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“My child, the troubles and temptations of your “My child, the troubles and temptations of your life are beginning, and may be many; but you can overcome and outlive them all if you learn to feel the strength and tenderness of your Heavenly Father as you do that of your earthly one. The more you love and trust Him, the nearer you will feel to Him, and the less you will depend on human power and wisdom. His love and care never tire or change, can never be taken from you, but may become the source of lifelong peace, happiness, and strength. Believe this heartily, and go to God with all your little cares, and hopes, and sins, and sorrows, as freely and confidingly as you come to your mother.” Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
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It’s been such a dear and pleasant journey taking my boys through Little Women. I do relish the sweet quiet moments we have, though they are few and far between. Our days are often boisterous and loud with the rationed tenderness of active boys and the overzealous physical affection that is more like wrestling than the tiny soft squeezed hugs of their toddler years.
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There is no lack of warmth and wonder in our home, and I am so very grateful that this life of constantly laying myself aside to better serve my family is the path of sanctification the Lord chose for me. I hope and pray that you, too, can ignore the many voices telling you that you “should be/do more”.
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We are the life-givers, the grace-makers, the home-builders, the confidants, the comforters, and the refuge defenders the world so desperately needs. We each of us hold in our capacity the Marmee our family and community will benefit from best.
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Hug your dear ones, know how much you are loved, and give the day’s graces and griefs to your loving Father this and every night.
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#everydaygraces #wearethehomemakers
Poetry is beautiful reminder of how kind and graci Poetry is beautiful reminder of how kind and gracious words can wrap around you like a warm hug. Advent is the same for our souls only on a much grander and glorious scale!
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We hope you’ll join us for #AGentleAdvent this year!
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Today we’re sharing a poem by the beloved Wendell Berry called To Think of the Life of a Man.
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In a time that breaks
in cutting pieces all around,
when men, voiceless
against thing-ridden men,
set themselves on fire, it seems
too difficult and rare
to think of the life of a man
grown whole in the world,
at peace and in place.
But having thought of it
I am beyond the time
I might have sold my hands
or sold my voice and mind
to the arguments of power
that go blind against
what they would destroy.
I leave all that behind.
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#agentleadvent #everydaygraces
Who is an inspiration to your homeschooling life? Who is an inspiration to your homeschooling life? Today’s #charlottemasonmondays topic is #cminspiration.
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I could list authors, influencers, or other friends on the Gram- but the real people who I find inspirational are you. The incredible moms here in our community.
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The moms who email me for prayer- because they are tired from striving and are trying so hard to learn to love what must be done. You inspire me.
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The moms who have no family support but find support and encouragement in our community here and then step in to encourage others. You inspire me.
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The moms who never give up and fight with such tenacity for their children’s needs. You inspire me.
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The moms who share the joys, the trials, the prayers, the failures, the hopes, the successes- and who diligently stay the path. You inspire me.
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The moms who read Shakespeare and Plutarch while washing and mending and gardening and canning and homesteading and working. You inspire me.
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And I’m so very grateful to be allowed a small part in your homeschool journey. May your heart be filled with joy and peace that surpasses all understanding!
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These CM ladies are also inspiring and sharing inspiration today:

@delightfullyfeasting
@min.j.hwang
@little_worldwanderers
@learning_to_feast
@kindlingwild
@agentlehomeschool
@juiceboxhomeschool
@jenniferpepito
@charlottemasonschoolhouse
@thisnewday_
@my_four_little_bears
@that.whichislovely
Advent begins this Sunday! We hope you’ll be joi Advent begins this Sunday! We hope you’ll be joining us for A Gentle Advent! Find those resources in our shop here: https://laramolettiere.com/product-category/charlotte-mason-advent-homeschool/
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Are you ready to bake some Advent cookies? We love these **Amish Maple Iced Cookies**:

**Cookie ingredients**:

4 large eggs

1 C of sugar

1 C of brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 C of butter

1 C of milk

5 C of flour

2 tsp of baking soda

4 tsp of baking powder

1 1/2 tsp of salt

3 tbsp of maple flavoring

**Icing ingredients**:

2 C of confectioner's sugar

1/4 C of maple syrup

1-2 tbsp of milk

2 tbsp of melted butter

**Directions**:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat, set aside.

In a mixer blend together eggs, sugar, brown sugar and butter till combined.

In a separate bowl mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Add the flour mixture, milk and maple flavoring into the mixer then mix till combined.

Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out batter onto the lined cookie sheet, leave at least 1 to 2 inches of space in between each scoop.

Dip a spoon in water and press the tops down gently till flattened.

Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Once baked, allow cookies too cool for 10 minutes or until cool to touch. Enjoy with a strong cup of English tea for a lovely tea time!
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#everydaygraces #agentleadvent
I have been pondering on home and what it entails I have been pondering on home and what it entails to be a maker of home. How can I create a space that fills everyone within these walls with a sense of belonging.
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I believe there is, in all of us, a deep and divided longing. We long to have a home, a place where we are rooted and where we belong and where we are loved without condition. We also have an ache to traverse the wide, wild world and experience all its wonders. We are a curious group, humans, that we can hold such opposite desires and each of them make sense to our hearts at once.
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The story I find that speaks hope and comfort into both those longings of our beautifully complex yet imperfect natures is The Wind in the Willows. From the prideful Toad, to the delightfully grumpy Badger, to the poetic and sensible Rat, to the wondering and tender Mole - there is a bit of each in all of us, I think. And with that introduction, the passage I'm sharing today is from dear Mole.
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“He saw clearly how plain and simple - how narrow, even - it all was; but clearly, too, how much it all meant to him, and the special value of some such anchorage in one's existence. He did not at all want to abandon the new life and its splendid spaces, to turn his back on sun and air and all they offered him and creep home and stay there; the upper world was all too strong, it called to him still, even down there, and he knew he must return to the larger stage. But it was good to think he had this to come back to, this place which was all his own, these things which were so glad to see him again and could always be counted upon for the same simple welcome.”
Joy is a choice, friends. It is choosing to respon Joy is a choice, friends. It is choosing to respond, not to react, in a manner that shows we have peace beyond all understanding. Joy is a state of your soul, even when happiness is fleeting and hard to find.⠀
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How do you model joyfulness for your children? Do they learn from you the responses you want to see in them when they are grown?⠀
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What we do matters much more than what we say, mama. Let's always encourage each other to be joyful in all things and show our children what a joyful generation can accomplish!⠀
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#everydaygraces
“Wear the old coat and buy the new book.” - Au “Wear the old coat and buy the new book.” - Austin Phelps
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Having a well curated home library is a necessity for our family. My love of books goes back as far as I can remember, and my children love to read, thankfully. It makes self-education much easier 😉
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Not pictured are the many other bookshelves, bookshelf closet doors, and bookend collections. We homeschool using books rather than curriculum so it makes sense that we keep a fair number of books here. We’re also a family of readers and makers/bakers/doers so there are many books around various how-to subjects.
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I source the vast majority of our books used from independent sources like @thequietcornerbookstore or Thriftbooks. We also always give the boys books for birthdays and Christmas so that they will have a good start on their own libraries when they move on from our home.
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I have these three shelves in our main living area. Lots of history, biographies, poetry, classics, and theology/apologetics. I think you can learn much about people by perusing their shelves.
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Does your family like to read? Share your favorite genres and titles below! Maybe we’ll find a new favorite, too ❤️
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#everydaygraces #charlottemasonirl
The incredible thing about a Charlotte Mason educa The incredible thing about a Charlotte Mason education is that it is inherently Christian. Her principles begin by acknowledging that every person, children included, are images bearers of God. There is value placed in Truth, goodness, and beauty- things that come from and belong to God. This makes the principles timeless and the education provided worthy of our children’s hearts and minds.
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A living education in modern times should still be pursued through the lens of Philippians 4:8. We should exercise much care in what we choose to expose our children and ourselves to. Beautiful and worthy materials and lessons need not be “old”, though many of the best are due to the decay rampant in modern Western culture, but they must be True. And Truth does not change, friend.
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I believe that Charlotte would have been amazed at technology, but I don’t think she’d approve of how it is often used in modern education. There is no replacement for discussion, and free hours spent entirely on a screen do not equal the wise letting alone of a young mind that needs time to ponder and play. I don’t think she’d view “progress” as such in many areas. We should all be more thoughtful in the things we adopt- in all aspects of our lives.
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Charlotte Mason was not infallible or inflexible- she changed her mind about some things over the years as evidenced in her own writing. You don’t have to copy her in order to have the benefits of a modern living education. There’s no reason to attempt to recreate the curriculum used in PNEU schools, but by following CMs 20 principles you can craft a modern education full of Truth, goodness and beauty that will delight and inspire the minds and hearts of your children. 
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Find more thoughts about #cm21stcentury from our friends:

@charlottemasonschoolhouse
@delightfullyfeasting
@that.whichislovely
@littlehouselearningco
@learning_to_feast
@agentlehomeschool
@lovingleadinglittles
@blessedwithmotherhood
@juiceboxhomeschool
@mightyoaksandarrows
@jenniferpepito
@kindlingwild
@little_worldwanderers
@homewithmytinies
Ah, how the world does get heavy sometimes. But fr Ah, how the world does get heavy sometimes. But friend, that weight isn’t our burden to bear.
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Drink tea, bake yummy treats, snuggle under fluffy blankets, go on romps through the crunchy leaves, and live a quiet, Hobbitesque life of gentle reveries. Life is precious and brief so love well and let the heavy things lay at the foot of the cross.
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You never know where the day and road may take you, but you can walk with surety that we are all safe within the nail scarred hands of our Savior.
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#everydaygraces
A peek inside A Gentle Thanksgiving activity book A peek inside A Gentle Thanksgiving activity book 📖 We cover Bible, memory work, hymns, artist and composer study, tea times, handicrafts, art lessons, copywork, and even have optional scheduled read alouds! The Scripture journal has extra poems and copies of the hymn sheet music so each student can sing along in addition to daily Scripture reading/writing, gratitude journaling, and a page explaining our GROW method of studying the Word. Get A Gentle Thanksgiving here: https://laramolettiere.com/product/a-gentle-thanksgiving/
Hello, friend! I’ve been quite in this space lat Hello, friend! I’ve been quite in this space lately. It’s not that I don’t enjoy the wonderful world of online community- but I’ve been busy building more community for our family locally. It’s something I, as a painfully introverted introvert, struggle to do and it’s emotionally and mentally taxing. 
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We’ve also been working on inside projects and just finished our fireplace update! I designed the mantle/decorative add ons, my hubby built it, and I painted it a beautiful colonial blue. We’re already reading by the fire on cold nights and I’m so glad we finally updated it! It’s only been on the list for about 12 years 🤣🤷🏻‍♀️.
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Autumn is a homemaking season for me- I love the canning and preserving, the choosing of books meant to be read by a crackling fire, the candles that flicker shadows reminiscent of the dancing leaves outside, and the anticipation of the coming holidays.
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Speaking of the holidays! We’re getting ready to begin A Gentle Thanksgiving next week and I’m so excited to share this new set of #morningtime plans with my children and all the families joining us. It’s truly a blessing to be able to share wonderful things with our amazing community!
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If you want to see the booklist (and grab a coupon code) for A Gentle Thanksgiving, visit our post here: https://laramolettiere.com/charlotte-mason-autumn-fall-living-book-list/
Find our favorite Autumn books for every age and a Find our favorite Autumn books for every age and a printable book list here: https://laramolettiere.com/charlotte-mason-autumn-fall-living-book-list/
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