raising rileys

It's just so much more. So much comes down to the feeling in our home and how we interact. If I'm feeling stressed or irritable, then school time is pretty hard and kind of miserable. But when I take the time to remember what an honor it is to be with these precious people and we work together on things, I truly cannot imagine a sweeter feeling in the world! In a very real way, I see my boys' hearts open. And when their hearts are open, their minds are like sponges, and they just soak everything up with such happiness and delight! Then learning is such a truly joyful process. The day flows naturally, and we move naturally from one lesson to another and one task to another. And our home is a heaven on earth. It's a beautiful experience.

homeschooling through a month of thanks

November and December are quite possibly my very favorite months to homeschool. The colder weather outside sort of gives us permission to be inside, dress in warm and cozy clothing, spend more time in the kitchen cooking and baking, and read together. And I love that during November and December we get to have a special focus on the months' holidays. Here are a few things we are doing this month to make it special:

halloween

So, Halloween has never been my favorite. But during the last few years it has really grown on me! We're starting to establish some really fun family traditions. We do the usual pumpkin carving and this year we added some simple art projects while listening to some silly Halloween music. I even taught the boys a part of the Michael Jackson Thriller dance! It was so fun. I grew up loving to dance, so that was kind of fun for me.

Life I LoveElizabeth RileyNovember 2, 2017halloween, traditions, familyComment

a morning with Abe

Lately I have been wondering how, with three boys, to help them each develop in their own people...I guess I'm trying to find ways to help them develop their own identities and hope they don't compare themselves to each other. With homeschool we spend a lot of time together (which is wonderful), but maybe it's in part from welcoming a new sweet babe into our family, but I really miss one-on-one time. I think I'm especially sensitive about it with our second son Abraham--I just don't want him to feel or be lost in the middle!

MotherhoodElizabeth RileyOctober 25, 2017deliberate mothering, deliberatemotherhood, MotherhoodComment

well, hello Elijah Hunter Riley!

We welcomed our precious Jedidiah Hunter Riley on Tuesday, August 8th at 11:18 p.m.! We couldn't feel more blessed to have this precious angel join our family. Truly, he could not be more angelic! I am so grateful to be his mama.

a day on the river

Saturday we all loaded up in the car and drove up the canyon for a little fishing. I'm not into fishing (although I love me some fish!), but for Jeremiah, fly fishing is his thing. We brought a quilt for me to hang out on and Matthew's fly rod too, and the boys were just ecstatic to have a lesson from daddy! Watching them follow Jeremiah and try to imitate him in every way really is the sweetest thing to me. I always tell Jeremiah that they are little men in training. I can be off doing whatever thing, but they are both glued to whatever dad is doing.

Life I Love, MotherhoodElizabeth RileyJuly 19, 2017familytime, talents, family life Comment