In the Homeschool Flow #7
Summer wrap ups, welcome back baskets, and a story that'll shift your thinking.
Hi, it’s Kimberly and welcome to Homeschool Flow! Each week, I’m sending you a peek inside our homeschool life with ideas I’ve found that make this wild and free life just a little big lighter. ☀️ Maybe there is something in here that you’ll want to try next week?
How are you wrapping up your summer? Are you taking a big trip? Are you completing projects around the house that have been on your list for months? Or are you a year-round schooling family who never really takes big long breaks, so you can enjoy lots of spaciousness in your schooling?
There’s no wrong answer because homeschool is awesome like that!
Our family is doing a little bit of everything here.
Today, we’re driving back from a week-long trip up to Flagstaff, Arizona, only four miles from our house.
Once back and our trailer is all emptied out, I’m turning my focus to our office/schoolroom where I’ll be *finally* cleaning out last year’s materials and filling everything up for this year. This job will be bigger than it might sound because I’ll also be cleaning out past business-related items (shipping boxes from my past product-based business, past products that I’ve chosen to hang onto, tax folders ready to be filed, you get the gist).
And then, I have to choose one final big project — reorganizing our kitchen or painting the guest bath.
Through all of those projects and working, I’ll also be counting down the days until next Friday — THE HOMESCHOOL CONFERENCE WEEKEND!
One week from today, only July 18 and 19, I’ll be live sharing takeaways from a homeschool conference I’m attending here in Arizona.
Will you be there too? Hit reply and let’s shake hands!
I’ll share all of the nuggets I’m hearing from the speakers, fun things I’m seeing in the vendor halls, and so much more. Much of this will be shared on my Instagram stories, but the really juicy details will be available inside the Homeschool Flow community, where we can continue the conversation around the topics that arise.
I’m thinking about the special touch to starting a new school year with the kids.
Side note: We’re starting July 21, which is also my birthday, so if you ever wondered if I LOVE homeschooling, there’s your proof.
In public school, we’d always take our printed teacher lists and head to the store. The boys weren’t thrilled about getting folders, erasers, and pencils, but they were excited about things they don’t need in homeschool, like backpacks and lunchboxes.
This year, I’m exploring ways to combine fun and function in back-to-homeschool baskets!
These baskets will be a nice little surprise for them on their desks when they walk in the room for the first time, and here’s what I’m thinking of including:
FUN pencils (like these Smencils)
Joyride (their current favorite candy, thanks to one of our favorite YouTubers, Ryan Trahan)
Other favorite snacks
A new outfit
A graphic novel (for a FUN book for them to read, because my goal this year is to get them more excited about cracking open books)
A fidget toy (or two)
Whenever we go camping, I look for quick and easy meals that we can make as soon as we arrive at the campsite. This trip, I chose meatball subs, and they didn’t disappoint.
Heat some pre-made meatballs (you choose the style), top with some marinara sauce, and melt the cheese. BAM! It’s a meal and it’s a camping vibe all in one.
I recently read this story in an email from Sahil Bloom, and it stuck with me. It says:
An old carpenter told his boss that he planned to retire. The boss was sad to lose the carpenter, but understood.
He asked if he’d stick around for one last job—to build one final house.
The carpenter reluctantly agreed, figuring he could get it done quickly. He cut corners, used cheap materials, and rushed through the work.
When the house was done, his boss arrived for the final inspection. But instead of walking the house, he reached into his pocket, and handed the carpenter the keys.
“This is your house,” his boss smiled, “My retirement gift to you.”
The carpenter was stunned. If he’d known he was building his own house, he would have done it differently. Now he’d have to live in a house he had built none too well.
The lesson for us as homeschoolers is this: The way you show up every day matters. Cutting corners. Using cheap curriculum that doesn’t support your kids. Rushing through lessons. None of it builds a strong house.
Likewise, the things that don’t directly benefit your homeschool aren’t worth your time.
You’re raising your kids and building them up in SO MANY ways. Everything you put into them matters.
Next week I’m launching something NEW for Southern Arizonans specifically.
I have this problem where I can’t help myself. I get an idea — especially one that involves writing and creating newsletters — and I have to get after it.
This idea has been percolating for months, and I don’t know that I’ve ever been quite as fired up about launching something. I’m calling my newsletter TRAIL MIX.
It’s a local newsletter for Southern Arizona families. What’s lighting me up about this is that I can use the connections and adventures we’re already having to build income for our family! More to come on this.
What’s a passion of yours that you can align with your family’s world and build an income around?
That’s it for this week! Next week’s Homeschool Flow will look a little different. Stay close to my Instagram and/or Substack Notes, or for more depth and detail, join me inside the Homeschool Flow private reader community!
~ Kimberly
Your Unofficial Homeschool Hype Mom