: learning, exploring, and creating with our five littles
Our morning collective consists of basically the same 4 elements every day. With children ages 8 through 16, it is still one of my favorite homeschool routines! It is getting trickier to do as high school schedules encroach more, but I'd rather give up other things than this. Learning together is one of my big WHYs for homeschooling, so we keep it … [Read more...]
Tips from homeschooling moms who are in the know. Having snacks available will make every day go smoother. And that's not just true for the kids. :) Here is a short list of our favorites - Protein bites - we make these in batches & stock our freezer with them. Once they're made, I have a hard time keeping them around, because everyone (but … [Read more...]
My oldest and I just completed his year as a Classical Conversations Challenge B student, and my first year directing Challenge B. As I begin preparations for next year's crop of students, I thought it might be helpful to share what we've learned here. (Really, sharing it was a suggestion from a friend. Thanks, Candra!) Typically, in the summer, … [Read more...]
These favorite toys are the ones our children reach to play with again and again. They also don't break easily. Unless I specify otherwise, we've owned these toys for at least a year and most for much, much longer. Over the door basketball hoop - Y'all, we live where the temperatures drop so low your fingers hurt if you play outside in the … [Read more...]
Growing up, my family lit the candles of the advent wreath each night at dinner. Beginning 4 Sundays before Christmas, the same candle was lit every day for a week. The second week, that first candle plus one more was lit, so by the time we reached Christmas all 4 candles in the ring were lit. On Christmas morning, we also lit the center candle. … [Read more...]
photo credit: Maeve Photo Film In our family, we have children ages 5 - 14. Finding games we all enjoy playing together can be tricky, especially with a non-reader in the group. But, thankfully, over the years we have formed quite a collection of favorites. Playing them together are some of my most favorite moments. Here they are: Q-Bitz and … [Read more...]
Every year we set up our advent calendar and my children eagerly wait for me so they can open it each morning. Behind every little door, I put a slip of paper with a secret idea that we'll enjoy that day. I include family traditions, day trips, special activities, food treats, and gifts or ideas for others. Over the years, I've learned to make … [Read more...]
This was our (Creation, Christmas - twice, Noah, Jonah, Moses, and Samson) eighth visit to Sight and Sound Theatres with our family over the years. We have not once been disappointed! Our children are now ages 5, 8, 10, 12, and 13, but we have been taking them since they were babies on our laps. For this trip, Sight and Sound Theatres … [Read more...]
For our children's birthdays, we decided years ago to take them on a date with just mom and dad instead of giving gifts. It has become one of our favorite family traditions. This year we took our newly minted 12 year old to Treetop Quest in Philly. It's, as they say, an "aerial adventure park" containing 5 obstacle and zip line courses. It … [Read more...]
In the last two weeks, we started our second year of junior high with my oldest. We participate in Classical Conversations, so he is in Challenge B. (And I'm his director! First year Challenge director!) Last year it was really important for me to maintain our shared learning environment in some form, even though he was moving on to more advanced … [Read more...]