A Simpler Motherhood

Category: A Simpler Motherhood

Vanessa

First Day of School Activities & Traditions

A Simpler Homeschool, A Simpler Motherhood

The first day of school is close. Freshly sharpened pencils, a new box of crayons, and a brand spankin’ new pencil case are just a few objects of excitement for the big day. We actually just celebrated our first day of school and, as always, it’s one of my most favorite days of the year (that and the last day). It’s chalk full of fun activities, special traditions, and a whole lot of excitement. Today I’m going to share some ways to make the first day of school memorable. Whether your kids are beginning school at home this year or they are stepping foot into their school for the first time since last winter, there is something for everyone. Here we go…

first day of school activities

First Day of School Pictures

Yes, I’m staring off predictable. However, there is nothing like the first day of school pictures. Make it a tradition by using the same whiteboard or chalkboard to state the grades or ages as well as posing in a similar spot. We use the same letter board each year and take a picture outside before the first day begins.

Decorate

Make it feel like a celebration. If you’re schooling at home, decorate the designated school space. If your kids are getting on the bus, decorate the kitchen so they can enjoy a little celebration before they are on their way.

Special meals

Make the meals on the first day of school special. Pancakes, donuts, crepes, bacon and eggs, pop tarts, muffins. Donut shaped peanut butter and jelly, a special note in the lunch box, a Lunchable (gasp), special homemade cookies. A favorite dinner, ice cream sundaes, a snack board. Find ways to make the first day feel special all day long with simple meals that make the whole day feel extraordinary.

1st Day Questions

There are a million printables on Pinterest for questionnaires for your kids on the first day of school. Some may think these are cheesy, but I promise, you will look back on the answers to these questions with nostalgia and love and thank your tired self for doing them.

If you are a homeschooling mom, try having your kids answer questions in a journal they will use for school. I do this at the beginning of the year and the end of the year and it’s always interesting to see what has changed.

Sunday Family has a great set of questionnaire printables from preschool all the way up to 12th grade. If your kids are heading off to school these are great to complete and put in a memory box. If you’re a homeschooling family, you could print off and glue in a journal.

School Supplies Treasure Hunt

I don’t know about you, but my kids love new school supplies. Pencils, crayons, markers, all of it. A scavenger hunt is a fun way for them to discover their new supplies, even if they helped pick them out. I always have a surprise or two for them, like a new book or special pencil case. It adds a bit of excitement to the day.

This is My Home, This is My School

If this is your first year doing school at home, try using This is My Home, This is My School to introduce homeschooling. It is sweet and funny and gets my kids and I in the mood for another school year.

Pray over the school year

If you are a follower of Jesus, praying over the school year on the first day could be just the inspiration you all need to focus your eyes on the most important things.

Journal to your kids

If your kids can read, this is a must do. Write in your kids’ journal or slip a note in their lunchbox about the hopes and dreams you have for them this year. Tell your kids how proud you are to be their mom and how you know they will work hard and do big things the next nine months.

Celebrate

At the end of the week or the end of the first day, celebrate! You all made it! We give new books to the kids at the end of the week to celebrate all their hard work. There are loads of ways to celebrate: ice cream sundaes, small trinkets or gifts, a trip to the nearest swimming hole, a new book, a do-whatever-you-want Saturday, a trip to Starbucks. I whole heartedly believe celebrating is important. It allows us to stop and commemorate the good. Take the time to recognize everyone’s hard work and celebrate with your family the first day or first week of school!

Celebrations and traditions mark important days and help us to remember, reflect, and show gratitude. Tell me: how will you celebrate the first day of school this year?

Vanessa

What is A Simpler Motherhood?

A Simpler Homeschool, A Simpler Motherhood

Big blue eyes staring at me with a mouthful of bananas and oatmeal.  Words being sounded out by my daughter, slow, steady, and confident.  My son’s face dripping wet with strawberry juice after a snack in the garden.  Vroom-vroom being called out by my three year old as he lines up matchbox cars.  These are the pictures I see everyday.  Visions of small pieces of life being played out hour by hour, minute by minute, right before my eyes.  They may not be extraordinary to anyone else, but they are to me when I am present in the moment and see the little faces before me.

a simpler motherhood

What is A Simpler Motherhood?

A Simpler Motherhood is making space for what matters most.  The sticky faces, the big blue eyes, the family walks.  It’s a journey towards presence and an understanding that our things don’t make a good life; our people do.  A Simpler Motherhood is not a ten step process, but taking small steps to make the everyday simpler and more joyful.  It’s getting rid of the excess and clutter so we can see and live the life we want.  It’s living with a posture of gratitude for the gifts God has given us and being generous with those gifts.  A Simpler Motherhood includes doing things we are passionate about and filling our cup so we can give to others out of it’s abundance.  It’s loving and accepting others for their choices and who they are.  A Simpler Motherhood begins with grace: grace for ourselves, grace for our kids, and grace for those around us. 

When I first started this little place on the internet, I had one desire: to offer moms ways they can get to less stuff and more life.  It’s evolved over the past few years as our world has evolved and my journey has evolved, but my passion is the same: To give moms hope, encouragement and practical tools needed to live the life they want.  

What’s next?

A lot has changed this past year in our world with the Covid pandemic.  One of those things changing is how families are thinking about their child’s education for this upcoming school year.  This change has caused some anxiety and left parents with lots of questions. I have homeschooled my kiddos for the past few years and taught first grade in public school for five years pre-kids.  I have my Masters in Education in Curriculum and Instruction.  My desire is to use the knowledge I have to bring encouragement and practical tools to moms in the area of homeschooling.  

Over the next several weeks and months, I will be sharing about our homeschooling experience, tools and processes we use, and basic information about school at home.  I will still be sharing ways I am journeying towards A Simpler Motherhood in ways of simplifying. A big focus will be to offer whatever support I can to moms choosing school at home or doing virtual school through their school district.  

These last five months have divided people more than I like to think about, but I believe there are spaces where we can come together, support one another, and live more life.  My prayer for this space is just that.  No judgement, no shaming, no rolling of the eyes.  Just a space to gather to be vulnerable, learn a little, support each other, and offer ourselves, our kids, and each other loads of grace.  Will you join me?

Vanessa

Dads Matter

A Simpler Childhood, A Simpler Motherhood

‘Come on, Daddy’, Luke shouts as his wet feet climb the steps to the top deck at our local swimming quarry. Kevin is right behind him, ready and willing to jump with his son. Sunscreen on his body and a smile on his face, he hides the fact he is semi-exhausted from all the jumping and swimming and rope swinging. They jump in wide eyed and care free, their bodies hitting the water with a Daddy sized splash and a Luke sized splash. They swim to the ladder and do it all over again and again and again.

dads matter

Dads Matter. With God’s good grace, my kids are blessed with a Dad who couldn’t love them more and shows them daily with his actions, his presence, and his willingness to jump off the high deck. Dads are bed time story readers, high deck jumpers, princes for their princesses, providers, yard work masters. They are the ones our kids look to for protection, for wisdom, for attention, for love. They are indispensable. So much so, that research has been coming out in bucketfuls lately to support the importance of a father figure in a child’s life.

Dads Matter

The ‘Father Effect’ refers to paternal presence. The effects of a Dad’s presence or father figure in a child’s life is much. Dads showing up and being engaged in their child’s life has numerous positive effects. An engaged father can result in: higher level success in a career, a better chance at having a strong marriage, and an improved ability at handling stress. Children who are close with their father are twice as likely as those who are not to enter college or find stable employment after high school. They are also 75% less likely to have a teen birth and 80% less likely to spend time in jail, and half as likely to experience multiple depression symptoms. Dads clearly matter.

Father’s Day is Sunday!

Father’s Day is this Sunday, June 21. It doesn’t get as much hoopla as the big Moms’ Day in May, but it’s just as important. Not only am I blessed with a husband who is an incredible Daddy, I also grew up with an All In Dad who was by my side through all the sports things and dance things and pageant things. He has loved me well. And the past decade and a half I have known my father-in-law, who loves and plays hard with my kids. I have been blessed with strong, loving fathers in my life.

Let’s celebrate the men showing up day after day for us and our kids. I know sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in what they aren’t doing, but this weekend let’s focus on what they are doing. Let’s point out the things they do that go unnoticed: taking out the garbage, jumping off the high deck at the swimming hole, reading all the Star Wars names right at bedtime. Let’s notice the things they do everyday to make things run smoothly: going to work to provide for the family or staying home to take care of the family, mowing the lawn, teaching the boys the correct way to use the bathroom outside or dancing with the girls to just one more song. Let’s celebrate the little things and the big things and be grateful for their role in our families. Let’s show up for them and make them feel valued, respected, and loved.

One thing we do each year for our main man is use words to express our love and appreciation. I interview each kid and ask them a few questions about Daddy, which always results in some laughable answers. A question asked every year is: Why do you love Daddy? This question is my favorite because it reminds me how much my kids deeply love their Daddy. We write all this in his Memory Book and share with him on Father’s Day. It’s a simple tradition, but one, I believe, that will never grow old.

How will you celebrate the Dads in your life this year?

Vanessa

Celebrating during Quarantine

A Simpler Motherhood

Birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, baby showers, baby arrivals, weddings. Life is full of celebrations this time of year and, unfortunately, they are looking a lot different in midst of Covid-19. My heart goes out to all the people having to reschedule big events like postponing graduation parties or weddings or limiting the people who get to visit a newborn.

We haven’t had any big life events, but Kevin and I are celebrating our 13th wedding anniversary next week. I am both excited to have something to look forward to and sad we won’t be visiting one of our favorite spots to celebrate. There, of course, are bigger problems in the world and I refuse to dwell on not having a night out for our anniversary. We are healthy, we are safe, and we are still going to celebrate.

While our celebration will look different than years past, there are still some things we will do to hold tight to tradition and make it special. We will write in each other’s Memory Books. We will pop a bottle of champagne to share. We will exchange small gifts to commemorate the day. We are going to try really hard to have dinner, just the two of us. It might look different, but I am determined it will still be fun and we will still be celebrating the love we pledged (in our backyard) to one another 13 years ago.

Celebrations might look different during this season, but we can still be thoughtful and honor the real reason behind the celebrating. Here are some fun ways to celebrate a special event while in Quarantine:

Make a special meal.

This year we are doing something different and getting a delivery meal service to make a meal just the two of us. We are using Hello Fresh. I have also heard great things about Sunbasket. One reason I like the idea of making a meal is we can do it together. It is half entertainment, half nourishment. Think about something you’ve never made or only make for special occasions: donuts, beef bourguignon, a homemade cake, steaks and asparagus on the grill with hollandaise sauce. Get all the ingredients and make it a fun part of the celebration.

Another way to celebrate is picking up take out from a local spot and setting up a candle lit dinner at the dining room table or getting cozy and casual on the couch with some yummy food you didn’t have to make.

If you want to celebrate with someone outside your immediate family, sending a meal service or getting them take out also serves the purpose of celebrating them, even if you can’t be in their physical presence.

Feasting is something I believe whole heartedly in and can be done right at home.

Shower love.

If someone you love is celebrating something special, why not invite friends and family to send cards or record a short video for them. Mail is a love language these days whether it comes in the mailbox or via text. If you’re creative, compile videos sent into a movie. I promise it will be something they always cherish.

Start a Celebration Journal.

Kevin and I have been using Celebration journals for around 7 years now. Everyone in our family has a Celebration Journal we write in on special occasions. All you need is a blank journal and you immediately save yourself money and time. No more scouring the stores or Amazon for the perfect card or forgetting the special day and being unprepared.

If you don’t feel like you’re qualified to write something in a Celebration Journal, google it and you can borrow from many who do this sort of thing for a living. A formula I have found helpful when writing in Kevin’s or the kids’ Celebration Journals: Quote/Scripture+Memory+Sentiment is always, always rewarded with a kiss or a hug. I also love Top 10 lists for birthdays, anniversaries, or New Year’s. A Celebration Journal is one way to both simplify and celebrate occasions in a special way.

Send a local gift.

Coffee, candles, a book from a local book store, fresh farm eggs, flowers, a charcuterie board. If you want to celebrate someone, branch out from the usual Amazon search and send them a bag of local coffee or flowers from the downtown flower shop. Some favorites: Archetype Coffee Subscription, Wax Buffalo Candles, Old Tree Farm, The Grey Plume, Zaltes Ice Cream. Support local while also celebrating loved ones.

Decorate anyways.

Get the fresh flowers. Put up the streamers. Pick up the balloons. Get dressed up. Make the celebration feel like a celebration with all the fun trimmings. My goal is to put on real clothes, make-up, and maybe even blow dry my hair for our 13th anniversary. The little things are the big things when it comes to celebrating in quarantine.

Celebrating at home is still celebrating. How have you celebrated during Quarantine?

Vanessa

Homeschooling Year #2

A Simpler Childhood, A Simpler Motherhood

Homeschooling Year #2 is officially in the books. Curriculum is put away, the year has been celebrated, and summer break is upon us. I am here for it. This year ended much differently than anticipated, but it was still sweet and we still had much to celebrate. We ended the school year with our annual last day of school picture, a tea party, and celebrating the successes of the past ten months. It was a good year indeed.

homeschooling year

Not surprisingly, I learn just as much as the kids do each year, although it’s always shocking how my thinking in September can change so much come May. I’m thankful there is so much grace and my kids are (mostly) oblivious to the tweaks I make throughout the year in how we do school, my attitude, and the way I interact with them. It’s such a gift to be able to grow and change right alongside my babes. It’s something I hope I never take for granted.

Last year, I shared the things I learned my first year of homeschooling. It’s a post I think I will continue each year, as it is both fun and purposeful to look back and reflect and use those thoughts to navigate the upcoming year. We can’t learn from the past if we don’t reflect and thoughtfully consider the past.

Here are my rambling thoughts from this past homeschool year:

Open and go Curriculum > Intense Curriculum

I’ve tried two language arts curriculums. My first year homeschooling the curriculum we used was very thorough, intense, and good. This year we went with a curriculum that was straightforward, open and go, and still good. Open and go is my go to. I like the simplicity of open and go curriculum and the freedom it allows not to be tethered to a weekly or monthly schedule. I want to dictate how the curriculum works for me, not the other way around.

Because of my teaching background, I pull in books, activities, and lessons alongside the set curriculum. My first year I was overwhelmed with the intensity of the curriculum because I was trying to do my own thing, too. This year, I chose The Good and the Beautiful and was extremely happy with it. I literally opened the book and Luke and I worked together through the lessons. The Good and the Beautiful language arts curriculum includes grammar and punctuation, phonics and reading, spelling, literature and art.

Lily will be starting kindergarten next year and Luke will be in second grade. We are going to stick with The Good and the Beautiful. The open and go style is what I need both for my personality and for this season of life.

The early bird gets the worm.

School goes much more smoothly if we knock it out right out of the gates. If Luke gets started with his independent work around 8:00, the day ticks by in an organized fashion. If he starts later than 9:00, it’s a different story. It’s not always perfect, but I have seen a noticeable difference in the flow of our day when we start early. Starting early will stick around as long as it works.

Flip a coin for the schoolroom.

Each morning Luke, Lily, Jude, and I meet in the school room for our devotion, calendar, and a joint lesson. Some days this is my favorite time of our school day, other days I want to go cry in the bathroom. This summer I want to think through the organization of this part of our day and see if there are any tweaks I can implement to make it smoother.

When there is something not going well in our school day, I use a lot of trial and error to attempt a solution. I will be brainstorming some different scenarios this summer.

Integration!

If we don’t get school started on time or something takes twice as long as planned (this happens often), there is a good chance science or social studies could be overlooked. Unless I am super intentional, we just don’t get it in.

In the fall and winter we did our science or social studies lesson in the early afternoon, right before naps. Because it was the last thing, it wasn’t accomplished as often as I would have liked. This spring I integrated our science into various lessons during our time together in the school room and it was completed almost always. Granted, we have had extra time on our hands the past few months, but I discovered I need to integrate science and social studies into a part of our day already happening.

Will work for Magic School Bus.

My kids will bust their britches to earn some screen time. Mrs. Frizzle and Dino Dana are quite enticing to my crew. I have used their motivation to my advantage this year.

The kids don’t get any screen time until right before quiet time, unless I’m showing a Youtube video for school or they are doing an Art Hub. Holding off on giving them screen time until the end of our school day is something I will continue next year because, well, it works.

This school year was both fun and frustrating. Luke discovered writing can be purposeful and fun and Lily found her spark for reading. This year was chock full of change as well as routines. It was one I will remember and hold tight to because all my babies were together and I was given the privilege to be their teacher. My kids sure learned a lot this year, but so did I.

Whether you homeschooled pre-covid or not, what is something you learned this school year?

Vanessa

Moms Matter

A Simpler Motherhood

Pre-Covid, Covid, Post-Covid. An unchanging, universal truth is: Moms Matter. God made Moms important, vital to our very existence. Moms are the lifelines to our past and the hope builders for our future, they are our forever coaches always ready and waiting in the wings to encourage and motivate. Moms are the ones who can make everything better (even if they can’t), but just being in their presence makes everything better. Moms Matter and quite frankly, we all wouldn’t be here without them.

When I think of Moms everywhere and what they are doing these days, it overwhelms me and makes me proud to be included in the group of humans called Moms. Some moms are working from home, homeschooling kids, and getting food on the table three times a day. Other moms are at home with a newborn in their arms, caring for toddlers without help from friends or grandparents. Some moms are hitting their groove with kids at home all day everyday and finding their new normal. Moms of teenagers are having to explain (once again) why their kids can’t go hang out with friends. Still others are heading into work to keep things running in our grocery stores, clinics, restaurants, hospitals, salons, as well as so many other places.

Then there are the moms with grown kids outside the home. The moms on their knees praying for children they love who they can only see through glass or on a screen or six feet away in the driveway. And the moms with children and grandchildren who are missing the newborn snuggles, the first steps, the growing up part of their babies’ babies. The moms who aren’t able to hold the hands of any of their loved ones because the risk is too high. Yes, moms are doing great, big, wonderful, hard things in this Covid season and it’s illuminating humanity’s eyes to the grand purpose that lies in motherhood.

Moms Matter

Whether you are a mom with babies or grown children, whether you are potty training or wondering about your senior’s graduation party, whether you are going to work or at home all day everyday, please know: You matter. The way you care for and love your children matters both to the people in your home and to the future of humanity.

Children are our future, and their mothers are its guardians.

Kofi Annan

As a kid, my mom was always the person I wanted when I scraped my knee, got stung by a bumblebee, or got teased by kids at school. She was also the person I wanted when I got dumped as a pre-teen, got in trouble as a teenager, or didn’t make the starting line up as a collegiate basketball player. She was it. I think a lot of us can say that. There are even times now when something happens and I just want my mom. The longing for the person who knows me best, who birthed me, who makes everything better. There is no one like Mom.

God created Moms for such a time as this.

Things aren’t easy right now (The understatement of Spring 2020.) There are so many unknowns and so much uncertainty, but I believe God created us for such a time as this in motherhood. He created us strong, resilient, steadfast, disciplined, warm. God created us emotional, productive, creative, fearless, loving. He created us to love our babies fiercely and protect them wildly. He made us to be both strong and vulnerable when it comes to everything, including Covid.

Not to toot our own horns, but I see motherhood as a great analogy for our relationship with God. As moms, we are longed after. Our babies come to us when everything seems upside down. They seek us for comfort, for guidance, to make everything better. I believe the relationship between mother and child can be a small glimpse into the relationship between Eternal Father and child. It is small scale example of how much our Creator loves us and the deep longing we have within us for Him.

Yes, God gave us a pretty high calling when we entered into motherhood. We are the ones with the privilege to give our babes a glimpse of unconditional love, the kind they can find forever in Christ. Moms have and always will matter.

Happy Mother’s Day, friends!

Vanessa

Hospitality During Quarantine

A Simpler Motherhood

A few weeks ago during our Zoom Bible study, we were asked what hospitality looks like in the midst of being at home. What can it look like when we can’t sit down at the table for dinner with friends? What does it look like when we can’t meet up for coffee or a park playdate? What does hospitality look like when we literally aren’t able to be in the close physical presence of other human beings?

This question had me thinking. Part of my brain went rogue and tried to talk the other part of my brain into believing hospitality isn’t even a thing during quarantine. No sprinkler playdates, no bonfires together, no Mother’s Day brunches. The other part of my brain resisted and said, well of course hospitality is possible, it’s even more essential when we can’t physically meet in each other’s homes.

So of course I went to Merriam Webster.

hospitality: hospitable treatment, reception, or disposition

Similar: friendliness, welcome, helpfulness, warmth, kindness, geniality, sociability, conviviality, generosity, liberality

Merriam Webster

Hospitality is a reception as well as treatment and a disposition. We don’t have to be gathering at a dinner party to offer hospitality, it can be shown in the ways we love and care for others whether in their physical presence or not. We can be friendly, kind, helpful, and generous. We can be welcoming and social without breaking the six foot imaginary line. After reading this definition, I think it’s pretty clear hospitality is possible during quarantine.

hospitality during quarantine

I thought through some ways our family can show hospitality to others around us: show them we love them and care for them by being kind, helpful, generous, and friendly. And here they are…

Hospitality During Quarantine

Care Packages

Packages are like a surprise trip to Disney World these days. If a friend drops off a package or I get a gift in the mail, it literally makes me all kinds of happy.

Start small and think through someone you would like to bless with a care package. Compile a list of some of their favorite things or some things you think would be helpful during quarantine and put together a gift bag or box with those items. These berry baskets are super cute to house the goodies. Maybe even incorporate some Books and Baking.

While we are putting together these care packages, let’s think about local places we want to support. Make an ice cream sundae care package with pints from your local ice cream shop (We love Zaltes). Gather some self-care essentials from your favorite salon (Dark Horse all the way). Get some coffee beans or a drink and snack to drop off (Rally Coffee is a great Omaha spot). Obtain a box of delicious treats from a curbside pick up bakery and make someone’s Friday morning (Sweet Magnolia’s is IT). Pick up some baby plants for a green thumb friend (Old Tree Farm and Mulhall’s are our go-to’s). Think about the places you want to stick around and support them when at all possible!

Maybe you aren’t able to physically get to the person you want to give a care package to; get online and find a small shop or Amazon gift you can get in the mail to them. Some great small shop options: Wax Buffalo candles, Sela Designs jewelry, Natural Joy Boutique stationary and gifts.

Snail Mail

My kids live for snail mail. They are living their best life when something comes in the mail with their name on it. Letter writing is a great skill to practice with kids and one more thing to keep them occupied. I tell my kids: If you want to get a letter, you need to send a letter. I also remind them they might not get a letter in return, but more than likely they won’t get one if they don’t send one.

Sending cards and letters to friends, co-workers, family members, even nurses or doctors you know and nursing home residents can bring a lot of joy to someone in a simple way.

Side note: Did you know you can order stamps online?! A friend told me this recently, so I put in an order of super cool T-Rex stamps and they will be delivered right to my door. Yes, please.

Checking In

Checking in with friends and relatives is something we do, but maybe need to do even more now. A simple text or email with ‘I’m thinking of you!’ or a DM with a prayer.

It’s a great time to finally meet the neighbors and check in on them during this time. Set a reminder on your phone or write it in your planner to check on your neighbors once every week or two. If we don’t know our neighbors, now is the time!

Virtual Meet Ups

Zoom, Houseparty, Facetime. Virtual meet ups are the new coffee dates and dinner parties. I know it’s not the same thing, but it’s as close as we can get.

During this quarantine, I have gotten the chance to chat with friends I don’t normally see or talk to on a regular basis and it has been a gift. Text your high school or college girlfriends. Reach out to an old roommate or the co-workers from your last job. Grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and reconnect with some friends.

Social Distance Walk

‘They’ are saying the sun helps with this virus. Meet up with a friend and do a social distance walk together. I did this recently and while it wasn’t completely normal, it’s as normal as it gets. Natural endorphins from the sun, the exercise, and talking with a friend. Walking hospitality. Yes, yes, yes.

Meeting Needs

The effects of covid-19 have different ramifications for every family and every person. It could be financial hardship, trouble getting groceries, struggling with mental health, debating whether to go to work or not, or the actual health risks of the virus. Seek out how you can help the people in your influence. Neighbors, friends, family members, families who go to your kids’ school. If you see a need and you’re able to meet it, step out and do it. The very seed of kindness you plant could multiply in ways you can’t imagine.

Drop off Flowers

Did you know you can order flowers from Wal-Mart pick up? You can! Order flowers for someone, drop at their door step and text them a note. Flowers are life and life is a gift. This is a simple, yet exciting way to make someone’s day!

Hospitality is possible during quarantine. I would argue it’s not only possible, but so incredibly needed. Start small and choose one way you can show hospitality to someone you care about or maybe even someone you don’t know. It matters. How will you show hospitality during quarantine?

Vanessa

10 Tasks for Quarantine

A Simpler Home, A Simpler Motherhood

We are over a month in to being at home. An introvert by nature, I’m even getting a bit antsy with the lack of freedom to go anywhere. However, I don’t want to waste this time. Jesus willing, there will never be another time in my lifetime when everything is put on hold because of a virus. If that’s true, I want to be sure I use this time at home for as much good as I possibly can and hold tight to what I hold dear: my people.

Not only is it a good time to invest in the relationships in our home, but it could also be a good time to complete some tasks that double as stress relievers or sanity savers. If you’re at home and find yourself with a bit extra headspace and time and are craving some inspiration, these 10 tasks for quarantine could encourage you, motivate you, cut some stress, and maybe even bring you some joy.

10 Tasks for Quarantine

Spend time just being together.

This is something I’m working on. There might never be a time again when all six of us are home for this long, all together. I want to embrace this time, not let it go to waste.

10 tasks for quarantine

The true way to live is to enjoy every moment as it passes, and surely it is in the everyday things around us that the beauty of life lies. -Laura Ingalls Wilder

More walks, more books, more laying on the floor playing with my littles. More lingering at dinner, more movie nights, more stopping to smell the flowers.

Personally, I am working on being still and present with the people I love the most.

Keep a journal.

I don’t mean write pages upon pages everyday while a candle is lit and a cup of coffee is in your hand, although that sounds nice. I mean jot a note down everyday about what the day was like, what is happening around you. I have been writing one line a day in my planner and I hope it will help me remember this time a year or ten years from now.

Plant something.

Now is a great time to plant something. Try herbs like basil, cilantro, or rosemary inside from seed and then move outside mid-May. Plant carrots in the ground now. Start microgreens inside and you will have something to put on your sandwich in a week. Enlist your kids to help and your work can be both science lesson and stress reliever. Living green things have been saving my sanity during this season at home.

Carve out quiet time.

If you have kids at home, there probably isn’t much quiet in your day. Although it’s hard to carve out, I whole heartedly believe quiet is nourishment for my soul. Find a time during the day when the kids are sleeping, when they are playing outside or in their bedrooms. Be still, breathe deep, pray, read an inspiriting quote or Bible verse or favorite book. There can be noise everywhere, but it doesn’t have to be noisy within us.

Clear a closet.

Or a drawer or a surface or a room. It’s the perfect time to clear some of the clutter while at home. Choose one place: a drawer, a closet, a surface, or a room to clear. Put it on your calendar or to-do list, set a timer for 30 minutes and make it happen. If there is still work to do after the 30 minute timer, keep going or come back to it tomorrow.

It always feels good to clear a space. Since we are home now more than ever, decluttering highly trafficked areas is even more important.

Research has shown physical clutter leads to stress and I think we can all agree we don’t need any more stress right now. Take 30 minutes to clear a space and get ready to feel lighter.

Read a book.

Did you know reading can lower stress? Reading has been shown to lower blood pressure, heart rate, and feelings of psychological distress. Choose a novel you have been wanting to read for awhile and set aside some time each day to dive in.

If you have kids at home, designate 10-20 minutes each day when everyone reads, you included. Check out The most important thing. Even toddlers can wander through a stack of books. What’s on your To Be Read list during quarantine?

Take a nap.

I’m writing this at 3:30 on a gray afternoon, so a nap sounds pretty tempting right now. Find time in the day to put your feet up and close your eyes. Meditate, pray, or act like a two year old and take a snooze. Naps can improve alertness, reduce stress, boost creativity, among other things. I am not a great napper, but closing my eyes for a few minutes recharges me and gives me the boost I need for the evening hours.

Set up a toy closet.

If you’re feeling like you’re constantly picking up toys or your kids are constantly saying ‘I’m bored’, a toy closet could be a tool to keep your kids engaged in play at home. Simply choose a space for your toy closet and place 50% of the toys inside. You can sort these by category in bins or simply place in tubs to store them. Every week or so, exchange some toys that are available with some toys in the toy closet. Your kids will have ‘new’ toys to play with and your family will have less toys to pick up.

Move your body.

Exercise is another way to lower stress. Moving our bodies increases endorphins, which are the body’s natural painkillers and mood elevators. If you feel like you’re in a funk, do some jumping jacks, squats, push ups, or get after it with some burpees. Or simply go on a walk around the neighborhood and enjoy some fresh air while moving your body.

My workout happens in the morning, before my babes are awake. If I miss it, I feel it all day long. Moving my body sets the tone for my day and makes me feel good about myself and the day in front of me.

Take an Internet Sabbath.

Technology is more important than ever. It’s the one way we are staying connected during this pandemic. But, if you’re like me, it’s been a bit noisy. The news, social media, trying to stay connected with friends and family. It sometimes has me overwhelmed.

If you’re feeling the same way, try an internet Sabbath. I’ve never done this, but am going to try it Sunday. My usual Sunday Sabbath is I stay off social media, but this week I am going to put my phone on airplane mode and go about the day. I will still use our laptop for Bible study and we will watch church as a family, but my phone will be unavailable, except for the occasional picture. Technology is such a gift during this time, but I think it can also be overwhelming and detrimental to our mental health. If you’re feeling the same way, an Internet Sabbath might be for you.

There is a good chance we will never again have this extended period of time at home. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to waste it. Are you completing any tasks during quarantine?

Vanessa

Our Homeschool Day: Quarantine Style

A Simpler Childhood, A Simpler Motherhood

Like many of you, we have been home for the past month. Although we did school at home pre-coronavirus, this last month has still been an adjustment. We aren’t doing our weekly homeschool classes. We aren’t going to church. We aren’t seeing friends and taking advantage of the zoo in the spring.

Despite all the things we aren’t doing, we are doing some pretty great things right where we are. We are eating dinner together every night. We are taking long walks. We The kids are outside for hours upon hours each day creating worlds and making up stories and exploring plants and birds and the ‘dinosaurs’ they are tracking. We are reading lots of books and learning how to be together all day every day.

homeschool day

Today I wanted to share what our Homeschool Day looks like during quarantine. It’s simple and pretty much stays the same day to day, except for Fancy Friday when we gather for tea time and a looser rhythm. Here is a peek inside our day to day…

7:15-7:30: Kids wake

Kevin wakes the kids each day around 7:30, while I finish up whatever I’m working on. He gathers breakfast for everyone: yogurt and Cheerios, frozen waffles, peanut butter puffs, eggs and bacon for him and I.

After breakfast is finished, the kids get dressed and do one chore from their chore chart. There have been plenty of days Lily has declared a pajama day, which I am completely fine with because #lesslaundry

8:00: Luke begins independent work

When Luke finishes his chore, he begins his independent work. I have the work he needs to do stacked on our dining room table. On the top of his books is a sticky note with a list of items for him to complete. He works through the list, checking things off as he goes.

While Luke is completing his independent work, I am usually feeding Jack breakfast and cleaning up the kitchen. Lily and Jude are playing and finishing up their chores.

8:30: Seat Work

Around 8:30, when Luke finishes up his independent work, I will sit with him and do some teaching. We work on language arts, math, and sometimes art appreciation.

After I finish working with Luke, I will work with Lily for 10-15 minutes on letters, numbers, handwriting, and some simple math skills (shapes, addition, etc.) It is light and quick and we move on as soon as she’s done.

9:30: Schoolroom Circle Time

Around 9:30 I put Jack down for a nap. While I’m doing that, the kids will gather their show-and-tell for our schoolroom circle time.

Luke, Lily, and Jude meet me in the schoolroom. We recite the verse we are memorizing, share things we are grateful for, read the Jesus Calling devotional, and pray. We then talk about the calendar, the weather, and read a few poems.

At the end of circle time, I read a few books aloud. Sometimes I use them to teach a language arts skill like retelling. Other times I will use them for a science lesson like what plants need or a social studies lesson about our country. I try to get the most bang for my buck during our read aloud time by incorporating science or social studies when I can.

When we are done reading, the kids share their show and tell for the day. This is probably their favorite part of circle time.

10:00: Independent Reading Time

At 10:00 each kid gathers 3-5 books and reads for 10-20 minutes. I usually forget to set a timer, so it ends up being around 20 minutes. They spread out around the living room and read quietly to themselves. Jude is still working on this. Somedays he will do great and read the whole time and somedays he will end up in his room playing cars. At this point, I’m fine with both. After reading independently, they mark it off on their reading chart.

homeschool day

10:15-10:30: Sometimes Art then Outside

On days when I’m super motivated, we will create something together with paints, construction paper, glue, toilet paper rolls, whatever we have lying around. If I’m super motivated AND on top of it, we will create something related to our read aloud. Sometimes I will turn on an Art for Kids Hub. In reality, art happens once or twice a week.

However, almost everyday, the kids head outside. They will bundle up if need be and head to the backyard to explore, swing, do sidewalk chalk, or just run around and play. This gives me about 30 minutes of quiet time while Jack is sleeping and the three big kids are outside.

11:00: Lunch

I start prepping lunch around 11:00. Since we don’t do snacks, they are usually hungry at this point. If it’s nice, the kids eat outside and I am off the hook for one meal clean up. If it is chilly, they come in and eat.

11:30: Jack up, Finish lunch, Playtime

Jack gets up from his morning nap around 11:30. The kids finish lunch, and then play for about an hour either inside or outside.

12:30: Reading Lessons

At 12:30, I sit down with Luke and Lily individually and do their reading lessons with them. Luke reads a chapter in a chapter book and Lily goes through a lesson from the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. Jude and Jack are playing. Many times I’m holding Jack or feeding him puffs in his high chair while we work through lessons.

1:00: Screen Time

Around 1:00, the kids sit down for their screen time. If Luke and Lily earned their reward for their schoolwork in the morning, they get 10 minutes of time on their tablets. After 10 minutes, they are able to watch a show together. They take turns choosing what to watch; usually it’s Dino Dana or The Magic School Bus.

1:30: Books

Each child chooses a book to read at 1:30 and we read together on the couch. More on The most important thing.

1:45: Jude to bed and Novel

Jude goes down for nap at 1:45 and then I read a novel to Luke and Lily. Currently we are reading Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

2:00: Quiet Time

Our school day ends here.

Luke and Lily head to their rooms for Quiet Time and I put Jack down for his afternoon nap.

During Quiet Time, I write, tidy our main living area, do chores around the house, catch up with friends if I can.

Our homeschool day has changed greatly since quarantine, but has also given us space to be together, learn together, and do life slowly together. I know someday I will look back on this time with a longing for us all home and together.

We were together. I forget the rest. -Walt Whitman

What does your quarantine day look like?

Vanessa

The most important thing

A Simpler Childhood, A Simpler Homeschool, A Simpler Motherhood

If you’re like most of the country, you have become your child’s primary teacher overnight. Reading, math, science, art, handwriting and a number of other subjects have all been dropped in your lap for the foreseeable future. Before I say much else: You’ve got this.

Many are feeling the pressure that comes with the responsibility of teaching their child for the next several weeks or rest of the year. Some of you are even working from home and schooling your kids. My hat is off to you. It may or may not help that there is an overwhelming amount of resources and links and ideas circulating on the internet. If you’re searching out the most important thing when it comes to your child’s education (besides beliefs and values), look no further than your bookshelf.

the most important thing

The most important thing you can do for your child’s education (especially right now) is quite simply read aloud. Sarah MacKenzie, founder of Read Aloud Revival and author of The Read Aloud Family states:

Reading aloud with our kids is indeed the best use of our time and energy as parents. It’s more important than just about anything else we can do. -Sarah MacKenzie

Why Read Aloud?

Most of us parents would be thrilled to raise a life long learner: a child who yearns after his or her passion long after school is over and the lessons are completed for the day. It takes a life long reader to create a life long learner.

Read Aloud Benefit #1: Academic ‘Success’

Success can mean a million different things. The word makes me nervous, so hear me out. Reading aloud to our kids gives them the best shot of being avid readers and thus becoming life long learners in whatever they choose to do with their lives after they spread their wings and leave the nest.

Jim Trelease, author of The Read Aloud Handbook, sites a study noting students in wealthy family situations consistently score higher than students in poverty, based on seventy-five years of SAT statistics. The main cause of this discrepancy is wealthy families read to their children more often, have more words in conversation, and their homes contain more books, magazines, and newspapers. Children in wealthy homes heard 45 million words by age 4 while children in working class homes only heard 13 million.

This study tugs at my heartstrings, but much good has come from this research. Many programs have been implemented to get books into the hands of all children. And getting back to the topic at hand: those numbers showcase how important reading aloud can be for our children.

There are a million resources floating around right now on how to homeschool your kids, but if you do nothing else in your day, simply pick up a book and read.

Read Aloud Benefit #2: Relationship and Connection

One of my favorite things in this world is to be cuddled up on the couch with all my kiddos around me reading a book. Reading aloud to our kids gives us built in time for relationship, connection, and physical touch. We can wonder together if animals really can talk while reading Charlotte’s Web or laugh every time someone in our family calls a pen a ‘frindle’ after reading one of my favorite books: Frindle. Our shared reading experiences gives our family another way to bond and connect and that brings me (and I hope them) great joy.

Read Aloud Benefit #3: Presence

When reading aloud to my kids, I am fully in the moment. 100% of me is in the story, reading and enjoying it with them. I am present. I wish I could say that was the case for every single minute of my day, but that just wouldn’t be true. When I read aloud, I have the opportunity with each and every book to be fully present with my people.

What if my kids are reading?

In MacKenzie’s book, The Read Aloud Family, she states: Most of us stop reading to our kids as soon as they can read for themselves, and almost no one is reading to middle-school and high-school age kids – parents or teachers. This, according to Trelease, is the main reason most kids don’t read for pleasure.

If we want our kids to be life long learners and thus life long readers, we need them to want to read for pleasure. And if we want our kids to read for pleasure, we need to read aloud to them…even the big kids.

Implementing The Most Important Thing

If you get on board with reading aloud being the most important thing we can do as parents (again, besides beliefs and values), then it is time to begin.

When?

First, decide when you will read aloud. Many of you are homeschooling, so you can fit it into your homeschool day. (Also, I’ve mentioned this before, but you don’t need to be homeschooling all day long, if you don’t want to. Cross reference with this article.) If you don’t get anything else in during your school day, read aloud. There have been days we have sat on the couch with a stack of books and nothing else was completed except for the pile of paperbacks. And I still call it a win. Another way to get reading aloud in is tie it to a routine. We read before rest time and bedtime and that ensures it happens everyday.

Start small.

If reading aloud isn’t your thing, start with one chapter, one book, five minutes. Try to increase it each day if you can. If we read to our kids for 20 minutes a day for just 300 days out of the year, we will have read for 6,000 minutes or 100 hours in a year. It’s astonishing what a small daily habit can accomplish.

What does it look like?

When it comes to what the read aloud time looks like, it will look different for all of us. Most times at our house it looks like me holding a baby while reading and being interrupted 27 times by three kiddos about needing a drink, telling me about their ‘owie’, or the classic ‘she’s touching me’. It isn’t picture perfect, people.

The most important thing can be done on the couch, in your bed, at the dining room table, outside on a blanket. My biggest tip: keep your expectations low. Kids don’t have to be sitting still and absolutely silent while you read. Most kids can listen and many even listen better with something in their hands. Some kids may want a matchbox car to play with or a doll to hold and rock. Bigger kids may want to draw or sit on an exercise ball. Reading aloud doesn’t look like kids sitting perfectly still, eyes fixed on the book, and quiet for 20 minutes everyday. In fact, most times our read aloud time looks like the complete opposite.

The Most Important Thing

We all want the best for our kids and reading aloud is a one stop shop offering so many benefits. So if you’re feeling overwhelmed with the amount of resources out there, with the responsibility to educate your child, with the weight of school and work and what’s going on in the world, I challenge you to put away the paper and pencil for awhile, pick up a book and sit down with your kiddos and just read. I will leave you with this…

When she was hardly more than a girl, Miss Minnie had gone away to a teacher’s college and prepared herself to teach by learning many cunning methods that she never afterward used. For Miss Minnie loved children and she loved books, and she taught merely by introducing the one to the other. –Wendell Berry, Watch with Me