Dear Mushka,

I try to carve out reading time from 8:30-9:30 every night and managed to read 87 books in 2024. Without over-thinking it, I skimmed through my list and picked out the books I remember loving as I read them or still find myself thinking about months later. 

A note about fiction books, specifically: Real with caution and wisdom. I don't necessarily endorse all of these; some probably have scenes I skipped over. I'm never above closing a highly-recommended book because it doesn't bring out the best of my heart and mind. I encourage you to do the same!

Fiction: 

The Wishing Game- Kind of like a grown up Willy Wonka. This book was a delight!

The Collected Regrets of Clover- A lovely and sweet novel about a death doula.

The Last Love Note- I'm careful about love stories, but this one was nice without being raunchy or alluring (to me, at least).

Once There Were Wolves- Please note the trigger warnings here. This was more eerie than I normal read, but I really enjoyed the story-- and the fascinating facts about wolves!

The Alice Network- About WW1 women spies, which I knew very little about. I enjoy Kate Quinn's writing. 

The Women- This spurred on lots of conversations with friends and family about the Vietnam War. I learned so much!

Real Americans- "Real Americans is a social novel par excellence that asks: Are we destined, or made? And if we are made, who gets to do the making? Can our genetic past be overcome?" Loved it. 

The God of the Woods- Also a little more eerie than I normally read, but I was captivated. 

Spiritual:

Practicing the Way- I didn't learn a ton of knew information from this book, but he summarized parts of Christianity in ways I hadn't been able to do on my own. It's particularly helped me communicate the Christian faith with my children more clearly. (His podcasts are also great.)

Rediscovering Israel- Such a helpful guide for understanding ancient Israel and reading scripture through its original lens.

Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools- The best prayer book I've read in a while. Real, raw, and encouraging. (Ditto on the podcasts.)

Family Read-Alouds: 

Where the Red Fern Grows- A classic that had all our boys on the seat of their pants and then making traps all over our yard. 

The Wild Robot- My kids all loved this-- and I think it was recently made into a movie. We read the first and second in the series. 

The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street- My personal favorite. It was a great Christmas time read, but would be delightful year round. I loved how the children had to work together to problem solve. 

Holes- I remember loving this as a child, and it was just as good as an adult. We watched the movie as a family afterwards. 

Misc:

Baking School- Anyone else read cookbooks like books? This was full of helpful instructions and excellent recipes. 

The Third Gilmore Girl- What a joy to read more about Kelly Bishop's life! Makes me want to re-watch Gilmore Girls and some of her other works. 

During the years we had little ones at home, Robert and I knew the idea of regular dates wasn't something we wanted to prioritize in our marriage. It just wasn't worth the stress for us. But all of a sudden, our youngest is two (potty trained, even!) and it feels like we're entering into a new season. 

This year, we're going to attempt two dates a month. It's a lofty goal, and one we're totally okay not meeting, but if we don't try it certainly won't happen! For the record, at home dates totally count, too. 

For fun, we're going to try Alphabet Dates, which is just a way to give a little structure to our time together. For example, if the letter is A we may go to an art museum, antique shop, do some kind of aerobics together, or enjoy some Asian food. We're choosing letters at random rather than working through them in alphabetical order. 

I'll try to document what we do here! 

1/4 F: First of the year planning session, First Watch breakfast, coffee at The Fainting Goal, and Finding Free (discarded) Christmas trees for a Fire later in the day. 

1/18 G: Got Grub at Garcias and thrifted at Goodwill (thanks for watching the kids, Gpa & GiGi!)  

I purchased a fire-proof box for myself and each of my five children. 

I added dividers to each. My kids have 18 dividers: ages 0-5 and then I switched to grades (K-12). I added about 15 to mine and labeled by year. This part takes a moment, especially if you have a lot of kids, so put on a good podcast or pray over your people as you work. 

I have a basket I collect all kinds of papers in- photos, favorite works of art, letters I write to each child on their birthdays, special cards we received in the mail, etc. When in doubt, I toss an item in the basket. This isn't the time to sort. 

For my own box, I especially love to include my Bible study and prayer pages I've filled out over the years. What a faith-building process to look back over these journal pages! I'll do the same for my kids as they age. 

About once a quarter, I pull out all the boxes (stored in their closets) and sort through the catch-all basket. Some items get tossed once I see that they aren't worth saving. Others go into the proper box, behind the correct divider. 

Once the dividers are made, this process is really quick and manageable. It keeps us organized, and also responsible to only keep what is actually important. 

Tip: I take a picture of beloved items (toys, outfits, etc) and then donate the actual item when it's no longer needed. It saves on space! The exception to this is a copy of each child's favorite childhood book. 

My kids love to go through their past folders, which they can do because it's organized and easy to access. 

That's it! Enjoy, friends. 

This January, I began studying the Sermon on the Mount with The Bible Project. I thought I might learn a thing or two, but the truth is that I have been incredibly humbled and incredibly drawn into the radical beauty of Jesus Christ more deeply than I ever imagined. The way he taught "unimportant" people and claimed they would be part of how he brought Heaven to Earth has captivated & challenged me. I knew I wanted to make it the focus of our fall collection!

I'm overjoyed to share it with you now in hopes that these pieces help us all keep the teachings of Jesus close this year and many to come. May we be women who continue to bring Heaven to Earth, each and every day. Amen! Xx, Katie

FIND IT HERE STARTING 9/10/24

1. The Salt and Light Hat- Made to remind us all of the incredible responsibility and power we are given on this earth-- to be salt and light, in Jesus' name!

👦🏾 Teach your children early on that family members don't have to look the same.

👶🏼 I can't tell you how many times I've picked up my darker-skinned child from a (Christian) school and heard a classmate say "That's not your mom! She doesn't have brown skin like you!" or "That can't be your brother!"

🧒🏻 Of course, the child is just observing what they think to be true, but you can imagine how it lands on a little one who already feels different.

👩🏽 Instead, dear Mamas, teach them otherwise before they get to the classroom or playground. Tell them about how God puts families together in so many different ways. Check out books from the library that show multiracial families and discuss what adoption is.

Don't force the adoptive families around you to be the ones to teach it to your children. Let it be a common topic in your home! (And while you're at it, include grandparents who raise children, foster families, single parent homes, etc).

You've got this!

📖 Here's a list of books as a starting place! I encourage you to read them alone before reading them to your children so you're aware of potential questions and talking points.

Note: Some of these show two mom or two dad families. I think it's wise and kind to talk about this with your children too, so that the burden doesn't fall on the other child. 

I've been observing a 24 hour sabbath day (sundown Friday- sundown Saturday) for over a year now. It's absolutely my favorite day of the week, and one I'm always tweaking a little as I remember where Sabbath came from and what the goal of keeping it in my own heart and home is.

If you're wondering what to do/ not do on your own Sabbath day, I think the word "REORIENT" is helpful. How can we reorient (or reset) our lives around God and His Kingdom every 7 days?

Questions to ask:

✨Where does my life feel chaotic and dark rather than ordered and filled with light?

✨How am I living/ not living like an image bearer of God?

✨Am I faithfully ruling "the land" God has given me and multiplying goodness?

✨Where am I trusting my own efforts to provide rather than God's?

✨What am I tempted to lean on beyond Christ when I'm sad, stressed, or panicked?

How this plays out:

👉🏼 I don't do my Dear Mushka work, but instead trust God to work in the background while I am not.

👉🏼 I try not to use the internet/ social media because it tricks me into thinking I can have, learn, and know everything and everyone; I have to reorient my mind to truth.

👉🏼 I make a yummy dinner and we watch a movie, which is a sign in our family that we are safe and stable through Christ.

👉🏼 We light a Sabbath candle for 24 hours (not while we're sleeping) to keep our eyes focused on Christ as the Light of the World and the source of our Eternal Rest.

👉🏼 I spend time praying and reading Spiritual books, which keeps my mind focused on God's truth and goodness.

👉🏼 I try not to shop or plan our upcoming week, because shopping and planning can quickly turn into idols for me.

Our kids don't have to do school work or a daily home chore (the other days of the week they have a specific area of the house to help clean). This helps me take a pause from being the teacher/main home care taker and also offers rest to our children. 

Here are a few books I recommend if you're looking to begin this practice: 

The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry

Sacred Rhythms

Sabbath

Here are a few products I use on this day: 

My Daily Bread Tabs & Prayer Cards- because more than anything, I want this to be a day to communte with the Lord

As a mom of 5 little ones, I try to carve out time to get some of my favorite life-giving rhythms done, before they wake up in the morning.

5:30-5:40 Alarm goes off. I put on workout clothes, make my tea to enjoy later, grab my prayer cards, put on tennis shoes, & head out the door.

Here's my favorite pair of workout shorts, tank, and tennis shoes (they're pricey but worth it if you're going to be using them for miles on end!)

And here's my London Fog recipe. Yum!

5:40-6:00 Prayer walk. I walk about 1.5 miles as I listen for God's voice, praise him outloud, and surrender my day and wories to him.

Here are the cards I use to pray from. I pair them with this system so I can just grab and go!

6:00-6:30 Workout (with the Bodi app) in our bonus room.

6:35-7:00 Read my Bible plan, journal, and jot down any verses I want to carry with me throughout the day.

Here's the Bible I use. My journal is a DIY... I plan to share more about it soon!

7:00-7:15 Work (quickly prepare myself for the days' content and check email mostly). 

Take a look around the site if you haven't already!

7:15 Get our little two up. (Our bigger kids can come out of their rooms at 6:30 but they say "hi" and then head to the playroom until breakfast is ready.)

Here's the clock we use so they know when it's okay to come out!

And with that, the kids are all up and we begin breakfast + family devotions, which is a blog post for another day! Xx, Katie

I don't think wearing my best colors is all it took to feel confident in the beautiful body God gave me, but I do think it helps bring out my best features & remove unflattering tones on my skin. The way God designed colors to play off one another is wild and incredible!

Multiple years ago, I sent in a bunch of funny selfies with colors draped around my neck to Created Colorful and learned I'm a "soft summer". Their team was truly so encouraging, helpful, and knowledgeable— and made me feel uniquely beautiful!

It continues to be one of the most life-giving things I've ever done, this side of eternity. 100% worth the money. I've even gifted a consult to multiple people over the years because I loved my experience so much. My friends IRL would agree... I talk about it a lot haha.

SEE SOME OF MY BEST COLORS IN THIS VIDEO!

Here's why I love knowing my best colors:

✨ I can skip entire stores/ racks because I know none of the colors are a fit for me (or go directly to a winning rack). I save time!

✨I no longer buy sale items, only to realize I'll never love the product because of the color. I save money!

✨ I put on clothes and feel wonderful because I'm wearing my best colors. It's confidence-boosting. (Who knew— I'm a purple girl!)

✨It extends to makeup, so I know which cheek and lip colors to buy. Bubye, coral.

✨ It helps me dress my children. After getting my colors done, I did a deep dive so I could try to type my family. I'm not an expert, but I've got them narrowed down which is really helpful!

If you find yourself a soft summer, too:

Here are my Amazon Picks

And my Target/ Old Navy Picks

Use code DEARMUSHKA for $20 off an analysis. It will be 100% worth it, I promise!

The Bible was never meant to be a one-time read. It was meant to be read, considered, prayed back to God, talked about in community, read again, and meditated on.

SEE THE COORESPONDING VIDEO HERE!

It is in this process that our minds are renewed & reoriented back to their proper position- dwelling on God's godness and glory, overflowing with worship, and loving others through this.

I like to write down a passage of scripture on multiple note cards and place them all around my house. I say it to myself many times a day so that it starts to really take root. Over time, I find that I have memorized it without trying and am then able to let the words roll around in my mind all day long. I usually swap out my passage 3-4 times a year.

It can be helpful to emphasize different parts of the verse as you think on it.

For example:

TAKE my yoke upon you, and learn from me...

Take MY yoke upon you, and learn from me...

Take my YOKE upon you, and learn from me...

🕊️ Of course, Dear Mushka was created, in part, to have wearable reminders of these passages, too. So when it's applicabale, I love to wear the jewelry piece on a daily basis for a tactile reminder of God's truth. You can see how so many of my meditation passages turned into jewelry over the years!

Here are a few of the passages I have meditated on over the years:

1. Lamentations 3:22-26 (The Portion Necklace)

I'm beginning my fifth year of homeschooling and wanted to address some of your FAQs. I don't believe there is one right way to educate our children, and I never want anyone to feel shamed for choosing an option beyond homeschooling. 

That being said, you all often ask questions so I hope having answers in one place is helpful. Let's dive in!

SEE THE COORESPONDING VIDEO HERE!

How old are your kids?

They're 10 (4th grade), 7 (2nd grade), 5 (pre-k-- we decided to wait to send him), 2, 1

What form of homeschooling do you do? 

We do a hybrid. Our school-aged kids go to a tutorial two days a week and are home three. Their tutorial covers Science, History, Latin, Art, and some Language Arts. I'm responsible for Math, Language Arts, and the work our tutorial sends home.

There are pros and cons to this format. I don't have to come up with much of their curriculum. I'm not the only one watching their education so it feels like less pressure. They have other incredible adults loving on them. They spend time with friends they adore two days a week. Their school has activities like cross country, theater club, etc. 

But, this also means we're also responsible for schoolwork that I may not choose on my own. (I see you, Latin!) And sometimes the work load is more than I want- especially for the upper grades.

Why did you choose to homeschool?

There are a few reasons, but the biggest is time. Time to be together, to learn skills that we may not have space for otherwise, to practice forgiveness, to foster deeper sibling relationships and relationships with people beyond our peers, etc.

I'm not opposed to the public school system in theory (I actually went to schools in the school system my kids would be zoned for!), but I don't think the traditional school format is ideal for little ones-- especially boys. I long for our kids to enjoy learning and to know how to learn in a way that works for the personality and skill set God has given them. For our boys moving around, being outside, exploring, and being very tactile has been crucial. 

We've always said one year and one child at a time, but my hope is that we'll at least be able to homeschool until 3rd grade. It's an immense privilege, this I know. I'm very grateful for the opportunity! 

What curriculum do you use? 

We currently use The Good and The Beautiful for Math and Language Arts. We tried Right Start Math (loved it but too time consuming) and Math U See (not my kids' preference). We've also used All About Reading for LA, which I'm a big fan of. We may go back.

Our tutorial chooses the books we need to buy for the subjects they lead. It's often living history books, fun science reference books, and great novels. 

What are your must haves? Do you use a specific room? 

I originally set up a school space, but found us migrating to the kitchen more often than not. Now, I usually have one child at the kitchen island and one at the kitchen desk (which is also where I keep our supplies). I can talk with both of them while my other children run around the rest of the house. 

I've become more minimal as we've gone on. Here's a collection of some of our most-used items: Good pencils and a sharpener, an organizational system we can keep up with (one desk organizer for each kid), a family computer we can use together as needed, and a way to outline what each kid needs to do each day. 

A simple spiral notebook seems to work best for keeping us on track. I jot down their daily assignments, which takes me just a few minutes, and they mark them off as we go.

What do you do with your kids who aren't in school yet? 

This is the hardest part of homeschooling for me. This year, our 5 and 2 year old will go to pre-school two days a week when my oldest two are home so that I can focus more on them. Everyone is home one day a week, which is LOUD, but the kids love being together. I know we won't get as much formal school done on that day, so I plan ahead with a lighter load.

My 1 year old will be home full time, coloring on her brothers' work, making messes, and learning beside them. It's chaotic, but also very sweet. 

I remind myself that God knew what our family would look like. He allowed us to have these ages at this point in time. We're all learning such valuable lessons far beyond math!

What do you do when kids have a bad attitude about school? 

This has been a pain point for us so we're trying something new this year-- asking my husband to begin the day for us. Before school starts, he reminds the boys what school is for, how God is shaping them into men, how loved they are, what a privilege it is to stay home together, etc. They pray, listen to hype music, and prepare their minds. So far, it's been such an improvement!

What's one piece of advice for homeschooling moms? 

Value relationship over results. "Connection over completion" is often what chant to myself. Which, let me admit, is so very hard for me. I love working through a good checklist! But there are days your kids won't want to do school. They'll spin on the floor, meltdown, give you less than best effort, etc. What a beautiful thing to be able to teach them how to work through their emotions, find ways to regulate, change plans, and move forward together. 

I'll also add: Know your WHY. It will really help in hard moments. Sometimes, my hardest moments are knowing I'm missing out on being with friends who are together during our school day or giving up my "me" time. Take these concerns to the Lord, ask Him to remind you of why your family made this decision, and to comfort you. And know you can always adjust down the road if needed!

Do you have a school rhythm? 

YES. I am allll about rhythms. Our kids always have to brush their teeth, get dressed, clean up their room, and prep for school. If they're home, that means getting out their work, pencil, and water. If they're going to school, that means prepping their backpack. 

After Robert has done their hype routine, I ask them to look at their spiral notebook (see above). They're learning how to work independently, which does not come naturally to them at all. We're learning all kinds of skills over here :) But I'm grateful for a safe space to do it! 

How do you care for yourself without the "break" of sending kids to school? 

Whew! Some days, it really is a lot. I get overstimulated by loud noises and messes, which has been good for me to notice and name and work out with the Lord. Don't assume all homeschooling moms are perfectly patient and calm. I'm certainly not! But God is so good to provide peace when I ask for it, even if it's just internal. 

How I begin my day is very helpful here, too. Before kids wake up, I prayer walk, workout, and spend time rooting myself in God's Word. I drink deeply from the Well of Life and eat Daily Bread so that I'm nourished for my family. 

Additionally, I often tell my kids that I need a break to be the best teacher and mom I can be. I go sit in my room for five minutes, just like I encourage them to do when they're feeling overwhelmed. They turn on music, we all reset, and then come back together.

As they get older, I'm also letting them make and clean up their own lunch while I take some time to do something life-giving for myself (which may include necessary house work or reading with a little one). 

Verses you rely on? 

Ahh, good question! I have a product coming for this soon! In the meantime...

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. -Psalm 121:1-2

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. - Galatians 6:9

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. -Colossians 3:23-24

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. -1 Thess 5:11