Can you homeschool and homestead all at the same time?  Are there enough hours in the day to fit everything in?  Not only is it possible, but both will benefit.  We have been living this homeschooling/homesteading lifestyle ever since we raised our first chicks when our oldest daughter was 2 1/2 years old.

There is nothing like seeing lifecycles in plants and animals all around you throughout the year.  It does not compare to reading about it in a textbook or watching a video clip.  These things that are experienced will stick with your children much better than any other learning method – no matter the type of learner.

Over the years of our homesteading, we have added animals and projects.  When we didn’t know how to do something, we learned.  Our children learned right alongside us – and learned how to learn.  We have also learned by doing.  When it didn’t work as we expected, we learned why.  Sounds like science experiments doesn’t it?

Planning the garden – when to plant, how much to plant, how many seeds or seedlings to order?  All of these questions lead to excellent living math lessons.  Most children balk at doing math because it doesn’t seem relevant.  What is more relevant than using math to plan for garden harvests?

Walking the fence line, you hear a bird’s song.  Everyone pauses and listens.  Someone locates the bird and recognizes it.  Now we can match the call to the bird.  Another child picks some wildflowers, while their sibling names them.  This is nature study at its best.  A natural, easy part of your routine.  Sure, we still do planned nature walks bringing along the field guides and sketchbooks and camera.  These “caught in the moment” times are often those remembered best.

That is exactly the point.  The lines are often blurred between what is homeschooling and what is homesteading.  When both are taken together as part of your lifestyle it makes things easier – and more full.  It’s not hard when the Lord leads your day rather than you trying to fit everything into a neat and tidy time slot.

Nothing throws that carefully planned schedule out the window faster than animals loose and wreaking havoc.  Chasing and herding them back into their space adds in P.E. and/or recess.  Now when you get back inside to read some history aloud, everyone’s minds will be sharper thanks to the exercise.

The flexibility of homeschooling accommodates the seasons of homesteading well.  Remember reading in Little House on the Prairie about the “big boys” not even being school during the fall term due to their help needed on their farmsteads?  Adopt the same philosophy.  Around here that time of year is often busy with harvesting and canning or butchering.  We don’t crack many books unless it is a family read aloud.  Many times, we use audiobooks so our hands can keep working while our minds and ears listen.

This is the time of year when many of us in the northern hemisphere are starting our gardens.  Even if your garden is a few plants in pots on the balcony it will be a great learning experience for all of you.  Don’t try to segregate your time into school time and chore time.  Let the two naturally flow together.  Your family will be happier.

Since we began our homesteading adventures, I have found more understanding when we read Scriptures.  With our new experiences, passages of Scripture come aliveI find I am praying more often – for homesteading needs (last summer we frequently prayed for rain) as well the typical prayers of a wife and mother.  I think our children are seeing our reliance on Him more due to our lifestyle as well.

Blending our homeschooling and homesteading has brought us closer to the Lord and closer to the land.  We have also grown closer to each other and closer to the library.  Who can complain about that?

Hillary blogs at Our Homeschool Studio.  She shares thoughts on homeschooling, homesteading, recipes and more.  She is a wife and mother of six children.

Not even knowing who they were, I loved them fiercely.  In November 2009, I laid eyes on their sweet faces.  For four months, I memorized every detail of their photographs and poured over every word of our periodic updates.  Then, finally, February 15, 2010, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, I was able to meet two of my beautiful children for the first time.  My longing arms were filled!

These precious little ones had lost more in their 3 and 5 years than anyone ever should, so the number one priority upon bringing them home was bonding and building healthy attachments.  I loved them with every ounce of my being, but I didn’t “know” them.  I couldn’t tell you their likes, dislikes, fears, favorites, etc.  So from February through the summer months, we spent time getting acquainted, building trust, and making memories.  It was imperative that Jeremiah and Rachel know that we loved them unconditionally and that we were a forever family.

During this assimilation to all things new:  sights, sounds, tastes, smells, underwear, seatbelts, electronics, etc., language acquisition was also a focus.  The children came home speaking no English, but within 2 weeks, Jeremiah was speaking 45 words and understood even more.  Rachel had a more difficult time catching on largely due to age and the fact that she never acquired either of her first two languages.   To increase vocabulary and understanding, I narrated every minute detail of the day.  “We’re eating chicken nuggets for lunch today.  There are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 chicken nuggets on your round, blue plate.  Chickens say, “Bock, Bock, Bock!”  Chickens are birds.”  Yes, it was more torturous than Barney, Teletubbies, Wiggles, and Dora’s absentmindedness regarding the whereabouts of her map.  Nevertheless, it worked.  The kiddos had fabulous conversational English. I was so blown away by the progress made that I was convinced that this homeschooling gig would be easy.

I purchased a well-known, literature-rich, boxed curriculum from one of the homeschool classified sites, and I was so excited to begin in the fall.  I envisioned zipping through phonics and math lessons in the mornings and our afternoons cuddled on the couch reading classics.  Apparently, I was delusional, because our days appeared nothing of the sort.  We (yes, that includes me) were often crying after phonics, too weary to do math, and in way over our heads with the reading.  My son Caleb was loving all of the fantasy-based books, but Jeremiah and Rachel were baffled by fairytales.  My literal realists were not believers in the ridiculous and outlandish.  Puns, metaphors, colloquialisms, hyperbole all were completely lost on them.

Obviously, my preconceived homeschooling notions came to a screeching halt, and a new plan had to be made.  I’d like to say 3 years in that we have it all figured out, but we are still dealing with learning glitches and have more days with tears than I’d like.  However, I think I’ve gained a bit of understanding and a few tips and tricks along the way that may be helpful for those homeschooling English Language Learners.

1.  Directions/Instructions Must Be Taught

An ELL student completely masters conversational English in 2 years, but it can take up to 5 years to fully comprehend academic/cognitive language.  This makes perfect sense (after the fact).  How often do we use words such as:  explain, describe, compare, contrast, list, trace, etc. in our daily conversations?  Rarely!  I found that many times it wasn’t the content that was creating the problems and frustrations for my kiddos.  It was what I was asking them to do with it.  I believe, a lot of time spent early on ensuring children understand the definitions of academic language will eliminate unnecessary struggles throughout homeschooling.

2.  Read Non-fiction

I suggest casting the fairytales and fables aside for a time.  Grab books about animals, weather, people, places, and seasons.  Read and make real-life connections.  Photographs opposed to illustrations are also helpful in the early stages.  A good children’s picture dictionary or the various first thousand words books are great tools as well.  Look at and discuss a few pages each day.

3.  I Do, We Do, You Do

In all subjects, model, model, model!  After you demonstrate, complete the work together.  Once there is a level of understanding, transition the child to working independently.

4.  Have Fun, Show What You Know, & Celebrate

If learning is a game, a craft, a field trip, or something else enjoyable, often the fear of failure is eliminated.  When that is missing, children’s minds are primed and eager to take in new information.  Then, give them the opportunity to “show off” what they know.  A little praise and congratulations from Dad, family, and friends goes a long way.  Remember to celebrate even the smallest learning victories!

5.  Take Breaks Often

When you hit walls and frustrations are growing, put the books, papers, and projects away.  When the tears are flowing and you hit shut down, no learning is taking place.  Damage is being done.  Relationships are always more important!  You will be Mom a lot longer than you will be struggling with phonics and fluency or administering math tests.  Children need to know that their value and worth and your love for them is not based upon academic performance.

Angela Wells blogs at The Wellspring of Life. She is fearfully and wonderfully made by the ONE true God. She is His adopted child and seeks to follow and serve Him daily. Angela is the wife to her wonderful hubby, Jon, and is blessed to be called Momma by Jeremiah, Caleb, Rachel, and Eden. She is a homeschooler and adoption/orphan care advocacy is her great passion.

Cinco de Mayo means the 5th of May in English. It is not Mexico’s Independence Day. This is a time when individuals living in Mexico and the Unites States celebrate and commemorate the victory the Mexican army had over French soldiers at the 1862 Battle of Puebla in Puebla, Mexico. People celebrate the Mexican-American culture and heritage with parties, dancing, parades, music, and delicious food. I will sharing several activities that you could possibly do to celebrate and recognize Cinco de Mayo with your children.

Geography and Social Studies

Language and Culture 

Learn about Mexican traditions and culture in reference books and through online research. Spanish is the primary language spoken in Mexico. Teach your children words in Spanish including colors, numbers, months, foods, instruments, music genres, and more.

Map and Globe Work 

Find Mexico and its capital on the globe and on a map of North America. Apples 4 the Teacher and DLTK both have a map of Mexico coloring page. Children can also paint Mexico on a map. Children can complete USA or World puzzles in order to discuss the location of Mexico in relation to their state.

Where’s Mexico?

Flag Research and Comparisons

Take a look at Mexico’s flag. What colors do you see? What do the colors represent? Older children can research the information. The flag colors represent hope (green), purity and faith (white), and blood shed (red). What symbols are displayed? Research the Aztec legend about the flag symbols and how Mexico City was founded. Children can also compare and contrast their flag post-it notes using a hula hoop Venn diagram or they can create a painter’s tape t-chart. Furthermore, a descriptive paragraph can be written.

Flag Art

Make a Tissue Paper Mexican Flag. We used the blank flag template from Activity Village. The flag template was cut and pasted to a piece of sturdy cardboard. Alyssa scrunched up cut pieces of red, green, and white tissue paper and dipped them in glue to attach to the template. She twisted black pipe cleaners over the top of the 10” dowel stick flag handle. Then, I hot glued a yellow pom pom at the top of the flag post. You could create the flag using painted lima beans, flattened pieces of tissue paper, feathers, fingerprints, construction paper, pom poms, daubers, paint, dyed rice, or dyed pasta.

Science

Plant and observe avocado plants, corn seeds, and chili pepper growth over time. Inhabitat has great photographic directions for avocado plants. This activity will take time before noticeable growth is seen.

Plan and a Fiesta (Party)

Making Invitations

A “real life” writing assignment could include making and sending invitations to friends for a fiesta. The writing assignment can be done whether you throw a party or not. However, children can plan the menu, discussing the budget and expenses, and participate in the cooking process if you decide to throw a party.

Cook Together

Tortillas

Salsa

Tamales

Spanish Rice

Beans

Cookie Pinatas

Guacamole

Enchiladas

Hubby’s Delicious and Quick Enchiladas

Our Fiesta Meal

Arts and Crafts

Pinata

Obviously, you can always purchase a donkey or “burro” pinata to break if you have the extra cash, but I believe it is more fun to actually make one. For our family, it is all about the artistic process rather than the final product. We’ve made many papier mache crafts in the past, however this time I wanted to try something different. We made a homemade Paper Bag Pinata.

Add streamers to bottom and yarn to hang

Mexican Papel Picados

Alyssa made several red, white, and green tissue paper papel picados after seeing them in several books. DLTK has papel picado directions.

Make Tissue Paper Flowers

The national flower for Mexico is the Dahlia. There’s a tissue paper Dahlia tutorial on Martha Stewart’s website. First Palette has an easy tissue paper flower tutorial.

Sombrero Hats

Your children will also love creating Mexican Sombrero Hats. My daughter and I made paper plate and cup sombrero hats. Kaboose is the websit that inspired our creations.

Music, Movement, and Authentic
Clothing

Music and Dance

Listen to the Best Mariachi Music. Children can also participate in a traditional hat dance using a sombrero. Here is the El Jarabe Tapatio – The Mexican Hat Dance Music and a link to a Mexican Hat Dance performance.

Sewing or Patterned Paper Clothing

Find and show authentic clothing worn during this celebration. Make costumes or clothing if your children are learning how to sew. If not, you can always create patterned paper sombreros as seen on Chalk Talk. Other items such as ponchos, serapes, ruffled dresses, and more can be created with the supplies you have on hand. Be creative! 

Make Maracas

Make and paint your own musical instruments using the Mexican flag colors. I found a wonderful step-by-step tutorial at Playing it Cooley which describes how to make plastic egg maracas. I used pencils for the handle instead of skewers. We filled our maracas with dried pinto beans and rice. Supervise small children.

Books to Read

Informative

A Look at Mexico by Helen Frost

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo: Fiesta Time! by Sandi Hill

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with the Mexican Hat Dance by Alma F. Ada & F. Isabel Campoy

Fiesta! by June Behrens

Cinco de Mayo: Celebrating the Traditions of Mexico by Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo by Carolyn Otto

Celebrate! It’s Cinco de Mayo by Janice Levy

Cinco de Mayo (Rookie Read About Holidays) by Mary Dodson Wade

Tortillas and Tamales

The Tortilla Factory by Gary Paulsen

Magda’s Tortillas by Becky Chavarria-Chairez

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto

The Three Little Tamales by Eric A. Kimmel

Party Planning/Days of the Week

Manana Iguana by Ann Whitford Paul (Version of Little Read Hen)

Pinatas

The Pinata by Bonnie Hayslip

The Pinata Maker/El Pinatero by George Ancona

Other Picture Books

Cinco de Mouse-O! by Judy Cox

Marco’s Cinco de Mayo by Lisa Bullard

For math fun, check out Cinco de Mayo math on Tracey’s blog.

Tracey lives in the quiet Texas Hill Country area with her hard-working husband Jeff and her five-year-old daughter. She taught second grade in a public school for three years. After the birth of Alyssa, she felt a strong calling to homeschool. She’s a Christian mom that enjoys reading, scrapbooking, cooking, baking, eating lots of chocolate, exercising, and teaching. Her eclectic homeschool style is influenced by Charlotte Mason, Unit Studies, and Classical approaches. She enjoys teaching Math, Language Arts, and Spanish. You can find Tracey blogging at A Learning Journey and you can follow her Cinco de Mayo Pinterest boards as well.

The early learning years of preschool and kindergarten are a wondrous time of new discoveries and acquiring new skills by leaps and bounds.  Children tend to be eager to learn at this age, soaking up knowledge like a sponge.  Although autism presents its own unique challenges, these early years are still precious and full of opportunities to learn.

My middle daughter on the autism spectrum is a kindergartner this year.  I’ve come to see that what worked with my neurotypical older daughter at this age doesn’t necessarily work with her.  I’m very relaxed about schooling in these early years anyway, so we’ve learned to go with the flow.  I would like to share a few tips that I’ve discovered that might help other moms who are homeschooling little ones with autism:

Incorporate multisensory learning as much as possible.

Many children with autism have sensory sensitivities or sensory processing issues.  I’ve found that using many different types of sensory input has helped my daughter tremendously in gaining new skills.  For instance, using textured manipulatives for math, touchy-feely board books for reading, textured alphabet and sight word flashcards, and alphabet/number DVDs and CDs, help engage the different senses in the learning process.  Books and workbooks alone aren’t enough for my daughter to associate meaning to intangibles like reading and counting/addition.  I have to show her through the five senses that letters and numbers have meaning.  Many Montessori activities work wonderfully for autism multi-sensory learning.  A Pinterest search will yield a lot of ideas to try, too.

Having “fidgets” on hand that your child can hold and manipulate while listening to a read-aloud can often help with concentration, too.  I like to make homemade playdough that she can squish while I’m reading to her from our Bible or history lessons.  This helps her to focus and sit still for a little longer than she usually would without that tactile activity.  Coloring or placing stickers on a page are also great choices.

Repetition.

Sometimes lessons need to be repeated and reviewed more often than with neurotypical kids at this age.  I take the opportunity to sing the alphabet song several times a day with my daughter so she doesn’t “lose” the information between lessons.  We also review phonics sounds throughout the day just by naming objects and saying their first letter and first letter sound three times together.  I find that having music CDs with songs about numbers and letters helps, too.  Some of our favorites are Kindergarten Learning Songs (available as mp3 download on Amazon) or many of the educational song videos on YouTube.  All of this adds fun and interest to the repetition and presents it in a multi-sensory way.

Focus on strengths rather than limitations.

If your child is good at art, try to incorporate more art into your lessons.  If he or she is musical, add music.  If they prefer to build or take things apart, prepare lessons that showcase those skills.  I consider this the “unit study” of autism.  Find an interest, a strength, and use that as positive reinforcement in your lesson planning.  Remember that you’re building self-confidence and a love for learning, not just focusing on academic gains.  If your child becomes too discouraged or frustrated, they’ll lose that spark that makes learning meaningful and enriching.  With just a little encouragement from you, playtime can be learning time in disguise!

Grace and patience are the bywords.

Special needs require a little extra patience at times.  We often take a few steps forward and then a few steps back.  These things are to be expected so we need to allow our children some grace to be who they are, regardless of whether or not they’re meeting a standard on some arbitrary educational chart.  We must also extend grace to ourselves because special needs moms are often their own harshest critics.  Remember that each day begins with a fresh start and the Lord gives us new mercy day by day.  Take a deep breath, step away from those phonics lessons or addition problems if necessary, and just enjoy the time with your kids.  It will be okay, really.  Does it really matter in the long run whether your child is 5 or 10 when they learn to read?  Autism is truly a spectrum disorder so results will vary.  Cultivating grace and patience serves everyone well.

A sensory-rich environment that encourages learning activities is the best start in the early formative years.  Truthfully, most of these ideas can be applied to “typical”
homeschooling, even if your children don’t happen to be autistic.  All children need a positive parent on their side to help them reach their full potential.

You can find Sara blogging about autism, homeschooling, faith, motherhood, books, and more at Embracing Destiny.  She is also on Facebook and Twitter.  Sara has been Dave’s wife for almost 18 years and their daughters are 11, 5, and 3.

Pinterest Explained

If you haven’t heard of Pinterest yet, I would be shocked. Lots of people are talking about Pinterest, pinning, and pin boards. You can find people talking about Pinterest in every corner of the Internet! And well they should. Recent studies by ShareAHolic indicate that Pinterest is driving more traffic to internet sites then Google. That’s a whole bunch of people.

In my internet meanderings, I’ve also run across a whole bunch of people who just don’t understand the big deal. They’ve never seen Pinterest, and cannot grasp the concept of what Pinterest is or how they could use it. Or they tried to look at Pinterest once and couldn’t make heads or tails of it. No matter which category you belong to today, I would like to show you how I use Pinterest to find Free Homeschool materials of all kinds.

Since some of you have never visited the Pinterest website, let’s start with the nitty-gritty. You need a Pinterest account. It’s free and straight-forward to start a Pinterest account. Once you have a Pinterest account you need to know the following three definitions.

A Pinterest Pin

A single image tied to a specific website is called a pin. You can create a pin when you visit any website by using a special tool from Pinterest. You can also “re-pin” those pins which have been created by other users. Most users prefer to create or repin pins that connect to excellent content.

A Pinterest Board

This is a group of Pins. Users organize their pins by category. This organization helps us keep track of our pins so that we can find them later. It also helps us share those pins with others in a meaningful way.

A Pinterest Pinner

Anyone who pins or repins is called a pinner. Pinterest pinners collect pins into boards and collect boards in their account. Pinterest pinners can be followed and following other like-minded pinners will help make your Pinterest experience a posit

ive one. When I open Pinterest it defaults to showing me the pins from those I am following. (Kind of like Facebook shows you the posts of your friends.) Since I am following many homeschoolers and many bloggers, and several foodies, almost all of the content I see right off the bat is relevant to me. Pinterest pinners can also harness the power of the ultimate search engine. That is the subject of the second half of this blog post.

Once you start searching for free homeschool materials you are going to realize that the sky is the limit. Unit studies, lapbooks, printable worksheets, study guides, hands-on projects, art, crafts, games, even books – it’s all on Pinterest. You just have to know how to look.

One way to “look” is one we have already talked about – following like-minded Pinterest Users. Follow the Schoolhouse Review Crew on Pinterest.  By following like-minded people (a.k.a. other homeschoolers) you are going to see relevant content every time you open Pinterest.

And then there is the search engine. You can use the search engine one of three ways. You can search for pins. You can search for boards. Or you can search for users. Let me explain.

Let’s say I want to find material on Geography. I can search Homeschool Geography and the default response will be to show me all the pins about geography tagged with the word Homeschool. This works to some extent, but I am likely to see many duplicate pins. However, with the click of a button I can change the view to see all of the boards described as Homeschool Geography and suddenly I will see the boards of users who “collect” geography related material. Since boards don’t contain duplicate material like a pin search will, I can comb through a larger number of relevant pins more quickly if I search by board and then open those boards and nose around. While I am looking at the different boards I can follow just those boards and in the process become familiar with other pinners. When they pin something new onto their Homeschool Geography board, I will see it in my feed. While you can also change the view to see pinners who rank high in your search, I didn’t find that function to be very effective.

Let’s Talk about a Pinterest Action Plan

Here are some basic steps you can take to begin using Pinterest to help you homeschool for free.

1. Create a free Pinterest account.
2. Find some like-minded Pinners to follow.
3. Use Pinterest to search for relevant homeschool material.
4. Create your own boards and pins.

Amy lives with her husband and six beautiful children in Southern California. Besides blogging, Amy enjoys homeschooling, hiking, reading, singing, teaching, and serving Jesus above all. If you enjoyed this article, read Bow of Bronze, or Follow Amy on Pinterest

I had a conversation with our family doctor the other day.  I had to call him about a question regarding a prescription for my husband, but our conversation quickly turned to other things, including my children.

I have known this doctor for more than half of my life.  My parents see him, my husband and I see him, and we wouldn’t trust our children’s health to anyone else.

If only our school had a “lost and found” box.  Unfortunately, I don’t think that will even help.  I would actually have to find things first in order for them to be in that box.

Help me!  I’m homeschooling a house full of little people and lost items are a regular occurrence.  The hardest part of homeschooling so many tiny people?  Finding things when you need them!  I don’t have the secret to success but I’ve learned the hard way that I have to be a little bit organized, a lot proactive, and immeasurably patient.

What if you’ve lost your school stuff?

Everyone is snuggled in bean bag chairs and it’s read aloud time.  You reach for your book and it’s gone.  You find it two days later and realize that it’s served as a coloring book for the toddler.  Or you reach for your math books and have only the student book.  Where did that teacher’s manual go?  Nothing derails my day faster than searching for something.

I have a huge bookshelf in one closet and I made good use of those tall shelves.  All of our books for the year are on those shelves.  Weekly I fill portable file boxes with our school books for that week.  Each child has their own box of books and the lids keep the toddler out.  This also makes our school portable-if the toddler heads downstairs, we can follow her with school boxes in tow.

What if you’ve lost your child?

Yes, I’ve actually lost track of children.  It can happen to anyone.  You’re in the middle of a gripping read aloud-the baby’s in your lap, the preschooler is coloring, the PreK’er is folding paper airplanes, and the big kid is listening with rapt attention.  You’re to the best part when the mystery is about to be solved and you take a quick head count and realize that you’re missing a crucially important person-the toddler.  Lovely!  That particular day I found her in the bathroom with an empty soap bottle, fully clothed and covered head-to-toe with strawberry scented soap.  I declared a 30 minute recess period while laundry was started and a bath was given.

So, to make sure no children are MIA, I make use of lots of baby gates.  I gate children out of rooms; I gate them in rooms.  I have to keep them where I can see them and out of important things like the permanent markers.  (Yes, I learned that one the hard way too.)  Toddler proofing your house is essential to success.

What if you’ve lost their attention?

Little people have zero attention span and no patience.  Therefore, we have to keep our day moving.  I have a weekly plan with lots of activity ideas that are ready to be pulled out at any time.  I keep coloring pages, busy bags, boxes of blocks and magnets and easy crafts on hand.  I give the kids things to hold or do while we read.  I also make good use of the older kids and give them the job of teaching “Totschool” for the toddler or reading to the baby.  They are great helpers (usually) and this gives me some distraction-free time with one child.

I’ve also learned the importance of the 30-minute switch.  I have my day planned in 30 minute blocks of time with a new activity or subject every 30 minutes.  I don’t give my kids the chance to get bored (read: destructive).  I stay one step ahead all day long.

What if you’ve lost your marbles?

I lost mine long ago.  If you haven’t lost yours yet; don’t worry, you will soon.  Embrace the insanity and know that this stage is just for a short while.  One day they will be grown, the house will be clean, your life will be quiet, and you might even be a little bit bored.  Until then, extend yourself some grace and lower your expectations.  Life in the trenches is tough.  Fight back with lots of chocolate!

Here are the things that keep just a few marbles in the bottom of my jar:

• Use team work – Keeping up with the house and completing school takes cooperation.  Have defined jobs for everyone.

• Write stuff down – Yes, you will forget later.  So, keep a calendar handy on a tall shelf and keep all your notes there.

• Have a plan – You might have to deviate or scrap it altogether, but it’s best to start somewhere.

• Be flexible – Have a Plan B and Plan C waiting in the wings; you’ll need both on many days.

• Be in the Word daily – God is the best sanity-saver.  Have daily chats with the One who is Peace and ask Him to share – and to send a little grace along with it.

Lexi and her husband Justin make their home in the Texas Hill Country where you will find messy art projects, dress up clothes, Nerf battles, piles of books, laughter, and lots of chocolate.  She blogs about the challenges and blessings of motherhood and homeschooling 5 children (ages 7 and under) on her blog Lextin Academy.