Finding Splendor in the Ordinary
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
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
Here we are again, knocking at the door of the beginning of a new Church season – Advent – which begins in less than a month on December 2! Every year, for the last 8 years, I have been building an Advent and Christmas Planner and sharing it. In truth, this planner has been in existence longer than 8 years,… Read More
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Oh goodness! I didn’t mean to be away for quite this long! In fact, I started drafting this post on December 4, but life and then Advent and then we have multiple birthdays and my anniversary all at the beginning of January on the heels of Christmas. It has been a wonderful month, but it has kept my focus away… Read More
This is the 3rd in a series of reading, discussing and applying ideas from Thomas Howard’s book which is available under two different names: Splendor In the Ordinary and Hallowed Be This House. If you’re new to the series, start at the Index Post discussing The Household for more explanation and a trail of breadcrumbs to the other posts in the series. Each post contains an… Read More
This is the 2nd in a series of reading, discussing and applying ideas from Thomas Howard’s book which is available under two different names: Splendor In the Ordinary and Hallowed Be This House. If you’re new to the series, start at the Index Post discussing The Household for more explanation and a trail of breadcrumbs to the other posts in the series…. Read More
I’m thrilled to be able to offer you the 2017 | 2018 Preparing Heart and Home Advent Planner! Friends, I made several updates this year that I hope will make this planner more and more a blessing for your home! This year’s planner is 21 pages long. Just click the image above to download – or click here. This year,… Read More
Have you ever heard the phrase, “bloom where you are planted?” I suppose that applies to us moderns, planted squarely in the 21st century with all of its technology, activity, and constant going and getting and coming back from. I don’t eschew technology, nor activity, nor going and getting, but they do begin to overshadow days when they’re not guarded…. Read More
I sat back in my chair with my cup of coffee. It was brisk outdoors but warm within. I gave myself permission to just sit for a moment. The frosty windows communicated a sense of warmth and coziness within our home that I dearly loved about the season, but I felt my heart and mind skim right over that awareness… Read More
Friends, I’m so excited to share this giveaway with you today! The team at Emily Ley very kindly reached out to me and offered me something very special to give to one of you!! An Emily Ley Simplified Planner (your choice of cover and style) – with free shipping – I use a Daily Simplified Planner for all of my… Read More
Hi friends! I’m working on a blog post about my Simplified Planner: how it has been working for me since August, and….an exciting giveaway!! If you love the Simplified Planner, you’re not going to want to miss that post! Watch for it later this week! I wanted to pop in and let you know that I’m over at Pam’s this… Read More
“Feasts reach them all.” Pope Pius XI October is a rich month, liturgically speaking! The month is dedicated to the Holy Rosary, and it contains some big feasts – like the Feast of the Guardian Angels and St. Therese. (See last year’s October Feast Table) As many of you know, I love to set up a small table – which… Read More
I have been a long-time fan of Anne Bogel. You might know her better as Modern Mrs. Darcy. Her podcast is fabulous, but I’m a devoted fan of her blog. If I’m in a reading lull or need a quick shot of reading inspiration, she’s my go-to! So when I heard she had a book coming out I knew I’d be… Read More
Friends, I promised a video detailing how I set up my Erin Condren Teacher Lesson Planner to use in our homeschool – and here it is! Before we start, it might help to remember that I’m planning for an 11th grader, 7th grader, 4th grader and preschooler in this planner. We are Charlotte Mason educators using Classical principles – so… Read More
It’s that time of year – we’re all starting to think about planning for the year ahead. Keeping ideas and records and books and assignments on paper somewhere is a necessity for any teacher. In the homeschool, planning and organizing can be a sanity-saver and is sometimes required (by different state and local requirements). As homeschool moms, we’re usually juggling… Read More
