Today, I enjoyed a calming activity with the kids—sketching and coloring flowers. 🌸 The flower activity was part of a science lesson for the kids to draw, color, and label a flower with pollen.
I turned on a jazz playlist to help us focus on our artwork, and as we were creating our sketches, it started to rain.
Perfect timing! 🌧☺️
We discussed shapes we could see in the image of the flower.
One shape that stood out to Zaya (5) and Zephaniah (8) was the middle of the flower reminded them of a hexagon.
So, together we sketched a hexagon shape onto our sketch pads.
Surprisingly, drawing a hexagon is not as easy as I thought it would be! It took me several tries to finally get the six sides connected to form the shape. 😆
Next, we discussed the vibrant yellow color of the pollen and its purpose. We also made connections to the flowers and vegetables growing in our garden.
There was something unexpectedly joyful sitting at the kitchen table with Zaya and Zephaniah, drawing and coloring together.
Keep in mind I am not an artist 😅.
However, the children told me they thought my purple flower looked amazing, and really, that’s all the recognition I needed. 🥰
We went to a different parish for the 11:30 a.m. Mass today. (That’s where I took these rainy Sunday pictures, by the way—in the peaceful parish garden. 😌🌧🌻)
It’s the third church we visited within these last seven days.
We like to do what Travis and I call “church hop.” That means visit different parishes throughout the week.
(Okay, this next part might sound a bit confusing. 😄)
During the work week (Mon. – Fri.), our family attends the 7 p.m. daily Mass two to three times a week, and each evening Mass we attend is at a different parish.
Then, on the weekend, we attend either the Saturday Vigil Mass or a Sunday morning/afternoon Mass at a nearby local parish.
For the daily evening Mass, it is generally offered only once a week at select parishes. Not every Catholic Church offers an evening Mass.
The evening Mass may be at 6 p.m. or 7 p.m., just depends on that particular parish’s Mass schedule.
Whereas, early morning daily Masses are offered pretty much at all parishes (there are a few exceptions, of course) four to five days out of the work week.
Morning daily Mass times range from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.. Also, each daily Mass, mornkng or evwning, is about 30 minutes long.
We’re just not able to go to a daily Mass in the morning right now. Travis has to be at work by 6 a.m., and we only have one working vehicle at the moment.
But boy, are we thankful we found a few evening Mass options at several local parishes during the work week! 😊🙏🏽
After today’s morning Mass, we went to say hello to the priest, and he said, “Don’t I know you?!” 🤔😆
We explained he probably remembered us from a different church we visited a couple of weeks ago when he was the celebrant at that Mass.
“Oh, yes!” he exclaimed remembering where he had last seen us. 😅
We do have a “home church” that we make the best effort to attend on the weekend a few times in the month.
However, Travis works a lot (six days a week), and life gets pretty busy with the kids, so having the flexibility to also attend a Saturday Vigil (at 4 p.m., 4:30 p.m. or 5 p.m.) or a Sunday Mass time (at 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12 p.m., or even 5:30 p.m.!) that fits our schedule works best for us.
As you can see, living in a metropolitan means we have A LOT of options! 😂 And that’s another great blessing for us. 🙏🏽
This is just the stage of life we’re in right now, ya know. 😄 #busybigfamilylife
Honestly, I wish we would have thought to do this (church hop) when the kids were babies and toddlers instead of always being late to church. Haha 😂🫣
We do something a little different from the traditional chores allowance. Instead, we give the kids a reading allowance. 📚🤑
Think 90s Book It!, but instead of a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut 🍕📚 (which I miss BTW! 🥹 #90sKid), they earn a little money when they fill up their reading logs.
And my kids LOVE doing this! 😁
I always take them to the stores where it’s easy to find fun things for under $10.
Places like Walmart, Five Below, Target, and Dollar Tree where a kid gets excited over novelty products, inexpensive art supplies, plushies, puzzles, slime, posters and unique gadgets. 🤩
You know the kind of stuff when you’re out grocery shopping and your kid picks up some random fuzzy pen that costs six bucks and asks if you can get it.
But you’re like, “Absolutely not! That fuzzy pen is $6! 😲 We’re here to just get some milk and bread, dude.” 😂😏
I found this fun sign when we went to Five Below. Lol 😹
But with their own money they can get any fuzzy pen or quirky doodad they want! 😆😉
Yeah, those are the kind of stores I take the kids to on their allowance payday. 🤩😂
They learn price comparison, estimating, paying tax, counting money to pay for purchases at stores, how to save their money…and bonus…social skills—how to interact with the cashiers and staff!
Today at Mass, a mom was trying to console her crying toddler. They were in what I call the Quiet Room—a small room separate from the main part of the sanctuary for anyone who needs a quieter space.
Zaya (5) and I just so happened to be in the Quiet Room at the time because it connects to the restrooms.
As the little boy (bless his heart) continued to cry loudly, his mom remained very calm, and she did something that surprised me.
She sat down with her son and in a gentle, loving voice said to him, “Take a deep breath.”
At first, the toddler didn’t comply. He just kept wailing. So, his mom calmly repeated, “Take a deep breath.” This time the little one listened and through his faint sobs I could hear him take a deep breath.
“Breathe in and breathe out,” his mother said. And together, mother and child took deep breaths—in and out. Breathing slowly and mindfully.
I was also silently saying a prayer for the mom and her son. I know exactly what it’s like to have an inconsolable toddler get upset in public (and at home).
After a few deep breaths, the little boy stopped crying, and I smiled to myself and thought, “Well done, Mama!”
It also made me happy to see another mom use deep breaths as a way to calm her child. I do this with my children, too, and the majority of the time it helps the kids calm down.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if more adults would stop and take deep breaths when they are feeling upset?
💜 XO
“Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.” ‐— Thích Nhất Hạnh
All the homeschool YouTube moms were talking about this one really cool homeschool planner that “you HAVE to get!” because they said it was the best planner EVER.
So naturally, after watching a bunch of videos about it, I felt like I had to have it.
It’s called the “Homeschool Lesson Planning Minimalist Notebook” made by Schoolnest.
But it’s SO pretty, and I love the feel of the pages and the layout style! 🥹
I added the homeschool planner to my Amazon wishlist and decided to wait a few months to think about if I really needed this planner.
After a few months, I decided I wanted to give the planner a try, and so last fall, I took the plunge and bought it.
I was so excited when it arrived at my house, and I couldn’t wait to start using it. I faithfully used the homeschool minimalist planner for about two months.
But now? Dude, I have the hardest time staying consistent with it. 🤷🏽♀️
It doesn’t mean we’re not doing any lessons. It just means I find it a pain to always remember to write in it! Lol 😆 Which is wild to me because I’m a planner—I thrive on organization!
So now, I’m trying to figure out how to best use this planner because I really do love it, and I don’t want it to be a waste of money.
I’m going to update my homeschool lesson planning minimalist notebook tonight. Here’s hoping I can stay consistent with it, though! 😂
Here are a few moments from today.
Here we go again! We had another little snowstorm this morning, and guess who got caught in it whilst driving? Me! 😭❄️
Around 8 a.m. during the snowstorm after dropping E, my oldest, off at work.
A crow perched at the top of a tree in the shopping center parking lot.
Little Junco eating bird seeds at patio bird feeder. This little guy shows up everyday with about five other Juncos.
Blue jay hopping on my patio to get a peanut.
Zechariah (10) reading his library book.
Zhen (13) worked on her art activity while listening to music with her Care Bears headphones.
“A voice behind you will say, ‘This is the way; walk in it,’ when you would turn to the right or to the left.” Isaiah 30:21
Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?
In the children’s book The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg, at the end of the story, the last gift the little boy receives under the Christmas tree is the silver bell he lost on the train ride home.
Mr. C (who is Santa Claus) includes a handwritten note to the boy: “Found this on the seat of my sleigh. Fix that hole in your pocket.”
One of my favorite children’s books—The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg.
Excitedly the little boy shakes the bell and he says, “it made the most beautiful sound my sister and I had ever heard.”
Just like the silver bell ringing, this is how I think of play—the most beautiful sound that brings me happiness and reminds me to find moments of beauty in life.
“It made the most beautiful sound my sister and I had ever heard.” — The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
Sounds of the Bell Ringing in My Life
It’s the sound of my spade digging in my garden to plant flower seeds. It’s the sound of my tools putting together jewelry that I create. It’s the sound of turning the page of a library book I’m reading.
It’s the sound of my children’s laughter when we play a board game together or I push them on the swing at the playground.
It’s the sound of children’s imagination when they create a fantastical world of make-believe with their dolls and action figures.
Zephaniah pretending to be a superhero on the seesaw.
Zaya and Zephaniah playing at a local park in the summertime.
Hobbies are My Playtime
My hobbies are my way of “playing.” It may not be playful like a child would play, but I find great enjoyment in my hobbies.
Adults are always expected to be serious doing the tedious “adulting” tasks of life. Our hobbies, however, are a way of “playing” because it brings us joy and a momentary escape from the world.
A few of my “playtime” hobbies include gardening, street photography, visiting art galleries, reading books, spending time at public libraries, and making jewelry.
Gardening is one of my favorite hobbies. 🌸😊
Playing with My Children is Creating Beautiful Memories
I was looking through the photographs I took in 2025, and I was struck by how many of the photos showed how much time I had spent with my children doing a multitude of wonderous activities such as going to the lake, gardening at the community garden, making crafts, hanging out at the library, going on nature hikes, and cooking together.
This made me smile and deeply touched my heart to know I spent all of 2025 with the ones whom I love so dearly.
Travis and the kids playing with toy racecars at a local car show.
The kids enjoying a nature hike at the lake on the first day of fall.
Immersed in a World of Play
When Travis and I play board games with our children, create crafts with them, take the kids to places to play (parks, arcades, etc.), we are making time for play.
I am always encouraging my children to immerse themselves in a world of play. In fact, I center our homeschooling around play because I strongly believe children learn best through play.
Zephaniah (about 5 years ago) playing with cars and trains on a sunny afternoon.
Zaya (age 4 in this photo) playing with baby dolls at the public library.
Remember to Hear the Bell Ringing
At the end of The Polar Express, when the little boy shakes the silver bell, his parents don’t hear it ringing.
“But my mother said, ‘Oh, that’s too bad.’
‘Yes,’ said my father, ‘it’s broken.’
When I’d shaken the bell, my parents had not heard a sound.
As he grows older, he discovers his sister Sarah and his friends could no longer hear the bell ring.
At one time most of my friends could hear the bell, but as years passed, it fell silent for all of them. Even Sarah found one Christmas that she could no longer hear its sweet sound. Though I’ve grown old, the bell still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe.”
This closing scene of The Polar Express has always stayed with me. It’s a strong reminder to never let your light fade, never give up on what brings you joy, and always keep the faith.
I almost titled this blog post “The Day the Bell Stopped Ringing,” but after writing out my thoughts, I realized I needed to change the title.
Because for me, the bell never stopped ringing.
Zhen enjoying swinging on a sunny summer’s day.
At a certain point in my motherhood journey, I started to hear the bell ring. I realized there will always be things to do, errands to run, and a house to clean.
I will always have to do the mundane “adulting” things that we grownups are expected to do.
But if I’m not taking time to play—taking time for my hobbies and taking time to play with my children—then I am truly missing out on experiencing joy in my life.
And I don’t want to ever stop hearing the bell ring.
Zaya (5) is starting to feel better, but now Zechariah (10) is coming down with a cold. 😫 He has been coughing all day. 🤧
I was expecting one of the other kids to get sick right after Zaya, so this is not a surprise to me at all. This is our normal for big family life! 😆
Nothing too exciting happened today. The kids had a pajama day and played some games.
I listened to two episodes of my favorite podcast while I cleaned and sanitized the upstairs of our house. I like to listen to an audiobook or podcast while I clean because it helps pass the time.
About 2.5 hours later, I took a lunch and tea break, got cozy in my room, and watched The West Wing.
Here are a few moments from today’s chill day.
My day started bright and early at 7:30 a.m. I turned on a jazz playlist on Spotify and cooked pancakes. Then, I enjoyed a cozy breakfast solo before the kids woke up. I needed this quiet time. 😊🥞☕️
Fridays are for Snack Cereal Day! It’s a fun family tradition we started a few years ago. On Fridays, the kids have a sweet cereal for breakfast. They always look forward to it!
Jumbo marshmallows! 🤩 Today’s snack cereal was Lucky Charms and Golden Grahams. We like to switch up the cereals so they don’t get bored with it.
A cozy lunch. New Year’s leftovers: egg rolls, wontons, and rice.
A little sweet treat afyer lunch: ginger peach tea, shortbread cookies, and chocolate almond. 😍
After caring for my sick five year old, not getting much sleep this week, and taking Zhen and Zechariah to the dentist the other day, it felt good to get caught up on some housework and spend the rest of my day relaxing.
This weekend’s focus is to rest some more!
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
