Foods 
These grain-free gingerbread cut-out cookies are the perfect Christmas and Holiday treat for the family! I'm happy to eat anything gingerbread at any time of the year, but there's something about the winter holidays that make gingerbread an extra-special treat. Growing up my mother would always decorate a homemade gingerbread house with me and my little brother at Christmastime. So I suppose it's more nostalgic than anything. :) Looking for more gluten-free recipes and resources? This Everything Gluten Free page is a library of everything gluten free we’ve worked on. Grain-Free Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies Even ...Read More
25 Days of Grain Free Christmas Cookies: Coconut Date Balls
Dates are a common ingredient in many holiday recipes. Everything from cakes, rolls, pies, and cookies have all been created around this super fruit. Dates are mentioned in the Bible as the “tree of life,” so it follows that dates would be a common addition to Christmas recipes celebrating the birth of Jesus. Dates have developed a bad reputation over the years. When most people think of dates the infamous fruitcake often comes to mind. However, dates are a sweet and versatile addition to most baked good recipes. Day 4: Coconut Date Balls I began making this recipe a few years ago when I was in search of a new ...Read More
25 Days of Grain-Free Christmas Cookies: Coconut and Chocolate Macaroons
These Coconut and Chocolate Macaroons are a delicious treat to spoil the family (and your friends!). They are grain-free AND sugar-free, but you can't even tell because they are so tasty! The coconut and chocolate lovers in your life are going to love you when you bake these Coconut and Chocolate Macaroons! Looking for gluten-free recipes and resources? This Everything Gluten Free page is a library of everything gluten free we’ve worked on. Christmas cookies mean Christmas baking—and for many years my fondest baking memories were of my three sisters and I after we had married and moved away from home. My dad, and ...Read More
Stop the Stomach Flu in Its Tracks: Home Remedies that Work
Let's talk about how to Stop the Stomach Flu in Its Tracks: Home Remedies that Work. First, some typical background story: You're sleeping peacefully in bed, then you hear the first, "Mommy!" You give your child a chance to go back to sleep, but then you hear the second, "Mommy!"—this one just as pitiful as the first. Maybe you "accidentally" kick your husband in hopes that he'll wake up enough and decide to respond to a potentially distressed child. After all, the bed is so cozy. But you're not one hundred percent convinced yet that your child is fully awake themselves and in true need of ...Read More
Homeschooling Homeschoolers and the “S” Word (Socialization)
It is probably the most common question asked by people who have never met a homeschooler or by people who are interested in homeschooling. “But what about my child’s socialization?” “Will they ever interact with peers their own age?” “Will my child have friends?” “Won’t their social skills suffer from being home all the time?” Today I want to share with you why socialization should not intimidate you from homeschooling your children. Your children really will turn out okay! After all, I did, and I am a homeschool graduate! I was homeschooled from kindergarten through 12th grade, beginning in the late 80’s. My ...Read More
Homeschooling Philosophies and Methods: Charlotte Mason
Charlotte Mason was an English educator in the early 1900s. She was taught at home, but both parents died when she was in her mid-teen years. She went on to become an educator. After much of her own learning about how children learned from her mentors, she began to write to educate parents on how to bring up children—although she never had any children herself. A few of the most popular quotes from Charlotte Mason are: "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life." "Education is the science of relations." "I am, I can, I ought, I will." ...Read More
Homeschooling Philosophies and Methods: Traditional Textbook Approach
I have the unique privilege of homeschooling my children as a second generation homeschooler. Having been homeschooled myself K-12, I never dreamed it would be quite so overwhelming to be on the teaching end of homeschooling rather then the student side! Currently I am homeschooling four children: Preschool, Kindergarten, Second Grade, and Fourth Grade, plus a 2 year old that likes to be in the middle of everything. I was homeschooled using a Charlotte Mason method, especially in high school. I have such fond memories of those years and always planned to do a strict Charlotte Mason approach when I homeschooled my own ...Read More
Homeschooling Your Special Needs Child
Being the parent of a special needs child is not usually something that people are prepared for or feel equipped for, and I was no different. We had two neuro-typical boys (neuro-typical is the politically correct term of the hour for "normal"—although there is really no such thing) when we began our journey into special needs parenting. Our journey down this road was perhaps a bit more purposeful than most as all of our special needs kids are adopted. But with three of them, we weren't aware of their special needs when they came to us so we found out much the way all parents do. There were the usual ...Read More
