Today, I am sharing 80+ ideas to keep kids happy and busy while you read aloud! Do you have a busy kiddo (or four) at home? Do you struggle through your read alouds? Are you peppered with questions? Interrupted incessantly? Well, you aren’t alone. Today I am sharing 80+ of my best tips and tricks to help your read alouds go more smoothly. Notice I didn’t say perfect. Our read alouds are the most treasured part of our homeschool day but they are far from perfect. I’m still interrupted. There are squabbles. And endless questions. And oodles of wiggling. Still, these ideas help! I aim for perfect ..read more

When I was a new mom, I had this idea of what our read alouds would look like. I imagined our family snuggled up together under a cozy blanket with a teetering tower of delicious books at our side. I pictured us reading for hours, my children hanging on my every word. As I read, our home would be blanketed in silence, all would be calm. And when it came time for our magical read-aloud to end, I would close the book’s covers and my children would gasp in unison, “No, mama! Please! Just one more chapter.” (And I would smile and agree to one more because I know that reading aloud is the most impo ..read more

Homeschooling High School……even in the early 1990s that phrase seemed to hold a sense of awe. A decision that no one felt they could make for themselves, and a choice that took a particular person to achieve. As someone that WAS homeschooled for all of my elementary, middle, and secondary education and as someone now homeschooling high school with my own children, I firmly believe that it is a possibility open to any parent interested in creating educational choices based on their children’s needs. Homeschooling high school isn’t necessarily the best choice for everyone. But, if you feel that ..read more

Games have always been a large part of our homeschooling life.  In fact, games have been present in my own life since I was very young. So, it has always seemed natural to incorporate them into our learning environment and lifestyle. From I Spy in the car with toddlers to our current ever-growing, more grown-up collection, games have been both a way to enhance our educational journey and a way of connecting with my kids. Gamifying pretty much all aspects of our lives has worked wonderfully throughout our educational journey.  They have allowed me to take away the stress and put the ..read more

Things begin to change in your homeschool as your kids get older. Kids become more independent and they begin to develop stronger opinions about their homeschool day. Homeschooling Tweens and Teens Our homeschool entered a season of transition when my oldest entered 7th grade. She no longer wanted to do everything I had planned without question and I had to adjust the way I planned our day. Instead of planning our homeschool week on my own the way I did when she was younger, I began to include my teens in the process and to offer them some choices. This helped them buy into the plan and there ..read more

As a busy homeschool mom to three, I want to savor the holiday season… without losing my marbles! I know I am not alone! Today, I am chatting about the importance of those super-simple holiday activities. But, first, I’d like to tell you a story… Several Christmases ago, we were about to embark on a months-long kitchen renovation. I was overwhelmed with packing up our spaces and planning how on earth I was going to feed the family during the mess. And Christmas was coming. How was I going to create Christmas magic for the kids when we had a refrigerator parked in our family room, whe ..read more

Today, I’d like to share advice from the trenches on how to homeschool with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). I’ve been wanting to write this post for…ever. But the thing is, when you are deep in the throes of SAD, you don’t want to do much of anything. So it only took me several years and a global pandemic to get ‘er done. Let’s chat, shall we? How to Homeschool with Seasonal Affective Disorder What is Seasonal Affective Disorder? Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that is related to the change in season. You can read more about the disorder here ..read more

If you’ve been hanging around with us for any length of time, you know that I love to share fun resources. Our gift guide has been a huge hit over the years, as has our 100+ educational stocking stuffers resource list. I’ve had community members ask me to create a teen version of our gift guide, and I thought it was a great idea. Today, I am sharing the ultimate teen gift guide for homeschool families. The Ultimate Teen Gift Guide For Homeschoolers Homeschooling Teens? You Are Not Alone! I don’t know how it happened, but I am a mum to two teens. My son is 14 and my daughter is 13 (where is th ..read more

Today, I am going to share over fifty backyard board games that your family will love. We’re going to take a trip down memory lane with some old favorites. Be ready to feel nostalgic! And then I’m going to introduce you to some awesome backyard games that your kids and teens will flip for! Ready, set, gooo! 50+ Backyard Board Games Your Family Will Love The Value Of Playing Games Together As A Family  There are innumerable benefits to sitting down and playing a game with your children and teens. You’ll never, ever look back at the time spent playing and feel any sort of regret. I’m willi ..read more

Today, I am sharing the best escape room board games.   My youngest loves escape rooms, so much so that he requested an escape room instead of a birthday party one year. There’s something extraordinary about being “trapped” in a room with a bunch of your favorite humans, and working together to escape captivity. And while in-person escape rooms are a worthwhile experience, they aren’t something you can do every day. That’s why I want to share the very best escape room board games for your next family night in! The 40 Best Escape Room Board Games  Why Escape Rooms Are So Po ..read more