Welcome to Our Good Life!!

10 Ways to Stay Encouraged While You Homeschool

2013-06-18T11:11:58Z

When we made the decision to homeschool, I quickly learned that it can be a lonely road. When you are home all day, being a mom, a teacher, a chef, a cleaner….you get the picture. There are days when it’s a GOOD day if I can just keep up with the laundry and lessons.

I’m so grateful that I literally fell into a great support network. This was truly a God thing, believe me. I had people in my life cheering me on before I knew that I would NEED people to cheer me on!

Here are 10 Ways to Stay Encouraged While Homeschooling:

1. Surround yourself with positive people. It can be very easy to complain and find the negative in pretty much anything. Having people who can lift you up, even on the darkest days makes a HUGE difference!

2. Make a realistic daily list. The key word here is *realistic*. I am a champion list maker, and at times my lists are pages long. However, seeing an ever-growing to do list can be discouraging! Now I pick the top 10 things that I want to do for the week and concentrate on those. Actually seeing a completed list by week end is SO encouraging!

3. Take 30 minutes a day to breathe. It’s important to step away, empty your mind and breathe. I take 3 ten minute breaks and it can make such a difference, especially when I get frustrated over what could be a simple task.

4. Have a plan. The days when I DON’T plan are the days when I feel like I run from sun-up to sun-down and get nothing done.

5. When you make a plan, FOLLOW it. I am notorious for making a *perfect* plan and then not following it….and my days get away from me. I’ve learned it’s so important to actually follow through.

6. Join a homeschool group where you are comfortable sharing. For me, although I don’t like Facebook much, I have found a group where I am comfortable sharing failures and successes.

7. Start your day right. I make a point to get up at least an hour before my family is up. I have breakfast, check in with my hellomornings group, and do my Bible Study. Starting the day encouraged helps me to stay encouraged through the day!

8. Pray. We are to pray unceasingly, and believe me, some days I really do. Having a strong prayer life really helps to keep me on track.

9. Make your days fun. We all can get into a school *rut* {or at least we do!} and I’ve found that having a file of fun ideas to pull out when we need a break really helps keep us on track. We’ve had bubble parties, made ice cream, gardened, played in the river, etc. Watching the girls have fun while learning is the best!

10. Give thanks in all things. Every meal we eat together we go around and each of us says 1 {or in Bella’s case 20} things that we are thankful for. Teaching our girls to give thanks for even the tiny instances where we can see God’s grace is wonderful and encouraging.

Now it’s your turn – how do you stay encouraged while you homeschool?

I’m linking up with Teach Them Diligently to share how we stay encouraged while we homeschool. I hope you’ll take a look at some of the other homeschool blogs and link up your own encouraging post!

Celebrating Father’s Day a Little Differently…..

2013-06-17T01:48:02Z

I hate to admit this, but I didn’t do anything special for Ken for Father’s Day this year.

I could blame the fact that I’ve not been out of the house, or downstairs in a week while I recover from surgery.

But I won’t.

Sunday morning I woke up and tried to think what I could have the girls make for Ken while he was preparing for church.

I had a few ideas, but between getting myself and the girls ready for church and out the door we ran out of time.

This day didn’t exactly go as I would have liked…..

My husband had to settle for a lunch from the drive thru at McDonald’s while we headed to a pool party.

Since I can’t go swimming yet, my adorable husband froze in the pool so our girls could splash and play.

After a full day of walking and lifting Baby J, wrestling the girls into and out of swimsuits by the time we got home I was exhausted and my knee was throbbing, so my amazing husband got the girls into bed, complete with stories and a zillion hugs, then headed downstairs to wash the dishes and get the bottles ready for tomorrow while I iced my knee.

This is not how I would have chosen to spend the day honoring everything that he does for us – but this is how he cares for us every.single.day.

And I love him more each and every day.

#3in30 Link Up June 14

2013-06-14T00:28:34Z

Happy Friday

How are you doing with your goals? Have you taken a HUGE step forward, or a teensy step backwards?

Do you have your goals ready? Link ‘em up and let’s cheer each other on!!

This challenge is all about encouraging each other through our link up – make sure to stop by at least one other blog that is listed below in the link up and share the love!

Write a blog post and add the direct link to your post below.

Comment on at least the person above you in the link up, and encourage them!

Link up right here….

Celebrating 10 Years

2013-06-14T00:27:30Z

Today I celebrate 10 years of marriage.

He is my best friend, my rock, my soul mate.

We met on a blind date and were married within 13 months from our first date.

I love that together we have built a simple life.

I love watching him play with the girls.

I love that we can sit on the porch swing and talk about life.

I love that God blessed me with this amazing man!

I can’t wait to see comes next…

Just a little Progress…..

2013-06-14T00:26:40Z

Happy Friday!

I’ve had a week of laying low, not lifting, no stairs, no unnecessary anything. I’m so thankful that my mom has been here for the entire week helping my hubby with the girls, the laundry, the dishes, the cleaning….you get the idea. I specifically chose simpler goals for this month knowing that I wouldn’t be able to be as active.

My 3in30 goals for JUNE:

1. Edit and print my backlog of photos. I’ve gotten a few edited, now I just need to get them printed. It’s hard to keep track going back a few weeks and figuring out which photos I took on which week!

2. Work on Project Life. I managed to get 2 weeks worth done – and while it was a little crazy trying to organize it while sitting in bed, it felt so good to make progress.

3. Knit hats for Sophie and Bella. I haven’t made any progress on this goal, but I am making progress on Bella’s sweater! I only have 1 set of size 6 needles, so I want to finish the sweater before I start on the hats. Kind of ironic that the temps are hitting the high 80s now, huh?!

This weekend I’m still lying low, and trying to ease myself into life with three little ones and a knee that still isn’t 100%. What are you to?

Wordless Wednesday – Simple Joy

2013-06-12T11:59:47Z

A Homeschool Confession

2013-06-11T12:17:51Z

I have a confession to make:

We haven’t done school in almost 3 months.

Between Baby L leaving, our vacation to Disney, Baby J arriving, and life getting a little crazy it’s been THREE MONTHS since I sat down and did lessons with my girls.

I started hyperventilating, and then I realized that while we hadn’t been doing traditional school – the girls were learning each day. So, when life throws you a curve ball, or gets crazy, or time just slips through your fingers….

remember the best thing about homeschool is that it’s flexible!

While we haven’t been sitting at the dining room table, we have been learning.

During our recent trips to NY, the girls have been reading maps, learning directions, and what makes NJ difference from PA and NY.

Sophie has been in such a creative mood. With a stack of paper, markers, glue, glitter, and string she is happy for hours. It’s really great to see what she creates.

Bella is our music girl – she sings, dances and makes up imaginative stories that keep me in stitches. Watching her imagination unfold has been such a gift.

Thanks to the great weather, we spend a lot of time outside talking about nature and why God made things the way He did.

We’ve visited the zoo, aquarium, and children museums.

We are spending more time together as a family, reading books, visiting the library and just enjoying being together.

In the fall, we will be starting Classical Conversations, and I’m really excited about that. I’m looking forward to the fellowship, learning together and embarking on a new adventure.

For now, I’m happy we are taking things day by day, enjoying little moments together as a family.

Linking up with:

Easy Braid Up-Do Hairstyle

2013-06-10T22:07:57Z

I posted a picture of a hairstyle I did for Sophie on Instagram, and I got a few requests for how to do it. Here is a quick, easy braid up-do that will take five minutes and stay in place for hours. Believe me, Sophie wore it all day through summer camp and it stayed in and still looked cute by bedtime.

Start by gathering hair into a ponytail and the middle of the head and secure with a band.

Separate the ponytail into 4 sections, braid each section and secure with bands.

Take the 4 braided sections and secure them together with 1 band. You can remove the other bands from the braided sections if you want to at this time.

Loop the braids over the main ponytail, leaving 2 braids on each side. You can secure with bobby pins {although Sophie HATES them} or just add a a ribbon clip and tuck under the ends.

Voila! A super cute style that your girl will love!

#3in30 Link Up June 7th

2013-06-07T12:15:21Z

Hello June!

It’s a brand new month – a perfect time to start with 3 new goals!!

How are you doing with your goals? Have you taken a HUGE step forward, or a teensy step backwards?

Do you have your goals ready? Link ‘em up and let’s cheer each other on!!

This challenge is all about encouraging each other through our link up – make sure to stop by at least one other blog that is listed below in the link up and share the love!

Write a blog post and add the direct link to your post below.

Comment on at least the person above you in the link up, and encourage them!

HMMM….looks like simply-linked is having issues this morning!! Leave your link in the comments and hopefully the platform will be back up soon!

Link up right here….

Surgery Today, Goals Tomorrow…..

2013-06-07T00:11:49Z

Today I will be at the hospital having knee surgery. I am slightly stressed about it, since I don’t do well with anesthesia and they are telling me that I will be out and have a tube in. Not happy about that at all. So, hopefully by tonight I’ll be done, propped up on my MIL’s couch getting caught up on all the blogs I’ve missed this week!

My 3in30 goals for JUNE:

1. Edit and print my backlog of photos. This is on my list for next week while I’m recuperating. I have plenty of ink and I’m ready to edit and print!

2. Work on Project Life. I’ve got everything ready to go for photos. I have 3 weeks of photos printed and waiting to be done – I think I’ll make great progress on this!

3. Knit hats for Sophie and Bella. Nope. Would you believe that I messed up the front of the sweater for Bella, and I need to rip out rows and rows of stitches? Yikes! No hats until I finish this sweater.

My weekend will be spent at my MIL’s house trying to stay sane and off my knee for 3 entire days. Oy!!

What about you? What are YOU up to this weekend?

Welcome to Our Good Life!!

10 Ways to Stay Encouraged While You Homeschool

Here are 10 Ways to Stay Encouraged While Homeschooling:

Celebrating Father’s Day a Little Differently…..

#3in30 Link Up June 14

Happy Friday

Celebrating 10 Years

Today I celebrate 10 years of marriage.

Just a *little* Progress…..

Happy Friday!

My 3in30 goals for JUNE:

Wordless Wednesday – Simple Joy

A Homeschool Confession

We haven’t done school in almost 3 months.

remember the best thing about homeschool is that it’s flexible!

For now, I’m happy we are taking things day by day, enjoying little moments together as a family.

Easy Braid Up-Do Hairstyle

#3in30 Link Up June 7th

Hello June!

Surgery Today, Goals Tomorrow…..

My 3in30 goals for JUNE:

Just a little Progress…..