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Anyone else return from vacation with a frenetic energy to reorganize their entire life? ⁣ ⁣ Just me?⁣ ⁣ Okay but seriously where has this cart been my whole life?! ⁣ ⁣ We live in a small cabin in the woods and so do not have a separate space dedicated for school or really any kind of storage space that’s satisfying. We do morning time on our one and only couch and table lessons on our kitchen table. Which means I have been carrying to the kitchen our resources by lesson and keep them put away immediately or we can’t eat (which also means Mama can’t function). ⁣ ⁣ Enter: this cart. I’m going to try this where I can keep all our language arts and math in one space and not have to dump it all on the table as we work. ⁣ ⁣ Reorganizing also helped me get rid of excess. I mean: how many different kinds of math manipulatives does one need? I reduced a bin of maybe 10 items to 2 and feel quite refreshed.⁣ ⁣ I’ll add a quick tour of this in my stories today for those who are interested. Anyone else have small living space storage tips for homeschooling? Would love any and all ideas!

New Blog Post — Endangered Species Nature Study⁣ ⁣ All the books and resources. And of course: chocolate!⁣ ⁣ Ash Wednesday is coming up and I’ll be starting the new Gayle Boss devotional Wild Hope, which features stories of hope through endangered species.⁣ ⁣ This last week in Florida we got to see Manatees up close from a dock and a few of them had obvious scars on their backs from motor gashes. My kids noticed. They are deeply aware of the human impact on wildlife just by living a life in nature and taking it all in as it comes to them. They have open hearts just by virtue of being human and given the opportunity to care. ⁣ ⁣ I am all for the idea of giving my children freedom from the burdens of the adult world (favorite chapter in Simplicity Parenting!), but many realities are not worth hiding, especially when the vein of the suffering they feel (in themselves and every creature) runs straight to the heart of hope in Christ. What is hope if there is no need? No crying out? If we believe that children are born while persons, are they not wholly capable of a range of emotions when faced with reality?⁣ ⁣ I don’t know how to talk about elephants or tigers or polar bears or any number of these beloved animals without acknowledging the words: sick, hungry, homeless, hunted, vanishing. ⁣ ⁣ But of course the story does not have to end there.⁣ ⁣ “The purpose of Lent has always been to startle us awake to the true state of our hearts and the world we’ve made. Which wakes in aching, wild hope that something new might be born of the ruin.” -Gayle Boss, Wild Hope

Happy Valentines Day! I don’t have a great reason for it but I don’t really like this holiday or the color pink. Sooooooooo... today we made some earthy valentines instead, inspired by Here We Are, a favorite book the kids picked to read at bedtime last night. ⁣ ⁣ A part of my indifference probably also has to do with the fact my husband is always gone at an annual conference this time of year. I’m on Day 4 of solo parenting in winter and I’m frankly not a fan. ⁣ ⁣ So what about you? Are you a reluctant Valentiner like me or are you all in?

How do you inspire a love of art in your kids? ⁣ ⁣ I’ll be sharing one of my tips below, but I genuinely want to hear from you: what barriers do you face? Is it that you personally don’t enjoy it? Kids get frustrated? Don’t know what media to use? Don’t like messes?⁣ ⁣ I’m compiling thoughts already for a blog post but would love to hear from you!⁣ ⁣ One thing that I do with my kids is participate in creating art WITH them. We use lessons from @chalkpastelart ( #partner #ad ) and I sit down and draw with them. The shared experience is a part of bringing the joy to the process and not just the final result. But of course we also display their pictures proudly when complete.⁣ ⁣ And @chalkpastelart is a fantastic way to have art instruction in your homeschool if you aren’t that comfortable creating or teaching art yourself! Each video takes you step by step to create an art piece, and there are varying degrees of difficulty. There are a wide range of topics to explore that can appeal to so many interests—landmarks, forest, space, history, garden, inventors, sharks, and more! I highly recommend this subscription—I’ll put some more details in my stories today so you can see it in action!. ⁣ “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” -Pablo Picasso ⁣ ⁣ Don’t forget to leave me a comment!

Sugar Snow! ⁣ ⁣ We have collected 60 gallons of sap this week and honestly it’s a lot to keep up with. I do enjoy this time of year but it also means I have to let some things slide in order to keep up with maple syrup production. I’m trying to view it as an opportunity and not a burden. So these days math is counting gallons and science is using a hydrometer. Art and play are whatever the kids are doing when I’m not paying attention. And reading lessons for my oldest just aren’t happening. Goodness can be measured in so many ways, even when you have nothing to show for it. ⁣ ⁣ And as an aside: I know these photos aren’t as successful on here as crafts and flatlays of resources. But I will continue to post these. I feel it’s important to show images of life and not just accomplishments. I’m a human. You’re a human. We win by being above the social media measure of success.

When your friends find dead animal bones and bring them to you. It’s next level nerdom. ⁣ ⁣ Lately I’ve been enjoying all the questions and wondering my kids come up with on their own. And I’m grateful that they have the space and time to ask and to be heard. Homeschooling is not without difficulties, but if I pause and pay attention to the moments where we can connect and feel like we are living life in love and present to the world around us... it feels like there is nothing in the world that makes more sense than this choice.⁣ ⁣ “Mama, everything has a name.”⁣ “What do you mean?⁣ “Bridges. Cities. Planets. Trees. Animals. Everything has a name!”⁣ “Oh yes! Well... do you think there exists anything that doesn’t have a name?”⁣ “Maybe the stars that are infinity away?”⁣ ⁣ Here’s to the infinite!

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Nature-based living education at home.

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