Since we started homeschooling our 3-year-old for Preschool our stack of library books has grown by leaps and bounds and started taking over our living room. I saw the idea to use IKEA spice racks as children's bookshelves that's so popular on pinterest and mentioned it to my husband. "I can make that," he said. He put them together and Benjamin "helped" paint them and now they are lovely and … [Read more...]
Kids in the Kitchen: Introducing Your Children to Cooking
From the time our firstborn could sit up in a high chair and watch us cook, we would hand him some measuring cups and spoons to play with so he could "participate." Our kitchen is definitely the center of our home and we like to have our kids in the kitchen with us. And kids LOVE to be kitchen helpers; however, sometimes cooking with children can be more frustrating than fun. Here’s some tips for … [Read more...]
There’s No Paycheck for Motherhood: Finding Value in the Home
A reader who stays home with her children recently asked me about how to avoid feeling guilty that she’s not bringing in a paycheck the way she did before becoming a mother. She writes, “I still feel ‘less than’ for not monetarily contributing to my family. I have a hard time with being financially dependent on my husband.” She is experiencing what I think so many mothers struggle with. How does … [Read more...]
How to Gift Friends with Meals
I love this post by my dear friend Katherine full of wonderful tips for bringing the gift of food to friends in need of a home-cooked meal. Enjoy! - Haley I’ve been on the receiving end thrice recently: of a lasagna brought by a friend when I was laid low with morning sickness; of a half-dozen hearty Southern meals at my grandfather-in-law’s funeral; of a fill-the-freezer campaign by my … [Read more...]
A Day in the Life
So, I decided to write down the events of one day to open a little window into our life. I picked Monday of last week and it ended up not being our best day. But it wasn't our worst, either. So here it is from 6:30am Monday to 6:30am Tuesday: 6:30am: Lucy wakes up for a feeding but goes back to sleep afterward (5th waking of the night! Whew). Daniel gets up and so does Benjamin. They work … [Read more...]
Food Choices ARE a Moral Issue
I recently read a very popular blog post, Food Choices Are Not a Moral Issue, on one of my favorite blogs, Keeper of the Home by Mandi Ehman of Life Your Way (another blog I read and enjoy). Mandi writes a lot of great stuff and I usually like her posts, but in this case, I wholeheartedly disagree with her claim. You can read the post here. Basically, Mandi bemoans the rigid judgmentalism of … [Read more...]
Preschooling at Home: Our Vision
I promised to follow-up our “why” we’re homeschooling post with a “how we plan to do it” post. And I thought I’d start out by addressing a great question from a reader who asked, “Why bother “pre school homeschool” anyways?...I might have a stricter idea of preschool homeschooling in my mind though, I really see formal preschool as something that could get in the way of natural play and … [Read more...]
My Homeschooling Experience
After last week’s post on why we’re homeschooling, readers had some questions about what my homeschoolinge experience (3rd-8th grade) looked like. I thought I would answer in a short post tonight since tomorrow’s posting prospects are looking grim. Benjamin’s having trouble with his asthma and I have a premonition that tomorrow will involve a long morning at the Dr.’s office. (Please pray he … [Read more...]
On Not Knowing the Secret to Discipline
(Our three-year-old's scowl during a time-out) I really can’t decide what’s more exhausting: the sleep deprivation of the newborn stage or the behavioral challenges of “the terrible threes.” A few weeks ago a lovely reader asked for my thoughts on toddler discipline. I called my husband over. “Daniel! Check this out! Somebody wants to know our approach to discipline!” We both got a good … [Read more...]
Why Using a Slow Cooker Makes Me a Better Mom
“Really, Haley? A better mom?” you ask. Folks, I’m serious. Here’s the deal: 4-5pm, when I’m trying to prepare dinner, also happens to be the hour of the day that my kids suddenly NEED me. Baby Lucy decides that not being held is some kind of baby torture and grabs my ankles and bawls. Any other time of the day I would gladly just scoop her up but when I’m sautéing onions in hot bacon grease or … [Read more...]
