make joy normal: cozy homeschooling

send us a text via Fan Mail! A blessed and holy Christmas to you all! https://www.cannotquenchlove.com Contact On Instagram at @make.joy.normal   By email at makejoynormal@gmail.com Search podcast episodes by topic   www.bonnielandry.ca Shop my recommended resources Thanks for listening to Make Joy Normal Podcast! 

send us a text via Fan Mail! We touch on the sensitive topic of "doing Santa" with our kids, Elizabeth and I share our own personal thoughts and experiences.  We also address guilt of breaks in our year, comparing ourselves to the school system and touch on learning challenges.   4:39 - What do you do about Santa Claus?   18:15 -Guilt in comparing our homeschool to public school  23:24 -...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Aren't we all a little disappointed when the special days in our life fall short of Hallmark moments?  What to do.  Christina and I explore the phenomenon of big emotions and big expectations.   1:07 - Family traditions for St. Nicholas day  6:02 - How can we help our children regulate their big emotions?  13:15 - What do we do about our own stress and expectation...

send us a text via Fan Mail! The Way of Beauty by author David Clayton is a book I’m reading presently.  We are loving the book so much that I wanted to interview David to help explore the ideas he presents in light of family life.  We can augment the richness of Catholic family life through beauty and parents will reap the harvest of deepening their understanding of beauty and the role it plays i...

send us a text via Fan Mail! This is an interview I did on Martha Martha, my Catholic mom podcast, but the more I think about it, the more I wanted to share it here.  My not-Catholic listeners seem to not mind the Catholic tangents I go on regularly, so here it is, guns ablazing.  Father Harrison is just too good not to share with this larger audience. A fabulous interview with my dear friend Fath...

send us a text via Fan Mail! What do we DO with intense children?  Can they just cry, what does it look like to walk a child through difficult emotions?  We spend so much time in our day managing behaviour, managing emotions and managing our own responses.  Can we make is smoother along the way?   4:37 - Should I let my child cry it out?  6:02 - Letting them have distress while nurturing them  11:...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Elizabeth asks a loaded question.  What are your family traditions? Well, there are many that were added one at a time over the years, until describing them becomes a convoluted task.  But so much fun!  We focus on November, Advent and Christmas.  But here's a special treat.  My daughter created a Jesse Tree reading document for her Dad, and she has allowed me to...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Oh.  Yes.  Motherhood is a guilt trip, no?   This is a little supplementary episode that Elizabeth and I recorded in the context of a larger episode, but I think we may all need this little shot in the arm.   0:33 - How do we avoid comparing ourselves to others in our homeschooling?  3:17 - Staying focused on our gifts and blessings  4:49 - What to do when angst creeps...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Can you be both a good homeschooler and a good housekeeper?  Does something have to give?  Christina and I discuss the expectations of homemakers and homeschoolers, those we put on ourselves and that others may have of us.  We talk about the comparison game, and growth, case in point: I bare my soul about what I thought about motherhood thirty years ago.  Don't ju...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Wow. This was a remarkable episode. John Paul Meenan , professor at Seat of Wisdom Catholic College in Ontario, joins me (and enlightens me…) on the process of discernment - good decision making.  We make decision, big and small, every day.  One of the things I've found about the Christian life, is: how do we know if we're making the right decision?  How do w...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Christina and I discuss a big question in two parts.  What can we do when the day has gone sideways and what can we do when we come unglued with our kids...or they come unglued with us?   We discuss the value of a willingness to repair.   2:55 - First steps to rescuing the day  11:18 - Our kids' desire to be connected to us  14:34 - Appropriate behaviour is a skil...

send us a text via Fan Mail! We can't take the language out of language arts.  Phonics, spelling, grammar, punctuation and the rest of language arts, are so beautifully learned while we learn the purpose and beauty of language.  Phonics is how letters and sounds work together in patterns.  Placing this step into reading fluency in the larger picture of the patterns of language makes so much s...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Oh, man. Kids are so impulsive.  What do we do with that?  Christina and I continue with questions that have risen from our episode about discipline.  What to do when kids are impulsive.  Some books to read! 1:25 - Dealing with impulsive behaviour  13:16 - The unique needs of boys and girls  19:16 - Exploring the idea of delaying in-class education  23:37 - Earlier is...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Welcome back, Elizabeth!  In this episode, we (naturally) talk about homeschooling with a new baby.  Considering the season of babyhood, we address the joyful and time consuming nature of welcoming a little one, and the importance of our relationships in the home.  We talk about the other high-intensity, challenging, stressful or just plain busy times, too.  5:30 - How...

send us a text via Fan Mail! A short episode from a talk I gave a couple of years ago that I wanted to share with you all.  I talk about how laundry was both ruining my life and changed my life.  Not. Even. Kidding. I've begun season three, where I have two cohosts now, Elizabeth is back (yay!!) and Christina has agreed to cohosting as well (another yay!!) ...sharing the love!  0:14 -The laun...

send us a text via Fan Mail! This is my “audio book” version of my little booklet “Chocolate Chip Math.” Teaching math to small children is simple and lovely and here I share this book and a little commentary on the side.  Enjoy! Contact On Instagram at @make.joy.normal   By email at makejoynormal@gmail.com Search podcast episodes by topic   www.bonnielandry.ca Shop my recommended resources Thanks...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Another supplementary episode! Christina brings more obedience questions from our listeners to the table, and it gets sketchy.  We talk about bedtime: routines, dealing with fear, kids in bed, and, yup, martial intimacy.  It’s not homeschooling, but, hey…you can’t really separate sexuality from the rest of family life. We talk about the historical aspect of bedtime and...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Today I interview Alice, a mom of three, home base in England, who has travelled the world with her husband and family. Along the way she’s learned the value of cozy homeschooling and their daily walk (hike) as the heart of education. They’ve backpacked, RV’d, home-stayed and taken up residence around this globe. Her story is heartwarming and remarkable. She shares  th...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Christina and I received so many messages and emails about real life discipline situations from our episode last week that we decided we should do  a couple of supplementary episodes just to address those discipline questions.  So here’s the first of those episodes!   1:25 - Counterwill: how do we deal with the resistance?  15:45 - How do I deal with bad behaviour with...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Challenges, community, criticism, conflicting sentiments.  4:13 - Losing yourself in motherhood  18:55 - Being clear with ourselves about what we want in life 22:25 - I'm a full-time mom but I prefer to be called a matriarch 24:16 - The transformation that motherhood has on us 30:48 - Does it really get easier the more kids you have?  43:56 - Taking some time away...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Obedience.  Most of our day as parents is trying to get our kids to do stuff.  Vast amounts of parental energy is used to gain our children’s compliance.  What’s reasonable to ask of our kids? What should we expect? 5:15 - Obedience before the age of reason  12:22 - Modeling virtue in our submission to the will of God  16:36 - The need for guidance and formation  18:02...

send us a text via Fan Mail! This week we chat about the socialization question of homeschooling, often the forefront issue on parents minds as they consider homeschooling.  Our own experience shapes our ideas about what socializing is.  We examine that idea, as well as some thoughts on how to create community and social opportunities.   2:32 - How have you brought friends to your kids' lives...

send us a text via Fan Mail! Hey!  I read my little book "Dictation" with some commentary along the way.  Here is the link to resources I recommend, just scroll down to the language/dictation segment.   https://www.bonnielandry.ca/blog-1/resources-for-homeschool-workshop?rq=resources Contact On Instagram at @make.joy.normal   By email at makejoynormal@gmail.com Search podcast episodes by...

send us a text via Fan Mail! For resources, see part one Contact On Instagram at @make.joy.normal   By email at makejoynormal@gmail.com Search podcast episodes by topic   www.bonnielandry.ca Shop my recommended resources Thanks for listening to Make Joy Normal Podcast! 

send us a text via Fan Mail! Christina and I cover a lot of territory this week.  We start off with what do you do when you find yourself comparing yourself to others women and other families.  Then we focus on how we keep school short and efficient.  We end up in mental health weaving through all that - helping ourselves be resilient and calming anxiety.   1:34 -The temptation to compare yourself...