This was my first week of home schooling all four boys and what I’ve learned is – it’s not easy. I’m a full-time mom with a teaching degree and IT’S NOT EASY. I’m putting that out there so that every other parent can give themselves some grace!!!
This is new to ALL of us, and it’s not streamlined or organized. I’m not sure if we are getting it all done, or done correctly?! My mantra right now:
Good enough is good enough.
Here’s a breakdown of what each of us are doing:
George:
George has been a rock star – starting his day on time, figuring out all his assignments, checking them off, one-by-one. He asks me for help in understanding a few things. My favorite subject to do with him is Minnesota Studies. We are both learning so much about our state. He’s in sixth grade and has 7 classes. Each class is giving him about 20 minutes worth of homework.
Clark
Clark isn’t a fan of home learning. He needs social interaction and competition to thrive. His favorite part of home learning are zoom chats with his entire class.
Paul
Paul’s doing good with home school. I assist him with about 50% of his work. His home school consists of reading on an app called EPIC, math on an app called IXL, and other assignments on an app called SeeSaw. His teacher sends a daily video and list of activities to my Gmail. They also do classroom zoom chats. His favorite part of the day is getting outside to hike and explore.
Luke
I’m trying to keep Luke busy with letter worksheets, art, small-motor activities, and some digital learning games while I help his brothers with school. The boys take turns reading and practicing letters with him, and his preschool teacher has posted videos on youtube for him to watch and learn.
Learning inside
Learning outside
Kathryn:
I usually make everyone a big breakfast, and then we start homeschool at 9AM. I move from kid to kid throughout the morning helping them start activities, finish work, or answer questions.
Lunch is simple – sandwiches or mac-n-cheese and fruit.
After lunch we finish our homework and then we get outside until it’s time to get dinner ready.
Most nights we eat dinner together. This has been one of my favorite parts of quarantine – lots of time around the table! After dinner the kids can have some videogame time, or we will watch a show. Some shows we like to watch together:
Ted is staying busy with work for Target – but working from home. He has conference calls and video chats throughout the day. Sometimes it’s tricky keeping four boys quiet while he’s on a call. He told me the other day, when I was in the shower, he was on a call and heard one of our sons shout, “I love bacon!” Then all four boys starting chanting “I love bacon!” Thankfully, his co-workers thought it was funny, but now I make sure he doesn’t have a conference call before I get in the shower.
Getting Outside!
Clark’s artwork
George’s artwork
Hiking an old abandoned railroad
Getting outside is one of our favorite parts of the day – especially now that the sun is coming out and the weather is getting warmer! Minnesota winters are LONG, which makes spring and summer so much sweeter.
One afternoon, while out on a hike, the boys caught a water bug, a slug, and a leech, then put them into the same bucket with pond water to see what would survive. They watched the giant water bug use his proboscis to kill the minnow.
3 Things we learned:
The word Proboscis: the long appendage on the front of a bug or animal. It’s the part of a mosquito that sticks into a human to suck it’s blood.
Water bugs have a large proboscis that they use to poke and kill their prey.
We don’t have to be in school to learn about science and nature!
What I’m loving:
Psalm 91 – I’m starting each day by reading this passage of Scripture.
Covid Memes! So much laughter!
Slower pace and time with my family
FaceTime with family and friends
Family Dinners
My “One Line a Day” Book. I’m capturing some of what’s happening in this simple journal. It will be interesting to look back on in years to come. I also write funny things my kids say and do.
What are you loving right now? Leave me a comment by clicking on the comment box by the title of this post.
Thanks for reading! Can’t wait to share a post written by my husband soon. Subscribe so you don’t miss a post.
🌞☀️ Summer Fun Alert! 🌞☀️ Are you ready to banish those dreaded words, “I’m bored,” from your kids’ vocabulary this summer? 🎉 I’ve put together the ultimate list of activities guaranteed to keep young minds engaged, bodies moving, and creativity flowing all season long! From outdoor adventures to indoor escapades, there’s something for every kid to enjoy. Let’s dive in and make this summer the most memorable one yet! 🚀
.
Note: I put this list together during the 2020 lock down and it came in handy when my son and got Covid and had to spend two weeks in quarantine. When we were finally ‘free” he said:
.
“Mom, I’m sad that quarantine is done. We made so many memories.”
Luke, age 7
.
Thankfully, the lockdown is long gone, but this list remains incredibly useful for those moments when boredom strikes and you’re in need of some inspiration! Plus, it’s an added bonus that you’ll make ‘so many memories’ along the way!!
.
.
1. Draw a Picture and/or write a letter
Set out Pencils, markers, water color, or crayons and blank paper or coloring books.
Draw pictures and write letters to family and friends!
Find books that will pique your child’s curiosity.
Most early readers (and pre-readers) enjoy comic-strip style books.
Set a timer so your kids know that it’s “reading time.”
Ask an older child to read to a younger child – or –
Read a few pages of a chapter book to your kids. The “Who Was” series is great!
My 12 year old son and I recently finished Front Desk and he LOVED it and kept asking me to read more.
We read Little House on the Prairie in 2020 and laughed at how similar the “little house life” and “quarantine life” are!
.
.
3. Tell/ write a story
My fourth grade teacher once gave us the title “The Entire City Lends a Hand” and had the class each write their own story. Read a rendition of that here.
Give your kids a title and let them write!
Title ideas: The first day of school! Best Vacation Ever, If I were President, Undersea Adventure, You Won’t Believe what Happened!
Have your kids write a little each day about what they are doing during the summer. (It will be interesting to look back on these journals in the future!)
Another option: Have your kids write 1 thing they are grateful for each day.
Thinking about our blessings and what we are grateful for is extremely helpful in building resiliency! I researched journals a few months ago and decided to purchase this simple one for George. I’ve loved watching him open this up (without prompting), and write what he’s grateful for!
Research suggests that keeping a gratitude journal can boost your health and happiness.
George cooling off on the hot dayGeorge on the zip line
.
.
9. Clean together
My sister’s daughters (ages 4 and 7) – She says the girls enjoy the tactile nature of finding the clips, reading them, and then putting them in the container when completed.
There are so many benefits to giving your kids household chores and teaching them to clean!
Some bigger things we are working on together – the basement, baseboards, and cleaning our cars.
Smaller things the kids can do – a junk drawer, the pantry, baseboards, wiping lower cabinets, all door handles, appliance handles, pulling weeds, folding and putting away laundry, bathroom, bedroom, their closet, and loading/unloading dishwasher.
I offered my kids a quarter to whoever could wipe down the baseboards and bring me back the dirtiest wet wipe.
Puzzle races: 1. Time your kids and see how fast they can put a small puzzle together. 2. If you have two 50-100 piece puzzles, race to see who can put them together faster.
Optional Money-saving tip: Trade puzzles with your neighbors or buy some used ones! Dollar store sells some too!
This sticker book has over 5000 5-star reviews! I got this for my son for Christmas and I see why it has so many positive reviews. We love it! The pictures turn out so pretty you could frame them!
Run around your house for 5 or more minutes. I don’t know about your kids – but my kids NEED to burn energy in a healthy way or they start getting mischievous!
If we are outside, I challenge my kids to a foot race so that we can BOTH burn energy and get exercise.
.
.
34. Play some backyard games
Duck Duck Goose
Balloon Bounce – Kids lay down (or sit down) and have to work together to keep balloon(s) in the air.
Red Rover, Red Rover
Red Light, Green Light
Tag
.
.
35. Have a unique conversation
Has months of summer left you with nothing else to talk about than how bored you are? Then you NEED this set of cards.
Each card asks interesting questions for your family to answer or discuss. My kids ask for us to pull the cards out whenever we sit down to eat. One time my kids were eating alone and my oldest son pulled the questions out to ask his little brothers. I LOVED listening to their conversation!
.
.
36. Have a “What’s in the Box?” Challenge
Cut holes a in box
Choose an item to put inside
Allow someone to reach their hand inside the box and “guess” what it is.
Take turns finding items to hide, then guessing “What’s in the Box?”
Kids can learn how to make a flipbook animation in less than 5 minutes. All you need is a pen and a stack of notecards, paper, or a sticky note pad. This video is a great and very quick tutorial.
.
.
45. Play Simon Says or Follow The Leader
Have each child take a turn being the leader
Walk all around your house
Do jumps, turns, stop to hug dad, etc.
.
.
46. Ice excavating
Place some toys in a bowl of water and Freeze. Let the kids dig them out.
A really fun and simple activity that can act as a physics lesson and opportunity for an experiment. Make a simple ramp using cardboard or a piece of wood, and roll different objects down: measure how far they go, how fast they roll, or hold races between different kinds of balls to see which wins!
Print the 55 options listed above, cut apart each idea, and put them in a container. If your kids say ‘I’m Bored’ – have them pull a paper from the jar and complete that activity.
Boredom leads to new inventions. I look forward to what will be thought up during this quarantine!
.
.
Do you have an idea? Leave a comment!
Please subscribe so you don’t miss a post!
*I am an Amazon Affiliate, so I make a small percentage off of Amazon links I share if you click through and purchase, without any additional cost to you. Thank you for your support in this way!
Did you know that there are 365 verses in the Bible about fear? A verse for EVERY SINGLE day of the year! Nothing surprises God. He knew that every single day of our lives, we’d have something to fear. So, he gave us a Scripture for every day to combat our fears.
I’ve created a list of 12 verses for you. 12 of my favorites. One for each MONTH of the year.
Print this off, cut them apart and put them around your house – on your bathroom mirror, in your car, by the kitchen sink…and work on memorizing one each month of the year. Memorize each verse with your kids!
Allow these powerful Scriptures to replace your FEAR with FAITH!
–
1. Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
–
2. Psalm 118:6
The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.
–
3. Isaiah 41:10
Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. NLT
–
4. Joshua 1:9
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
–
5. Psalm 23:4
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
Here’s an easy dinner idea – it’s not original but sometimes it’s nice to have a new idea for dinner!
Mini Pizzas!
I love this option because I just set out the ingredients and my kids MAKE THE DINNER themselves. They are less likely to complain about it because THEY MADE IT!!
Plus, they have so much fun creating their own pizza.
Luke loves LOTS of pepperoni.
Clark likes LOTS of cheese.
George is very precise and careful.
Paul can eat his weight in pizza.
Only 3 Ingredients required:
Individual Naan Bread (or pita bread or bagels)
Pizza sauce
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Other optional ingredients:
Pepperoni slices,
Sliced Mushrooms,
Chopped peppers
Olives
Pesto
Jalapeños
Ingredients
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Bake for 5-6 minutes
Set whatever ingredients your family enjoys onto the table. Allow everyone to create their masterpiece and bake for 5-6 minutes at 350 degrees.
Here’s a fun game to get your kids talking! My boys love this game and ask me to play when we are having dinner together or driving.
Because this game needs NO SUPPLIES, you can play during dinner, on a walk, or anytime you want to engage with your kids.
Would you rather….
Be Superman or Batman?
Eat Pizza or Hotdogs?
Ride a roller coaster or a water slide?
Go to Target or Walmart?
Laugh or cry?
Jump high or run fast?
Have summer all year or winter all year?
Be really smart or really funny?
Drive a truck or a sports car?
Go back in time or go to the future?
Be able to fly or be invisible?
Have ONE great friend or 20 pretty good friends?
Be in the Mountains or at the Beach?
Take a ride in a speed boat or helicopter?
Go Skydiving or Swim with Sharks?
Build a Sand Castle or Play in the Waves?
Go Skiing or Ride a bike?
Watch a Movie or Read a Book?
Go Rock climbing or Swimming?
Own a Cat or a Dog?
Write a Story or a Draw picture?
Clean the Bathroom or Vacuum the carpet?
Ice Skate or Roller Skate?
Drink Pop or Water?
Play Inside or Outside?
Take a Shower or Bath?
Take a trip to Australia or Italy?
Go Fishing or Make slime?
Play a Video game or Board game?
Have more time or more money?
VOTE WITH YOUR FEET:
If you’d like to play this game with more than one child, call it: VOTE WITH YOUR FEET! Kids have to vote for which one they’d rather do by WALKING to one side of the room! This gets kids moving and allows them to see that they have something in common with another person.
Last night I was laying in bed with a high fever. I was waiting for my mom to come and check on me and bring me a cool cloth for my forehead.
And then I remembered…
I AM THE MOM!
I heard little footsteps running around. One of my sons was up past his bedtime. This is one time I was HAPPY about that.
“Come here,” I weakly called to him, “please bring a cool rag for my head.”
A minute later, my son gently laid a wet hand towel across my forehead.
“I love you” he said as he walked out of the room.
He then tripped over a nerf gun.
I smiled as I realized we had switched roles. He was taking care of me, offering a cool rag and “I love you” …and even tripping over a toy in the hallway!
I felt so loved!
I grabbed my phone from the nightstand beside me to take this picture to remember the moment.
My son does these little acts of love for me because I’ve done little acts of love for him. And I learned those things from my mom – who did the same for me. And even if you didn’t have one of those moms that did that for you, it’s never to late to be one!
Keep doing little acts of love, moms!
The care you give, and values you live, will develop in your children as they watch and learn.
They may soon surprise you with their own acts of love!
By the way – My husband has been down with the Flu, but still got out of bed to give me water and Tylenol. Thank you Ted!
I prayed that night and asked God to heal me. I woke up this morning feeling SO much better! Thank you God!
I’ve been ordering from Hello Fresh for several years. I’ve tried other subscription meal services, but keep coming back to this one. I usually order 1 box every 4-8 weeks.
You can choose from an assortment of meals each week. There’s a vegetarian option, seafood, pork, chicken and/or steak.
The 3 that I chose for this week were:
Chimichurri Steak with a Sweet Potato, Poblano, and Tomato Jumble
Balsamic Fig Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Mixed Greens
Shrimp Pasta with a Kick with Garlic Herb Butter and Zucchini
Here’s how it works:
Hello Fresh sends me a box of colorful recipe cards and perfectly portioned ingredients, allowing me to prepare a balanced, delicious meal for my family without having to spend the time planning and shopping as much as I normally would.
I love that someone else takes care of all the parts of dinner that I don’t enjoy – especially the DECIDING what to eat! With Hello Fresh, we make and try things we would have never made or tried before.
Here are some reasons why we like Hello Fresh:
#1 :
We get to cook together – spending time side-by-side!
The recipe guide has pictures and instructions that are step-by-step and easy enough for a child to follow. My sons feel great about being able to prepare a delicious meal for the entire family.
#2:
It’s an ADVENTURE!
A cooking adventure of trying and preparing something new and discussing what we like about each meal, and what we want to cook again. We discover foods and recipes we would have never tried if it weren’t for Hello Fresh.
#3:
We all sit down to eat together!!
This is my favorite part of ordering from Hello Fresh. It’s a well-balanced meal that really encourages sitting down and eating together. Hot dogs and chicken nuggets don’t do that – I warm those up and hand them out.
Cooking these delicious Hello Fresh meals has us sitting down and enjoying a meal TOGETHER!!
Many of us know that everyone benefits when we sit down and eat meals as a family.
Here’s the rundown about how we felt about each meal:
Chimichurri steak – My boys LOVE steak so this was a hit. I didn’t put the chimichurri sauce on their steak, but I loved it on mine. We all enjoyed the sweet potato medley too!
Balsamic Fig Chicken – Chicken is something we eat on a regular basis, so trying this new recipe was fun and it tasted great!
Shrimp Pasta with a Kick was DE-LICOUS! Clark and I loved the meal, just as shown in the picture – pasta mixed with shrimp and zucchini. The other boys liked all their items separate, not touching. Ted, not much of a pasta eater – just ate the shrimp and zucchini.
My version – not as pretty as the picture, but definitely tasty!
I order from Hello Fresh to add some variety. To save money, I order the smallest meal size and just add my own ingredients to make enough for 6.
If you’d like to try Hello Fresh, I have a $40 discount for you.
“When we turn our eyes upon Jesus, and look full into His wonderful face, the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”
Helen Howarth Lemme
.
We can’t focus on TWO things at the same time. We can choose to focus on our problems and worries, or God.
.
.
When we dwell on our problems and worries, we begin to feel overwhelmed.
When we focus on God, something amazing happens – we find that our lives as moms are more manageable, and less overwhelming.
We begin to feel peace, knowing that our Heavenly Father is empowering us and protecting us!
.
.
We can be in a constant dialogue with God, and we can talk to Him about anything – nothing is too small or too big!! He cares about all of our worries, and concerns. He comforts us with His Truth that everything is going to be OK.
.
Billy Graham said:
“I’ve read the last page of the Bible, it’s all going to turn out all right!”
.
I love to imagine Philippians 4:6 was written JUST for moms to encourage us NOT to worry, as I always thought “worried” and “mom” went hand-in-hand!! 🙄
.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6
.
The Passion Translation of Philippians 4:6 says it like this:
“Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life.”
.
When you want to worry about something, stop and talk to God about it and let HIM carry the burden! He cares about EVERY detail of your life!
.
I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me; he freed me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4
Good News Translation
.
This is a guest post written by my MOM, Rebecca Bornman, for the Help Club for Moms!
Getting things done around the house is a dilemma for EVERY parent. It’s especially challenging for those of us who are (ahem)…messy.
From the time my oldest son George could walk and hold a broom, I started having him help around the house. He was DELIGHTED to help me when he was a toddler. However, the DELIGHT soon wore off and he’s no longer excited about holding a broom.
Sometimes, I’ve wondered if it’s really worth giving my kids chores because of the CHALLENGES that come with asking my kids to help.
Challenges with kids doing chores:
It can leave me with a a bigger mess,
It takes more time than if I just did it myself,
It usually involves some whining, crying, and complaining about how HARD life is because of ALL.THE.WORK.
However, when I step back and re-evaluate, I know that the benefits FAR outweigh the challenges.
Benefits for kids doing chores:
Children learn how to contribute to the family,
They learn how to keep things tidy
Their future spouse will THANK YOU,
They learn that they can do HARD things – which builds their self-esteem,
Chores help them mature,
Doing something with their hands releases feel-good chemicals in their brain that protect against depression.
Many studies show that kids who help at home are more confident, compassionate, resilient, and grow up to be more successful!
Chores are one of the best mediums we have for teaching kids about being part of a family, and about belonging, significance, and teamwork.
Lynn Lott
You aren’t just giving your kids CHORES, you are teaching them LIFE SKILLS – things they benefit from the rest of their lives!
How you keep track of chores is up to you. There are chore charts of every size and every price available online … and I’ve tried several of them!
Here’s a simple chore system that’s working for us this summer.
Find one container for every child in your family.
Write your child’s name on the container.
Take several clothes pins and write 1 chore on each one.
Clip the chores your children need to do on their cup
When your child has completed the chore, they can put their pin in the cup.
I didn’t come up with this system, it’s just one I found on Pinterest!
My sister started this simple system, and then sent me this picture of her girls (ages 4 and 7) cleaning their bathroom!
She said, “My girls love this visual and tactile system.” They see what they need to do, then get to put their clips in the cup when they are done!
When my boys ask to do something, I can just look to see if there are clips on their cups, and I say: “As soon as your chores are done, sure!”
Here are some ideas of chores your kids can do:
Do you have a system that’s worked for you? Leave a comment and share it with us.
And to everyone reading – Best wishes for you getting things done in YOUR house!
I love it when my house is clean. I feel more relaxed and enjoy my home more when I see clean surfaces and organized rooms. What I want and what I have (most days) seem opposite.
Housework can make me feel like I’m drowning. If I stop and reflect on all that I need to do to have a spotless home (from a clean fridge to clean closets), I feel overwhelmed.
When I cook, my kitchen is a hurricane. I was mortified the other day when a neighbor walked in and saw the mess. I was too humiliated to even apologize.
I feel guilty hiring someone to help – I shouldn’t need to because I don’t have a ‘job.’ I should have time to keep up with it all. But I’m struggling.
If any of you text and say, ‘I’m coming over in an hour’ … I will spend the next hour cleaning because I want you to think I always keep my house clean. I don’t clean to be hospitable, but for my own darn pride.
I visited a friend in Nashville once and when I walked into her house she said, ‘It’s not always this clean, I just had a housekeeper here.’ Her honesty was refreshing.
Another friend invites me into her home anytime …messes and all. She doesn’t apologize for it or expect me to have my house clean when she comes over.
Then there are the friends who always seem to have SPOTLESS houses. How? I want my house to look like that too!
I realize that I’m in a season of life that is busy and messy. My kids will grow up and (perhaps) I’ll miss the fingerprints, crumbs, and dirty socks.
I’m a person who would MUCH rather play than clean. If there’s a choice between a game or a chore – pass me the cards. If I have to choose between an adventure or dishes – Um, bye!
I can go from one activity to the next without cleaning up first. I think: ‘I will do it tonight.’ But then I’m too tired at night! I’m (slowly) learning to pause between activities and allow time to clean up. I’ve recently found an easy way to implement “chores” so that my boys carry some of the load. Click here to read about it.
I honestly don’t want to publish this post because it’s making my heart race putting this out there. However, I want to be more real and less prideful. I need to invite you into the mess.
I want to clean for the sake of hospitality, and with gratitude for the beautiful home God has blessed me with..not because I want you to think I’m a superwoman.
Feel free to come by un-announced. Walk into the kitchen, scan the fridge and ask to use the upstairs bathroom…it will humble me. Or, ask for a cleaning rag. I’m happy to let you help make my house as clean as I want it to be.
If you are a mom who’s figured out the secret to keeping the house tidy…send me all the tips!
PS – Since writing this post, I have found a housekeeper that comes once a month. She’s way better than the previous one (me).
