Kim's Giant List of Homeschool Awesomeness

Last week, our local public school superintendent announced that all schools in Washington state will be closed until April 24, 2020 (at least) in order to hopefully slow the spread of the CoVid-19 virus. We live just outside of Seattle, so this news didn't come as a huge surprise. As I read my feed on Facebook I'm seeing school closures all over the country, also! So I wanted to put together some ideas, helpful posts, links to learning sites, and other encouragement for families that find themselves suddenly thrown into the world of having kids home all day, every day. First, let me say this: Please, please do not try to replicate school at home during this time. While your kids can -- and will -- learn during this forced break (they learn all day, every day), you don't have to panic and try to keep up with the amount of material they covered during a day in public school. Instead, my biggest piece of advice, given from the depths of my heart and everything I...

St. Patrick's Day Homeschool Fun

St. Patrick's Day is coming! I use little holidays like St. Patrick's Day to infuse a little fun in our homeschool days. I love Julie Bogart's concept of party school... where you bring celebration and joy and learning all together. I was public schooled as a child, and I remember the "special days" at school. Days where we could dress up, days where there were special snacks, celebrations of friends' birthdays, or holidays where there were fun decorations and breaks from the everyday routine. I want to create those kinds of moments in our homeschool, too! So this week I am pulling together some St. Patrick's Day fun, and I thought I'd share here, too. Full disclosure: I am decidedly NOT a have-it-all-together, Pinterest-picture-worthy kind of homeschool mom. I usually plan this kind of the stuff a week before, or maybe a few days before. 😄Dollar Tree is always a good spot for construction paper and little decorations and treats to make th...

Easy Breakfast Casserole Recipe

Mmmmmmm. Breakfast for dinner. You know those nights when you're SO tired that cooking dinner might as well be climbing a mountain? No? Just me? Well. OK. Moving on. This easy breakfast casserole recipe is just the thing when you need something simple and tasty! Even better, you can easily change up the ingredients to delight your own tastebuds. Love peppers and onions? Add 'em in. Bacon and melty cheese more your style? Go for it. I almost always have ham slices and cheese in the fridge... the husband makes low-carb omelets for breakfast just about every day. So my go-to breakfast casserole is ham and cheddar. I get my hash brown patties from Trader Joes. (I also get the most delicious Earl Grey tea there, and Earl Grey pairs nicely with breakfast food. In case you're so inclined.) The process for making this breakfast casserole with hashbrowns  couldn't be easier . Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray, and layer in the hash brown patties. ...

Simple Cream Scone Recipe

Friends, I'm not overstating things when I tell you that this simple cream scone recipe changed my life. I'm not one of those moms who has a passion for cooking or baking... in fact, I honestly want to be in the kitchen as little as possible, while still eating delicious things. A bit ridiculous, right? But I love scones. Not the hard, dry kind - but the soft, crumbly, delicious kind. Whenever I looked up scone recipes, though, it always involved that tricky process of cutting in butter. Which felt intimidating. So I never made scones myself, until... We decided to hold a Ladies' Christmas Tea at our church a few years back. We sold LOTS of tickets, and there would be many, many scones to bake. I didn't do the baking (I sang, because music is more my area) but I sure sampled the goodies! And the scones were so delicious. My friend Grace told me they were easy as could be, and no butter! A quick scone recipe without butter? Sign. Me. Up. And so, Grace sh...