I'm back!

 Hey friends--I'm back!

I've spent the last month or so recuperating from the school year and...you know...life. Thankfully, everyone had a cold (what?!) so we had a legitimate excuse to stay home for a couple weeks and just rest! Sometimes I feel like God lets us have colds to give us some enforced rest and margin!

In between colds, we got to attend the annual CAPE Homeschool Convention which was AMAZING! We always use it as a little bit of a marriage retreat/getaway and this year there were even a few sessions specific to building a healthy marriage and how that impacts your homeschool. As usual, there were great vendors, fun workshops on organization or other practical questions, as well as scriptural discipleship and encouragement, plus there were some sessions about how dads impact and shape homeschools--seriously, we came away so encouraged and refreshed. 

I'll be sharing some of the gems I learned at CAPE later, but for now, I'm knee-deep in planning my school year and I'm starting to get so excited about it--I'm almost to the point of making up my shopping list of school supplies for when they finally put the back-to-school sales up...and I'm PSYCHED!

More specifics on our plan for the year later, but for now, I thought I'd share my current reading list that's inspiring and informing my school planning!

What I'm currently reading:

For School Planning:
- Honey for a Child's Heart, by Gladys Hunt. {This is getting me so excited about the reading plan coming up this school year--we're about to read the Narnia books out loud together and I can't wait!}
- The Lost Tools of Learning, by Dorothy Sayers {This is a short read available free via Grammar of Grace which I find highly helpful for re-centering my educational perspective!}

For Worldview/Perspective on Current Events:  
- Faultlines, by Voddie Baucham {Just started this, but I am excited to dig into the implications of Critical Race Theory as the next step in a postmodern culture, especially as an evangelical Christian.}

For Theology/Spiritual Growth:
- Peace Within Your Borders, by Beth Sharpton {A gift from Betsy Ray, one of the keynote speakers at the CAPE conference!}
- Church Elders, by Jeramie Rinne (a 9Marks resource) {Our Gathering fellowship is reading this together to deepen our understanding of the role of church elders.}

For Fun:
- The Amelia Peabody Emerson series, by Elizabeth Peters (I'm just finishing The Hippopotamus Pool.) {This delightful historical fiction series is set in Victorian England and protectorate Egypt, and has engaging characters, a constant stream of adventure and mystery, Egyptology and archeological trivia, and a slightly racy (but tasteful) marital romance storyline.} 

So there you have my current reading list--I'll be back soon to share our plans for the upcoming school year!

I hope you're all having a lovely summer!