Homeschooling When Your Heart Isn’t In It

Taking time to play Right now, I’m struggling. Really struggling. I’m struggling with a pile of anniversary dates related to my son’s short life and his tragic death. I’m struggling to get up and start each day with any sort of schedule or plan or lesson. I’m struggling to keep my oldest daughter...

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Homeschooling When Your Heart Isn’t in It: It’s OK Not to Homeschool

We were supposed to start Ptolemy on Monday, not sit in a funeral home trying to decide if we wanted the white casket or the brown casket to bury our twenty-one month old son. I remember because for a few confused and panicked hours, I clung to Ptolemy, to what I was supposed to do, to what I had planned to do, to the one...

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Learning More Deeply by Learning Less

Running a quick errand, fiddling with the radio, the children chattering in the back and I caught a glimpse of motion ahead and to the right. Not perceiving exactly why, I stopped the car and waited. Slowly, cautiously, a deer emerged from the underbrush and just stood at the side of the road, seemingly as captivated by me as I...

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In Search of Home

I finally get a chance to sit down and write this at midnight the day after it is due. A baby who fell asleep in the car in the late afternoon is standing at my knee, singing and far from sleep. I hear restless tossing downstairs, a fuss and the familiar cry of my three year old. Then my son walks into the restroom and throws...

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Control the Chaos: Go on an Emu Walk!

We recently moved to five acres in the country, and the children use every square inch of it. Believe me, it shows. I’ve found blankets in the windbreak, dishes in the pasture, boots in the barn and juice boxes stuck in the hedge. Never mind the toys strewn about. At least they actually belong out there, though they are...

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A Simple Walk

The sky begins to lighten, though the sun has not yet breached the horizon. I look out the window toward the chicken coop, wonder how much they care about having their coop opened up when there’s still snow on the ground, think about sinking back into the comforter and enjoying the warmth. Mattias is standing in his...

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Goodbye plans, hello goals!

With several feet of snow on the ground and subzero temperatures, Mouse turned to the wrapping paper she had saved from Christmas for diversion. She measured and plotted, using a magnifying glass to help sketch the details as she mapped out a fantasy world that would make even Tolkein proud. Late last year, she decided to...

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Kid-Friendly Recipes from Dana

Appointments, activities, homeschooling…and lunch. When my calendar begins to fill up, my standard for a “good” lunch is (homemade) macaroni and cheese. By standard, I do not mean our staple, but that the lunch should be at least as nutritious, at least as quick and at least as well-liked by the children. Here I share...

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Developing Christian Character Through Gardening, a unit study

When Jesus taught, he often used object lessons drawn from the everyday experiences of His audience: drawing water from a well, making bread, a wedding celebration, the harvest, etc. These experiences were an integral part of the culture of Jesus’ day, giving His listeners practical examples of the spiritual principles He...

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To Please My Husband

My personal journey toward finding God in my marriage In November of 1998, I looked into the eyes of my newborn daughter and fell in love. My whole worldview began to change. My whole life I had intended on working, sending my children to daycare, advancing my career, and providing my children a “rich” educational...

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