Follow Your Heart – Be a Boss

It goes without saying that every parent experiences moments of panic when it comes to raising our children. Perhaps they crawled behind a piece of furniture and we can’t find them, so we run to the bathroom praying they didn’t take a dive into the toilet. Or perhaps they became separated from us at the park or shopping mall, and our heart skips a few beats as we fight to take control of our thoughts so we can come up with a plan to find them. I remember that kind of panic! But there’s also the kind of panic that keeps us awake at night wondering:

• Am I loving my children enough?

• Am I disciplining them effectively?

• Am I playing with them and laughing with them enough?

• Am I cooking healthy food?

• Am I protecting them enough . . . or too much?

• Am I providing the best education?

I get it. The panic that comes from these questions (and so many more) is very real.

Now that I’ve really got your blood pressure soaring, let’s bring it down. As we begin this new year, I encourage you to remember that your children are a gift to YOU. That means YOU are the very best person to care for them. YOUR heart is your guide. Yes, we can find value in research and expert advice, but there is nothing like a mama’s heart to know what her little (and not so little) treasures need. YOU, not influencers, know when something is working and when it’s not. Trust YOUR heart. Friends and family may offer wise insights, but they don’t replace YOUR heart for your children and your deep longing to see them thrive.

Of course prayer and spiritual insight also enlighten YOU. Of course you will experience ups and downs, highs and lows, joys and sorrows, but that is simply real life. Learning to roll with reality is a challenge, and I think you’re up for that challenge. So let me encourage you to literally take a deep breath and let it out slowly as you remind yourself, “this will be a great year”, “eventually things will slow down and calm down”, “love will see us through”, “we will persevere”, “tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it” (Anne of Green Gables).

Finally, BE A BOSS. Take the lead. Make decisions. Speak life. Love well. Unplug and turn off. This IS going to be a great year! Believe it. Speak it.

Speaking life,

Kris

Who Needs Original?

While “Thankfulness” certainly counts as an unoriginal theme for the month of November, I am choosing to accept “unoriginal” because it’s simply impossible to be overly grateful.

I don’t know what life is hurling your direction, but I bet it’s not all great. Some parts of your life – like mine – likely include some really tough and sobering realities alongside the joys. But the hard parts are real, so what do we do during this season of “Thanksgiving”? Do we pretend like the hard stuff isn’t real – like it doesn’t exist for a few days? Probably not. But we can remember that we do have choices: choices about how we will respond with gratitude in our circumstances, whether good or bad/happy or sad.

Several years ago, I read a book by Ann Voskamp: One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are. Inside the front cover of the book, we read, “How do we find joy in the midst of deadlines, debt, drama, and daily duties? What does a life of gratitude look like when your days are gritty, long, and sometimes dark?” I don’t know about you, but on a small scale, this is where I find myself today . . . as I enter into the month of “Thanksgiving”.

So I’m getting ready. Choosing my focus. Looking past circumstances. Remembering God continues to send blessings to me every day . . . even if in little, often overlooked ways, like the dish soap bubbles Anne writes about. I tell myself the truth: “You are not alone.” And I begin to imagine how to put my gratitude into action:

• Sharing some baked goods with my neighbors

• Sending a “Thinking of you” note to a loved one

• Facetiming my grandchildren and hearing their little voices as they share their day with me

• Taking time to journal my blessings

• Coloring a page in my “grown up coloring book” – just to enjoy a quiet, creative moment

• Taking a walk in nature to enjoy the sights and sounds of a new season

• Sending a child a book on “Thankfulness” for their home library

So whether life feels very hard right now or very calm and peaceful, choosing gratitude is one way to speak life over your circumstances and your heart. I hope you choose to lead your family on a “Thankfulness Journey” again this year.

Blessings,

Kris

Getting into a Rhythm

Summertime is a wonderful break from the routine, and September is a wonderful step into rhythm. What do I mean by “step into rhythm”? Think of music. There is a wonderful consistency with music – at least with most music – that allows us to clap along, anticipating the beat . . . even dancing to the beat. While the note values vary, the rhythm is locked in: sometimes faster, sometimes slower, yet predictable. It keeps us moving. This is what September is all about: moving consistently.

Moving where?

• Up out of bed to get the rhythm going

• From room to room caring for our little treasures

• Down on the sofa, taking much needed time to read (and rest) together

• In and out of the car – to and from carefully selected activities

• Stopping long enough to enjoy a meal all together at the end of the day

• Dropping back into bed after a day full of dancing to the rhythms of family life

When we see ourselves busily “dancing” to a rhythm as we hurry about our dutiful lives, we feel encouraged. Exhaustion meets us at the end of the day, but the rhythm of the music gets us going again.

Partnership

Most of us understand the concept of “partnership”. It includes the idea of working together in cooperation – because we are better together than we are apart. And that is certainly true when it comes to homeschooling.

Regardless of whether you are new to homeschooling or a veteran, partnership serves many purposes:

• Sharing of ideas to find new and creative opportunities

• Sharing of workload so you don’t have to do ALL of the work yourself

• Sharing of struggles so you don’t feel alone when you feel overwhelmed

• Sharing of resources so you don’t have to buy EVERYTHING

• Sharing of information so you don’t have to spend time you don’t have (or time you should be sleeping) doing the research

• Sharing of experiences to remind you that we are all learning in this process

The idea of partnership is seen in nearly every aspect of The Write Journey business. We desire to travel this journey of providing quality education to your children and students, so we invite you to take a look at TWJ vision, mission, and values to see how partnering with us might strengthen your homeschool community, not rob you of valuable time, money, and energy. Together we will train and empower our children and students to become authentic communicators who positively impact the world.

Speaking life,

Kris

A Season to Relax

It’s time to breathe. Time to relax. Time to soak in the sunshine. It’s summer (even if unofficially). Summertime means many things to many people, but I hope it means relaxing for all of us. I wonder: what does it mean to “relax”? After doing a quick Google search of the definition, I found this: to “make or become less tense or anxious”. Well that sounds amazing! But is that even possible as a busy mom with many children and teens in your care? Let’s consider the possibility:

• Make a list of what triggers tense and anxious thoughts and feelings?

• What on that list is optional?

• What begins and ends with your thoughts?

• What stems from “expectations”?

While tension and anxiety are like dust – annoying and always with us – perhaps with a little intentional work, we can limit the build up. Perhaps relaxing will mean a little less (or even a little more) order. Perhaps it will include choosing a posture of gratitude for many blessings, big and small. Perhaps relaxing will come when we let others off-the-hook, recognizing that they need some relaxation too.

Of course relaxation ebbs and flows with the seasons of our lives, but whatever age and stage of life, we have choices. I pray that this summer you enjoy a season of becoming less tense or anxious as you choose to relax and soak in the sunshine.

Speaking life, Kris