my January favorites...

In my blogging days of yore, I used to share lists of things I was especially delighted by each month, and I thought it would be something I could continue here! (Also, it's worth noting how much joy I derive from making a simple image collage for these types of posts. Any creative outlet makes me feel so aliiiiiive!) 

In one of my many notebooks, I like to keep a running list of things that I love each month—things like a podcast I can't stop listening to, a new-to-me beauty product I adore, a homeschool purchase that I am pleased with, or an impulse buy that ended up being quite brilliant. Now that I have this new space to share these sorts of things, January seems like the perfect month to post this list of favorites:

1. The Alisa Childers Podcast — Alisa has shared so much wisdom on her podcast that I hardly know how to do it justice with just a few sentences here. She is passionate about Christian apologetics, with a recent focus on many hot topics within our culture today. Critical theory, progressive Christianity, totalitarianism, New Age, the enneagram, purity culture, and so much more. If you are a Christian, I absolutely recommend giving it a listen. (I also listened to her book last year on audio and it is a must-read/must-listen.)

2. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza — I gave this to my oldest daughter for Christmas, and it is a hilarious, fast-moving, delightful card game. It took a bit of learning before we figured out the pacing, but once we got the hang of it we found ourselves wanting to play over and over! It's very unique and pretty entertaining for every age. Even my husband will ask to play it with us, and my kindergartener will try her best to join in when we start a round (although I would recommend it for ages 7-ish and up).

3. #MBF from Beachbody — I've been using the Beachbody app for over a year and a half, and I love it. I share an account with my older sister, which helps cut down the cost, but I would absolutely pay the $99 per year in a heartbeat because it's completely worth it for me. (This is coming from someone who is extremely thrifty, but now that I've found something that keeps me active and eager to workout without having to go to the gym, I know it's a winner.) I've completed a few of their programs, and mostly continue my favorite workouts over and over until I'm ready to try something new. The #MBF program is a perfect fit for me—a blend of cardio and strength, and the trainer is a total gem. I enjoy the format, the style of workouts, and the music. If you ever did any of the 21 Day Fix workouts, then odds are you'll love this one. My goals right now are to improve my endurance and to build muscle, and this program absolutely did that for me! I went right into the #MBFA program after finishing #MBF, and although I'm only one week in, I'm loving it just as much as the first. (For the record, I'm not a Beachbody coach or trying to sell you anything; I just absolutely recommend their app!)

4. Rooted Facewash from Grove Collaborative — I was recently in need of a new face wash, and I'm loving this one! It lathers beautifully, can be used on both my face and eyes, and leaves my skin feeling absolutely soft. When I don't feel like splurging on expensive face wash (which is, let's face it, the majority of my life) this will be my new go-to.

5. Hamilton Beach juicer — I was thrilled to be gifted this juicer for Christmas (thanks to my in-laws!) and have used it almost daily this month. I read a bunch of reviews before adding it to my Christmas list, and it seems to be a very popular choice for those new to the ol' world of juicing. I was definitely stressed out the first time I used it, but after watching a YouTube video and seeing how simple it was to use and clean, I never looked back. (I also love that all the pieces can go in the dishwasher, aside from one, which is easily washed by hand.) My current favorite blend is: carrot + apple + ginger + celery. My daughters' most requested blend is: orange + apple + blueberry.

6. Black Strokes Calendar from Olivia Knudsen — I was able to snag this 2021 calendar for an awesome price from a daily deals website, and it is absolutely gorgeous. I was looking for something with a simple design that would fit with my decor, and this calendar was the perfect choice. Because my purchase was through a daily deals website, I figured it would take a while to receive, but my order came incredibly fast and—be still my heart—arrived in a large envelope with my name and address hand lettered by the artist. HAND LETTERED. Olivia Knudsen, you are my new favorite. (And I'm never throwing away that mailing envelope because it's too pretty.)

And that's all I have for January! What are some things you loved this month?

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a look at our current "morning time"...

If you're new to the world of homeschooling, the concept of "morning time" may be unfamiliar to you. You can surely spend the next week searching online for resources and varying descriptions (it is known by a few different names, though most include "morning" in the title) but to make a long story short, this daily ritual is all about gathering everyone together at the table and beginning your day with little "bites" of good things...good things that can tend to be easily swept aside during the busyness of home education. It generally only lasts around 30-45 minutes, but the goal is to start our day out by prioritizing these good things so we don't forget them altogether! 

These days, it's not only homeschoolers who are familiar with the hierarchy of educational priorities. Math and reading? Daily. Science and history? Yes, of course. Fairy tales, poetry, and memorizing a hymn together? Definitely not what your average educator would consider a necessity. But I've read countless articles and listened to many podcasts from educators much wiser than I, and they are always and forever sharing the benefits of things like reading aloud, memorizing poetry, and simple daily rituals like gathering together at the table to spend focused time on things that doesn't feel like formal learning.

Our morning time typically includes things like memorization, catechism, Bible reading, a hymn we sing together, poetry, and stories from a storybook collection. (I feel the need to add that it also includes a snack, which somehow helps keep everyone a bit more focused—especially a certain kindergartener who tends to want to drift away after fifteen minutes and visit the neighborhood cat.) Our routine is one that isn't on a perfect schedule, and it ends up changing shape as our school year progresses. I've added in (and then taken away) things like Shakespeare, started doing daily question books for the older two, and will replace a few of our daily items with our history curriculum a couple times a week. It's rare that our morning routine will look the same for longer than a couple months, so I thought I'd periodically share what we are using—just to give other families an idea of what it looks like for us!

Here is what our Morning Time consists of, halfway through the 2020-2021 school year (my daughters are currently in 4th grade, kindergarten, and preschool):

Prayer: Some days I lead the prayer, but other times I have us all recite The Lord's Prayer, so the younger two can work on memorizing it.

Hymn: We choose one hymn every month to memorize by singing together daily. We use a hymnbook that was passed down to us from my husband's grandfather, and sometimes my oldest will follow along in her My First Hymnal—although it only includes a small number of abbreviated hymns. I'll confess to having generally not enjoyed hymns played on the organ even a little bit throughout the last decade. (Shake your fists at me, fellow Lutherans, but this girl will always have a certain fondness for a good praise band.) However, choosing to be intentional about studying one hymn each month with the girls for the last couple years has given me an appreciation and—dare I say—a certain fondness for the rich wisdom and beauty within the hymns we sing in church every week. Yes, hymns are becoming my jam. Who knew?

The Child's Story Bible: We are always going through a book of bible stories, and I just recently purchased this highly-recommended storybook bible for us to begin. (We are actually starting it later this week!)

Catechism: I am currently going through a catechism that our pastor provided us with that has been a huge benefit to all of us. I believe it was created by a Lutheran educator, and the questions start very simply and become progressively more challenging. We are doing the entire thing together from the beginning, and it's pretty remarkable to see how quickly they're learning. Even my three year old can recite 2 Peter 1:21. (It's a delight.)

ABCs of Theology Cards from Tiny Theologians: We were given this set of cards from a dear friend and have been going through one each day. We're not memorizing them at this point, but I think it would be a benefit to do that someday. They're beautifully designed and I love how they don't water down the definitions (some products for children are frustratingly bland) but instead provide a clear description and a bible verse for each letter/word. (From what I can see, they would work for most Christian denominations, but depending on your view of the sacraments and a few other things, you may have to adjust what you share with your children.)

Q&A a Day for Kids and One Question a Day for Kids: These books are fantastic! I use the former with my kindergartener. The book will ask a variety of different questions that they get to answer daily for three consecutive years. The latter is one I bought for my oldest daughter, and she fills it out by herself (and I peek in the pages when I want to read her charming answers). I had one for my oldest when she was ages 3-5 and we still will get it out sometimes to read the answers and laugh together over the sweet/weird/generally adorable entries. 

Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak: I'm currently having the girls memorize this book month-by-month. (It only takes a few minutes every day for us to review the current month and the previous months.) This was my youngest daughter's favorite book for a solid six months last year, so I've already memorized it myself, but it's a really fun way for my kindergartener to learn the months of the year—while also learning a poem that makes me quite happy.

Side by Side: Poems to Read Together: I always read a page or two out of a book of poetry (and we own plenty!). This is one of my absolute favorites; the illustrations by Hilary Knight are so detailed and lovely. I also enjoy how the poems in this treasury are centered around each of the four seasons. I remember reading this one with my mom as a little girl, so it's something I especially enjoy sharing with my own trio of daughters!

The Greatest Fairy Tales: I typically read one story from some sort of collection or anthology, and right now we are going through this beautifully illustrated collection of classic fairy tales. Now, one must keep in mind that these are not the Disney version of fairy tales, and I may or may not have scarred my 5 year old with the story of Bluebeard (the man has a closet of chopped up wives, which I actually read out loud, and I am so sorry, my dear child). That said, we've enjoyed reading both the original versions of stories we were already familiar with, and also getting to know lesser-known works from famous authors.

Raggedy Ann and Andy and the Camel with the Wrinkled Knees: I always end our Morning Time with one of our current chapter book read-alouds. This is a vintage book I picked up for around a dollar at a thrift store, and it's taken us a while to get through! We've had a few other books that we've gone through recently that we always ended up reading instead of this one. But now that we're waiting on a few library holds to come in, we're diving back into this one. It took us about halfway through the book to truly enjoy it, but even my 4th grader is giggling loud at the antics of Raggedy Ann and Andy and all the various characters they meet.

So, that is currently what our Morning Time looks like! It will most likely change quite a bit before the school year is through, so I'll try to check in once more before the spring. If you have any questions about our routine (or other items you recommend adding!) do share, my friends.

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recipes I tried (and loved)...

Can I get a slow clap for the prettiness of the above loaf of banana bread? (I also love that my oldest daughter is going to help me style photos for blog posts. When I was setting this one up, she eagerly jumped in with, "Mom, I know! Why don't you cut a couple slices and take a photo of my hand reaching for one?" A food blog may or may not be in her future.) 

In any case, today I'm here to share some recipes I've tried recently and absolutely loved. I try to make at least one new recipe every week, whether it is something slightly ambitious (an entire meal centered around my Instant Pot), or relatively simple (a new chocolate chip cookie). Although I do get plenty of inspiration from magazines or cookbooks, I must admit that most recipes I find are from my beloved Pinterest.

Although I'm saying goodbye to social media for the year ahead, I don't consider Pinterest to be in the same category as Instagram—mostly because I don't interact with anyone on Pinterest, and I use it almost exclusively to find new recipes, craft ideas, or learning resources for the girls. (Granted, there are random days I'm feeling breezy and pin designs for tattoos I'll never get or bathroom remodeling inspiration that will lead to exactly zero remodeling, but that is neither here nor there.)

Here are links to some recipes that I've made in the last few months that I consider to be worth sharing (and worth making again and again):

Banana Bread from Two Peas & Their Pod — I'm new to the banana bread scene (I assume there is a scene?) but this seems like a rather foolproof recipe, and it turned out exactly the way I'd hoped. Of course, I added chocolate chips, which is a necessity.

Frittata Egg Muffins from RecipeTin Eats — I've made these twice in the last couple months, and they're a perfect breakfast to prep beforehand. I'm not someone who needs a huge meal at the beginning of the day, and I've found myself to be absolutely satisfied with one of these paired with my cup of morning coffee, and I love that it's easy to adjust this recipe to use whatever veggies you happen to have on hand.

Roasted Garlic White Chicken Lasagna Soup from Little Spice Jar — I'll count this recipe as an ambitious one, because it had me roasting my own garlic. (Have you ever done such a thing? It makes your home smell like an Italian restaurant, which I am not at all opposed to.) It was worth all the extra work, because the flavor of this soup was unreal. It took longer to put together than I thought it would (mostly due to the garlic-roasting) but I am eager to make it again! Everyone loved it, even the girls. Oh, and I used whatever pasta I had in the pantry instead of the lasagna noodles, which I think I'd do next time, as well.

Pesto Shrimp Mushroom Pasta from Julia's Album — I love finding a new pasta recipe that will absolutely go into the regular rotation. This is a very simple recipe, and I ended up using leftover pesto I'd made last year and frozen in an ice cube tray (life hack!) for easy storage. This is a meal that works well even if you have kids who don't love shrimp or mushrooms, because you can just make a little extra pasta to add to the sauce and pick around the things they don't want to eat. For the record, my children are all generally awesome eaters, so I don't make a huge deal over their preferences at dinner—within reason, of course. Making an entirely different meal from what I was planning on making? That's a no. Picking around shrimp and mushrooms to avoid dramatic emotions? That I can handle.

Easy Irish Soda Bread Muffins from 4 Sons 'R' Us — This is another very simple recipe (one that is fun for kids to help with, too!) and I've made these muffins twice in the last month or so. I would probably double the recipe and freeze half the next time around. They are so fluffy and soft and delicious! Perfect muffins to go with chili or soup.

Easy Homemade Mocha from Baking Mischief — I discovered this magical recipe when I was searching for a homemade coffee drink that didn't include instant coffee or espresso or anything else I'd have to run out and buy. The base of this recipe is regular ol' coffee, but after adding the other ingredients (all of which I had in my kitchen already) it tastes like a legitimate mocha. When I feel like putting in some extra effort and consuming extra sugar, this is my new favorite caffeinated beverage!

Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken from Family Fresh Meals — This is my current favorite, favorite Instant Pot meal. I get weirdly excited to make it, every single time. Incredibly simple ingredients, quick to prep, short cook-time in the Instant Pot. The sauce is incredible! I'm almost always able to get some sort of organic chicken at Aldi for a decent price, so I typically use organic chicken tenders or breast fillets (depending on what is on sale). 

That's all for now! Hopefully some of these end up being hits in your kitchen, as well.

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Updated January 2021