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Wildflowers and Marbles

Beauty in the Ordinary

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The Glory Days Planner | Special Needs

The Glory Days Planner | Special Needs

May 23, 2019

Meeting the needs of parents and caregivers loving little ones with special needs The planner I have for you today breaks my rules a bit – because it’s not a planner I currently use. And no, I’m not becoming a full-time professional planner reviewer! BUT! When Amanda, of the glory days co., wrote to me and asked me if I… Read More

Filed Under: Planning Tagged With: special needs, special needs planner

How I Plan For Homeschooling

How I Plan For Homeschooling

May 20, 2019

featuring: the Erin Condren Teacher Planner I enjoy reviewing some of my favorite planner systems around this time of year! But I feel like reviewing a fresh new planner, while hopefully inspiring, can’t show you all of the potential and the usefulness I’ve found in its pages. And in showing you, it is NOT my hope that you’ll feel as… Read More

Filed Under: Charlotte Mason, Classical Education, Home Education, Lesson Plans, Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren, Erin Condren Teacher Lesson Planner, Erin Condren Teacher Planner, Homeschool, Homeschool lesson planner, Homeschool planner, Homeschool planning, Teacher planner

Erin Condren Teacher Planner 2019/2020 | A Review

Erin Condren Teacher Planner 2019/2020 | A Review

May 18, 2019

Here we are, at the end of another school year, and smack in the middle of a month of new planner launches. As we’re wrapping up a year, we’re also starting to consider what comes next! I have always loved the possibility in a fresh new school year! Almost as much as I love a bouquet of fresh pencils and… Read More

Filed Under: Home Education, Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren, Erin Condren Teacher Lesson Planner, Erin Condren Teacher Planner, Homeschool lesson planner, Homeschool planner, Homeschool planning, Lesson Planner

Teacher Appreciation Day – GIVEAWAY!

Teacher Appreciation Day – GIVEAWAY!

May 6, 2019

Anybody feel like a giveaway? May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day! Educators, the work you do matters! So to celebrate, I’m giving away a brand new Simplified Teacher Planner and magnetic page marker to one lucky educator! You must be an educator to enter this contest – home educator, education support staff, early childhood educator, secondary education – all educators… Read More

Filed Under: Giveaway

Erin Condren Life Planner 2019 | Review

Erin Condren Life Planner 2019 | Review

May 1, 2019

Well friends, every year we await the new launch of the Erin Condren planner lineup, and the 2019 lineup is finally here! I’ve got the brand new coiled LifePlanner and its sister, the LifePlanner binder system – all so you can look at the detail and check out the prices and info BEFORE you shop! These planners and all the… Read More

Filed Under: Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren, erin condren life planner, erin condren lifeplanner, erin condren lifeplanner review, erin condren review

The Simplified Teacher Planner | A Review

The Simplified Teacher Planner | A Review

April 29, 2019

In the world of lesson planning, I must admit – I am particular. Having been a home educator for 18 years has taught me to appreciate a few key elements of lesson planners and lesson planning in general. After all, with 5 kids, I’ve taught Kindergarten 5 times, 12th grade twice now, and all the grades in between for a… Read More

Filed Under: Home Education, Lesson Plans, Planning Tagged With: simplified planner, Simplified Teacher Planner, Teacher planner

May: Packing Tips & Travel Favorites and What’s Coming Up!

May: Packing Tips & Travel Favorites and What’s Coming Up!

April 25, 2019

As we round the corner from Easter and the beginning of spring into summer my calendar is full! I can hardly believe I’m wrapping up our 18th year of home education! We’re about to graduate our second child and send him off to college. Our first grand-daughter is 7 months old and the most adorable drop of sunshine ever! And… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Organization, Planning, Travel Tagged With: Erin Condren, GO Wild, GO Wild Planners Conference, packing tips, planner launch, planner review, simplified planner, Teacher planner, travel tips

The Simplified Planner | A Paper Tool For Every Season

The Simplified Planner | A Paper Tool For Every Season

April 2, 2019

Here we are again, at the start of spring and staring at all the potential around us! The weather is glorious and our schedules are beginning to fill with all the activities and priorities that come with a new season! This time of year is a time of new potential in so many areas, and to meet that need planner… Read More

Filed Under: Home, Planning Tagged With: simplified planner

Spring Cleaning Tips

Spring Cleaning Tips

March 22, 2019

Recently, I had the opportunity to pop over to the Erin Condren blog and share some of my favorite spring cleaning tips! Head on over to check it out! I wanted to share a few more of my favorite spring cleaning resources with you in case you’re starting to get your spring cleaning game together! Simply Clean by Becky Rapinchuk… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Guest Posting, Home

Dear Homeschooling Mom: February Is a Time To Refresh

Dear Homeschooling Mom: February Is a Time To Refresh

February 13, 2019

February is here. Any homeschooler knows what that means. Burnout season. I choose to view it differently, and after 18 years of homeschooling, this February time of reflection has come to be one of the most important times of our year for considering some of our habits, routines and spaces anew – and refreshing! By February, here’s what is usually… Read More

Filed Under: Charlotte Mason, Classical Education, Home Education, Planning

Simple Machines Physics Lesson Plans & Printable | Updated

Simple Machines Physics Lesson Plans & Printable | Updated

February 9, 2019

Several years ago I wrote a set of Physics based lesson plans for middle school students based on a course I built for my son (at the time he was 10 – he’s now 18 and about to graduate!) – if you’d like to wander down memory lane you can read that post here. Then, three years ago, I updated… Read More

Filed Under: Books, Charlotte Mason, Classical Education, Home Education, Sciences

Living With Autoimmune Disease | A Beginning

Living With Autoimmune Disease | A Beginning

February 8, 2019

I wanted so much to start this post as a narrative, one that holds your hand and winds its way through my story sharing the shadows and surprises and leads you, along with me, to a place of discovery and peace. But the truth is, my diagnosis with an Autoimmune Disease was a bit of a shock. And the past… Read More

Filed Under: Autoimmune Disease, Wellness

2019 Planner Lineup – Tools That Leverage My Day

2019 Planner Lineup – Tools That Leverage My Day

January 14, 2019

Look around – on desks and counters and tables across the world there are beautiful, shiny, new planners – all full of the potential and possibility of a blank canvas. The days we anticipate, goals we hope to accomplish, lists waiting to be listed, the season we live, responsibilities and duties folded in with fun and relaxation – it all… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Home, Home Education, Lesson Plans, Organization, Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren, planner, simplified planner, The Catholic Daily Planner, The Content Planner

Around The Year with The von Trapp Family – A Review

Around The Year with The von Trapp Family – A Review

January 7, 2019

Several years ago, when my children were still quite young and I was eager to find any connection I could to the rich treasures I knew to be woven into the liturgical year, a dear friend of mine shared her knowledge of a resource which illuminated so much of my path, Around The Year with the von Trapp Family by Maria August Trapp. Maria!!! Whom I fell… Read More

Filed Under: Books, Faith and the Liturgical Year, Rebuilding Culture

2018: A Year In Review

2018: A Year In Review

December 29, 2018

Can you believe another year has flown by? It seems I was just here…just sitting down to consider 2018 – our goals, plans, hopes, and prayers. And now, I’m sitting down to consider 2019. So many wonderful things happened in 2018 – so many blessings to be thankful for. I find (and maybe you do, too) that the faster and… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Charlotte Mason, High School, Home, Home Education, Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren

The Catholic Daily Planner – A Review

The Catholic Daily Planner – A Review

August 11, 2018

Can you believe that summer is nearly over? I can’t! This has probably been our busiest summer ever! So many great opportunities, pool time, and then lots of work to set up lesson plans and schedules for the kids! As we settle into new routines, it’s a great time to consider those planning tools we use to help us steward… Read More

Filed Under: Faith and the Liturgical Year, Planning

Summer Projects and What’s Coming Up

Summer Projects and What’s Coming Up

August 10, 2018

Summer is winding down and I’ve been busy wrapping up summer projects here and there and preparing for our 17th year of home education! Wow! Where does the time go? With my last post, which many of you receive by email, it was evident that my blog had been hacked. I apologize for the nonsense that came with my post!… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Home, Home Education, Planning, Small and Ordinary Notes

Erin Condren Teacher Planner 2018 – Video & Walk Through

Erin Condren Teacher Planner 2018 – Video & Walk Through

July 3, 2018

Setting up the Erin Condren Teacher Planner is always a joy for me! I love seeing the pages in front of me and imagining how I can use them and how they will serve us in the coming year. A planner is simply a tool. Some planners are better tools than others, but they all function as a lever to… Read More

Filed Under: Home Education, Lesson Plans, Planning

Notes From Here…a Little of This and That

Notes From Here…a Little of This and That

June 13, 2018

Happy summertime, friends! Here in the deep south it is blazing hot – which means pool time! I know some of you keep rolling with homeschool all through the summer, and I’ve done that before, too – why not, after all?! The weather is so painfully hot – make hay while the sun is shining, my mom would say. But… Read More

Filed Under: Blogging, Small and Ordinary Notes

Erin Condren 2018-2019 Teacher Lesson Planner Review – Brand New Layout

Erin Condren 2018-2019 Teacher Lesson Planner Review – Brand New Layout

May 24, 2018

As another school year wraps up I like to sit back, reflect on what worked over the year, what didn’t, and take a look at my plans with an eye toward the coming year. After 17 years of home educating, I’m more convinced than ever that you better bring the right tools to this game! I loved my Erin Condren Teacher Planner… Read More

Filed Under: Home Education, Lesson Plans, Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren

DVD and Blu-ray Organization Project

DVD and Blu-ray Organization Project

May 9, 2018

Ask anyone – especially any parent – DVD organization can be a nightmare. We start out with a slim, cultivated collection of DVDs representing only the most uplifting and delightful and then…somehow…Alvin and the Chipmunks slip in there. And then one day, you realize that DVD and Blu-ray cases are taking over your home, your car, and your travel bag…. Read More

Filed Under: Organization

Simplified Planner 2018-2019 Planner – Review & How I Plan

Simplified Planner 2018-2019 Planner – Review & How I Plan

May 1, 2018

The new Emily Ley Simplified Planners and all the new accessories launch May 2 this year for the Academic Year planners (August 2018 – July 2019), and the Calendar Year planners (January – December 2019) launch in September of 2018. Many of you know that I am a huge fan of Emily Ley, her company, and her planners. And this… Read More

Filed Under: Planning Tagged With: emily ley, planner, simplified planner

Erin Condren 2018-2019 Life Planner – Review of all the Newness

Erin Condren 2018-2019 Life Planner – Review of all the Newness

April 30, 2018

Every year, in early May, Erin Condren releases her new Life Planners for the year. With over 1.5 million Life Planners sold and 1 million followers, that date is eagerly anticipated. Erin Condren fans voice their delight at having a quality planner with thoughtfully considered details and beautiful accessories in a paper planner system. I count myself among those that… Read More

Filed Under: Planning Tagged With: Erin Condren, Life Planner, planner

Join me and let’s REFRESH – planning!

Join me and let’s REFRESH – planning!

February 15, 2018

Conference season really kicks into swing this summer, but many of us could use a little shot in the arm and friendly encouragement right about….now! In February. For home educators, February is historically a season fraught with second-guessing, perhaps a slump in motivation, or even an impulsive desire to change every single book and curriculum that was on the schedule… Read More

Filed Under: Home Education, Planning

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Catch up with me on Instagram

It’s Friday morning - the end of a work and scho It’s Friday morning - the end of a work and school week. Can I get an, “Amen?” 🙌🏻 Who’s joining me for coffee and #mothersmorningbasket before the day gets away?
Some homeschool weeks - if I’m being attentive l Some homeschool weeks - if I’m being attentive like I should be - I have to keep my eyes on my own work and off of social media or other distractions. And then I need to prioritize rest to be ready for the next day. This is one of those weeks.

All 3 of my school age kiddos are transitioning in some way. I’ve been here before. Big skills, big effort, big stretching.

As home educators, we’re here for the planning, the assignments, the execution and assessment, but - friendly reminder - your child is a person. A person with a mind, and a soul. And he’s capable of an extraordinary education! At touchstones along the way that child will signal that he needs help transitioning and making the next step. After all some next steps can be really scary! He might be ready to read, or on the cusp of stepping into algebra, or ready to step up a sports skill, or ready to stretch away from you toward adult independence. All of those are BIG transitions and require courageous “next steps.”

Each child reacts to “next steps” in very different ways. Some charge forward without thinking...others are petrified and paralyzed. Some act out...others withdraw. I’ve experienced a spectrum of responses with my five kids. And we, their parent educators, act as cheering section, personal manager, ring master, confidant, and strong shoulder - sometimes all at once. But we must be attentive and act. We have to be the person that supports, encourages, cheers, prays for, slows down, makes eye contact, and extends a helping hand. We have to be present and attentive. And that’s where I am right now!

I had a minute to come up for air today and I thought I’d take a minute to encourage you in case you’re in a similar place! 🙂 We get these kids for a relatively short time (ask me how I know!!). If you’re in the trenches and life is full and you’re trying to help multiple kids stretch - I’m right there with you, cheering you on! You’ve got this! Take time to guard your rest! (You can’t give from an empty well!) And “let us work wholeheartedly for our children.” (St John Bosco)
Though my goals are many and my days are full, my Though my goals are many and my days are full, my vision for 2021 is distilled and simple!

I have never created a vision board before! But this year, I was inspired by Chevonne at @thiswellplannedlife when she shared her vision board that she assembled on a magnetic board; so I did the same. Mine is still in progress - I’m missing a couple of elements that complete my vision for 2021, but I thought I’d share what I have for now!

“Create in me a clean heart, O Lord,” (Ps 51:10) is the verse that chose me this year. And it is my prayer for 2021.

“Work wholeheartedly” is an excerpt from a quote about education from St. John Bosco that I read years ago, and it defines my purpose as one who works with my whole heart for my children’s education.

The Cardinal Mindszenty quote on motherhood is from @justloveprints Etsy store, and it is at the heart and the center of my vision board because it is the heart of me. It is my primary focus, my life’s work, my story, my joy, and the source of my greatest lessons. Without my husband I would not be a mother so I definitely consider this print as representing my vision for my marriage as well!

The cardstock print of the work surface is from @peachpom - I thought it was a beautiful way to show that my vision for my work, my writing, my content - all I do in my extra time is to be focused on the good.

And then I have a few words that are meaningful to me - “create” and “inspire.” Made in the Image of God we are made to create. Being creative brings me great joy as does sharing that creativity through inspiring and encouraging others.

And then, I love the reminder (from @poiandhun) to enjoy the little things. If you know me at all, you know how foundational the philosophy and posture of wonder is to me! Wonder is the ability to see with a child’s eyes, to see the small without distraction. And to do so is to “enjoy the little things.”

There are many ways to vision board - a magnetic board, digital, paper. I love that mine frames my work spaces as a reminder and focus!

Since I’m new to this, I’d love to know if you vision board - what do you use? What are some things that comprise your 2021 vision? ❤️
I don’t know about you, but I love simple soluti I don’t know about you, but I love simple solutions! I need a weekly view of the appointments and events I’m juggling - it keeps me sane. Even in the midst of Covid I’ve still got 2 kids in braces, regular check ups for the six of us, birthdays, anniversaries, and all the regular appointments that still happen!

I use daily inserts in my planner (from @8lotus.co - check my profile for a coupon/link) and I love the space they give me for my days! But I needed something for my weekly view! 

I found this sticky notepad on Amazon and it’s perfect! I jot down  my weekly essentials (those things that are pegged to a specific time) and sticky this to my monitor! Perfect for regular viewing and checking in while details go in my planner! I was worried the sticky would be...less than...but it’s fantastic! I have used these for a couple of weeks and I can apply, remove, add events, apply again, remove again - and it continues to stick with no corner lifting! Very impressed!

In case you’re looking for something like this to help you with a simple weekly overview, I found this on amazon. There are a few different styles available, and if you search “sticky weekly planner” you’ll find vertical variations of this. The link to this sticky notepad is in my amazon favorites if you want to check them out!

If you use a daily planner, do you keep a weekly view somewhere? What do you use?
National clean your desk day was this past Monday. National clean your desk day was this past Monday...but I waited to share my clean desk with my new corner riser for my monitor! There are so many rectangular monitor risers, but my desk real estate is small and my monitor is tucked in the corner. I found the perfect corner shape riser that fits my small space perfectly and is very sturdy! I put the link to it in my Amazon favorites if you’re interested!  Bonus...it was only $20.

My desk never stays clean for long - it’s a working desk! But I hope this morning you’re enjoying a clean desk or table with a warm cuppa wherever you are! ☕️

#nationalcleanyourdeskday
In my current Mothers Morning Basket. 🧺 What’ In my current Mothers Morning Basket. 🧺 What’s in yours?

#mothersmorningbasket
Perhaps THE best way to refresh your weary homesch Perhaps THE best way to refresh your weary homeschool, your kids, and your own tired spirit is to go outside.

Yet, I understand that in recommending this it may leave some without direction, or at least in want of a workable idea in going forward.

So I want to recommend the book, “Play the Forest School Way.” And I also want to suggest that you allow your children to collect some of the nature treasures found (except for those found in national parks, etc, where specifically prohibited).

“Nature offers us a sanctuary, a place where we can find peace and wonder.”

Aristotle wisely observed that wisdom begins in wonder. You’ll find wonder outdoors amongst the bugs, butterflies, weeds, and wildflowers! Go play in it!

#homeschool #charlottemason #charlottemasonhomeschool #charlottemasonhomeschooling
I like to be totally honest with y’all! If somet I like to be totally honest with y’all! If something doesn’t work, I’ll say so. And if something is working well, I want to shout it from the rooftops! Today, I’m shouting from the rooftops!!

This year I’m using @8lotus.co daily inserts in my planner and I LOVVVVVVVE them! The paper is heavenly, but the layout is a perfect mix of functional and simplicity! (Coupon and link in my profile if you’re interested) My appointments, time blocking, and to do lists - all on one page!

Last year, I struggled a bit with integrating my goals into daily action steps and not...just...well, having them get lost in a day. One of the measures I put in place to counter that was disc punching my @makse.life goals and putting them right into my planner! ✅ Win!! (See Makse story highlights for more) I have found that once I’ve worked out my weekly action steps in my Makse goal setting, I spread them out in my priority box on my daily view! Y’all!!!! This is such a little thing that has made such a positive impact. My most important daily goals are separate from my regular tasks. I know what is most important in moving me forward. And...I do always leave a “catch up” day for my weekly goals...because...life!

Anyway, I’m just stunned what a difference this has made not only in productivity, but overall vision! It’s a huge win!

How do you separate your daily action steps out from your regular planning? If you’ve ever set them aside like this has it made a difference for you?
would you like to see more? Catch up with Jen on Instagram

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