Most Recent Goodies
{FREE} Printables
Free Printable: Fun with Forest Facts Pack
Springtime tends to make people think of flowers, bunnies, and Easter eggs, but many forget that there are also forests that revitalize themselves each spring. Here is some learning fun for grades 2 – 4 that centers around forests and their importance to us. In this Fun with Forest Facts pack you will find forest themed activities to do both at home and at your local library. Download the free Fun With Forest Facts Pack . Clip art used in this printable {Read More}
Free Printable Pack: All About My Homeschooling Family
At various times and in a multitude of different ways throughout elementary school curriculums you will find that your children are asked to create an “All About Me” in a learning pack, activity, or a craft. Have you ever noticed that most of the packs around this subject have pages that you are pulling out since it does not apply to your homeschooling child? I know that I have, which is why I have created this All About My Homeschooling {Read More}
Speaking Life Into Your Homeschool {Day 3}
Speaking Life Into Your Homeschool {Day 3} Yesterday we talked about the importance of identifying that you have a problem with the words that you are speaking into your homeschool. If you are anything like me, this will be a lifelong journey as we seek to honor God with our mouths! Today we are going to talk about the importance of meditating on His Word {the Bible}, to help change our thoughts and heart. This important step will help us {Read More}
The Benefit of Using a Running Curriculum List {With FREE Printable}
I want to share with you a tactic that has blessed our homeschool since it’s inception in 2003. It is what I call a “Running Curriculum List“. This way of thinking has saved our family THOUSANDS of dollars on homeschool curriculum over the last 9+ years. Who can’t use a few extra dollars in their pocket year round? I know I can! How does this work? The basic gist of it is to write down EVERYTHING you are wanting for {Read More}
Monthly Meal Plan
June FREE Monthly Meal Plan
Sweet summer time! I truly hope you guys are finding these monthly meal plans useful. I know I asked last month, but I’m going to do it again this month. I would love some feedback. Is there more of a particular type of meal you would like to see? I try to focus on quick, yummy, and healthy {although I don’t always accomplish the last one} because that is what I need in my own home. But I would love {Read More}
May FREE Monthly Meal Plan
Hi, guys! I hope you enjoyed the April meal plan. Did you find any new recipes that your family absolutely loved or any recipes that you family did not love so much? I would love to hear your feedback!! Summer is quickly approaching and May is BBQ month and salad month, so during this month, you’ll find BBQ and salad ideas alternating on Wednesdays. It is time to get those grills fired up!! Without further ado, here is your May {Read More}
April Free Monthly Meal Plan
I am so excited to be sharing my meal plans with you guys here at So You Call Yourself a Homeschooler! Each month, I will be posting a printable pdf meal plan. I am beginning by only posting dinner ideas, but will consider also including breakfast and lunch ideas in the future. Many of the meals include hyperlinks to the actual recipes. Simply click the link and you will be either provided with a pdf of the recipe or taken {Read More}
eMeals Review {& Giveaway}
eMeals Review {& Giveaway} eMeals is a wonderful company that was founded by two sisters who are also devoted wives and mothers who were on a quest to make meal time more effective for their families. Together with a team of experienced meal planners and chefs, they have created a wonderful product that is sure to please most any family. My husband and I have been on a quest for the past decade to continually find economical ways to feed {Read More}
Current Articles
Kids in the Kitchen
Our kitchen wouldn’t be complete without kids measuring, mixing, stirring, and creating. Although many people don’t like the mess of kids in the kitchen, I look at it as an investment. By investing time in teaching my kids how to use the kitchen supplies (and how to clean up after themselves), I will have less of a mess when they do get in the kitchen to help me cook throughout the week. Not only that, it’s a great way to {Read More}
Explore YOUR World!
Hello, friends! I am going to be a bit transparent here… come in closer… I am not a huge fan of science. *blush* There! I said it! Ever since grade school, I have just learned the information long enough to take the test and move on. A math quiz covered in problems? Bring it on… A sentence to diagram into a million pieces? I’ll take it… Diagram a cell? Someone hold me… Now, don’t get me wrong; I did fine {Read More}
Hawaii and Homeschooling – Overcoming Fears and Anxiety
My husband and I were given a trip to Hawaii by a friend who couldn’t use it due to unforeseen circumstances. I’m very excited for this getaway since my husband (of almost 18 years) and I have never truly taken a vacation together without our children. As if that weren’t fantastic enough, it just so happened that the incredible week on Maui that she gifted us was a Christian couples’ getaway, and we are going to enjoy music from Mac {Read More}
The Homeschool Mother’s Journal {June 15, 2013}
Welcome to the NEW home of The Homeschool Mother’s Journal! I am so pleased that you are with us today! If you are not familiar with the journal writing prompts and guidelines, please see this post. New Linkup Day One change you may have noticed right away is that the new linkup is Saturday through Tuesday. I decided to make this change to give you moms a chance to finish out your week and reflect on your thoughts. I hope {Read More}
Grow Your Own Carrot Greens
Since spring has sprung, and everyone is starting to tend to their gardens and getting reacquainted with nature, we decided it was the right time to do a little indoor plant experiment. When a friend of mine mentioned that she heard that carrot greens grew from your discarded carrot tops, I was skeptical but thought it was a worth a try. She was right! They do. Carrot greens are edible and an excellent source of vitamins. They can be added {Read More}
How Am I Supposed to Do This?
Homeschooling with little ones (under 3 or 4) is nearly impossible. There, I said it. It’s the truth. Here’s my life in a nutshell. I have 4 boys, ages 6 1/2 (we’re finishing up kindergarten), 4 1/2, 2 1/2, and 5 months. We relocated a couple years ago for my husband’s job, so there are no family members around. I breastfeed the baby 24/7. My husband also travels quite a bit. I have a four-bedroom house and I do not {Read More}
Teaching Multiple Children in Multiple Grades
As the mother of eight children, I often struggled in the beginning of our homeschooling adventures with trying to teach each of the kids in each of their grade levels. This amounted to me repeating myself several times, but in different ways so each of the kids would grasp the topics, skills, or concepts I was teaching. When I was in my mid-thirties, I returned to college. I decided that I needed to merge my teaching time with the children {Read More}
Five Steps to Start a Homeschool Co-Op
Last month I shared five reasons to consider starting or joining a homeschool co-op. This month, I’m sharing five steps to start your own co-op based on my experience launching and running a girls’ book club co-op this school year. If you’re unfamiliar with the world of homeschool co-ops, my homeschooling sisters and I share our various experiences with co-ops on our family blog, NextGen Homeschool. What I’ve learned so far is that the key ingredients to structuring a new {Read More}
5 Things to Consider When Planning Your Homeschool Schedule
The Homeschool Schedule In my experience, and that of some of my friends, finding a comfortable schedule for your family is a lot easier said than done. It’s easy to copy someone else’s schedule and end up frustrated or worse, feeling like a failure. So how does one design a personalized homeschool schedule “perfect” for them? There are several things to consider and we’ll discuss a lot of them today, but the first and most important thing is to consider {Read More}
{Giveaway} The Confident Mom 2013 Summer Survival Calendar
The Confident Mom 2013 Summer Survival Calendar “Dirty hands, iced tea, garden fragrances thick in the air, and a blanket of color before me, who could ask for more?” —Bev Adams Sniff, sniff…do you smell that? It’s the scent of summer, and it’s almost upon us! The Confident Mom is once again helping moms everywhere take charge of summer activities with the 2013 Summer Survival Calendar. The Confident Mom 2013 Summer Survival Calendar offers boredom-blasting activities, creative craft projects, kid-friendly {Read More}
For the Family
Working from Home While Homeschooling
Working from home while homeschooling your children is hard work! I am sure I don’t have to tell you that. You know how hard it is to get everything done. You have to get school work done, the housework done, your work for your business done. You have to be a mother to your children on top of being their teacher. You also have to be a wife to your husband. It is exhausting just writing it all down. Trust {Read More}
An Open Letter To Work-at-Home Homeschooling Moms
Dear Work-at-Home, Overwhelmed, Overworked, and Underpaid Homeschooling Mom, You are not alone. Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ~Isaiah 41:10 I know that you are overwhelmed. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, {Read More}
How I Fit It All In
I’m not going to close down my Facebook account. I’ve been kicking it around. In fact, I even did that two-week thing where you can shut it down–but not quite all the way–and then bring it back up within two weeks if you change your mind. I almost made it the two weeks! One thing keeps calling me back. People. “Well, duh,” you say, “that’s what Facebook is all about.” It’s not that I’m afraid I’m going to lose connections or {Read More}
The Center of It All in Managing Your Home
Drop clothes in the washer… pick up the shoes from the living room floor… unload the dishwasher… vacuum the hallway. Mop the floors… switch the clothes from washer to dryer… start another load. Pick up the shoes from the living room floor AGAIN as well as the toys that have somehow migrated. Wipe off the table crumbs from breakfast and load the dishwasher with the just used dishes. (Repeat.) Does this sound familiar? Home management can be relentlessly mundane and {Read More}
I Was Giving Her Time
I am often reminded that our children want us to invest in their lives. They don’t tell us that in those words but that is what they desire. Our children want to be seen, to be heard, to be loved by their parents. I have two children and a husband that is gone a lot on business. When you are the parent that is staying home to homeschool, to cook meals, to take children to their dance classes, to {Read More}
The ULTIMATE Homemaking eBook Bundle {97 eBooks + Bonuses!}
For 6 days only, more than 75 widely-known bloggers and authors in the homemaking sphere have joined together to offer 97 of their most popular eBooks and eCourses, valued at just over $600, for the incredibly low price of $29.97! More than anything, our goal for this sale was for it to be, well… ultimate! We firmly believe that you will not find a more comprehensive collection of homemaking resources anywhere on the web, and particularly not in this price {Read More}
Introducing Teach Them Diligently Marketplace {Mini Conferences}
Teach Them Diligently Marketplace Did you know that the fabulous Teach Them Diligently conference is now having Marketplace Mini Conferences? Yes, it’s true! What does this mean? It means that Teach Them Diligently will now be accessible to more homeschooling families throughout locations in the US. You will still get the same amazing wisdom and encouragement from the amazing TTD speaker line up (providing advice on biblical parenting and homeschooling) as the larger regional conferences, however just on a smaller {Read More}
40+ Free & Frugal Family Activities
Now that spring is on the horizon, our family activities can be expanded to the great outdoors! I am excited to share with you our family’s personal list of free and frugal family activities that we came up with last week. Of course the ideas can be limitless, but for some of you having a list to work off of will bring out some ideas and the very inspiration you are looking for! Go Bowling. For those of you in {Read More}
Veggie Tales: The Little House That Stood Review (& Giveaway)
Veggie Tales: The Little House That Stood Review I don’t know about your family, but our family has been a huge fan of Veggie Tales for the last 12 years since our firstborn came into the world. From the amazing character lessons to the silly songs, Veggie Tales has been a huge hit in our home with all 3 of our children! So you can imagine that our family was excited when we were able to sit down together and {Read More}
Speaking Life into Your Homeschool {Day 5}
Speaking Life into Your Homeschool {Day 5} To recap on what we’ve examined this week on our journey to speaking life-giving words over our homeschool: Day 1 – we talked about what it even means to speak life. Day 2 – we learned the importance of recognizing we have an issue in this area – and the benefits to identifying the problem. Day 3 – we talked about the important roles that speaking and confessing God’s Word have in changing {Read More}
