Tag Archives: simplify

scent-sibility

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Last spring, a group of friends gathered at my place and made up a few batches of soap and other homemade skincare products.  Isabel helped out with this recipe.

Four months later and this supply is still going strong (although you do want to keep this out of hot bedrooms in the summer months-we learned that one the messy way!)  Really, it’s a must-try! Inexpensive to make, with simple ingredients that we always have on hand- and it really works.

For today, I’m over at The Laundry Moms - come visit for the full scoop on how to make some for yourselves!

Do you use any homemade or all-natural skin care products?  Any favorite recipes to share?

We Have a Grad- Part 2

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I need to preempt this post with a couple thoughts that came to me while I stood in the shower last night… (my favorite place for clear thinking!)
1) I have many, many friends & family members who are teachers in both private and public settings. They are dedicated to their profession, pour out love, encouragement and wisdom to their students and make a huge impact on their local and global communities. I have total respect for the vital role that educators and school administrators have as they influence the minds and futures of the children and their families.  It’s a huge responsibility.
2) I have many, many friends who have chosen to have their kids go to public or private schools for their education, for a variety of reasons. I love them, love their kids and never judge the path of education another family mindfully chooses.

The last thing I want is to sound like I have a prescriptive, one-size-fits-all formula for education!  I just want to share our story. It’s evolving and I certainly don’t know what the future holds for our family. I do know what has worked for us so far- and in sharing that, I hope some of you will leave encouraged to fully jump into whatever route of educating your kids that you are feeling most excited about.  We have so many options available to us and more support than ever- the sky is really the limit with how you want the childhood years to look!  OK- back to Part 2 of our story (check back to Part 1 if you missed it yesterday!)

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grad night- fun for all…

As we worked through the primary years, and added a few more homeschoolers to the mix, we always thought that the kids would end up doing high school at the local public high school. It had a great reputation. The students worked independently on a self-paced program, and it seemed like the perfect place to transition to. And the best part was that my hubs Al, had been teaching there for a number of years, and was looking forward to having our own kids enter his classroom.

As the years ticked by, our desire to continue homeschooling grew. We loved how connected we felt to our kids, and how they were becoming such capable, intelligent, inspiring and fun-loving people to have around! After all the early years invested, it seemed crazy to send them off at this stage. Why now- just when it was really getting good?

When we made the decision, alongside our older kids to carry on schooling at home into the high school years, Al made a decision as well to leave his job after 11 years in the public high school system. He began teaching full-time from home, and we felt like we’d arrived- living the dream! No dashing out the door every single day and no fewer dangling conversations that had to wait for hours (or days) to be finished. Home for breakfast, home for lunch, time for an extra cup of coffee in the morning.

For us, this season of change was all about realizing that one of our highest values as a family is time. Time to simply BE with one another, doing life and pursuing our own dreams on our own schedule, and less according to someone else’s goals and needs that just may not line up with our own.  Time for our kids to explore, play, build, create, draw and climb trees.

Sounds idyllic doesn’t it?  You know, it many ways it is…but I wouldn’t be telling the full story without sharing some of the flip side.   More on that tomorrow!

Stories can can alter the course of someone’s life- and we need to hear them.  I’d LOVE to hear yours!  What made you decide to homeschool- or not?  What are your highest values as a family, and in raising your kids? Do share! 

We need one another.