Life lately around here has looked like lots of sugar, schoolwork, and sorting! Sticky little hands helping me in the kitchen, homeschool lessons on the floor, and lots of decluttering and organizing have made up my days lately and I’m loving every moment of it.

Baking Up Joy ⭐️

In a recent post, I mentioned that our grocery delivery order was goofed up and we were the happy recipients of two pints of blueberries. Obviously pie had to be made 😉

I used my usual crust recipe but instead of whole milk, I used buttermilk. The crust wasn’t as flaky as usual, though. Oh well! It’s always fun to experiment.

Speaking of experimenting, Mordecai and I played around with a cupcake recipe! I’m forever trying to make the best cupcakes. I’m constantly thinking things like:

• Should all of the flour be cake flour or all-purpose?
• Are cupcakes more moist if they’re made with oil, butter, or a combo of both?
• Will the chocolate flavor be stronger with espresso powder or chocolate chips?
• What’s the optimal percentage of cocoa butter in the cocoa powder?

These are the thoughts that swirl in my brain 😂 Mordecai was just happy to lick the spoon and help mommy whisk the batter!

We made chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter buttercream. Chocolate + peanut butter is always a good combo! What was the special occasion for the cupcakes? Niva escaped our house, ran to a neighbor’s yard and tried to play with their elderly dog and knocked him over 🫠

So these were apology cupcakes. Peace-making cupcakes. I brought them to the neighbors yesterday and apologized profusely. Our apology (and the cupcakes!) were accepted. Whew!

Learning Together, One Day at a Time ✏️

It’s crazy to me how much flack our family gets for homeschooling! The comments—to me and my children—can irk me. I would never judge someone else for their schooling choice, but we’re judged constantly. There’s always a critical eye on my children and their academic level, and it’s hard to be different, you know?

At the same time, I can’t care what others think. If someone thinks my child should be in school, should know more, should be like everyone else, then so be it. What matters is that we’re doing what’s right for us. That our children have a childhood spent exploring and learning with their mom and siblings. That Jimmy and I can focus on their character—their hearts—more than any school ever would is what drives me. A public school won’t teach Bible classes. I don’t even know if Sadie would be allowed to pray.

To me, it’s more important that my kids learn Biblical values and how to be good citizens than whether or not they’re learning grade-level math or are like other kids their age. It must be the time of year, with back-to-school at the top of people’s minds but we’ve been getting comments like: “Do homeschoolers have friends?” or people telling my kids “You know, you could be with your neighborhood friends all day if you were in school!” and even quizzing Sadie on math problems to see if she’s “up to par” with children who are her age and attend public school.

I wouldn’t trade a full time job and the money that comes with it for the time I get with these sweet kids. Is it hard work? Yes! But I see it as my job, responsibility, and privilege to teach them and raise them in the Lord.

Sitting on the living room floor and reading in the Bible to the kids about Moses and Miriam—siblings just like Sadie and Mordecai—and how they looked out for each other is exactly where we’re meant to be.

It can feel overwhelming to think: I have to teach three kids how to read! And write! And do math! But we’re just taking it all one day at a time. Together. I started a Bible study on sibling relationships with the kids and it’s so fun to sit together with them, go through their workbooks, and learn about how God values sibling relationships!

This is what our homeschooling is like. It’s not about checking boxes or keeping up. It’s about shaping their hearts and trusting that God will guide us. Our days can feel overwhelming and messy, but in the midst of the sticky hands, workbook pages, dried out markers, and Bible stories, I feel in my bones how rewarding and purposeful this is. We’re not perfect, but I wouldn’t trade these days for anything 🫶

Closet Cleanouts 📦

When I was selling and shipping a lot on Etsy, I kept all of my packaging materials in our bedroom closet. I haven’t shipped anything on Etsy in months (hello maternity leave!), so I decided it was time to rearrange and declutter our closets.

We have a tiny closet and an IKEA wardrobe in our bedroom and I wish I would have taken a picture of the explosion of clothing, boxes, bubble wrap, packing tape, and more as I took everything out and figured out what to keep, store somewhere else, and what to donate.

The hardest part? Getting Jimmy on board with telling me what he wanted to keep or donate, lol! I have no problem culling through items and letting go of things I no longer use. Jimmy is a little more sentimental. I read something like: “There are people who love to declutter and those who hoard electronics boxes from 10 years ago. And those people get married.” Yup. It’s true 😉

Regardless of whether or not I can get Jimmy to go through his t-shirts, it felt really great to do some decluttering and reorganizing! It got me thinking about Etsy and shipping and what to do. The answer is that I don’t have an answer yet! I’m going to keep praying for wisdom and keep baking and selling locally for now.

Our Simple Days ☀️

I love our simple days! We’re not doing anything crazy, but it’s the best to be with my favorite people day in and day out. I brought Sadie to Kids Club at the library and she learned to make homemade guacamole and ranch dressing.

Dakota came along and played in the library. It feels like just yesterday I was taking Sadie to the library as a baby to play!

While us girls had a library night (mom’s fave!), the boys stayed home to wash our vehicles.

Miss Dakota had some early wakeups this week. She was very proud of herself for getting up at 6:00 am to hang out with mom.

I made a pan of simple lasagna this week.

And these cute kids spent lots of time playing together!

Other Notes and Thoughts 📝

• Mordecai knows every word to this book and it’s so cute 🐈‍⬛
• Sadie and I read this Berenstain Bears book and Sadie was *cracking up* when Papa Bear said he wanted to “Beat the pants off of Farmer Ben” in a pumpkin growing contest 🎃
• I signed up to donate cookies to our local library’s bake sale next month. What should I bake?! Maybe secret ingredient butterscotch chocolate chip cookies?! 🍪
• I want to make homemade play doh with the kids soon. I remember doing that as a child with my mom and loving it! 🥣
• Potty training Mordecai has been chugging along well enough that I moved the diaper pail next to Dakota’s changing table. Felt like a big milestone 😂
• Last night I told Jimmy that I was needing time alone so I went to Marshalls by myself and enjoyed walking around the store, looking at pretty things, and letting my mind just blank out because nobody was talking to me, crying, or needed anything from me. I didn’t buy a single thing and Jimmy was like “What?!” but I felt so refreshed afterwards 🤷🏼‍♀️

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Between the baking, learning, sorting, and everyday fun, I’m feeling blessed by our simple days. They’re nothing glamorous, but I’m loving where God has me right now.

Alright, I’m signing off here! It’s Friday!! We don’t really have anything on the agenda for the weekend, which is my favorite type of weekend 😬

Do you have any plans this weekend?