DIY: Book Page Wreath

I have had several book page wreath ideas saved on Pinterest for awhile. However, I have been afraid to make one for fear I would mess it up and it would look terrible. A couple of months ago, I decided to give one a try. I am happy with the finished project, and I love the way it looks on the wall.

I was first inspired by the book page wreath done by The Nester. I loved what a statement the wreath made hanging on the wall. I was even more inspired by the fact it was made with book pages!

Here are the supplies I used:

Old Book - I used a copy of Wuthering Heights I found at Goodwill
Foam Wreath Base
Straight Pins
Silver acrylic paint (for distressing the edges of the book pages)

First, I dry brushed the acrylic paint on to the edges of the book and let it dry.

Next, I tore the pages out one at a time and twisted/scrunched them and attached each page to the wreath core with a straight pin. I didn't really have a "method" for this part, just sort of folded the page and then attached them. Some of them I used more than one pin. 

I started at the outer edge, and worked my way in toward the center. It got a little tricky as the wreath got more full. This is progress about halfway done. 

Here's the final product, hung on the living room wall. I love how full to turned out. It really did add some dimension to a once empty and flat space. 

In all, the project took around 2 hours. If I make another, I think I might roll the pages, but I also really like this look as well. 

Homeschooling Series: Introduction

This post will be the first in a series on homeschooling. I am by no means an expert, and I feel like I am learning as I go - but I do get asked different questions about it often. I am just sharing here what I have learned since we began our homeschool journey.

First, a little about how we became a homeschool family. I'm not one who has always known I would homeschool my children. I When my husband and I had our first daughter in 2004, we never really talked about school choices for our family, we just figured we would send her to the local public school, or if that wasn't an option, we'd send her to the local Christian school. We weren't opposed to homeschooling, it just wasn't something we considered. The shift for me, started after she turned 5, and we had to start thinking about kindergarten registration. Around that same time, homeschooling kept popping up on my radar.. I began to see internet articles on it, books on it, I was crossing paths with people who were currently homeschooling, had homeschooled their children, or were, like me, thinking about it... the conversation was started in our home and seeds were planted in my heart. We began to think and pray about it, and felt God was leading us to homeschool.

That was 5 years ago.

We now have a 4th grader, 1st grader, and a three year old tag-a-long who sometimes learns with us at the table, but mostly just has fun being, well, three. Do we have hard days? You better believe it! (any public, private, or home educator will tell you that) Do we have awesome days? You better believe it! (any of the above educators will tell you that, too!) I often find I am learning as much as the kids in some areas, and they are certainly teaching me as much as I am teaching them.

For our curriculum, we have had great success using My Father's World. It is a solid, Bible based, curriculum, and we love it. We have used their Kindergarten (twice), 1st Grade (twice), Adventures, and now this year, Exploring Countries and Cultures.

Are there any questions you'd like answered or discussed in this series? If so, leave a comment! I hope to make this a weekly, or twice monthly post, so check back often!

an introduction of sorts...

I have another blog that I post on several times a year, mostly family updates and such, but I wanted this one to be different. I am a minister's wife, a mom of three, and we're a homeschool family. But more than that, there is a desire I have to write. I want this to be an outlet where I can journal the things God is teaching me about parenthood, homeschooling, ministry, marriage, friendship, faith... all of the things that make me who I am. I do a lot of blog reading, sharing those posts that impact me, and thinking on them and mentally vowing to put action to those thoughts, but I don't write them down. I want more peace, and more grace to about in our home, hence the name of this blog. I want to create a place where I write about these things, and share them with you.

I hope that this will be that place.