everal of the articles you’ll read in this issue have a focus on connection and describe ways to care for your child’s heart. These articles come from veteran homeschoolers with many years of relational experience under their belts. They are FULL of wisdom and wonderful suggestions to help us nurture our relationships with our kiddos.

But as I was reading them, this thought popped into my head. This is great information to help me relate correctly to my kids. But who’s going to come along and help them relate better to me? 🤣

I guess that is the long game, isn’t it? As I treat them with kindness and respect, I show them how we handle conflict and eventually they will relate to others in this manner as well.

here are times of the year when a strict schedule simply isn’t ideal. Whether the beautiful weather outside beckons or the stress of a particular season feels overwhelming or your family simply has a need for something different—relaxed rhythms can be both beneficial and educational for specific seasons in your life.

Instead of just surviving these times, let’s help our little ones thrive! Think of these seasons as a time for playful exploration, exciting discoveries, and making memories together.

ow many times have you sat across from your reluctant learner trying everything from encouragement to consequences to special pencils, only to be met with a blank stare, slumped shoulders, and heavy sighs?

I’ve been stuck in this cycle with my own kids too until I discovered that motivation isn’t about trying harder. While our children focus easily on interests, they need different support for less exciting tasks.

Things changed when I learned these practical strategies that create momentum: emotional safety, ownership, reduced pressure, and connected learning—all powerful tools in my motivation toolkit.

still remember the moment I realized coding would change my life. As a graduate research assistant, I was handed a stack of 300 family surveys and told to input the data and write code to analyze the results. The problem? I didn’t know how to code.

Back then, the Statistical Analysis System (SAS) was in its infancy, and our university didn’t use it—which meant I needed to figure out how to write my own programs from scratch. It was an overwhelming challenge at first, but I taught myself how to code, problem-solve, and think computationally. Little did I know, those early lessons would shape the rest of my career.

ut I’m thinking about creating a guide to homeschooling on Mars. After all, the U.S. government is contemplating a set of rules so we don’t steal the land from unsuspecting martians for a few trinkets or the promise of Wi-Fi.

I wish I could claim the idea myself, but I was given the idea by moms who‘ve approached me at homeschool events over the last couple of years.

I love chatting with people after I speak at a session. That’s when parents share their very unusual situations with me, only to find out that everyone else is facing similar situations. It was during one of these times when a mom said to me, “I believe all you say—and I could homeschool that way if I lived on Mars—but when there are just so many voices and pressure telling me how to homeschool and what I need to cover, it makes it too hard.”