Mama and Mud {FMF}

by Meghan // May 12, 2017 // Comments off

tears, strength, joy

smile lines, and sparkles

stretch marks, sun spots

love, snuggles, and books.

memories made

Mama, thank you

Clearly I am not a poet. =)

I asked my kids what are a few words they think of when they hear the word mama.

These were a few of their words, plus a few I added of my own (stretch marks clearly wasn’t thought of by my children). When Lexie said thank you, I could’ve cried.

Being a mama is so multifaceted. It is emotional, and fun, and life changing. But the best part is raising people that become adults whom one day you can look at and say, “I like this person!” I hope we get to those adult years. For now, I like them a lot most of the time. 😉

I hope they grow up to be respectful, honest, God loving adults with a real relationship with Jesus. Until then I will continue loving, and teaching them … and fussing about the muddy clothes piled up in the garage. (which I am very, very thankful for)

As my husband tells me

“We are so blessed to have happy, mischievous kids … Those muddy footprints are memories made.”

mama and mud- the mischievous 2 year old

rainy evening fun

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Friday on The Farm {Babies, Babies, Babies!}

by Meghan // May 1, 2017 // Comments off

Ok y’all, I know it isn’t Friday. =) But I didn’t have time this past Friday to write anything, so here I am on a Monday evening writing about a wonderful day I had with my kiddos.

Spring has been around the farm for a while, but it is finally LOOKING a LOT like spring, and the babies GALORE prove it.

Oh the beauty! The grass is green, there is a nice breeze, the garden is GROWING, the chickens are happy, the dogs are laying, the sun is shining, and the kids picked up their wagons and toys so the yard is semi-clutter-free. =)

the meat chickens in tractor coop, just before we moved them to a new area with fresh grass

These are our new baby chicks! we have 3, but left one in the brooder with a fellow left over chick … there is a story here.

We ordered 60 meat chickens, they sent about 65 or so + one lone little “exotic” (they’re usually roosters). So we have 55 or so meat chickens left, living out in the tractor coop so they can pasture. But we had this one little chick who is much smaller than the Big old waddling meat chickens, and s/he needed another chick with it, (because they don’t do well alone). Initially husband said no; after a trip to the farm store this weekend with the kids they came home with 3 silver laced wyandotte pullets.

So here are two of them.

What else …

The garden is coming along so great! I really need to look up how to harvest lettuce. I am most excited about what we planted this year. We are doing a lot of plants we either haven’t done in years or have never done, including broccoli, okra, watermelon, cantaloupe, sugar snap peas, banana peppers, lettuces, and cabbage! We also planted some daikon radishes from seed (hoping they come up), so I have everything for my fermented kraut except carrots (which aren’t worth the time they take to grow haha).

the compost bin (which we will soon be updating, somehow) and the Arkansas rose bush that we have literally moved all over this country)

I think these are the cabbages …

peas that will hopefully grow up the trellis

my little lettuces! I’m so excited about them

We’ve been enjoying lots of asparagus and eggs.

Oh! EGGS! Ya’ll! My mammy duck is broody! One of the really dark campbell ducks (possibly a cayuga cross), spent a month laying eggs and getting her nest all … nest-ed. About 8-10 days ago she started sitting! I’ve only caught her off one time and it was too bright out to candle the eggs, so I still don’t know if they are any good. Drake Campbells only have a 30% fertility rate, so unless some of those 18+ eggs are crossed with our pekin drakes, there probably aren’t many fertile eggs.

Anyway, I am excited! Hopefully we will have ducklings in a few more weeks (or 3…).

And, speaking of baby things-this little one here is Heidi. She is our 12 week old Great Pyrenees. (I think I mentioned in a previous post that Anne had a lot of genetic issues with her mouth and jaws so she was returned. She should have never been sold to begin with … anyway).

Heidi is pretty dang cute, and feisty … and nothing like Huck! haha She has a lot to learn. Like, a lot. But she will get there, just slower than Huck I think, mostly because she is truly puppy. Huck has always been an old man. He does a good job of keeping her in line and teaching her about pack manners and such.

Sometimes he literally just lays on her lead so she can’t keep pouncing off. haha (see the 2nd picture below)

I can ask Huck, “Where’s your puppy?!” and he will almost always go right to her and just lay on her. =) So far she is learning to do okay around the chickens. She doesn’t chase or play when around them, but when in the pen part of the chicken run she will try to chase through the pen. So that behavior has to stop. I am working on it, and will let you know how that goes.

He most definitely interacts with Heidi differently than he did Anne, which is interesting to me. He knows she is different in character and treats her as such. They’re such awesome dogs.

Each of my babies and me today:

We spent the afternoon doing chores, loving on dogs, chicks, and cats, then rolled the ball back and forth. Dinner was in the oven and everything was perfect … then the cows got out. That was frustrating and exciting and exhausting. But they’re back in now. Stubborn hamburgers. I love them dearly, and I will miss them after freezer camp, but am looking forward to a freezer full of grassfed, hormone free beef for my family.

he started acting all wild and barn-catty right after this … cause he’s a barn cat

dirty babies and chicks!

Mornings With Jesus

by Meghan // April 10, 2017 // Comments off

(Written in January 2017, published in April)

I heard God telling me he knew my hurt, he knew my disappointment and sadness.

Then I heard His promise- he would fulfill the desires of my heart. He wasn’t going to get the job done half way.

He wouldn’t provide a home, the little farm, the body and ability for hard work, and then just leave the rest unfulfilled.

He will provide that fellowship- but first I have to find it in Him.

And I did. This week I started back to getting up early, reading a devotional from Youversion, and following along in my Bible. Then journaling and praying about it. Trying to keep that intention through my day.

It is amazing what the Word of God can do in your spirit when you just give Him a few minutes every morning.

Thankfully, the baby’s eating & nap schedule has lengthened a bit; she has gone from a 3.5 hour to 4 hour routine, which means instead of my day being broken up into a million little 10-25 minute segments (between feedings, making meals, doing school, picking up, etc), I now have longer stretches between.

I was wondering why it seemed so hard to get everything squeezed into our day around here, and now I realize why! When baby moves to a 4 hour schedule life is so. much. easier. (this usually happens between 4-6 months of age.)

This gives me more time in the morning to read to the kids, do devotionals, get our morning basket time in. *yay* I thought we were getting into a groove before, but now we are REALLY getting there! YAY

I am thankful for my early mornings, my precious husband that wakes me up sweetly and has the coffee brewing before my feet hit the floor, and an Almighty that wants me to succeed, and be the best mama I can be.

How Do You Do Your Mornings?

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When Jesus Finds You

by Meghan // April 4, 2017 // Comments off

If someone had told me when I was 18, that the man I just met would one day be my husband, that we would go on adventures together and have all the same loves; that we would one day have 4 babies, a small farm, and be blessed beyond measure, I would have told them they were crazy.

I never imagined the partying, depressed, anxious, and shy girl who was that 18 year old, would become the 31 year old I am today. I am not done, rather God is not done, and He makes that perfectly clear every day as he uses my children, marriage, and dreams-come-true to smooth out my rough edges.

But I lived to tell about that girl. I lived to tell about the bad choices, and the sadness, the broken family that still gave so much love; I lived to tell about the friends who didn’t live to tell about it.

Not to be dramatic, but that could’ve been me. I was one bad choice away from being a statistic, like my brother, my best friend, and many, many other people I have known.

I think God has plans, He knows all. His end goal is the same, how we get there and whether we get there or not, is up to us. Free will and all…

But God can redeem it all. He can redeem the heart and soul of every person on this planet for his Glory. He surely redeemed my life.

Growing up, maturing, did a lot for my heart. Marriage and learning to grow together with someone did too. But after my brother died, I wrote God off (I think I have written about that before). I knew He was there, I knew He existed, but I wanted nothing to do with Him. I didn’t really have a relationship with Jesus, so it was easy to write off God.

And then I got pregnant- unexpectedly, in the middle of my last year at university, J.Tom and I found ourselves expecting a baby. I was terrified, unsure, not ready for a baby, wasn’t even sure I even wanted kids, and God threw me for a real loop.

It was through that baby that I found Jesus.

And it has been through her, and each pregnancy and baby after, that He has worked in my life, so that I may work in theirs. I couldn’t be a good mama to them, if I didn’t have Jesus.

Maybe He found me, while I was wandering aimlessly for those several months, and at my most vulnerable grabbed me, shook me awake, and made me realize what was at stake. A life. Another human life was going to depend on me, and what was I going to teach her?

What was the world about?

What was the world NOT about?

What was life?

What would I tell her?

Jesus.

Jesus is life.

And the only way to prove that to her, to all of the world, is to live it.

I don’t live it perfectly; I make so many mistakes. But reading the Word, talking the Word, worshiping Him with my babies each morning during morning basket, all helps get my feet where they should be so the kids and I can all stand firm in Him.

He meets us where we are, no matter where that might be.

How do you get your day started with Jesus? Where in life did He meet you?

Disclaimer: Some links on this blog are affiliate links; when you use those links you help support my family, at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

Homeschool and Childhood: Am I Doing It Right?

by Meghan // March 26, 2017 // Comments off

Several years back I described our homeschool as a Charlotte Mason/Classical approach.

We probably lean more in both of those directions, but I am finding more and more we are very eclectic. We use *everything* to school, focusing on living books for most things, but preferring a math curriculum, and a bit more structure than unschooling.

But, I am not here to talk about how we school.

I am here to encourage you in however YOU school.

I don’t prescribe to a “schedule” for our lessons; we have a general rhythm, a routine, that works. The baby’s naps and feeding times are schedule, as are all other naps and meals. Everything works around that.

Routine = peace here.

But recently (maybe since baby was born? or no… since Christmas?) I have stopped requiring so much of my son, 4.5yo and toddler, 2.5yo. I *thought* I was doing more justice to their childhood by not doing school so much with them and letting them play freely all morning.

*INSERT EYE ROLL HERE*

Yall- people mean well, friends, fellow homeschoolers, ME, we all mean well.

But just because someone says that it works for them, and they believe it is best, doesn’t mean that it is best for your family.

——–

I have high expectations of my kids, as I am sure most people do. I believe kids meet the expectations that we lay in front of them. Expectations should be challenging but not frustrating; not easy, but still something they need to put effort into. They should also include lots of play. It’s so important to make sure children have a good work/play balance. When homeschooling, it can be more difficult to do this, but there are always ways to separate schoolwork from playtime. When it is time for the kids to relax, try doing something they want to do, such as going on the games console and playing super smash bros brawl iso, for example. That is a good way for children to enjoy their time at home, without it feeling like a place where they have to be constantly focused on their schoolwork.

Somehow in the past few months I managed to forget that play CAN look like school, and that school can look like play without it being chaotic free play.

One of the main points taught in my teaching program, which was largely spent logging hours and observations in the preschool room in our University’s child center, is that play can be semi-structured. Play can be guided by an adult with rules and boundaries, but enjoyed freely by a child.

And explorative play can be controlled chaos. (thank you for that term, college professor who had years of classroom experience)

And when ~~you~~ I have 4 kids, each 2 years a part, by golly, we need some dang boundaries, structure within the routine.
I can’t expect a 4 and 2yo to stay inside those boundaries completely on their own every day while I school the oldest. (I know- DUH, right?) But somehow I stopped doing what I know, and began doing what others said was good?!

My point is, please, please, please do not let anyone, even well meaning friends or acquaintances, make you feel like you are doing something wrong because they are justifying or suggesting how they do things.

When You Doubt … or Forget

Re evaluate your own goals and beliefs about education- they probably don’t line up exactly with many other people, and that is okay! That’s why we homeschool, right?

When I looked around our home (and reflected on recent days) I realized we ALL felt chaotic and out of control, there was unnecessary stress and behaviors that didn’t make sense, and it all pointed back to structure for us.

Instead of heeding advice from people who don’t need the same structure we do I should have just kept on with what we were doing, because THAT works for us.

We are happy in our structured, eclectic homeschooling home; my kids excel there, my only boy who is not so independent all of the time feels included and it keeps him from getting bored (aka, in trouble), they all get more time with mama at the table which equals happiness. It’s where we learn, where we find rabbit holes and I feel comfortable enough to follow them because I have a structure to come back to.

Our home is structured, but our days are relaxed and peaceful when my kids know what to expect (oh my gosh, how many times have I written that on this blog?! Maybe 25 … maybe more).

So why did I stray from what I knew the last few months?

I can’t say with certainty. But I do know, that sometimes you have to block out the noise and seeds of doubt no matter where they come from. Stay the course and do what works, as long as it true and good.

Maybe I am just writing this as a reminder to myself, because it will surely happen again.

We really don’t need others validations, we really should do what works for us, and the more we know our children the better we can educate them, regardless of what that looks like from the outside.

So here we are mamas, almost to the end of the school year for many (we keep going through June). Be encouraged, be excited, enjoy your time with your children.

Know you are doing it right.

Disclaimer: Some links on this blog are affiliate links; when you use those links you help support my family, at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

Validation- Why You Don’t Need It

by Meghan // March 14, 2017 // Comments off

It is everywhere- parenting advice, opinions, ideas, philosophies.

To homeschool or not
To sleep train or not
To feed them a SAD (standard american diet) diet or not
To breastfeed or not
To give battery and flashing toys or not
To cloth diaper or not
To use essential oils or not
To free range or not
To go organic only or not
and the list. goes. on.

You get the point. Everyone has an opinion, including my husband and I.

But I don’t need to make YOU feel bad about your decision, in order to validate mine.

“VALIDATE- the action of making or declaring something legally or officially acceptable.”

I am in a mommy group on FB, which is generally very supportive, and open. The mamas in there all come from different backgrounds but we all have one thing in common: we believe sleep is healthy and important for baby, and we want what is best for our children, even when family and friends don’t understand why we make the decisions we do.

This mama posted last week about a friend commenting that (paraphrasing here): Your baby is really happy, and not to alarm you, but a baby that is happy all the time can be a sign of mental health issues.

Um- EXCUSE ME?!

First, there is no data anywhere in the world that supports that statement.

But also, the mama making this statement had a fussy child that was generally making people (his mother included) miserable at a party because he was so unsatisfied.

She was only trying to validate her child’s behavior by making a mama with a healthy, happy baby feel bad.

Y’all, that’s not okay!

First of all, not only are all children different (my son for instance was a cranky, miserable baby and toddler. It was just his disposition), but there is no reason to make any mama question her perfectly healthy, happy baby.

People all around will say things to make you question YOUR happiness and decisions- your marriage, your relationship with God, your decision to homestead, your decision to private school your children, your decision to vaccinate or select vaccinate or not vaccinate your children, where you live, what you do for a living, what activities your kids are in.

Heck, I see people tearing others down for how they raise and train their DOGS in a LGD group.

I get it. I know it hurts and it is frustrating when it happens- family makes snide remarks, people you love question your decisions when they have never done any research that would regard the well being of your family.

But who validates your decisions?

Not friends.

Not family.

Not co workers or people in a FB group.

Jesus.

If I know our decisions sit well with my husband, myself, and God, that is all we need. We don’t need to answer to strangers or acquaintances.

We certainly don’t need to let words, fueled by jealousy, uncertainty, & a lack of understanding, make us doubt ourselves or what the Lord has called us to do.

Do not let the enemy work through other’s words to make you question yourself.

Let’s each other up in Christ, support, and encourage others.

Not tear each other down to validate our own choices.

Let the Lord be your foundation, because no one’s words can move that.

Disclaimer: Some links on this blog are affiliate links; when you use those links you help support my family, at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

7 Months Old Baby Summary Schedule {baby #4}

by Meghan // February 24, 2017 // Comments off

I cannot believe my baby is 7 months old. I am really not certain where the time has gone- I guess just in every day life.

In trying to be present for all the moments, I have been journaling more of our days than I have been blogging them. But I am trying to put some of that on the screen.

Our schedule for now is a typical 2-3-4 schedule. We will stay here until she drops to one nap. To transition to one nap, she will naturally begin shorten one of her naps between 11-14 months old. To make sure it is the morning nap, I will start capping that nap when she shows signs that she is ready to shorten a nap, then eventually we will drop the morning nap and move the afternoon nap to 12:00 noon.

We moved to the 2-3-4 around 6 months, but it was still messy and uncertain. The day after she turned 7 months I decided we were sticking to the 2-3-4 schedule and not looking back. It has been a *dream* since.

I know scheduling babies is not for everyone. But I can tell you that while hard at first, sticking to it pays off. It gives me a life outside of babies, it gives my marriage freedom outside of babies, it gives my babies independence to sleep, be happy, and healthy on their own. I can give my baby and their schedule to anyone in the case of an emergency, and any of them would probably do pretty well as long as their caretaker kept to the schedule- it is all in the consistency.

Routine creates confidence, confidence creates happy babies.

Today, Coralie’s schedule looks like this:

7am wake, bottle, snuggles, mommy baby time, then get the older 3 up
7:30/8 solids
read books, activities with everyone on the floor
9:00 Baby down for first nap
11:00 Baby up from nap, bottle, snuggles
make lunch for all, feed solids
12:15 2 year old’s nap
12:50 4 year old’s nap
1:30 Baby 2nd nap
3:00 everyone up from naps, baby bottle
play outside, errands, activities, mama prep dinner
5:30 solids for baby, dinner for all
bath time
6:40 baby botttle
6:50 baby bed, right to sleep

She LOVES:

drinking kombucha from a sippy cup
bouncing in her bouncer
eating
snuggles, just being held
warm days outside
sitting up high so she can see everything
being tickled
being talked to
chewing on anything
her swaddle blanket- she has one arm out, but does NOT want the other arm out. She likes to suck on the cloth
sleeping on her side
sleep- she loves her naps and bedtime sleep. If i get sidetracked she is super quick to let me know it is time to get ready for bed!
being in the car- maybe she doesn’t love this, but she doesn’t mind it, which makes me life easier
holding her firefly and her skwish
chewing on things with her 2 bottom teeth

She really doesn’t enjoy:

cold days outside, or cool and windy days
the dog in her face (can’t say I blamer her…)
being alone
having a wet diaper
hiccups
people invading her space
the exersaucer outside- it is the same exersaucer all my other babies have used. She hates it. She prefers her bouncer or rocker
loud noises
bright lights
being woken up (did I mention she likes her sleep?)
teething

She has been such a joy for us. Everyone needs “baby time” in the house, and we all delight in her new developments. She is a sweet girl; we are pretty sure she is teething her top teeth now, so there is lots of drool, lots of fussiness, and a little clinginess. But this too will pass, and probably all too quickly!

Disclaimer: Some links on this blog are affiliate links; when you use those links you help support my family, at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

The One With a Puppy {Simple Woman’s Daybook 29}

by Meghan // February 6, 2017 // Comments off

Outside my Window …
It is warm and cloudy; why is it in the 70’s in February?! I won’t complain about the fog and early morning drizzle, we need the rain. And I won’t complain about the warmth, but I mean really?! If this means we will have snow in May, I’d rather it be cold now!
I am thinking…
I have so much to get done this week!

I am thankful…
that we had a friend from AR come visit this weekend, that we had rain this morning, that we have a little farm, and that we added a new buddy to the farm this past week!

In the kitchen…
There is bone broth in the crock pot, eggs on the counter, and leftovers for dinner.

I am wearing…
leggings and a shirt

I am creating…
a few things in my sewing room

I am going…
to Costco and the library this week

I am wondering…
if we are going to have anymore winter between now and spring?!

I am reading…
Teaching From Rest, as recommended by so many homeschoolers … it is a good book. Except I have already implemented most of what I am reading so far, and my train of thought is already there, so I am wishing I had picked it up at the library and not purchased it.

I am hoping…
I find more info in the book that is helpful, and not just a bunch of ideas and thoughts I already have, agree with, implement in my home. =/

I am looking forward to…
The warm week-warmth means mama and Baby can go out more (she does NOT like the cold, even bundled up, so I’ve been inside more than I’d like this winter).

I am learning…
how to work with a puppy, specifically and LGD puppy that is going to hopefully bond with and protect my chickens and family- he is NOT for playing with. He has play time, in the evenings, but the rest of the time he is watching chickens, sleeping with chickens, and sitting with me as we learn about chickens. The cows are too big for him to be with right now, but I wouldn’t be against adding a few calves for him to bond with soon. =)

Around the house…
It just is. Things are pretty clean, tidy. I just have a ton of laundry to get through.

A favorite quote for today…

One of my favorite things…

Meet Huck! As in Huckleberry Finn. He sure is a sweet, sensitive boy that likes adventure. We are sure the 40 acres will be a good place for him to learn, grow, and protect.
I won’t write about how we are training him, because honestly there is a LOT that is going into it, and I don’t know if it will all be successful. I have spoken with a consultant that has assured me Thora’s escalating resource aggression wasn’t a result of anything we did. So I am hoping that what we do for Huck can prevent any issues and create a great guardian. Because these kinds of dogs don’t necessarily “bond” with chickens like they will mammals, we have to do a little extra work to ensure he is okay around them.

However, so far he gets very upset when he is not in the run with the chickens. He was raised with his parents and chickens for 14 weeks, until we got him, so he is used to them. It is just avoiding playing with them at this point, that is important.

Huck is part Great Pyrenees, and part Anatolian Shepherd. Anatolian Shepherds are more aggressive with predators than a Great Pyr, and are better able to take on a coyote than a GP might. They are also more likely to stay closer to home than a GP, or so I read. So we will see how he does. =)

A few plans for the rest of the week:
Run errands, do school, get some sewing done, work with Huck, menu plan, and work around the farm in the WARMTH! woo hoo

A peek into my day…
See Huck’s photo collage above.

We did school, then went for a walk in the woods after lunch. Aaah, fresh air, and fun!

Jesus, Peace, Freedom & our Homeschool

by Meghan // January 30, 2017 // Comments off

The theme this week is Seeking Beauty: the Fine Arts, and Everything that Brings Beauty into our Homeschools. Find other posts HERE, and visit the host Susan, HERE.

I had no idea what I would title this post, often I have the title before the actual content comes to mind, it is how my brain works .. As I went through writing it I was still going back and forth on what to call it.

Then I saw it~

We began homeschooling for many reasons, and like most homeschoolers quickly found that what we fell in love with about homeschool was the building of relationships, the freedom to choose, and the peace.

Isn’t it funny how when you know and come to Jesus, peace and freedom follow?

OK, maybe not funny, but amazing and wonderful.

Our days are often not as ideal as I’d like, but for the most part, they are pretty enjoyable and peaceful. Our mornings aren’t rushed, our relationships are strong and growing daily (praise the Lord), and we try to keep Jesus the center of our home and education.

Each morning I really do feel a peace about our day starting out (it may or may not stay that way depending on the 2 year old’s disposition =P) .. I wake up and I don’t dread it. The absolute beauty in our homeschool is that we enjoy it. It comes with Jesus, peace, and freedom.

What Brings Beauty to Our Homeschool

Jesus.

Truly, Jesus brings the most beauty in our home and homeschool. From reminding me to give grace, to giving me grace, Jesus is why I am confident this homeschooling thing will work out. I have no doubt in my mind that if we raise our 4 babies with Jesus and lead them by example that God will take care of the details. He is going to make sure everything else falls into place; as long as we do our part we can sleep well at night. I don’t need to worry or fret, and I especially don’t need to be concerned with what other people think of our decision. We’ve got this, because He’s got this. His grace is enough.

The homestead.

I know people every where homeschool, and we would regardless on having the farm. But the farm makes is so much fun. There is so much beauty in going outside and being free of confinement. No walls, no city streets, no city noises. Just freedom and peace. Our family really enjoys that, and it enriches our homeschool day.

Books.

I would specifically say Sonlight here, but this year we took a break from SL for age purposes. But I would definitely say Sonlight enriches and brings so much beauty to our homeschool. And then books in general. There are so many obvious reasons for this, but my favorite include the lessons, the imagination & creativity, and again, freedom, that books bring to our home and school. I am very excited because my 2 year old is finally getting into the “I will sit still and be quiet long enough for everyone to enjoy a book,” which means we can get back to reading aloud more often. I am already looking forward to next year when we redo Sonlight’s Core A with my then 7 and 5 year olds. We also love the Before Five in a Row and Five in a Row books.

Freedom.

I keep mentioning this- maybe THAT should be my word for 2017 (ha). One reason we homeschool is so we have time for what we love. We school on a year round schedule, so we can take every other Friday off for co-op, and every other Wednesday off for cleaning day. This also helps with catch up days. I try to block off one week every 6 weeks for a week off. So far this year they have been used when family came in town, when we went on vacation, or when we needed to catch up from a sick week. But there is freedom in our weekly schedule.

There is also freedom in our daily routine- we can do as much or as little as needed, focus on what we want, do extra studies of interest, read any book we like (banned from public school or not), learn with books, the computer, create lapbooks.

We get to talk about Jesus, sin, death, life, babies being born, how to butcher a cow, what taxes really are (haha), what it means to serve others, and how anything works any time we want to.

We can stop what we’re doing for a video, a dance session, a board game; we can do school in our pajamas (or sans clothes if you are a certain 2year old), outside, read on the swing, under a tree, school in the morning, in the afternoon, take naps, eat nutritious home cooked meals and snacks, play in the mud before school starts, and of course have our chickens tag along. Freedom.

And of course that freedom encompasses so much more, but I just touched on a few of the obvious choices.

Community.

We have recently found a comfortable community that is accepting and fun, loves Jesus, and is our own little comfy place. We meet every other Friday for co-op classes that (for now at least) are fitting our schedule and needs. The kids are doing fun things we don’t always have time for at home, and mama gets a brain break (though it is physically exhausting and takes a lot of prep on my end).
I have been craving a community & I feel like God took care of that. I heard him telling me to just be still, and wait. And once I finally let go, and let Him just hold us, he took care of it all. Duh.

Then there is the online homeschool community, which mostly just rocks. There is no limit to the questions I can ask and have help with in one of my favorite Sonlight groups. There is also the homeschool opportunities we will get to be more involved in as my children get older. Just 1-2 years will make a huge different in what they can participate in, in terms of activities and groups. They are still little, and we don’t believe in a go-go-go lifestyle for our young family, but there will be a time and place to take advantage of those things.

So much goes into our homeschool, but mostly it is a lifestyle. And we really enjoy it. Becoming lifelong learners that don’t stress over learning because it is just what we do makes this fun for all of us.

Putting Jesus front and center brings the peace and freedom that forms our homeschool.

What brings beauty to your homeschool?

An InLinkz Link-up

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{Surrender} Word for the Year 2017

by Meghan // January 3, 2017 // Comments off

For the past few years I have chosen a word for the year.

I can’t exactly explain how I came up with my word this year; it isn’t something I particularly feel like I need to work on, like joy or intention. But as I have been reading my Bible and doing short Bible studies the last few weeks, the word surrender has come up so many times.

I know He is wanting me to completely surrender everything to Him; I thought I had done this a few years back (specifically when we moved from AR despite all my fears), but apparently I still need work in this area. 😉

The Lord wants us to surrender it all to Him: our life, heart, mind, body, soul, hopes, plans, dreams, children, marriage, past, present, future, habits, character flaws, health, attitudes, finances, relationships, family, our hurt, pain, worry, doubts, fear, and anxieties, all of which encompass our sins. Many of these things I have let go and given to him, but as I look over this list, I know there is much work to be done.

He takes away these sins and pours out blessings that are so. much. better! holding on to them is like cutting off our nose to spite our face. Just because we don’t know what will happen, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it-let go of it. The Lord is only going to redeem those areas of our life.

There is much, much more prayer to be said. How can I surrender to Him even more than I already have? Let me count the way!

Look for more posts on this as I (or the Lord?) work out the kinks on surrendering fully to Jesus.

Read about my 2013, 2015, and 2016 words. They were intention, smile, and joy.

What is your word for the year?

(I know may of us can come up with several words for the year. I can think of more than I can more easily apply to my life, but for whatever reason this word stood out to me during my Bible time a few weeks back and has been weighing on me. I don’t try to squeeze in more words, or a word a month, etc. It is easier and more meaningful for me to do one word for the year, and apply it accordingly. Maybe you have more than one word, and of course that works, too!)

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