“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” – Romans 14:17 Parenting is so much harder than I ever thought it would be. I was, in fact, woefully unprepared for the whirlwind that three boys and a little girl can […]

Preschool Curriculum: A Year of Playing Skillfully I love this play based curriculum because it aligns so well with the kind of education we are going for at The Orchard. Joyful, playful learning that is hands on and engages the brain and body in a variety of forms. There are monthly themes and our lead […]

My kids tend to move slower through their curriculum so we have always “schooled” through the summer to allow that flexibility during the year. The problem is, every year when the end of May rolls around we are all ready for a break or a change at least. This summer, instead of continuing our usual […]

Whatever your style of homeschool or parenting, connection is the foundation to fruitfulness. I have found this to be true as a mother, teacher, and mentor. It is the way God parents us. The more connected we are with Jesus the more natural it is to follow His lead and bear fruits of the Spirit. […]

As homeschool moms, we spend so much time with our kids. That’s the goal, right? But it can also leave us feeling stretched very thin. We have so much responsibility on us to get it all done. We provide our children’s education, make sure they see friends, take them to their classes, co-ops, and sports. […]

Gift buying around Christmas time can be very overwhelming, especially if you are trying to go easy on the toys and buy for multiple children. Years ago, I landed on aiming for a 1-2 books, an item of clothing, a game/puzzle, art supplies, and a few open ended type toys per child. This has decreased […]

What do you do when your child just refuses to do the work or simply is not grasping the concepts the way you are explaining it to them? This can feel like such an impasse in our homeschool and cause alot of frustration and disconnection between us and our child. This is something that comes […]

We dove into our Native American study with gusto and it did not disappoint! There is truly so much to discover and learn about the many people groups that were the first Americans. Some of the main points we landed with the kids were that we should not lump all Native Americans into one people […]

5 Steps to Creating a Daily Homeschool Routine for Kids with Free Canva Template If you have been homeschooling for any length of time you have probably found yourself craving a plan, schedule, routine, ANYTHING, to anchor your day. My family has been through many MANY iterations of what our homeschool day looks like. Between […]

You may have heard that it is important to start with vision when it comes to homeschool planning. While I agree with this wholeheartedly, I often find that starting with vision feels vague and difficult to land practically. What does that mean? I heard a talk years ago that I have found myself coming back […]