Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Reading Blogs Made Easier

Do you like to read blogs like I do?

I was recently reviewing some training I have on being a blogger.

Yes, reviewing -- because I have an entire 2" binder full of things that I have printed off... reference sheets, trainings, articles, and all kinds of little inspirational things. Did I mention that researching and learning are two of my very favorite things? :-)

Anyway, I came across a daily checklist of to-dos to help find new readers for your blog, and it included a little bit about reading favorite blogs on Bloglovin and leaving comments.

Bloglovin? I thought that was a thing years ago... a plugin maybe... I can't remember.

Well, it turns out it's still around, and it's a nice, simple interface to read blogs on your favorite topics! I have a bunch of blogs in a bookmark folder called "Dailies!" in my bookmarks bar, but it's still a process to kind of go through and click those links. (And no, I don't do it every day).

Also... and this is me being honest here... I don't like a lot of modern blog design. I hate pop ups and intrusive advertising... but I understand that bloggers want to earn an income for their families.

Bloglovin solves all that. I can follow blogs that I like, just as I would follow boards on Pinterest or pages on Facebook, and there they all are, in clean, simple format. See what I mean?



I can't tell you how happy this makes me! 

I love seeing what other homeschool families are doing, find new craft ideas, new learning ideas, and new recipes. I just love learning, period.

So, I thought I'd share!

Why not give it a try? You can start out by following my blog here: Follow my blog with Bloglovin And then talk to me in the comments. Do you have blogs you read every day? Or do you mostly stay on social media sites?

Friday, January 12, 2018

Thinking About Pulling Your Child from Public School?

It's just about halfway through the school year, and I'm seeing lots of posts on homeschooling FB groups. Posts from parents who are watching their kids struggle, and feel completely drained by the daily grind of overwhelmed kids, homework, and 7:30am start times.

Lots of these parents are considering homeschooling. And that is one big, huge scary thought.

Maybe you're in that place too. 

I wrote the following response on a homeschooling board recently when a fellow mom posted about her fears in taking her child out of public school. Despite the fact that she was watching her child crumple under the pressure, she was afraid that she wasn't equipped to be her child's teacher.


I just want to encourage you and say you have everything you need to be your child's teacher. You know your child, and that is the prerequisite. You have time. You love to learn yourself.


Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Amish Sugar Cookies

These delicious Amish sugar cookies are different than any recipe I have tried!

Baking is a lovely way to pass the time during the dark days of winter. We homeschooling moms have a lot of time to fill, don't we, when it's harder to head outside to play?

The mixture of butter and oil, and the variety of sugars give these cookies a softness and a flavor that is unique. I love the addition of the almond extract as well -- although my daughter doesn't (she can tell if I sneak it in there). You could also experiment with other extracts to enhance flavors, or stir in half a cup of chopped sweetened dried cranberries.



You could also dress these up with a few drops of food coloring (I use the natural kind from India Tree, available on Amazon, because my kiddo reacts to artificial colors) for holidays! Pink cookies would be super cute for Valentine's Day!


Tuesday, January 2, 2018

How is Homeschooling Working for You Right Now?


Welcome to 2018!

Do you like fresh starts and new beginnings as much as I do?

Although you might be in the middle of your homeschool year, the new year is still a great time to reflect on your homeschool year so far, and refocus moving forward.

In our house, we have a lot of reflecting to do, because most of what I planned for the school year -- well, it pretty much fell apart. I still have a lot to learn about how my daughter best learns and thrives.

Field trip to the pet store. She's teaching ME about fish.

I want to tell the truth about this. We are still in our first year of homeschooling, so naturally we do not have it all figured out yet. But I suspect that's not just a first-year thing. It's a homeschool thing -- and out there on the internet, I don't see a lot of the hard realities of homeschooling. I see beautiful spaces, clever crafts, happy smiling children. 

You know, the highlight reel.