Hey mamas and papas! It is back to school season, but this year, back to school looks a lot different than usual. Whether your family is homeschooling, virtual learning, going to school "in real life," or something in between, it is important to have good resources on hand to supplement, support, or guide your child's learning. 

As a teacher, a mom, and a student myself, education is so important to me! This fall, I'll be taking doctoral classes online, teaching Montessori English, reading, history, and government/economics to my middle school students virtually, AND I'll also be homeschooling my first grader and two year old. To be honest, I'm most excited to teach my own littles, but it is the most daunting task of all!

Something I've learned with teaching is that having great resources on hand makes a huge difference. Thankfully, Amazon has had my back in making it easy and affordable to purchase the items we need! There are tons of great materials available that make homeschooling a little bit easier and a lot more fun. Check out my little curated collection of favorites below to see the products we are using this year to facilitate a love for learning at home!

* Click on the images below for direct links to products. My blog will receive a small commission for any purchases made through these links, at no additional cost to you.
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When dealing with younger kids (Pre-K to third grade), sight words are just as important as phonics in learning to read! Pair some level-appropriate sight word practice with a general love of books and reading, and you're well on your way to having an avid reader!

Some of my son's favorite ways to practice vocabulary and spelling are with flash cards and ESPECIALLY with sight word BINGO! We also have a few workbooks we use and like (linked below), but any time you can GAMIFY learning, it is a win. 

Amazon has some really cool geology kits and things to captivate little learners and foster a love for science, discovery, and STEM. For both science and social studies, we love FLY GUY books. For younger kids, things like puzzles and globes are awesome for understanding the basics of maps and geography, the foundations for future social studies learning. The most important thing when educating young kids is not to drill them with information to memorize, but to INSPIRE them to LOVE learning and to spark a natural curiosity within them. The goal is to build lifelong learners! 

While most of these are aimed for the kindergarten through second grade range, most of the brands linked also offer options to "level up" to meet your kid's needs!

​If you need suggestions for other ages, specific educational concerns, or online/digital resources, just leave a comment below; there are so many resources out there for our kiddos. I'm happy to help however I can! Happy homeschooling. :)

​Woah. Life in America looks a little bit different this week than anything I can recall. Store shelves empty. Museums, parks, restaurants all closed. Weddings are canceled, sports are called off, and events we've had tickets for for months are no longer going on. We've all been told that the best way to combat coronavirus in America is to just stay home.

If you're in any way a busy body like me, that's harder than it sounds. But if staying home for the next few weeks or a month even is the sacrifice we all have to make to take care of our country and society as a whole, then we should do it. 

After all, despite the obvious issues and negative effects coronavirus is having on our world at large, I'm the type of person who is always searching for the silver lining. Honestly, there are some GOOD things about staying home.

Below are some of the ways I'm keeping from going crazy during this coronavirus pandemic.
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1. Take care of all the tasks you've been putting off.

I know. That doesn't sound fun at all. But honestly, there's no better time to take care of all the boring stuff you've been putting off. Just get it done!

For example, this week we filed our taxes. Next on my list is to purge all the closets, get rid of what we no longer have room for or want, and donate stuff! (To my surprise, Goodwill is still accepting donations as of this week.)

Accomplish some of the tasks you've been avoiding, and then when the social distancing requirements lift and the weather gets warmer, you'll be glad it's all done! Who knows - I might even get around to finishing the application for the doctorate degree program I've had my eye on!

2. Read more!

This one is obvious, right? But my favorite part about this is that the library and bookstores are closed, so I'm forcing myself to finally finish reading the 30+ unfinished books that have been lingering on my shelf for way too long.

3. Spend time on the hobbies you usually don't have enough time for!

You know that thing you LOVE, but never get around to doing because life is just so busy and so rushed? When else in your life are you going to have the freedom and time to spend uninterrupted hours doing whatever it is you love? 

For me, that's blogging, painting, writing, and sometimes it's just taking bubble baths or watching bad reality TV shows.

4. Do some yoga or exercise at home.

Earlier this week, my gym sent out a memo that it is CLOSED! It's essential to my mental health that I exercise regularly, so I was happy to see that several yoga studios are streaming their classes for free online right now (a lot of them accept donations/venmos)! Plus, YouTube has a plethora of fitness videos that you can do right from home. 

5. Brush up on a second or third language!

Apps like DuoLingo make it super easy to take up a new language. I've been practicing my Spanish on the app so that when I'm with Juan's family, I can join in on the conversation more!

6. You can still go outside.

We've been making sure to get out every day. As long as you're able to avoid groups and stay at least six feet away from others, going outside is not frowned upon. 

I've been going for runs, or we will go together on family walks, and we've even been to the outdoor tennis courts, as long as they aren't crowded. We bring out own equipment and sanitizer hand wipes. So far so good!
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I know staying home isn't all fun and games though. My husband and I are BOTH working from home, with two kids, in a 750-ish square foot apartment. Clothes still have to be washed and folded, meals have to be prepared, dishes must be done, and work doesn't just stop.

Check out the ways we're trying to occupy our kids, 1 year old and 5 years old, from home!

1. Let kids "help" with chores.

One of my kids' favorite things to do is to match the socks while I fold laundry. My older son has a lot of fun "helping" do simple tasks in the kitchen when I'm cooking dinner or lunch. Give them a cloth to help you wipe down tables or surfaces. They get to feel like they're contributing to the family, they think it's fun, and sometimes, it can actually help you get some stuff done!

2. Make bath time more fun.

Lately, I've been dumping a bunch of MegaBlox or Duplos in the tub with the boys. Actually, any hard, plastic toys (or even little cars) can go for a dip with the kids to make bath time more fun. Bonus - the toys get cleaned in the process! Just make sure to set toys out on the deck or out on a towel when you're done to fully dry off.

3. Do basically everything you did in the 80s or 90s for fun.

Before we were electronically-absorbed as a culture, we found ways at home to have fun. Bring that back with your kids. Play hide and seek. Have a dance party. Read ALL the books. Build a fort! 

4. Rotate the toys.

I've found that if all the toys are out and accessible all the time, my kids get overwhelmed and don't know what to play with at all. I think it helps to kind of rotate the toys in and out.

So for an hour or so, I'll get out the Play Doh. Then we'll put that up and get out the dinosaurs. Then we will put those up and get out the cars or nerf guns. And so on and so on! 

5. Arts and Crafts

I know there are a million moms out there who are all about creating some Pinerest worthy crafterpiecies with their little ones. Unfortunately, I am not one of those moms. If you are, more power to ya!!!

Nevertheless, for the rest of us, don't underestimate the power of a good kit of crayons/markers and a sketchbook! This can keep my older son entertained for literally like an hour at a time. For my littlest one, I love the "No Mess - Melissa and Doug" coloring books!

6. Board Games and Puzzles

Board games are straight up old-school, hearty family fun. Some of Isaiah's favorites are Candyland, Guess Who?, and Connect Four. We will often give our youngest a game-piece (as long as it's big enough to not be a choking hazard!) to let him "play along" with us.

And puzzles are AWESOME! When else do you have time to linger around a puzzle? It's so relaxing, and supposedly solving puzzles keeps the mind sharp.

I know this is crazy and sad and weird and hard, but try to keep a positive attitude and make the most of this time we've been given to stay at home.

Thank you to those of you who still go to work each and every day to ensure our society carries on. Our healthcare workers, grocery store workers, truck drivers, policemen, power and gas company workers, and so on - THANK YOU SO MUCH! 

Also, if you have lost someone you love or experienced any financial or emotional hardships due to Coronavirus, please send me a message or leave a comment below. I'd love to pray for you and encourage you. We've got this, y'all!  

I've seen a lot of bloggers do something called "Friday Introductions." I thought it seemed fun, and so here we are!

This is our little familia! We saw another family taking photos up on this grassy hill behind our church on Easter Sunday, so we asked them if we could do a quick photo-swap with them! The lighting was no bueno, but the boys' cute Easter outfits make up for it, IMO.

There are a million things I want to share, but here is just a little about us and how our family began:

My husband, Juan, and I met back in 2012. He had just moved back to the Virginia Beach area from a season of modeling in Miami, and I had just moved back from a few months of modeling in NYC! I was working at an Abercrombie & Fitch store as a Manager in Training when I saw him walking by. I thought he was good-looking, so I recruited him to work for our store! 

We worked together and then remained friends for five years before I finally went out with him on a date. By that point, I was already a single mom of a three year old (Isaiah!), working as a teacher, and renting a beloved little condo by the bay.

Juan had texted me that week (August 2017!) asking if I'd like to get together that weekend, and I had yet to reply because I had an out-of-town wedding to attend that Saturday. In the midst of my delay to respond, my sister texted me out of the blue, saying, "That Juan Garcia guy who comments on your Instagram photos is cute! You should give him a shot!" She had no idea he had just asked me out, so I took it as a sign and said yes!

We met that Saturday morning for brunch, and as he held my hands and asked me to pray with him before our meal, I knew that was it. He was the one! It probably helped that he had been flashing me his flashiest smiles all morning too, and had made sure to open the door for me to his shiny, CLEAN bmw. Haha!

He had JUST moved to Nashville when we started dating, so we dated long distance for two months before he proposed. I said yes, and we planned our wedding for just two months later! In December 2017, just four months after our first date, we tied the knot. When you know, you know!

Isaiah and I moved to Nashville to join him that January, and less than a year later, our baby boy Nehemiah was born!

Since then, we have moved to the Washington, DC area, and I have taken time off from teaching to be a stay-at-home-mom to Isaiah and Nehemiah. While at home, I've been finishing up my Masters degree, working on my blog, and trying to figure out my new homemaker/wife/mother-of-two role.  Meanwhile, Juan went from producing a show on TBN in Nashville to producing here in DC for Fox News.

I love our little family! We've been SO blessed, despite all of our shortcomings, and know that we owe it all to God. Isaiah starts kindergarten this fall, I'm currently interning with the Family Ministries team at my church, graduating very soon, and am excited to see what's next to come for us all!

A short list of some of just a handful of the things I've learned being married this year.

On December 30, my husband Juan and I celebrated our very first year wedding anniversary. By celebrated, I mean we took our kids and nephews sightseeing in DC to explore our new city. Since the first year traditional anniversary gift is supposed to be paper, my plan was to write this blog post (because, you know, it's basically like paper, only digital!) to surprise Juan with on our day. But, hence the move, my computer was packed up, we didn't have Wifi yet, and it just didn't happen. So here we are, three weeks later! Better late than never, right?

ANYWAY!

Some people might say we are too new or inexperienced as a couple to be giving advice on marriage, but I’d say our whirlwind of a first year together has brought with it plenty of lessons in its first 365 days.


Since our wedding, we’ve technically been tenants of five different apartments total (it’s a long story...) and residents of three different cities. We’ve trained a new puppy, only to have to give him up. We went through a hormonal roller coaster of a pregnancy, followed by a surgical birth and long recovery. We’ve had health scares and sicknesses. We lived off of only one person's income. We’ve walked through a changing custody situation. We’ve adjusted to the family dynamic of a blended/step family. We’ve visited multiple churches, but have yet to become official members of any. 


Talk about whirlwind, right? It's been a lot. But. All of that said, here are five lessons I’ve learned from our wild, unexpected, beautiful, blessed first year of marriage :
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Core values are crucial.

On a superficial level, my husband and I don’t have much in common. He likes motorcycles and cars and triathlons and sports and news and journalism. I like... well, online shopping, random research, school, music and overpriced skincare products. Yet we get along so well, in spite of seeming to have so few things in common.

The reason for this? Our core values are in alignment. Spiritually, theologically, philosophically, religiously, politically - our world-views and  priorities are darn near the same (In fact, I’ve never met anyone else whose sync so homogeneously with my own!). At the end of the day, the surface level stuff comes and goes, but your core beliefs about life and the world and what’s important are key to who you are, thus very important in a marriage.


​Honesty is built upon grace.

People always talk about how honesty is so important in a marriage, but rarely do you hear practical solutions for HOW to be honest in your relationship. One thing I’ve learned is that one person’s reactions or responses to the actions or words of the others can often determine whether or not that person continues to be honest with the other. For example, I have never felt the need to lie to my husband. I’ve messed up and made mistakes and said or done things I shouldn’t have, but I’ve never felt like I had to hide any of that from him.

But my ability to be honest with him is rooted in his ability to respond to all things gracefully. When I confess my shortcomings to him, he has yet to react with quarrel, strife, anger, or bitterness. His response is always that of grace and love and forgiveness. Because of that, we have cultivated within our marriage a safe space to be fully honest with one another.


Iron sharpens iron.

They said that over time, we start to look/act/think/talk like the people we spend most of our time around. For most people, that ends up being their spouse. Therefore, if you want your spouse to talk to you in a respectful way or treat you well, it starts with you. Be the kind of person you’d want to be married to! Relationships have reflective tendencies; it’s up to you as an individual to choose to be the best version of yourself you can be to have a positive influence on your spouse and, in turn, your marriage.


The little things are important.

Small acts of kindness go a long way.
It’s funny how after we get married and/or settle down we tend to stop treating one another quite so gingerly. But those little things that new relationships are billowing with are important for maintaining the spark on down the road (especially when things get rocky!). Things like greeting one another with a hug and kiss, even after a long grueling day, surprising the other with a small treat or meal or gift, or simply sitting with them side by side, phone down, just being there, fully present, make a huge impact on keeping the love alive.


A servant’s attitude is important to make a marriage work.

Okay- I'll admit it. My husband is much more of the giver in our relationship. What can I say? I'm a little spoiled. BUT. This is still a lesson I've learned.

One thing about having a servant’s heart towards a marriage is the notion of anticipating the other’s needs before they even have to ask. To be honest, most days my husband anticipates my needs before I even realize them! Small acknowledgments of this, like having coffee (or celery juice, or pancakes, or whatever they like) ready for your spouse to wake up to after a long or late night, or bringing a glass of water to the bedside table, or giving a shoulder rub when they’ve had a headache, are equally important parts of intimacy in a marriage. They show that you’re thinking of one another, respect one another, and care enough to actively demonstrate that love.

Photography by Torrance Saunders

​So there you have it. Five (of the many) things I've learned during this first year of marriage. Cheers to a new year and (prayerfully) many more years to come!

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Click the images below to check out some of my favorite resources on preparing for marriage: