I’m toying with the idea of moving to a year-round school schedule for our homeschool. The biggest reason is that summer is actually the worst time of year for our family to have extra free time because 1) it’s too hot in Texas to engage in many outdoor activities (beyond the pool) and 2) all of the kid-friendly spots are overcrowded with school kids (we prefer to enjoy these places when everyone else is in school). Another benefit to year-round schooling is that we would avoid the dreaded “summer slide”—the decline in academic skills (as well as school-related habits) that occurs when spending too much time out of school.

Thankfully, that summer slide hasn’t been too much of an issue for us this school year since even our “non-school” days lend themselves to plenty of opportunities for learning. That’s true for my kids, and it was true for me too in this summer that was rich with takeaways, lessons, and insights—a small sampling of which I’m sharing (in no particular order) today.

1. God can and does give clear signs when we ask for them.

Our family has been part of a church plant since last February. This has been a pretty significant event for our family, but it’s not something I’ve shared here before now because we were still unsure about our commitment. We LOVED The Grove (the amazing church we had been a part of for the past two years), but when we learned that The Grove was planting a new, totally independent church on our side of town, I immediately felt that God was calling our family to join the plant (which is called The Oaks). We participated in the planning phase throughout winter and spring and were excited abut the transition. However, as the official launch date neared, I began to experience some hesitation. I wondered if we were doing the right thing by leaving a church home we loved and uprooting our kids from a children’s ministry that was such a great fit. Luke and I began fervently praying that God would give us an indisputably clear answer to our question of whether we should stay at The Grove or move with The Oaks. I didn’t know what form that clear answer would take, but I was praying for a “flashing neon sign” that would be impossible to ignore.

Fast forward to June, when The Oaks began meeting at a separate location (our meetings had previously been held after services at The Grove): our attendance that first Sunday was marked by a heavy ambivalence that quickly turned to surprise and excitement when Pastor Josh gave a message on The Good Shepherd, my Word for 2025. It could have been a coincidence, but was it? When Josh used Hebrews 13:20-21 (my theme verse for the year) as our benediction, I felt certain that this was the “flashing neon sign” I’d been seeking from God. I was overcome by a sense of peace about moving forward with The Oaks, and I haven’t looked back. It’s possible I was reading into things, seeing the signs I wanted to see, but I don’t think so; I asked God for a clear sign, and I do believe that He gave us one. I rarely pray with such specificity, but in this instance I’m glad that I did and that God responded in kind.

2. Flooding is no joke; a river can be a devastatingly powerful force.

Here in Central Texas, we get severe weather warnings ALL THE TIME, to the point where I nearly always disregard them when they pop up on my phone. I did not fully appreciate the potential severity of a thunderstorm or other weather events until the storms and flooding that took place in our area on the weekend of July 4th. The catastrophic floods near our home were terrifying, and the pictures and stories that came out of that weekend opened my eyes to the tremendous power of a flooded river. We’ve had a few big storms in the subsequent months, and my once-cavalier attitude towards them has been replaced with anxiety, caution, and a recognition of the need to be alert and prepared.

3. Becoming members at the YMCA was an excellent move for our family and an unexpected highlight of the summer.

After ten years as members of the (much more affordable) city Rec Center, our family made the switch to The Y. The decision was largely a practical one: the Rec Center raised their prices earlier this year, so I was already thinking of making a move once my annual membership was up in July. Then Miss Betsy (our beloved babysitter at the Rec Center) announced her retirement, finalizing our decision. While there are things we miss about our old hangout, we love everything about the Y, from the excellent childwatch facilities (with age-appropriate spaces for Nico, the twins, AND Charleston) to the workout equipment, the surrounding walking trails, the fantastic pool facilities, and the discounted kids’ classes. We have made friends with other members, which has been great, and I love that we have multiple YMCA facilities in our area so that we can switch up our routine: we’ve been to the three closest centers, and we like each of them. We’re probably still in the honeymoon phase, but I kind of feel like we go on a mini vacation every time we visit.

4. I need to learn how to be an emotionally safe space for my kids.

God has been teaching me about the importance of not letting my emotions dictate my reactions and responses, especially in circumstances involving my kids. I wrote about that in this post, in which I shared a story of how my previous negative reactions to Charleston’s loose teeth prevented him from coming to me for help in a time of need. That situation broke my heart, but writing about it brought so much clarity for me . . . and for many of you as well, as I would learn when a number of you reached out to tell me how you, too, struggle to respond appropriately in ways that convey compassion and strength for your kids. While it saddens me to know that this is such a challenge for many of us, I was grateful for the solidarity. And I remain grateful for the Lord’s conviction and sanctification of me in this area as He continues to mold me into the mom He has called me to be.

5. The crawling stage is still my least favorite of the kid stages.

Nico started crawling this summer. It’s an adorable milestone and also REALLY hard to keep him safe in our home of busy children and endless tiny toys and Legos. The boy is mercilessly curious, and his adventuring has worn my nerves frighteningly thin. With all three of my other kids, the crawling phase was the hardest; I actually found it easier when they started to walk because the ability to run around distracted them from getting into ALL THE THINGS. Nico has thrown me one curveball after another in the past twelve months, but this “crawling isn’t my favorite” thing is actually par for the course in our home. I can only hope that he will follow his siblings’ lead in giving me an easier time once he begins to walk.

6. If the environment is right, I’m a big fan of water parks.

We attended Kalahari water park in July, but the visit had been in the works since January, when Charleston chose a summer stay at the resort/water park as his alternative to a birthday party. In those six intervening months, I was filled with dread each time I thought about the upcoming adventure. I was nervous about the water park for MANY reasons, the biggest being that I absolutely hate being cold and feared I would be wet and freezing and miserable for the entire two-day visit.

My anxiety proved entirely unwarranted when we got to Kalahari and discovered that both the water and the indoor air temperatures were pleasantly warm. With my body comfortable, I was able to face the challenge of keeping four kids safe at the water park—which was no problem at all, thanks to life jackets and an abundance of attentive life guards. I ended up having the time of my life riding the big slides with Charleston, gliding down the lazy river with the twins, and watching Nico splash around in the toddler area. Our family made some of my favorite memories EVER in those two days, and I’m grateful that I didn’t let my fear of what might be uncomfortable get in the way of what WAS an incredible family experience.

7. There is a difference between spiritual gifts and spiritual disciplines.

This is not something I had thought about until hearing J.P. Pokluda bring it up on an episode of That Sounds Fun, and it’s led me to do a little more research. Spiritual gifts are given to us by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of building up other believers and drawing others to Christ. Spiritual disciplines are practices that we, along with help from the Holy Spirit, work on developing in order to become more like Christ ourselves. This can be confusing, because there is a lot of overlap. Some people are given the spiritual gift of evangelism, but all of us can (and should) engage in the spiritual discipline of sharing our faith. This is also true for service, or giving, or studying Scripture, or prayer. Just because we have not been given a particular spiritual gift does not mean that we get a pass on engaging in the practice as a spiritual discipline. If we are walking with the Lord, we will engage in these practices, whether we are gifted in them or not.

8. I really love all aspects of my children’s reading journeys.

A couple of weeks ago, Charleston and I concluded our read-through of the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series. We started reading the books back when he was seven, and reading them aloud together was one of my favorite parenting experiences to date. Our read-through of this seventh book was a little different in that Charleston did most of the reading aloud; he’s a fantastic reader, and even added in character voices and emotional inflection that made for a truly amazing listening experience.

Less than twelve hours after finishing Harry Potter with Charleston, I sat with Sullivan as he read through the 100th lesson of his Teach Your Child to Read book, marking him as an official reader. These are just two of the MANY milestones in my kids’ reading journeys, and crossing those milestones back-to-back like that left me literally weeping with gratitude that I have gotten to witness every step along their paths to becoming readers, from chanting along to favorite picture books to sounding out words for the first time to exploring complex themes in novels. I’ve always loved BEING a reader; I thinking that RAISING a next generation of readers in our family might be even better!

9. “Don’t disparage something that’s important to you.”

Grecthen Rubin gave this revelatory advice in a June episode of the Happier podcast. She shared it in the context of Mother’s Day after seeing a post from someone online who was depressed that her adult children would not be celebrating the day with her. This poster went on to explain that she’d never made a big deal about the holiday, so Gretchen pointed out that her children probably didn’t realize that the day WAS important to her and therefore didn’t know to prioritize time with their mom on a day she herself had criticized as a Hallmark holiday. Gretchen and her sister cohost Liz pointed out that many people have a tendency to downplay the importance of events or gatherings or other things that actually are important to us. We do this as a self-protective measure, but it can backfire when those around us take us at our word that we just don’t care (when deep down we really do). I learned this for myself when others largely disregarded my 40th birthday because I’d downplayed it; I didn’t make a big deal of it for myself because I figured others would, and I was let down. Even though this is a lesson I had already learned in the past, I appreciated Gretchen and Liz’s thoughtful conversation that validated my experience and brought it back to the forefront of my memory for future reference. I needed to hear that it is okay for something to matter to me—and for me to be vocal about it mattering—even when it seems like it shouldn’t. Clarity around expectations brings kindness and prevents unnecessary disappointment!

10. A morning walk is the best start to a homeschool day.

When it comes to starting our school day (or any task), I like to dive right in to the tough parts. But at the homeschooling convention we attended in July, we heard Andrew Pudewa talk about the importance of getting activity and Vitamin D exposure FIRST thing in the morning.* I decided to take his advice by building a walk into the homeschool morning routine. We’re out the door by 7:00, early enough to catch the tail end of sunrise. And it has been amazing! We practice our weekly Bible verse and other memory work while we walk, but we also just talk and enjoy being together. The kids take turns choosing our route; some days we’re home within ten minutes, other days we’re out for half an hour. Mr. Pudewa was right, this really does set up the rest of our day for success!

*He also mentioned the importance of incorporating plenty of protein into breakfast, which is something else we have been doing!

11. Knowledge of God’s holiness is the beginning of spiritual growth.

Our pastor gave an incredible sermon on 2 Peter 1:3, which reads, “His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” Pastor Josh pointed out that growing in faith begins as an intellectual exercise as we increase our understanding of God’s primary attribute, His holiness. Recognizing God’s holiness cultivates in us a humility and righteous fear of the Lord that provides fertile ground for work God wants to do in us. In every other relationship, we need to know someone before we can grow in relationship with them, so it makes that this is also how we grow in relationship with the Lord.

12. Planning a first birthday party with my bigger kids is a whole lot of fun.

I had so much fun planning a Winnie-the-Pooh party for Nico’s first birthday! (I’ll share ALL the details in next week’s Lately post.) I learned a lot from the planning experience: 1) getting an early start with the planning is always a good idea; 2) order more decorations than you think you’ll need (Amazon makes it easy to return what you don’t use); 3) follow up paper invites with reminder texts (people—myself included—no longer check their mail like they once did); and 4) a balloon arch is actually pretty easy to make and is cooler and WAY cheaper than buying helium balloons at the store. Perhaps my biggest takeaway from the party was how fun it could be to incorporate the big kids in the planning process. They enjoyed helping me pick out and hang decorations and had some great ideas of their own. Charleston was especially into the theme, even reading the original Winnie-the-Pooh book in advance to help get ideas (much to my surprise, he loved it!). Inviting them into the planning process was a way of allowing them to celebrate their brother in a big way, and the party was more customized and memorable for all of us because of their help. I want to remember this next time I get tempted to plan something all on my own: it might be easier to go solo, but it won’t be as rewarding.

Summer of 2025 was truly a special one for our family, and all the lessons it brought were just the icing on top of this summery cake. And do you know what the decorative flourish on top of that icing would be? Hearing from you! I’d love to hear about a thing or two you learned this summer! Quotidian or momentous, what is a lesson you are taking away from this season?