The Jonas Family wants to wish everyone the Happiest Thanksgiving! We put together a quick video (under a minute) where we share what we are T-H-A-N-K-F-U-L for. We hope you enjoy the video and that you have lots of things to be thankful for this year. We’re hosting Thanksgiving this year at our house. Where […]
This summer, Jim and I were flown out to San Francisco by one of our vendors. We really enjoy having time together just the two of us, but it was strange to be out there without the children. We got to see the Golden Gate Bridge. And ride over it. And visit wine country. And […]
Hiking has always been one of our favorite family activities. Our local park was Charlestown State Park, but since we’ve moved, it’s over half an hour away. We decided to go back one last time for a farewell hike and barbecue. Indigo had to stop and look at the moss: After the hike, the children played […]
I’ve wanted to get an updated family photo for many months. But as you can imagine, getting everyone ready is quite an endeavor. We were supposed to do the photo last week, but with the accident, nobody was in the mood. All the girls need hair cuts, so I was going to do that […]
All of the children know how to knit (including the boys). They mostly knit washcloths that they sell with our soap. It’s great because they can take their knitting with them in the car or to a meeting we need to attend. It gives them something to do with their hands. Knitting also teaches eye-hand […]
Many of you know that we have been through a difficult time dealing with the trauma from being on the scene of a fatal accident. I may write more about it later, but right now I just wanted to share with you these photos. There is something about a rainbow that just reminds me of […]
Jim spends a lot of his time supplying Goat Milk Stuff with what it needs to keep growing. I love it when he is able to use the business as a way to teach the children new skills. We don’t use wi-fi in the soap room or in our house. As a result, we use […]
Well… we thought we had found homes for our male rabbits in time. But apparently we didn’t because Sandy just had 3 babies on Saturday! There are two black and white spotted babies and one black baby. They are just two days old in these photos. They’re fat and happy and Sandy is being […]
If you listened to my podcast about Simplifying and Organizing your Holidays, then you know that the first week of every October, the Jonases sit down and discuss what we’re going to do as a family for the first 25 days of December. These events are very intentional and designed to build memories and make […]
Because I regularly show photos of my children working at Goat Milk Stuff, I’m often asked if they ever have time to play. Of course they do! Even with their school work, barn work, and soap work, they still have more free time than most of their peers. Some of the children’s favorite things to do […]
Today is the 23rd anniversary of my first date with Jim. We try to go out to dinner every year to celebrate this momentous occasion. LOL Jim and I met during my first weekend (he was a year ahead of me) at the University of Virginia. We met the end of August at a fraternity […]
I have a lot of goals when it comes to my children and their homeschool education. One of my goals is that they learn how to be great communicators. In most conventional public school educations, communication is focused on the ability to write “papers”. Whether these papers are book reports or term papers, the […]
One of the most common homeschool questions that I’m asked is, “What curriculum do you use?” To be perfectly honest, I hate this question. I think too many homeschooling parents think that there is a “magic” curriculum out there that will make homeschooling perfect. Too much homeschooling energy is wasted on choosing curriculum, discussing curriculum, […]
All of the children have their own computers. They use them both for their Goat Milk Stuff work and for their school work. Jade is limited as to what she can do on her computer because she is still learning to read. I don’t believe in computer games or flashy computer programs to teach children to […]
I’m always teaching the children how to work hard, to be responsible, to solve problems, to stay focused, and to plan ahead. But while they are developing a strong work ethic, they are also learning that working hard is not all that life is about. It is a piece of life, but there needs […]