I get a lot of questions about homeschooling on IG, Facebook, Twitter, and in real life. Most of them are along the lines of, “It seems so overwhelming. Where do you begin?”

I have been stuck writing this post for forever because I get frustrated with my own answer. There simply isn’t a place to begin except to talk to people who are homeschooling, research, go to a curriculum fair if there’s one near you, call different curriculum providers you have an interest in using and ask them questions, search blogs, and read, read, read about it. Also ask lots of questions! Then dive in. Really – you can change it as you go.

I want to tell you my A., B., and C., but homeschool is such a personal journey that my choices and style probably wouldn’t work for many of you or your children’s needs. On that note, before you click away and tell me I just wasted 5 minutes of your life I’ll share with you about what we’re using, how it works, etc.

What we are using this year: Five in a Row for our basic curriculum

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I’m finding again that when a lot of things happen in a short amount of time I can’t write about it because figuring out where to start and how to not make it a 2,000 word post where my hands fall off half way through is impossible. But – then I always wish I’d written about it sooner and in more detail.

Blissdom was amazing this year. It was a lot more relaxed, which is how I thought of it last year as well but this time was even more so. Great on the pregnant girl. I was able to see, do, and be at {almost} everything I wanted and by Sunday morning didn’t feel regret for missing a little. At the same time I was able to go to long lunches, spend time with my girls I haven’t seen in a while, and hang out in the room without feeling the guilt or push of “YOU SHOULD BE DOING…”

I honestly felt like I got my money’s worth in both sessions and friends. I left feeling connected to the women I love, the community I love, the writing I love, and most important; I left knowing why I write. I have to say that there are many times during the months where I feel like this is pointless, no one cares, my blog is a mess, maybe this is just an addiction to the internet…

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Bella and I have done pretty casual homeschooling this year. I don’t think there was any way around it with everything going on.

I really wanted to focus on her learning how to use her imagination, be creative in her play, interact with peers, small and large motor skills, and a love of being outside, reading, and art.

She also knows (most of) her ABC’s and numbers 1-10, along with nursery rhymes and common preschool songs.

I start to think about her 4th year and beyond, and it tends to lead to the same two questions over and over:

• Do I want/need more structure with her as time goes on?
• Or do we want to lean into a more unschooled method?

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I’m starting a series of posts from now until – well – until I run out of things I love. I want to tell you all about some of the things (like Kiwi Crate) that make my life easier, prettier, shinier, and just a little more fun all around. Some will be just things I have around, some referral links to things I own, some things I was sent to try out. I’ll let you know while talking about each, but know that I really do love (and use) them all. 

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First up is the amazing, convenient, answer to what -the-heck-are-we-doing-after-nap Kiwi Crate. I.LOVE.THEM. I have been itching to write about them and waited till I had a few kits behind me to tell you all about what they are like.

You’ve probably seen me post about them on Instagram and Twitter the past 3 months. So what exactly is a Kiwi Crate and how does it work?

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We’ve had a bit of a lag in our homeschool these past few weeks. Things have been crazy with the cruise, family coming to visit, sickness, and then the holidays.

But something else kept nagging at me – something I couldn’t put my finger on till this evening. I sat down to plan out what we wanted to do and was completely overwhelmed. I mean, it’s preschool. I have a Before Five in a Row curriculum. Tons of resources online. Facebook pages and blogs and pinterest boards. All I really need is craft ideas, a story, maybe a song…

And that’s what the problem is. There is so much to choose from with homeschool that I just keep looking and clicking and reading till I feel like my head is going to explode. Once I find something and am ready, then I rethink it a trillion times. “This would be fun on a colder day” “I could wait and do this in the spring when” and etc.

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