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Stress Check

Each week this month we’ll do a “stress check” to see how we’re feeling, what progress we’re making, etc. So check in with yourself today.

How are you doing? How are your stress levels? Take the time to do an honest evaluation of how you’re feeling physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Write about it. Note whether you feel the need to make changes.

Self Care:

Rest:

Sugar & December

Those two things seem to go hand and hand, right? Sugar has a HUGE influence on our body, mood, immune system, and overall well being. Are you aware of your daily sugar intake? Are you aware of your children’s daily sugar intake?

There is a cookie at every turn during the month of December. Sugar is everywhere. So much so that the massive amounts of candy, treats, and alcohol available has become part of standing jokes about the holidays.

What if you took an honest look this year at your sugar intake on a daily basis? What if we made more of an effort to balance out the excess sugar with limits and nourishing foods? What if we pointed this out to our children and encouraged them to take a healthy look at how many nourishing foods we’re putting into our bodies vs. how many treats and how this influences our health?

Write down your thoughts about sugar as it relates to your family. Having a goal in mind will make the daily temptations (multiple times a day!) easier to handle with less guilt so that treats can truly be treats.

Self Care:

Rest:

Budget & Spending

Do you have a budget in place for this month? If so, why? If not, why? Are you easily swayed by sales? How much of your holiday spending is budgeted and how much is impulse buying?

How do you feel about your answers to those questions? Would you like that to change? Observing ourselves is very powerful. Awareness is the first step.

Make mindful spending a goal. Be honest about what you can afford so that you don’t overextend your family and carry debt into the New Year.

*Bonus: Pear down your gift list to accommodate your budget.

Self Care:

Rest:

Outside Influence

There are a LOT of opinions floating around out there about how the holidays are “supposed” to be, what they are “supposed” to look like, and what your role is in all of it. Today’s goal is to take an honest look at how much we are or aren’t influenced by others when making our December decisions—everything from gift buying to events.

This influence on our expectations can also come from television shows, commercials, advertisements, store displays, books, social media, etc. Expanding on yesterday’s prompt:

Take an honest look at outside influences in your life. What effects does it have on you? Do you feel pressure to buy more? Do more? Decorate more? Spend more? Does it turn you off and make you want to do less? What about obligations? Do you make decisions about where to be and when based on other people’s “supposed to” requests? Write about it.

* Bonus: If you could throw all these outside influences to the wayside, what would your perfect December look like?

Self care:

Rest:

Honest Evaluation

Take a look at your lists from Day 1. Look at your intentions, gifts lists, to dos, events, etc. and answer the following questions:

How much of it comes from the heart? Is any of it about greed? How much is obligation? How much of it is peer pressure? How much of it is the influence of our society? How much of it is attainable? Does anything from your lists feel unrealistic? Is there anything you could cut out? Do you expect to do it all? How do you think everyone in your family would feel if you did all of it? None of it? Some of it? Do you feel your lists are flexible or could be? Do you have a plan in mind for when/if illness or exhaustion comes along?

What’s motivating your list? Are you happy with that motivation or would you like to shift it? Write about it.

Self Care:

Rest:

Self Care

We read about it briefly yesterday, but today we’re focusing on self care. You cannot pour from an empty cup…especially at holiday time.

Have a daily self care plan in place to take care of your needs during this busy time of year. Write about what that looks like for you. Get really clear on what you need to do for you to make sure you’re not running on empty.

Some examples: making time for coffee or tea every day, taking time to read for pleasure, eating healthy foods, completing your workout despite extra activities, taking a walk, etc. Record it each day.

Self Care:

Rest:

STOP!

Gather your thoughts. Today’s goal is to stop, take a step back, and really look at what our goals are for the month of December, the holidays, and the end of 2018.

Make lists for yourself (as well as your family). Really identify every event you’ve been asked to attend, events you’re interested in, gifts you’re considering buying, meals you’re considering making, etc. …and then write the “why” next to each “what.”

Go into the holiday season with a clear plan of what you want to focus on this month. Having a clear vision will help align your actions with your goals and family values. It can also help you say “yes” or “no” without guilt. There’s so much freedom in clarity.

Every day this month we are going to practice self care as well as rest. Take time to take care of you every day during December. Also take the time to honor your need for rest—even if it’s simply 15 minutes of unplugged time where you simply focus on the moment. Record your daily self care and rest.

Self Care:

Rest:

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Oh, don’t you worry…we’re having FUN over he Oh, don’t you worry…we’re having FUN over here! 😻 

Welcome, Charlie cat! 🥰

Mahalo, @shinewildfamilyfarm 😻 We’re in love!
✨ We had THE BEST day! ✨😻 @shinewildfamily ✨ We had THE BEST day! ✨😻

@shinewildfamilyfarm let us have a raggamuffin kitten playdate with her 3 available kittens. 😍 OMGoodness. This is how to choose a kitten! After hanging out with them for a few magical hours, we’ve decided to add the black kitty to our ohana. At the moment, his name is Charlie. 😍

I had a girl kitten named Charlie before I had babies. It feels full circle. I hope they stick with the name 🥰 My girl Charlie was hit by a car the week before my first baby was born and it’s always bummed me out that none of my kids got to know her. It would be nice to have a Charlie cat around once more 🥰

Thank you so much, Jess!!!!!! We’re so grateful!
We can see the grass again in North Idaho. We see We can see the grass again in North Idaho. We see a lot of snow and ice, too, but there is grass. ❄️🌾

Makes me think of last summer and hope for next summer. 🙂

I’m liking seasons. They feel very purposeful. Makes me sad when folks don’t see it and simply complain about the weather. But what good does that do? The sun will shine when it shines. The weather is what it is. And there’s beauty to be found in it—rain, snow, ice, sleet, mud—all of it. 💜

For me, today’s beauty is in the memory and in the hope. It’s also in the laughter of my children and their neighbor friends as they play. 🥰

I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that “we’re not here for the weather.” 😉 

Photo: @daniwalkerphoto_
Our hearts are forever full & forever broken. Our Our hearts are forever full & forever broken. Our beloved Grandma Huck went home to heaven this week. We’re in Ohio to celebrate her & lay her to rest. I’ll share more about this incredible woman at some point. For now, please pray for our family as we navigate the grief of losing her while rejoicing she is with Jesus.

Many of you knew her in some way…through stories I’ve shared over the years or from a trip to her house for food and cards. Her light shown bright and far. 

The transition of loss is complicated & all your prayers are appreciated. Mahalo nui loa 🌺

Photo from her 91st birthday, May 2022
Books are incredibly powerful. We know this and ye Books are incredibly powerful. We know this and yet as moms we don’t always make time to read. The world tells us that there is no time for anything, ever. And in the same breath often tells us what to do, what to read, how to think, how to mother…and a lot of that messaging leaves us feeling fearful, unworthy, and like we aren’t doing enough. 

What if there was a way to step off the hamster wheel of modern motherhood and find ourselves feeling more whole, more worthy, and like we’re getting it right? And what if the secret to that was found in reading more books? 

Today’s conversation with @jenniferpepito is so enlightening. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I am a changed person, a changed mother, and I believe a better mother because I read books. Namely the books of the authors I have interviewed here on the podcast, including Jennifer’s book Mothering by the Book: The Power of Reading Aloud to Overcome Fear and Recapture Joy. Jennifer is here to expand our book lists and shine a light on our motherhood journeys with deep, mature insights, ideas for battling comparison and other daily fears that arise in our mama hearts. 

Jennifer’s Bio: Jennifer Pepito is the author of Mothering by the Book and the founder of The Peaceful Press. Jennifer is on a mission to help moms overcome fear and love their life, and her homeschool curriculum empowers this through heroic stories, heartwarming poetry, and engaging life skills development. Her resources help create joyful memories among families, which leads to deeper connections and lasting relationships. Jennifer’s writing has been featured in several online and print journals, including Wild and Free, Commonplace Quarterly, and Home Educating Family. She’s a Wild and Free podcast host and has made guest appearances on popular podcasts such as 1000 Hours Outside, At Home with Sally, and Charlotte Mason Poetry. Jennifer lives in the mountains with her beloved family, where she enjoys reading aloud, working in her garden, and watching the sunset.

Tune in, be encouraged, give @jenniferpepito and @thepeacefulpress a follow + share your favorite takeaways from the episode! 💕😘
Mele Kalikimaka from our new Idahome! 🎄☃️😘

A cozy white Christmas in our new house with old traditions felt just right. Going to bed with happy hearts. 

Also…great job, mamas. 🥰 Another year in the books. Months of planning, weeks of pouring over the details, & countless hours of putting this day together…you nailed it. I’m sure of it. 😘 I don’t have to see what your Christmas day was like to know that YOU 👏🏼 ROCKED 👏🏼 IT. 👏🏼 Well done, mama!!! Thanks for all you do for your family 😘 You are seen and so, so appreciated 💕

Cool backdrops: @reallife_postfalls 
Photo cred: @angela.k.correa 😉

#melekalikimaka #firstchristmasinournewhome #idahochristmas #idahome #christmasinidaho #whitechristmas
I’m prepping all the doughs for Christmas week w I’m prepping all the doughs for Christmas week while the snow falls (& falls & falls…) outside. 🎄 

This morning we ate homemade sourdough bagels for breakfast…then ate them with soup for lunch (they really are that good!) 🤤

I love the anticipation during Christmas week. The purposeful preparation. The rush of extra tasks. They could be “added stress” if I put on those glasses, but why? We are blessed with one more magical Christmas with littles gathered around the tree, wide eyed and excited. I’m not gonna let any messages about gift giving, buying, traditions, or expectations cloud this special Christmas. 

It takes a lot of internal work on my part to drown out the constant messaging and doubt that creeps in. But if it does, there’s always a bright eyed child in front of me to snap me out of it. There’s always prayer to center me. And the beautiful mundane tasks that make up our everyday life.
In case you were wondering, they really do grow so In case you were wondering, they really do grow so so so so so so fast. 💕 

This was this past summer. We’re only a few months past when this photo was taken and he’s already one. 🤯 ONE! How? When? I was there the whole time! …but he grew anyway. He’s walking around and even dancing. Sigh. 

I know as moms we’re “supposed to” be glad they are growing strong. And I am. I totally am. I’m also sitting here shaking my head in disbelief that he is as big and strong as he is. Double sigh. 

Time flies. Time is a thief. I’ll say it again and again…hold them close. Love them. Grow with them. Because time really is all the cliches they say it is. #babiesdontkeep 

Photo: @daniwalkerphoto_
As homeschool parents we need to be aware of homes As homeschool parents we need to be aware of homeschool laws, policy suggestions, and voices that are speaking out against homeschooling. 

Here are some action steps on how to get started: 

1. Become more aware of homeschool laws: join HSLDA or at the very least use their free resources online. See if your state has homeschool organizations (i.e. Homeschool Idaho) that offers support and insight specific to you 

2. Learn about policy suggestions (at the state and national level): this starts with understanding current homeschool laws and policies. What are some local policies affecting you? Does your state have a “pay you to homeschool” program? (i.e. Tech Trep in Idaho) If so, what are their restrictions (i.e. you’ll get $1800 a year but you have to have your kid tested and use only approved by them secular curriculum) 🤔 

3. Become aware of who is speaking out about homeschool: the easy place to start is a quick online search for Elizabeth Bartholet from Harvard. 

Homeschool might feel like the free and easy choice (or not somedays), but a lot of us take that ease and freedom for granted. The cluster of the last two years has left a lot of folks calling hybrid and/or crisis schooling “homeschool” but neither truly is. This confusion has raised some red flags with “experts” who know nothing about what TRUE homeschooling looks like. And it has many of us who have been homeschooling for a long time a little on edge. But we’re not going to stay on edge. We’re going to be proactive in our fight to keep homeschool from becoming another failed gov’t program. Get started. Take action steps now to protect your homeschool freedoms.

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