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29 Comments

  1. Homeschooling is the great way to learn, education your kids. Even adults are also getting homeschooling due to responsibilities which are unable them to go to regular universities. Another way to get education easily and that really help your career with the sound degree are online university.

  2. My days are hectic and can’t be nailed down to a schedule since both of us work outside the home and have 2 homeschoolers in the house with 2 college and working kids coming and going. It’s crazy, hectic and I wouldn’t change it for the world.

  3. I found your blog last week on the God Centered Mom Podcast and I love it! I homeschool my three boys 13, 11 and 5 in Austin, TX (we are transplants from San Diego). I loved reading your typical day, because it reminds me of how homeschooling can be different every day and it doesn’t need to look like the magazine covers we see. What a great reminder for me that it’s okay that my house gets chaotic throughout the day as I round them up from breaks that involve wrestling, jumping on the trampoline, nerf or laser gun wars, etc. Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work!

    1. Jennifer! SO happy you found me through God Centered Mom Podcast. I loved doing that, Heather is such a gem!
      I’m always encouraged to hear from other homeschool families carving out their own “best way” to do things. It isn’t easy, but so worth it, right?! Much aloha to you, and hope you’ll keep in touch here! xo

  4. skippi_oz says:

    Thank you so much for posting this!
    It was detailed enough to give a really great insight into a homeschooling day. I really enjoyed reading it. 😊

    1. Oh so glad. As long as your head wasn’t spinning too much! I think a homeschool day can be as mellow or as crazy as a family makes it! Much Aloha-

  5. Thank you for posting this! I’m always curious about how other families handle their homeschool routine. It sounds like you have a great balance between structure & flexibility for fun activities. Ours is pretty flexible, but sometimes gets to be a bit too much so. We school year-round, but recently started a 6-week-on/1-week-off schedule, which I think will lend a bit more structure to our time. Great post!

  6. You all make me exhausted just reading! What kind of devotional a do you find for your kids to read? That sounds like a good idea!

    1. Sorry to wear you out Tracy! 🙂 haha. Yes, my kids read Bible apps on their phone often when they are on the go. The whole family also enjoys “Jesus Calling” devotional, and our younger boys use the kid version. However, just this morning my husband and I were checking out Fellowship of Christian Athletes Devotionals on line, and they look very good. If i find a great one I’ll try to share about it here! aloha-

  7. Thank you so much! So fun to read, but also makes me feel exhausted for you! Wow! Thank you so much for sharing and inspiring.
    Regarding your comment about trying to get everyone to bed earlier and up earlier, that is a never-ending goal for me and my son. I feel kind of neurotic, but the only thing that helps me is writing out a detailed schedule. I have an AM schedule, a PM schedule, a cleaning schedule, a meal plan… eegads! Not that we follow everything to the letter (some days I completely ignore them), but at least when things inevitably fall apart, I can get back on track easier. It’s weird but all that scheduling helps me have more time to enjoy life and raising my son <3

    1. Oh Erin I love that! I seriously started with a “summer schedule” too, and I’m not naturally a scheduler at all, so it is a big step for me! 😉 I told the guys that I would have to do exactly that for our school year. 🙂 Yay–I’m so hoping it will help!! Aloha to you-

  8. Hi Monica! I really enjoyed reading about your typical day! I remember you from soccer. Our boys played together back in the day. I believe it was our love for the Lord that was a connecting point for us. Anyway, I didn’t realize you home schooled! I do as well and really enjoy hearing from other people that their days are as chaotic as ours. Sometimes I feel like I’m just trying to keep my head above water. Hopefully, we will run into each other or can have coffee sometime 😀

    1. Thank you Michelle! Great to hear from you. Glad homeschooling is good (even if crazy) for your family also. Please keep in touch–it would be so fun to see you again! aloha-

  9. Monica, thanks for this post! I’ve always been curious about what a “typical” day in your home must be like. Seems like homeschooling definitely suits your family, that’s awesome!
    As far as prayers for God in nature–I couldn’t help but think of The New Zealand Prayer Book, which is used in New Zealand and Polynesia and its prayers, while similar to the prayer book my Episcopal church here in the USA uses, are more in tune with the earth, sunrises, sunsets, water, harvests, etc. I totally understand if it’s not your cup of tea, I just thought I’d include a link here if you’d like to check it out, maybe some of the daily prayers might resonate…or maybe not, and that’s ok, too! 😉 (this is me, offering a God-related link, but not wanting to step on anyone’s toes or press any particular agenda!)
    https://anglicanprayerbook.nz/index.html#contents

    1. Thank you Wendy! I always love to hear from you, and I also always love your thoughtfulness but humble hesitation! 🙂 Of course I’m excited to check out your link!! Thank you, and I do hope you are all having an awesome summer!

  10. Thanks for the giggle this morning. It’s good to know I’m not the only mom out there with the far from picture perfect homeschool experience. My days are spent juggling my daughter to and from her oncology appointments and reading therapy appointments and my younger son to and from his Ocupational therapy appointments, begging him to stop rolling on the floor and do math, taking care of chickens and my little bit of livestock and somewhere in there making sure school is accomplished. Dishes and laundry?!? Hmmmm, sometimes not! My sweet, eldest son, all I can say is, thank the good Lord for our easier children. He knew I would need one 🙂 I taught that boy to grade papers last year and we called it office aid! I love your stories of life.

    1. Oh Rebekah–I can just see it. You sound amazing. (and the oldest son, golden.)
      Oncology appointments? I don’t like that…Is your daughter battling cancer?
      You hang on and keep up the amazing work. God bless you-

  11. I love your blog! A friend passed along a link to a recent post and I have fallen in love with it – and always feel like you are speaking my language completely! We live in the Outer Banks of NC with 2 water loving (surfing, sailing, stand up paddling) middle school boys and we constantly balance to keep all things fit into the schedule. As you reference devotionals for your boys en route to surfing, it made me wonder if you’ve found any particular great ones that seem to fit the lifestyle of your family and boys. I love the rare times when I can find great material that blends spirituality and faith with their love of the ocean and nature – while they connect with their youth group and our church, they both are quick to reference that they are closest to God when they feel his strength and beauty under their feet on a wave or the wind in their sails. I appreciate any suggestions you or other readers might have!!

    1. Thank you April…Yes, I think our families would really relate to each other. Isn’t is special and so utterly awesome that our kids get to experience God in nature like that? That is one thing a video game will never give them! 🙂 Awesome. At this point my boys all like to read the “Jesus Calling” for kids devotional. My oldest just reads from the Bible. We have used other “kid/teen’ devotionals, but I love your idea…Not sure if there is something like that out there! (or if we should write one! :)) Aloha-

  12. Thank you do much for sharing! This will be our first year homeschooling for kindergarten and I’m so nervous. I do have two 13 years Olds going to public school, hoping one day to homeschool them too when I get the courage. This post gives me hope cause we have so much chaos during the day (mainly my 2 year old daughter) that I’m not sure how our school days will go. I have wanted to try Abeka too so good to know. Love your posts!

    1. Thank you Erica! Yes, Abeka allows me to simply be the “facilitator” and allows kids to do school when it works for their schedule. I feel like they are all getting a great education too, so it’s a win-win. You’ll have a blast with Kindergarten I am sure! Keep me posted! Aloha-

      1. OK great! Will do! 🙂

  13. Sheena Carnie says:

    Hi Monica, I had a good laugh – especially picturing Luke chasing the chicken! I only have two boys but am not sure I have the patience to home school them. It’s time for us to apply for our youngest to start high school next year, and although there was ABSOLUTELY no chance that the high school we’ve chosen for Sam wouldn’t accept him (he’s smart, polite, sporty AND his brother is already there!) he kept asking what would happen if they didn’t accept him. I think he was hoping we would give in and send him to a prestigious, expensive private school (NEVER going to happen!) but eventually I told him that I would quit my job, take on more freelance work and home school him, so he’d better PRAY HARD the school did accept him!

    1. Sheena Carnie says:

      And of course the high school did accept him 🙂

      1. Awesome!! Well done! Sounds like you have your game plan together. So great. 😉

        1. you and your family just sound simply amazing 🙂

  14. Wow- that’s a marathon! Sounds like you and Dave are great partners and parents. I share your dream of an early and predictable bed time. Do you tend to follow the Hawaii DOD school schedule?

    1. Thank you Shannon! Yes, I forgot to mention–we do try to keep on the public school schedule. Just helps to not feel like they’re stuck doing school when other kids are playing. 🙂 So far it works out pretty well…Even if hot August feels a little soon for me to be schooling!

  15. Hi Monica. It was fun reading your “typical” day. I’ve been reading your blog for a few months now and always get a kick out of seeing how much we seem to have in common… My husband is also a physician.. we live on Oahu.. have teen sons (though only two).. have home schooled them for years.. are Christians. We even use Abeka curriculum. It’s great to read about the adventures and lifestyle of your wonderful family. Keep up the great work of encouraging families.. and especially moms of boys! I always keep an eye out for your family when we are on the North Shore.. maybe I’ll work up the courage to say hi if we ever see you there.