Q: I would love to know some things that have helped you how to simplify homeschooling in order to do things WELL. Everyday life with a large family (I have 5 kids under 10) in itself makes just the basics challenging some days!!! I would love to know some ways to maintain a certain level despite all… […]

Well, if you know anything about our family, you know we have a lot of kids (6, going on 7, to be exact). Spills have become part-and-parcel of Connell family mealtimes. And now, 12 years into this parenting gig, I’m nearly… getting better about… almost… past freaking out about spills at the table. One thing […]

It’s hard to discern sometimes, isn’t it? Especially the first time we face these things as a mom! Did he really hear me? Does she really understand what I’m asking? How can I know what I should/shouldn’t expect. When do our children know enough to start obeying us? For us, obedience starts long before they’re speaking, and…

In Part 1, we talked about: the unreliability of basing our identity on seasons, or characteristics about us the way we are all geared toward identity idolatry (feeling that what we do/choose is the same as who we are) and the way God – in kindness – seeks to shake us loose of that. And […]

READING: The disappearance of childhood and what we can do to get it back ~ by Jamie @ Simple Homeschool I appreciate this article: Is Self-Promotion Sinful?—  it hits at a lot of questions that have nagged at my brain. Authors are in a different place now than in the last hundred years because publishers have […]

Each month I get a number of e-mails and private comments asking interesting questions that may be applicable to more than just the person asking. My plan is to select a few thought-provoking and practical questions, keep the asker & identifying details anonymous, and share my answers with all of you, at the end of each month. Let’s…

 “Proclaim the message; persist in it whether convenient or not; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear something new.” (2 Tim. 4:2-3) The […]

Years ago, when I worked for Governor Huckabee, oh the dreams that I had! Having worked for the States of Arkansas and Texas, ladies, I was determined. I’d work my way up through the political ranks, and one day, be a Senator. And to tell the truth, when I get put out with political goings-on, […]

When you experience pain inflicted upon you by those claiming the name of Christ, especially by those in leadership in a Christian community, ministry organization, or church, it can turn everything topsy-turvy. What is true? What is right? Did that really happen? Am I losing my mind? Who can I trust? Can I ever trust […]

This is a sponsored post. This Christmas, Do you want to do your part to fight human trafficking? Is the advance of the Gospel through practical means a passion for you?  Would you like to provide practical help for refugees? Are you looking for a way to teach your children about Christmas GIVING rather than… […]

Recently I was able to get away for a glorious (and gloriously quiet!!) week alone. [If you don’t know, I have 9 children, ages 19 down to 2 years old, and I’ve been a stay-home, homeschooling mom for the duration of those years.] For most of my life, getting away like this has been an impossibility, […]

Pain is common to all of us. But– have you noticed?– our reactions to it can be wildly different. And I’m convinced– it’s all in how you look at it. When our eyes are on our pain & circumstances: We become disconnected from others (even others in the Body of Christ). No one is “qualified” […]

  Last week, I placed my first order with Amazon Prime Pantry. As a bargain shopper (and borderline cheapskate), I’ve been skeptically keeping my distance. But after trying it, I’m pretty impressed and think I’ll try it again from time to time. Here’s what I noticed, what I didn’t like, and what I DID like…. […]

Well. 🙂 For those of you who don’t know me personally, let me do a quick update: my husband lost his job in November. We have been seeking where God would have us apply, be, etc., over the last few months, and God has been gracious to clearly guide us in one particular direction. As…