Halloween is a topic that seems to become increasingly debatable amongst Christians each year. I’ve seen many posts over the past few years strongly on each side of the spectrum. Some stating we should entirely steer clear and others stating it poses no friction with their faith and not wanting their kids to miss out on a good time with friends. It’s been divisive enough I considered not posting the words I typed a year ago now, saved in a folder on my computer. But then I remember feeling very passionate about my decision and appreciating others willing to speak on why they have decided not to partake.

I think rather than jumping to the extreme on either side and pointing fingers, we should encourage each family to take a moment to lean into their personal convictions and pray on the matter. What is God telling you specifically when it comes to taking part?

Our family decided to take a step back from celebrating Halloween a few years ago. And while my faith conviction was the ultimate inspiration, there are some practical reasons we decided it is no longer a holiday for us. Halloween has become an American tradition steeped in excess drinking, sugar, and consumerism. All which we’ve chosen to lessen or eliminate in our lives over the past 5 years.

Now join me in breaking down why we have landed here.

Our Personal Convictions

Three years ago, in 2023, God started gently nudging me that Halloween wasn’t a holiday for our family any longer. It wasn’t a decision I made flippantly. It was a holiday I grew up taking part in every year. I’ve been a jellybean, Pippi Longstockings, an angel, dressed as a baby when my best friend and I were 12 (largely so we could carry baby bottles carried with juice) and when we were older, I even won a costume contest with friends as the evolution of Miley Cyrus. These memories will always be fond to me or make me laugh, but over the years there are several things that haven’t sat well with me. Here are some things we thought through as we made the decision whether or not to continue celebrating Halloween:

1) Consumerism Galore

Minimalism was my first turn off from the holiday many years ago. Buying an outfit that I’m going to wear once and then never see the light of day again? Hard pass. I’m not big on storing items that sit in a closet 99% of the year – potentially to never be used again. Even if I resold it, I’d have to wait a full year to consign it.

So, I suppose as a understated costume wearer and decorator for the holiday it may have been easier for me to step away. I fully see that this is a holiday to get consumers to spend on something with low re-use value.

2) The Excess of the Holiday

When I was a young adult, the holiday largely centered around excess drinking and dressing in questionable outfits. I was not walking in my faith at this time. As we’ve stepped away from alcohol, the holiday seemed to be less “fun”. We still attended parties friends hosted and enjoyed the time socializing, but it didn’t seem to hold the same level of excitement as it once had.

As a parent, the day’s link to sugar intake is undeniable. We’ve all seen those videos of parents tricking their children, claiming they ate all their candy. Some children have absolute meltdowns. Partially due to sugar addiction and partially due to the hard work they put into going door-to-door to collect it.

When my daughter was younger, I saw trick or treating as a way to enjoy some candy for myself while allowing my kids to have fun with friends. My children never had free access to the candy, and I largely found myself dipping into the candy storage more than I should. It was also a temptation for my youngest daughter who really didn’t need it. Some children are consuming up to 3 cups of sugar worth of candy in one night during trick-or-treating!

I recently read an article that the candy industry rakes in numbers of profit in the billions during Halloween, second only to Easter. Phew! Imagine if we put that towards healthy snacks or dye-free candy for kids -- Anything more beneficial than the hyperactivity inducing dyes and immune-lowering sugars. Could that cover public school lunches for kids that can’t afford meals or winter clothing for those in need? I digress, but seriously people!

No wonder companies start advertising the holiday early. It’s a big money maker for them. We get to vote with our dollars, so why not reframe what you’re supporting other than buying pounds and pounds of cheap candy to hand out to hundreds of little kids.

3) Does it Align With Our Faith?

This is a good question to ask yourself. Take some time alone, pray, ask God to speak to you. Open your Bible and see if what you heard, or the pressing on your heart aligns with God’s word. [my 6-year-old wants me to add the importance and effectiveness of opening your Bible for comfort and guidance: “There was a time I was feeling sad and opened the Bible, my mom read it, and it actually aligned with my prayer”.] I think that is the most straightforward way you can know whether celebrating is right for you and your family.

It’s not about what your friends are doing, or your favorite influencer, or even your extended family – No, it’s a matter of what’s right for your family. You have unique and individual children – some who may struggle with the enticement of candy, the intrigue and draw of mysticism and spookiness, or a fear of the same things. I do know we are called to be in this world, but not of this world – so please don’t let the world determine your methods of celebration. Just be sure you and your family’s hearts are in the right place and that it doesn’t cause confusion for your children.

Like I had mentioned, God had gently nudged me that maybe this wasn’t a holiday for us a couple of years ago. I saw more Christian influencers speaking to why they weren’t celebrating and calling out the non-Christian themes or roots of the holiday. It made sense to me. It has become (key word become) a holiday centered around spookiness: skeletons, murderous dolls and clowns, giant spiders, ghosts – you name it. It’s even gotten spookier than when I was a child in the ‘90s. At quick glance, those themes don’t align with my Christian faith.

My youngest daughter was my biggest concern at the time. During her first Trick or Treat, some houses’ décor scared her. She already had night terrors and she was very frightened by the lighting and eerie lawn décor. On the other hand, she seemed to have some kind of obsession with scary stuff – always pointing out scary things or bringing them up. Nothing a 3-year-old should be spending much brain space on. She also had a sugar obsession, so I was doubly concerned about her partaking after seeing how she was in her first-year celebrating.

What We Do Instead

Last year, we decided we’d participate in our church’s event that invites the community in on the same night as the local beggar’s night. I like this event, because although it does hand out candy, the biggest focus is on sharing the news of Jesus with kids and families in the community. There are messages of hope and stories that let families know Jesus’ love is available to them. We only end up eating a few pieces of candy and use the rest to decorate gingerbread houses around Christmas time. My oldest, now in 5^th grade, already feels she’s outgrown the dressing up aspect.

We also joined together with friends who don’t celebrate Halloween. One family decided to host a harvest party at their house. We spent time creating memories and enjoying new fall traditions. We did apple bobbing, had a hay rack ride, sack races, an egg race, painted pumpkins, and enjoyed a bounty of food and cider around the campfire. I’m grateful for a community that is willing to step away from cultural norms and still have a night of fun so our kids don’t feel like they’re missing out.

Digging Deeper

Because this holiday is such a hot debate online about whether it’s harmless or not, I decided to dig deeper into it’s roots. Essentially, Halloween started as a holiday thousands of years ago in the Celtic culture. It was a time to celebrate the end of harvest season and pay tribute to the dead. It was a time they believed that the veil between our realm and the spiritual realm was thinnest so they left food, made sacrifices, and dressed in costumes to confuse any spirits that may want to do them harm.

While the Celtic culture may not have been practicing what they deem “evil” (depending on the sacrifices), they were certainly performing idol worship. God’s FIRST command is “you shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). I can firmly state that would not be considered a Christian celebration.

The Roman Catholic Church and their All Saints Day celebrations may even predate the Samhain celebration of the Celts. This is a 3-day celebration starting October 31^st and ending November 2^nd. I don’t know enough about Catholicism to speak to these celebrations or what they mean for the Catholic or even Lutheran faith. If that’s your faith celebration and Jesus is what you’re pointing your children to, obviously you should continue to do that. I’m speaking from a solely Protestant Christian point of view and the point of view of someone who has seen what Halloween has become over the years. Even when I was growing up my mom was always afraid that needles or razor blades would be hidden in my candy. It is so confusing as a child to be told NEVER to take candy from strangers but then walk to strangers’ houses and accept it freely one day of the year.

It also never sit well with me once I’ve heard previous witches and satanists talk about the darkness of October 31^st specifically. That they would go put curses on candy in the stores, or rituals that they would take part in on that day. We’re obviously covered in the blood of Jesus and evil cannot overpower the authority of our Heavenly Father, but it’s still not situations I want to put my children in.

In Conclusion

I’ll reiterate that I’m not here to tell anyone whether they should or shouldn’t take part in Halloween. Some friends of ours have even felt led by God to redeem the holiday and pass out candy with Bible verses to kids in their neighborhood, which I think is lovely. It’s a matter of personal conviction. So, take some time to pray together and consider the convictions for your family.

I hope you’ve found this helpful or it’s at least given you something to chew on and consider. Are you a family that chooses to celebrate? What are some of your pros and cons?

Blessings,

Lexi

If you felt this article blessed you in any way or you simply appreciated someone willing to share an opposing view to most of society, you can buy me a matcha to support this tired, homeschooling mama.

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I’ve been a notorious night owl and often slept in my entire life. This was often paired with another character flaw of being very grouchy in the morning. Most people in my life know not to talk much to me in the morning because they might be met with a scowl or a short response. Even as a toddler I would be greeted by smiling faces and look back at my family chin tipped down, eyebrows furrowed and tell them “don’t loot at me”.

As a teen my night propensities meant past bedtime chats on AIM and late-night shows, I had a tv and computer in my room – it was the early 2000s after all.

After reading an article by Thaddeus Owen in my quarterly Weston A Price Foundation newsletter, the author stresses the importance of natural lighting and the negative effects artificial light has on our bodies. In our Biblical Wellness class, we discussed God’s rhythms for our bodies and those he’s created within the earth such as with the seasons, moon phases, and light. He created these for a purpose and He also created our bodies to be attuned to these patterns.

However, with the invention of the lightbulb and electronics, we’ve become accustomed to ignoring the natural cues of light and dark that change with the seasons. Often times, work schedules interfere with this as well.

Part of living a Biblically sound life, is taking care of our bodies and leaning into what God has designed for us. In this case, it’s the sunrise and sunset. I already have blue light blockers (non-prescription glasses that filter out disruptive blue wavelengths) and an alarm clock that can wake me up with the sun, so I figured I’d give it a try.

Making this seemingly small shift for our family in the morning and night has left us with more benefits than I could have even expected.

My Observable Changes

We fall asleep easier and earlier: It didn’t happen immediately, but by mid-week my daughters and I started falling asleep easier. My 6-year-old reports “Sometimes I fall asleep in one minute, sometimes I fall asleep in half a minute”. My 10-year-old states prior to these changes, it felt like it took forever for her to fall asleep (she would often stay up late reading) and now it takes her less than two minutes. Their words, not mine. But I’d count that as a success.

Bright eyes and bushy tails: Mornings have been going easier as well! This is probably the most impactful, especially when 2 of us are normally grouches. Most mornings now I’ve done our morning animal chores, made breakfast, thrown in some laundry, done grounding and stretching outside, gotten ready for the day -- all before the time we used to get out of bed.

Smoother starts to our days: This has had a huge impact on the rest of our day. We start school earlier, prepare dinner earlier, and have a smoother transition to bed than before. I feel like I have more time to read, make space for taking care of my body, and get out of the door on time.

Less dependence on caffeine: I haven’t had as many cravings for caffeine as I used to. I was already on the verge of needing to cut it out cause of the migraines that followed. This tells me it’s either the fact that I was working my way to cut it out, or truly following the rhythms of the day. Either way, I haven’t been depending on my morning black tea or occasional energy drink to keep me going.

Increased clarity and energy: I used to wake up so groggy. I felt I was someone who needed 10 hours of sleep – 7-8 hours is an average after all. Well, turns out it may have had more to do with my melatonin production & late-night light exposure than my true need for many hours of sleep.

I wasn’t sure what to expect by making these changes. I had always accepted that I’d probably never be a morning person. I never have been before. I knew it’d be a challenge because I love my morning sleep in. It’s one thing I joke about why we became homeschoolers – no rushing out the door and sleeping in to our hearts content. And really during the fall, at the moment of writing this, the sun is rising around 7:30 in the morning so it’s not too far of a stretch to wake up by this time.

It feels more natural to wake with the sun and start winding down with it as well. I wasn’t sure what this would look like living on a homestead that seems to need constant attention while we’re in the building/growing phase – but fall allows a gentle step into the coziness and slowness of winter. No garden, no baby animals, no mowing – you get the gist.

Another thing that surprised me was that I was also able to maintain this throughout our vacation, especially with a time change. The sunrise was too beautiful to miss in the Black Hills and there was much to be done in our jam-packed schedule. I’ve maintained it post-vacation as well – waking up early even with a late arrival home and limited sleep.

Changes My Kids Have Seen

When I decided to write this article, I asked my daughters what changes they’ve observed themselves. Here’s what they shared:

Better mornings: My 10yo states she feels better waking up -- in a better mood, ready to start the day.

“Having a good start to my day, makes the rest of my day go well.”

I know my 6yo is enjoying the change. She was the only morning person in our family so she’d wake up and be sad that no one else was awake with her. Now she enjoys that we all wake together and breakfast is available sooner.

More time outdoors: My youngest reports that our changes make her want to spend more time outside. She says it makes her want to do more school outside – this could also be due to the very nice weather we’re experiencing.

As far as my 10yo, she feels like catching the sunrise outside gives her a reason to go out right away. Beforehand, she would take her time waking up and eventually get to the animal chores. Now she figures if she’s already outside getting the morning light, she might as well take care of the animals while she’s out there.

Unexpected Changes: Both girls reported what was a bit of a surprise. My 6yo says she feels she’s been able to remember things more easily and think more clearly. My 10 year old says it’s been a while since she’s remembered her dreams. With catching the sunset, she’s been remembering a lot more of them. To me, these point directly to melatonin. The more we allow a natural rhythm of melatonin release and signaling, the less brain fog they have and the deeper sleep they experience throughout the night. More detoxing, cellular repair, and a deeper REM state and full sleep cycles for dreams.

Some Science Behind It All

Our bodies release melatonin. This is our sleep hormone. When we support our bodies’ ability to release this rather than blocking it, we lean into the God written rhythm within our bodies. Our homestead animals rise and sleep with the sun, why shouldn’t we? Our incessant need to be productive or get it all done interferes with this. Just like the animals, we need to have trust in God that we can still get all that’s “needed” accomplished, even with shorter days in different seasons.

The most profound piece of the article by Thaddeus was that being on screens or under artificial lights, blocks the release of melatonin for up to 4 hours afterwards! It blew my mind. The author explained that this is why even with 8 hours of sleep we still wake up feeling groggy or experience brain fog throughout the day. A change that has occurred over the past 100 years and only gotten drastically worse with the availability of tech and LED (which is the most disruptive lighting).

It’s small changes like these that get us back to God’s design and help support our internal clocks and functions. The scientific name for this is our circadian rhythm — our internal 24-hour clock that regulates sleep, hormones, and energy. These are rhythms that God created. You don’t need a biology degree like me to understand – it just makes it more fun.

What We’re Actually Doing

It’s simple, really, the changes we’ve made. And you can make them too, if you’re interested.

1) Sunset – as much as we can, we get outside during sunset. We catch that evening red light as a final signal to our bodies to start getting ready for bed.

2) Blue light blockers go on – we all throw our blue light blockers on and wear them right up until bedtime

3) Waking up with the sunrise – this is non-negotiable. It’s an important start to our day. We can’t do this indoors either. Sun through a window is not enough and turning on harsh lights to wake up, is not supporting your natural rhythms. You can wear your blue light blockers here too if you need some lighting to get ready before sunrise. At a minimum, it’s important to get outside within that first 30 minutes of waking, even if you missed sunrise itself.

There are some sunsets we missed while traveling because we were in the car, and our blue light blockers were packed away so that gas station lighting for pit stops was fairly jarring. This isn’t about perfection. No. It’s about supporting our bodies the best we can and giving ourselves grace when we fall off track. I often fall out of routine, but I don’t beat myself up when I do. I just figure out a way to get on track again, even if it’s been a few months or years. So don’t feel bad if you are just getting started with this, like us. I do love that I have the opportunity to model this for my children and teach them about the importance and tie in their faith along the way.

In Conclusion

We’ve only been making these changes for a little over a week. So I’m not writing this blog as an expert or as someone who has been doing this my whole life. Rather I wanted to write how profound of a difference we’ve seen, even in a short amount of time and I wanted to share that with others.

I’m hoping we can stick with these changes, but harsh winters will be a factor we’ll have to take into account. I do have a natural sunlight simulator (like this) and a red light that I may try to recreate sunrises and sunsets for gloomy, gray days. We’ll see. We’ll also have some late nights ahead of us with some extra curriculars we’re involved in, so I’m giving us grace.

Are you someone that already wakes and sleeps with the sun? Do you have any tools you’ve used to support your natural sleep rhythms during early sunsets? I’d love to hear!

If this was helpful to you and you’d like to support our homestead or the information I’m working to share, you can buy me a matcha. It means a lot to this homesteading mama.

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“Awake, my glory!

Awake, O harp and lyre!

I will awake the dawn!

I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;

I will sing praises to you among the nations.

For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,

Your faithfulness to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!

Let your glory be over all the earth!” Psalm 57: 8-11

This letter is part of a series of letters titled “Letters to a Friend” between myself and . Both of us are Christian homesteading homeschoolers who enjoy conversing as if we were 1800’s pen pals, but we’re doing it online. You can find our past responses to one another on each of our Substacks. The beginning of this series started in August 2026 which can be found here. Below is her most recent letter to me which I spend the first half of my letter responding.

Liberty’s Substack

Letters to a Friend: August 2026

When Grounded & Centered Acres approached me about doing this series, I was positively brimming with excitement! I love the art of letter writing, and with postage costing what it does, I thought this was a wonderful way of corresponding while simultaneously sharing the happenings on the farmstead. This is my response to her initial message, which you can read below 👇🏼…

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2 months ago · 3 likes · Liberty Farms Illinois

We’d love to have you follow along and see what is happening in each of our lives. Enjoy!

Wednesday, September 30 2026

Dearest Friend,

My how quickly you respond! As if you had Paul Revere as your personal letter carrier. I suppose that is the advantage of this “technology” as we know it. But I find it bothersome at times, do you agree? The constant availability and draw to it – but that’s a topic for another time. Though my hand shall be saved from the pains if I were to write this by pen and ink.

I’ll have you know I’ve already pulled out the dictionary in order to keep up with your prose. Being top of my class in public high school has served me no better than a plastic butter knife at a steak dinner. But do proceed, as I enjoy a stretching of my verbal repertoire.

Before reading further, as for your apologies, I already forgive you - for I know your hands are as full as your heart in your bustling household.

In Response to Homesteading

You asked about our sheep. As for our them, I must give my husband credit for the research and acquisition of them. They are Iclandic and triple purpose just as your friend’s are. We’ve used the wool for dryer balls that we’ve sold -- they are a breed with less lanolin! It was too busy of a year to attempt milking but will in due time. Though it will be hard, we plan to use the next generation for meat. They’re so precious, but it is part of homesteading and life sustenance. I can rest better knowing I’ve given them a beautiful life before they bless us with their meat. Do you ever plan to have goat meat? I’m aware you milk, but am not as familiar with goat breeds. How nice that they help you maintain your yardage. Do you fence them? I would love to have our sheep complete the lawn care near our home, but am afraid they would run off.

I do not know of this silvopasture you speak of. Could you extrapolate on what this means? Joel Salatin is a wise man. We had the pleasure of hearing him speak and shaking his hand at a homestead conference several years ago - the closest I’ve come to what some may call “fan girling”. I was tickled by a quote of his I recently came across:

I wholeheartedly feel your pains in getting caught up in your visions for what your property could become and the travail it takes to achieve that. Yet you and I both have set ourselves in the position to be the “founders” or “first-generation” of this generational living we hope to establish for our families. It comes not without struggles. We would absolutely love for our homestead to become a working wellness retreat one day, for those wishing to find healing in ways God has created rather than machines and chemically created compounds. But I too need to take this advice you so wisely share of strengthening what we have currently before growing too large to a point of burnout.

Oh my! I feel so silly having thought to ask you about Muscovys when here in fine print I see you have already mentioned them to me! What a divine thing that shortly after your letter we had a friend reach out to offer us Muscovys for free and now they sit on our property as I pen you back. Please let me know if you choose to pursue this venture as we drove 2 hours east to obtain the ducks which would be 2 hours closer in your direction. This farm has an overabundance of Muscovy, so have that in your pocket for the right time my dear. We do love them so far. And what a wild adventure that was – I wrote about it not long ago here. We did get some strange looks doing a duck deal at a gas station.

I’m so very sorry to hear of your goat losses – our animals do become part of our family, and even the difficult ones hold a special place in our hearts. It dawned on me this very week that the more animals we acquire, the more pet emergencies we are prone to. We had a goat with a limp and a dog that sliced her paw open. I feel as if my medical practitioner dreams have come to fruition, but with a veterinary twist.

In Response to Homeschooling

I am happy to hear you have had your newest addition’s tongue tie tended to. It is a more prevalent issue than many are aware of. And a whole 10 oz gained after the procedure – praise be to God! Has your homeschool year begun to settle in? We are a few weeks from wrapping up our first term of Year 5 and Year 1. What a blessing to go through Year 1 again and have an understanding of classical literature that I lacked upon starting my homeschooling journey.

We are meant to be reading Stuart Little together for our book club but cannot find our copy and the hold for audio is three months long! My oldest did finish a Wingfeather Saga novel in a few days, and I am beginning Mama Bear Apologetics for a local book club. How did your children enjoy Tuck Everlasting? I’ve only ever seen the film and my oldest read it on her own. Am I amiss for not reading it myself? We too have Christian History Then and Now books but have yet to dive in together.

Once upon a time we were enjoying Jesus Freaks which describes modern day Christian Martyrs, which provided such invaluable lessons to my children who don’t see the all-too-common Christian persecution happening around the world. We have also enjoyed Trial & Triumph as part of our curriculum. I do believe I am in need of starting a list of book recommendations I receive from good friends and acquaintances on Substack. There is much rich literature still out there to be devoured.

Now, I hope I have adequately addressed your lovely musings and developments in life, I will move on to our September updates here on Grounded and Centered Acres, though I have sprinkled a bit of them above.

September 2026 Updates

September has been awfully dreary for us. The rain has been unending. It has led to muddy conditions all over the property and fog abounds. Thankfully that didn’t stop us from enjoying a few nice days where we were able to watch hummingbirds during our school day and another where we spent time catching butterflies and moths together. But the weather hasn’t kept us from staying well-employed on the homestead or in fall activities.

My children started their homeschool enrichment program with other homeschoolers. They attend this program one day a week. They love it so. It provides an opportunity for the rotating activities within a school – such as PE, art, drama, science, and a few others. The teachers there are so loving and are the same teachers they have for all 12 years in the program if they so choose to continue K-12.

I met up again with my 90-year-old herbalist mentor. What a joy she is. We talk for hours on the pitfalls of our current medical system here in America and I get to pick her brain on what it was like almost 100 years ago. Then I get to inform her on things our generation experiences in medicine that she has yet to come across. I wish we could all have 90-year-old mentors in our passions and God-given talents.

A dear friend of mine welcomed her precious baby into the world and had to stay in the NICU for two long weeks. Visiting her was my first time being in a NICU. I was able to experience the blessings of God second-hand from the collective prayers of our community being answered as each time we all prayed he would have his biggest feeds and was more quickly able to come off oxygen support. It truly reaffirmed the power of prayer in all things big and small. It brings my heart joy that they are all reunited at home together again.

Something new for us is water coloring. I had been feeling this draw to create. To create something other than building an apartment space which I’ve burnt out on. After an afternoon of pulling out what paints we had on hand and few water color pages left, it sparked an excitement in my mother who is also an artist. Our joy in this new activity led her to procuring many watercolor supplies to support our new past-time. Growing up the child of an artist, it’s hard to go long periods without creating something. We also made our own Bible charms this month as well.

Speaking of creativity, our play practices have begun. Did I mention to you that the three of us girls have been casted in our church’s Christmas play? My children both have singing solos and we will all be taking part in the choir ensemble. This really fills our weeknights. But it’s been exciting and we just had our first dialect coaching ever to help us learn to speak in cockney and Queen’s English British accents. Though my oldest has needed little correcting as she’s acquired a solid accent from all of the British films and narrators we listen to. What a fun ministry it is to be a part of! I know you are in a season of your life of staying close to home, but do your children partake in any extra curriculars or have you found them showing interest in a specific trade?

After some delays, our sheep have finally arrived. We welcomed Aeros, Saeros, and Arwyn into our herd. The oldest ewe (4 years) has such a big personality and greets us every morning with her Baa’s. The runt girl is still scared of us, and the boy is getting used to us. It baffles us how quickly they go through a pasture now having two more than we did (we gave one away to the breeder), but I take heart in the fact that we have gotten much faster at moving the electric fence around for our rotational grazing.

Our other exciting development on the homestead is that my husband was able to move the swarm of bees we caught earlier this summer to a bigger home, more suitable for winter. He built the brooder boxes which came flat packed and set them up near our persimmons trees so that they will hopefully bear fruit next year.

As before, I leave you with a recipe from this past month. With an overabundance of eggs, I made my first Dutch Baby ever. I can thank for the nudge to finally do it. I found a recipe from Gluten-free on a Shoestring and modified it a bit then added my own whipped cream made from the raw cow’s milk we drink. It is as follows:

Dutch Baby Pancake

2 tablespoons grass-fed butter

1.5 cups gluten free one to one flour

6 eggs

1.5 cups milk

¼ cup organic sugar

I preheated the oven to 375 and let the butter melt in our cast-iron skillet. While melting, I mixed together the flour, eggs, milk, and sugar. Once the butter has melted I poured in the mix and baked at 375 for 12 minutes. I then rotated the pan 180 degrees and baked for an additional 5 minutes. We then topped with our homemade whipped cream and will likely add fresh berries next time and move to citrus or apples on top as we transition to fall/winter. Please feel free to share your favorite recipe from last month!

Praying for you continually,

Lexi

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One weekend a friend reached out to us asking if we’d like to have some free Muscovy ducks. I slowly lowered my phone and looked at my husband like this (but the cupcake is my phone with potential new homestead friends):

He knew that look in my eye. I was likely about to ask for something, we probably didn’t need - maybe. Yet here I was betraying what I had said just a month or two ago – “No more new animals on the homestead for the rest of the year.” We’d had 3 lamb born in the spring, had caught a swarm of bees, and had a couple of chicken losses already this year.

But who can turn down *free* homestead animals? Hello!

My husband being (surprisingly) the more pragmatic one in this instance, was hesitant at first. We don’t have a pond, we’re lacking a structure to house them. I knew I needed to make my case and make it well. I began diving into what I could find online. It is the practical thing to do after all.

It did feel like a swiftly answered prayer. Both my husband and I had been feeling a pull to “fill up our storehouses”. Not in a prepper sort of way, but if you are aware of current events around the world and nation – there have been times where entire cities have been out of electricity for 2 weeks (recently Gary, Indiana). Other instances are when natural disasters hit or potential threat to the food chain supply like union boycotts or obviously the biggest impact was COVID when food was flying off the shelves – everybody in our area of Washington even went as far to buy up all the gluten free bread (even if they didn’t have an allergy/celiacs). I prefer to view it as “prepared not scared”.

My point is, disaster can and will happen – living in the Midwest even having a few days of food in your pantries during winter storms is simply the smart thing to do. You never know when you might not be capable of getting plowed out and need to have food on hand.

I digress. Back to the ducks. According to what I found online, Muscovy ducks are a homestead “no brainer”. If you want a multi-purpose animal, these little creatures are on the “must-haves” list.

Here’s what I found after perusing various videos and article:

1) Muscovy’s are great for pest control

Ticks? We’ve got ‘em. Flies – in over abundance during some months. Grasshoppers galore! We could use all the help we can get to control the insect population on our prairie homestead. According to what others stated, they’re better at pest control than your chicken flocks.

2) They’re noiseless

Apparently, Muscovy don’t quack like your average duck. This could also be because they’re not ducks in the true sense. They’re not derived from the mallard so they’re a sort of cousin to ducks. One blog explains it as a donkey is to a horse. I’m already getting woken by our rooster at 5am, I don’t need more noises early in the morning.

3) They don’t require a pond

Before we even looked in to accepting the animals, we let the friend know we don’t currently have a pond. They told us that’s not a problem! While these ducks enjoy splashing around when presented the opportunity, they only need enough fresh water to wash their head and beaks.

4) They Free Range & Are Less Messy

We enjoy free-ranging our animals. It’s more natural for them; it’s less work for us. They’re happy, we’re happy. So when we found out these are best free-ranging, we were sold. Other duck breeds require a more elaborate setup. I had a neighbor who had dipped their toe into having ducks – they have a really nice sized pond on their property. But apparently a beaver attacked one of the ducks and the whole flock was then too scared to go back into the pond. They then had to have a kiddie pool for them to swim in and bathe in and it required changing daily. It ended up being too tedious. Not something we were looking to do given how many animals we have and construction, homeschooling, and full-time work we already do.

5) Triple Purpose Homestead Animals

Any animal that has more than one purpose on the homestead is a win to us. Not only are these little powerful pest prevention machines, but you can use their feathers for down pillows, coats, comforters, etc. We will also use them for meat – which apparently tastes like sirloin steak *drool*. And last but not least, we plan to collect and use their eggs. Duck eggs are much bigger than chicken eggs and great for baking.

Before taking the plunge, we did begin building the winter setup for our soon-to-be new additions and had friends that donated an old chicken tractor of theirs to us for their spring/summer/fall location. We never go into a new homestead addition totally unprepared -- we do our research and ensure we have a safe space for them.

6) Prolific and Independent Hatching

Once ducklings have hatched, the moms will raise them independently and they will often hatch 10-15 eggs at a time. This will keep us in a steady meat source for ourselves and our dogs, which we would like to get off of kibble.

I did my due diligence in researching. I convinced my husband, which I already spoiled within the list, and we head off to get our new Muscovy this very day. It’ll be an adventure to see how they fit in on the ‘stead. But as I mentioned, it did feel like a well-timed blessing. We’re only starting with 12 to get our feet wet (2 drakes and the rest female). We also asked for teens and older so that we knew the sex and because, as cute as they are, babies were not something we needed on our hands at the moment.

So, what do you think? Would you have jumped on the opportunity to add these to your homestead?

Until next time,
Lexi

Did this post make you love ducks? Or maybe you already did. Either way, click the link below to sponsor one of our sweet gals to let them know we’re happy to have them on the farm.

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Sources

Raising Muscovy Ducks And Why You Probably Want Them • Insteading

Mastering Muscovy Duck Care and Uses - Feathered Farm Life

is a fellow Substacker full of passion for homesteading and sharing practical knowledge. Living on 4-acres herself, she wants to encourage others that becoming less reliant on retail stores is accessible to everyone. That starting where you are is the best way to dip your toes into this “homestead” or “self-sufficient” lifestyle you see others living or working towards online.

After she picked my brain on my thoughts and lessons learned while homesteading, I sent her over the top eight questions I had for her based on what she shares online. Here’s what she had to say:

1. You’ve noted that you care much more about an efficient, resilient household than one that just looks good online. What are one or two “aesthetic” homestead trends you see people waste the most time on, and what do you focus on instead?

I think people can spend an enormous amount of time trying to make their homestead look like a picture instead of making it work. Perfect raised beds, matching garden structures, beautiful pantry jars, elaborate chicken coops. There is nothing wrong with any of those things if you enjoy them, but they aren’t what makes a household capable.

I care much more about whether I can grow food, preserve it, save seed, make something I need, keep my animals cared for, and know what to do when something doesn’t go according to plan. I would rather have a garden that feeds me than a garden that photographs beautifully. Function comes first. If it happens to look good too, that’s a bonus.

2. You advocate for stacking small skills onto routines you already do rather than treating every task like a massive project. What does a typical day look like when you’re weaving these rhythms together without burning out?

I don’t try to do everything every day. That’s a good way to make yourself hate the life you’re trying to build. A lot of what I do gets attached to something I’m already doing. When I’m cooking, I might make extra and preserve part of it. When I’m in the garden, I’m not just growing something to eat today. I’m thinking about what I can preserve, dehydrate, ferment, save seed from, or turn into something else later.

The same thing happens with household work. I try to look at the task in front of me and ask, “What else can I accomplish while I’m already doing this?” That has made a huge difference for me. I don’t need a separate three-hour project for every skill. I can build skills into ordinary life. And I have learned that not everything needs to be done immediately. Some things can wait.

3. You mentioned a shift from thinking organization means “everything perfectly arranged” to “knowing what happens next”. How does that mindset shift change the way you plan your weekly or seasonal homestead tasks?

That shift has probably saved me more time than any organizational trick I’ve ever used. Organization isn’t having everything perfectly arranged. It’s knowing what needs to happen next and having enough information in front of you that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel every season.

Gardening is a good example. I’m thinking ahead about what needs to be planted, what needs to be harvested, what needs to be preserved, what seeds need to be saved, and what needs to happen to prepare for the next season. The same goes for food preservation and household projects. I don’t need a perfectly organized life. I need a working plan.

That’s also one reason I created my Household Manual. I wanted important information somewhere I could actually find it instead of relying on memory or trying to search for the answer again every time I needed it.

4. Operating on a 4-acre setup (with animals like sheep, hogs, and chickens) requires intentional management. What are the biggest spatial or logistical lessons you’ve learned about making a smaller footprint highly productive?

The biggest lesson is that you don’t have to use every inch of land just because you have it. We have four acres, but I don’t try to turn four acres into a giant operation. I use the space that makes sense for what we’re actually doing. We have chickens and sheep, a large in-ground garden, raised beds, a small corn field, an orchard, berries, herbs, medicinal plants, and space for other useful things.

I also use things like wood chips for mulch and save seeds from what I grow. We don’t raise hogs ourselves. We purchase and have a couple butchered each year through Amish friends, and that has taught me something too. Self-sufficiency doesn’t have to mean doing absolutely everything yourself. The goal is to make the space you have productive without creating an operation that requires more time, money, and labor than it gives back.

5. What has been the most humbling or steep learning curve for you when integrating livestock management into daily domestic life?

Animals don’t care what is on your schedule. That is probably one of the best lessons they teach you. You can have a plan for the day and then discover that something needs attention right now.

Livestock also forces you to pay attention. You learn their normal behavior, their routines, what the weather does to them, and what isn’t right before you necessarily have an obvious problem. It’s humbling because you realize pretty quickly that these aren’t projects. They’re living animals that depend on you. And it has made me more observant. I pay attention to things I probably would have overlooked before.

6. For readers who feel paralyzed by the sheer volume of skills a traditional life requires (gardening, preserving, baking, animal care), what is the “gateway” skill you tell them to start with?

Start with food. More specifically, start with growing something you already buy. Don’t start by trying to become a master gardener, learn to bake bread, raise livestock, make soap, can fifty different foods, and build an orchard all at once. Pick one thing. If you buy a lot of tomatoes, grow tomatoes. Then learn how to preserve them.

Once you’ve done that successfully, you have several skills instead of one. You learned to grow something, harvest it, prepare it, preserve it, store it, and use it. That’s how I think skills should build. Start with something that has an obvious payoff in your everyday life. Once you see that you can actually do it, the next skill doesn’t seem nearly as intimidating.

7. You place a big emphasis on having skills in your head and important information written down rather than relying on modern conveniences. What does your personal “homestead manual” or binder look like?

My Household Manual is essentially a reference book for running a capable household. It isn’t just recipes or garden notes. It’s the kind of information I want available when I need it instead of having to depend on my phone, an internet connection, or remembering something I haven’t done in six months. It covers practical household skills, food and kitchen information, planning, maintenance, preservation, and the kinds of things that are useful to have written down.

The bigger idea behind it is that information has value when you can actually use it. I don’t want to simply know that something can be done. I want to know how to do it. And I want that information somewhere I can find it again.

8. There’s a massive online wave of people trying to “become homesteaders” overnight. How do you encourage people to just focus on becoming capable at home instead of feeling like they have to uproot their entire lives?

I tell people to stop worrying about becoming a “homesteader.” Become capable instead. You don’t need twenty acres. You don’t need livestock. You don’t need a farmhouse, a barn, a giant garden, or a completely different life. Learn to cook from basic ingredients. Grow something. Preserve something. Learn how to make a household product instead of automatically buying it. Save seeds. Learn a skill your grandparents knew. Figure out how to make what you already have last longer. That’s how you build capability.

I think we’ve made this lifestyle look much more complicated than it has to be. People see someone online doing everything and think they have to do everything too. You don’t. Start where you are. Use what you have. Learn one useful skill at a time. Eventually, those little skills add up to something much bigger. You become the person who knows what to do when something needs doing. That’s the part that matters to me.

So there you have it, whether your space is big or small, you too can grow your own food, learn a new skill, or make your own foods without it becoming a new identity (unless you want it to). Bottom line, start where you are.

Until Next Time,

Lexi

It’s that time of year again. Whether you public school or homeschool, we’re collectively bracing ourselves for the first colds, flus, and fevers. Co-ops are ramping up, fall activities have begun and we can start to feel the transition of the season.

So many of us are affected by the back-to-school sicknesses whether we like it or not. Friends are already sharing with me they’ve been hit by their first illness. Others are absent for fall practices or calling in sick — the time is upon us!

While you may not be able to control what sickness you or your child gets exposed to, you can control their terrain your family goes out into the world with.

Prevention 101

The terrain is the internal environment of your body – your immune system, digestive system, nervous system, and other systems keeping you well and functioning on a daily basis. A healthy terrain is able to encounter germs and clear them effectively. A compromised terrain is unable to do that.

I go more into depth about the terrain theory here:

The 5 things that impact terrain:

1) Gut health

2) Sleep

3) Nutrient density

4) Stress load

5) Toxic burden

As the school year ramps back up, these five things slowly become neglected. That neglect slowly compromises the terrain over the first month or two back.

Everyone is getting to bed later and meals are eaten on the run (snacks or convenience food) – which are often less nutrient dense. Stress begins building as homework and tests become due along with athletic performances. And if you begin choosing more convenience-based home care (plastic silverware, microwaveable meals, antibacterial soap, disposable wipes etc.) you are increasing your toxic burden.

By week 4, you may be experiencing that back-to-school sickness.

5 Things to Support the Terrain

1) Get Good Sleep

Stick to a firm bedtime or at least commit to a minimum number of hours per night. Children require more sleep than adults and women require more sleep than men. Remember, 7-8 hours of sleep is just an average for adults. Some people require more and others a little less. But children and teens definitely require more as they are growing and developing.

A lack of sleep leads to a compromised immune function (cytokines aren’t being produced— these are your inflammation regulators), hormone imbalances, impaired thinking and coordination, and long-term effects can even impact heart functioning. It’s important for many reasons!

2) Eat Nutrient-Dense Foods

Food is medicine. It’s God’s provision. It’s foundational to good health. Nobody is shaking a finger at you for those days meals are quickly thrown together. I’ve lived the days of limited options or no access to a functioning kitchen.

However, that shouldn’t be the norm. Swap real, whole fruit for fruit snacks. Choose bell peppers and tomatoes over veggie straws. Eat foods that are local, fresh and in season. Bell peppers and apples are our current staples – with a rotation of strawberries, grapes, kiwi, blueberries, bananas. Your kids will reach for these things more readily if there aren’t limitless packaged snack options.

3) The Gut is Essential

The Immune system begins with the gut. It is our largest immune organ in the body. A balanced gut means a stronger immune system. Incorporate bone broth, fermented foods (my kids love kimchi), reduce sugar, and cut the dyes.

Obviously, I could go on about the importance of the gut and how to support it, but for sake of keeping it short and sweet when you have limited time, I’m keeping it at that for now.

4) Prioritize Time Outdoors

Kids today are spending more time indoors than any generation before them. Recesses are less frequent and shorter in duration. Kids find themselves more comfortably inside than out. A study completed in 2021 reviewing preschool-aged kids time outdoors found that only 40% spent less than or equal to 1 hour of time outside per day on weekdays. (American Journal of Preventative Medicine)

Aim for a minimum of 20 minutes intentional outdoor time each day. Get creative if you have to. We struggled with this before moving to the country, so I would often join the 1000 hours outside annual challenge as a way to stay accountable. We began taking walks to the park, family post-dinner strolls, added mid-day picnics outside - anything to get us out.

5) Eliminate Immune Suppressors

If you want to give your family the best shot at avoiding major illness the remainder of the year you must eliminate *at least one of* the following to give your body a fighting chance: inflammatory seed oils, artificial dyes, excess sugar, chronic overscheduling, Pick one to begin with and start there.

We Still Got Sick, Now What?

Even when you’re doing all the right things or you’ve just let the ball drop as we humans are apt to do, sickness can and will still occur. It’s not a moral failure or a reason to get down on yourself. It’s a sign the immune system is functioning and working to what needs to be done to clear the infection.

Support the immune system rather than suppress it. Nourish the body, hydrate, rest. All of the things your great-grandma would recommend.

When someone in my house gets sick, I’m immediately pulling out the preventatives (like this Elderberry Elixir tincture or Children’s Elderberry Gummies) to naturally support the immune system. I’m offering fresh fruits and whole foods and eliminating artificial sugar until they’re better. Depending on the symptoms I may offer honey, I’m definitely helping them hydrate with electrolytes (my absolute favorite here), and I’m giving them a break from chores so they can rest and sleep.

As a parent or caregiver, you’re in tune with your child’s needs. You know them well enough to tell if they’re more lethargic or stuffy or run-down. Listen to that God-given intuition – the prompting of the Holy Spirit to know how to support your child. Stop reaching for fever-reducers or pain-relievers as first line defense and help the body do its job to clear the infection. You’ll also know when it’s the right time to visit a doctor if necessary.

Balancing It All

There’s a lot to juggle as a parent. Give yourself grace. The better prepared you are, the more you can deal calmly and act quickly when the first signs of sickness begin. Supporting the terrain is simply a part of stewarding our bodies as we are commanded to do in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20:

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, start with one thing you can learn to do well and go from there. Prevention & preparation are key to a successful start to the school year.

What are some things you’re doing in your household as the new year kicks off?

**Some affiliate links have been shared to help support my family as a stay-at-home mom - at no cost to you.

Welcome to a new series I am excited about where I will be sharing our monthly life updates in letter format. If you haven’t seen my previous blog on letter writing, I’m pretty nostalgic for the past; for the letters that were once written between friends, lovers, family members. Now replaced by email and text. But what legacy will that leave for future generations? A social media page to scroll that might one day be taken down or deleted? I can at least print these letters from Substack and save them in a binder for my grandchildren to read. Not quite as beautiful as a handwritten letter, but more legible than some I’ve found from my great-grandparents. It’s a middle-ground.

I decided it would be more fun to have these letters be written to a friend on Substack, rather than an imaginary recipient. And have decided to write these loosely in the tone of a woman in the 1800s.

I’m thrilled that my friend has agreed to join me in this venture as we write back and forth to one another on Substack for you all to follow along with. We do live in different states after all. We are also both living lives that are more representative of “times gone by” and both have lots of fun updates to share each month on our homesteads, homeschooling, our faith, and life overall. I hope you enjoy this series as much as I enjoyed writing it! Be sure to subscribe to both of us if you want to make sure you don’t miss any of our letters.

Subscribe now

Happy to have you join along!

September 3, 2026

My Dearest Friend,

The children are in bed and I’m taking a moment to reflect on our past month. What a beautiful August we had. One of the fairest we’ve had in some time! I’d say the best in my memory while growing up in the Midwest. It’s often stifling and sticky – as it was in July of this year. I was grateful for the reprieve as I’m sure our livestock was.

I figured I’d share an account of our August, and I’d love to hear about yours as well.

This month we made a trip down to Kansas City for my husband’s birthday. It was a simple day trip, but lovely as always. We ate brunch at our favorite gluten-free restaurant, Billy’s Grocers. Oh, their cinnamon rolls are just to die for! You MUST give them a try if you ever find yourself there. We also had gluten free chicken and waffles and a crab omelet. We never pass through the city without stopping there.

Afterwards we took a little jaunt to Loose Park and walked to our hearts content. The children loved racing their father and admiring the baby turtles along the edge of the pond. It was the perfect post-meal, pre-drive stop.

While on the ride, we listened to an interesting classic Goodbye Mr. Chips by James Hilton. It follows the tenure of a schoolteacher at a British Boarding school, weaving in a love story and the relationships formed over time. My favorite quotes were as follows:

And

Oh how that hit home for our homeschooling. That I hope to teach my children the art of thinking for themselves, not just memorizing facts and figures. Do you have a good read-aloud you’ve read recently? I’d love to hear your favorite quotes.

We also finished Paddington for our 1^st homeschool book club for the year (10/10). I also finished Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry (9/10). I’ve only just discovered Wendell Berry, loved his writing, wrote many quotes down for my commonplace notebook, and am now saddened to hear he died just a few days ago at the end of August ’26. The way he wove faith and community throughout the novel was really touching. I especially related to his moments of touching on the modernization of the world and what has been lost – community, connection with nature, values. So much I’ve discussed with fellow homesteading, homeschooling friends. I do plan to read more of his works. I see you’re familiar with him as well. What have been your favorite novels of his?

My oldest daughter completed her first show choir camp. I was unsure of how it would go, but she loved it. She really comes alive on stage. We also started drama rehearsals for our church’s Christmas production – which we three girls of the family all received roles for. We’re excited to put our English accents to good use! Even more so we’re looking forward to spreading the gospel through the retelling of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

We celebrated mid-month with a trip to our state fair. Fun fact: I’ve been going to the state fair since I was a nursing infant. My grandparents would take me out every few hours for my mom to nurse me while she worked at her face painting booth. Our family ran that booth for 11 days straight of the fair 12 hours a day for 24 years – to the point where I was running it and hiring my own friends. I only missed the state fair for 7 years while I lived out of state. I’m glad to be taking my children to the fair and have taken them every year since we’ve been back. Do you have a fair that you attend? State or County? Do you show your animals or wish to in the future?

We always have a tradition of my oldest writing out a checklist and seeing all we can accomplish. This year we checked everything off. We all had our favorites as follows:

• 6-year-old: butter-dipped ice cream, giant slide, unique animals tent, first year on the sky glider

• 10-year-old: butter-dipped ice cream, Christian radio station booth, unique animals tent

• Mom (me): butter-dipped ice cream, accomplishing any tradition (egg on a stick, honey sticks, butter cow, etc.), maple cotton candy

• Dad: lobster corn dog

There’s not much to report on the livestock. We plan to get 3 more sheep in a few weeks, and we finally set up another electric fence, so we don’t have to switch who has access to fresh pasture 2x a day – that was a chore!

We did have some big wins on the homestead! We finally have a kitchen sink again for the first time in two years. I cut the butcher block myself and my husband hooked up the plumbing - can you imagine? Our previous suburban selves would be Shocked!

I know you’re familiar with lack of convenience as well but let us pray we never have to go so long without a sink again! It’s very difficult being a family that cooks a lot without one. The efficiency I’ve gained back in my life is beyond what I could imagine. Lest I say I enjoy washing dishes more as I’m able to look out at our pasture and sheep while listening to an audiobook? What a delight! My current listen is Rembrandt is in the Wind by Russ Ramsey. I love the blending of art history, examining the greats, and tying in Christianity. I’m 1/3 of the way through right now. I’ll update you in my next monthly letter my full thoughts.

When my daughters join me, we listen to Little Women instead. We’ve made good progress in the novel as we book ended our month with harvesting wild elderberries, washing, picking, and cooking them to make our own 2-ingredient elderberry syrup. It was TEDIOUS, but we enjoyed the story while we worked. I’ve learned from a friend that you can use a fork to speed up the work. I will definitely be doing that next time. I’ve included the recipe I followed in case you don’t have your own. Please include any recipes you’ve loved lately or are looking forward to making this fall!

Elderberry Syrup

6 cups fresh elderberries

6 cups water

1.5 cups honey (local is best)

Bring water to a boil over medium heat then reduce to a simmer for 1 hour. Let cool for 30 minutes. Strain all the berries and stir in honey once cooled some as to not denature the honey. This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 months. Take a small amount as needed to boost immune system. (We like to take it proactively to prevent illness or at onset).

Now, tell me – what are the newest things on your homestead in the past month? How is homeschooling and your precious babe?

Yours warmly,

Lexi

Let’s talk ticks.

Not my favorite topic – and honestly never something I thought I’d be writing a blog about. But they’ve been splashed all over media regarding the health issues they bring – which is in my wheelhouse – so here we are.

My First Foray

My first experience with a tick was when I was a teenager. I had happened to glance and notice something that looked like a spider was on me – eww. This was my first thought. And then – brush it off immediately.

But wait. It didn’t brush off. No matter how many attempts I made, it seemed as if it was attached to me. WHAT?!? Cue immediate teenage meltdown and screaming. Only my older brother was home at the time and the tick was high on my hip near my undergarments – so there was no way I was going to let him help me! Well, after some coaxing over the phone from my mom and tears shed, I’d agreed to let him help me by burning the tick and removing it - while maintaining my dignity.

Fast forward to now — if you can even imagine quite a different reality as I come across ticks on a frequent basis. I can no longer scream when I come across a tick, I must breathe and attempt to calmly address the situation. I’ve gotten much braver and more capable, but I’m nowhere near as nonchalant as friends and acquaintances who I’ve seen grab ticks with their bare hands and kill them with their nails. I must also admit, if my husband is home, I’m still letting him deal with it if it’s on an animal and not an immediate threat to myself or my children.

A Brief History of Ticks & Biblical Response

Ticks have always been around. They’re not anything new – though the hype of them might make it feel that way if you don’t live somewhere you’re dealing with them constantly. But the fear and severity around them is something that has changed over the years.

Yet, God did not give us a spirit of fear. We may experience fear, yes. But we are not called to live in continual fear. That is a result of living in a fallen, broken world. It truly isn’t what He wants for us:

He wants us to be outside in His creation. Soaking in the sounds, the smells, the sights. Being outdoors is good for us in many ways. He also calls us to steward the things He’s given us. And we can’t do that locked inside our houses.

Funnily enough, my daughters and I were listening to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer last summer (a homeschool book club pick we really enjoyed together) and there is a scene in the book where Tom and his classmate are spending their time in class playing with a tick, as if it were a pet, seeing whose side of the desk it would crawl to. A sharp contrast to the current climate around the pests. Why weren’t they afraid?!

So, if that book was written in 1876, when did ticks become more of an issue - something to be vigilant about per se?

[Side note: There are some discrepancies about the “true” origins of Lyme, Alpha-gal, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. If you’re one of those who are interested in alternative explanations, I’d highly recommend using those terms as search words on the Weston A. Price website for further reading.]

If you were to do a search online, here’s a quick overview of what you’d find:

1970s – Lyme gets its name

• Lyme disease becomes an official diagnosis after a group of people in or having recently visited Lyme, Connecticut begin experiencing similar symptoms. This included swollen knees, paralysis, skin rashes, arthritis, headaches, and chronic fatigue.1 Origin still unknown.

1980s – Vector Identified

• In the 80s a scientist (Dr. Burgdorfer) also working with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (a tick borne illness) links Lyme to ticks as well.¹

Early 2000s – A new illness emerges

• 2009 Alpha-gal syndrome is linked to Lone star ticks

2026 - A climbing trajectory

• Lyme disease and other categorized “tick borne illnesses” are on the rise at an increasingly steady pace. There is no readily available, mainstream cure nor straightforward disease pathway.

Country Folk vs. City Slickers

There is definitely a different mindset around ticks that I’ve found around city or suburb individuals versus country folk. In the country, ticks are just a part of every day life. They’re really hard to avoid – unless you always stay inside, don’t have pets, or tape up your legs wherever you go (ask me how I know about the tape, ha).

Now that I’ve been living in the country for close to two years I do have to laugh at the reactions I used to have. Or the paralyzing fear I would walk with now that I had kids. It was enough to make me avoid forests and taking my children anywhere ticks might be – and then we moved to the middle of the prairie, imagine that. God does have a sense of humor.

Earlier this year, I was at a homeschool meetup and a guest speaker was fielding questions about ticks. People shared they simply wore pants tucked into their socks anytime they went hiking or areas with a high tick possibility. Easy peasy, right? “Wait,” I thought. How am I supposed to wear long pants with long enough socks to tuck them into on 90+ degree days with 100+ heat index in July and August just to avoid ticks?! Spoiler alert, I’m not – and I don’t.

So Lexi, you live in a tick infested region and still go outside, walk in your field, interact with your pets on a daily basis without crippling fear – how do you do it? Well, I may not be as Laissez-faire as my neighbors and friends, but we have found a system that works to help keep us in a lower-risk tick bite population.

Tick Prevention 101

• Cistus Incanus Tea - this tea is made from the rock rose and when drank frequently has been claimed to keep ticks from wanting to bite you. They may still crawl on you, but are said to be less drawn to bite. I have a kiddo that seems especially prone to ticks so she is one I ask to drink the tea more frequently.

• Clove Tallow – Clove is said to be a scent that is not favorable to ticks. We’ve made an essential oil roller in the past, but we use tallow on a daily basis or at least after every shower, so this most recent batch I whipped up I included clove.

• Terrain Support – If you’ve read my previous blogs on the importance of your terrain, you know why I included it here. Having a healthy terrain, a strong immune system, and eating nutrient-dense foods all around will give your body a leg up even if you have a tick bite. Someone with a compromised immune system is more likely to have a negative response to a tick bite versus someone who has a strong immune system. Therefore, this is going to be one of your best preventative defenses. Just another reason to eat well and exercise on a regular basis. (Note: even with a strong immune system, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be vigilant about ticks or respond smartly to a bite)

• Swift Smacks - something crawling on me? I don’t even look before I smack it away. Once I’ve done this, then I can examine whether it was a tick or not – not vice versa.

• Nightly Checks - Every night each of us checks our armpits, anywhere there was tight clothing, and especially our hair. I’ve also heard of ticks on backs, in belly buttons, on toes —so a check with a family member or in front of a mirror does the trick.

• Mowing - keeping the areas where we spend most of our time mowed low helps reduce the number of ticks. They are particularly fond of grasses over 1 foot. They like to hang on the edge with their little arms held out like a toddler asking for “uppies” before they grab onto their victim. (how’s that for a little imagery)

• Tall rain boots - any type of shoe that can easily be grabbed by that aforementioned ‘needy toddler’ is not one I’m wearing in tick infested areas. My lovely nearly knee high tan line is testament to the daily muckboots I wear to ensure ticks do not have a readily available surface to hang onto.

• Chickens - When we only had bantam chickens (little ones) I didn’t notice much of a difference in the tick population. We still had a ton. Now that we have 4 full-sized chickens, they explore the property more confidently and have a pretty wide radius of where they’ll go foraging. This has helped immensely this summer.

• Tick Identification - For the sake of my mind, I have made it a point to learn the different markers of ticks that we find and know which disease they’re said to carry. Can you see this when they’re engorged? No. But if you find one creepin’ crawling along, you can largely tell what they are if they’re full-grown. The nymphs are a bit harder to tell at times.

Tick Action 101

• Tape: Whether you have packing tape, masking tape, or even scotch tape, this is a great way to grab a tick you see freely crawling that hasn’t attached yet. We just stick the tape to the tick whether its on your skin, clothing, or crawling nearby to get ahold of it without squeezing it. Then we enclose it fully inside before throwing it away. I’ve also seen people use cat hair rollers for this purpose after they’ve been out in a tick infested location.

• Tick Key: This thing has been a life saver. For pets. For ourselves. Wherever we are, we like to have these on hand. One thing about tick removal is that you want to be sure you also pull the head out. It can detach if you’re pulling the tick out by its body. Tick keys are such a simple way to place over the tick’s body and slide it back to pull the whole thing out, head and all. We each keep one on our keys and one in the garage for animals.

• Tweezers: Tweezers are another great alternative to the tick key. Before I had heard of it, I had a little tick response kit when we’d go camping, which also contained a pair of tweezers for removal.

• Lighter: For the ticks we’ve removed with the key, we prefer to burn them. There’s no way we want them to continue to crawl around and reproduce or latch on to another person or animal. I believe ticks can lay up to 200 eggs at a time. Gross.

Want to purchase the exact products I use on a daily basis? You can find a succinct list with links HERE.

Bite Response

There are lots of great posts out there about what to do if you have had a tick bite. Things like bentonite clay, homeopathic medicines, tinctures, etc. Things that we would use if we have had a tick we’ve had to remove and confidently identified that it isn’t a deer tick. But I’ll either save that post for another time if enough people indicate interest in such a post or leave it at prevention and let others speak to what to do in that case.

If we were to identify a deer tick had bitten one of us or our children, the first thing I would do is pray. Pray for guidance and direction and a clear mind. Some people choose to send their tick in for testing at a lab – there are some that test for free. I hesitate to do this, because there can be false positives which to me leads to an unnecessary fear.

Others immediately go to the doctor to begin a prescription of antibiotics, which has been said to stop the possibility of Lyme if caught early enough. But other sources state that 20% of the time the antibiotic is ineffective. (Dr. Berg shares in this video that there have been animal studies on the possibility of stevia in stopping the spirochete bacteria). Personally, it’s something I’d like to research more – the effectiveness of antibiotics on prevention of onset and what the alternatives are along with their efficacy.

Lyme is not a disease to mess around with. It can lead to a lifelong battle of pain and managing a disease – something I’m all too familiar with already while managing an autoimmune and genetic disorder. Remember, I’m not a doctor. This is not medical advice. I’m simply sharing what I would do in my personal life, not recommending any course of action you should take.

One thing I would suggest if you are in an endemic area or plan to go camping, hiking, etc. – is to have a plan ahead of time. Have the tools you need to respond. That way, when you find one and are internally freaking out in the moment, you have your plan in place already and can follow that and any backups you may need.

Where do you go from here?

Ticks are close to the top of my list of least favorite things. I’m actually less afraid of spiders now thanks to ticks. BUT because they are a lived reality for us, I understand I cannot live in crippling fear of them like I once did. What’s that saying? Prepared, not scared. The best thing I can do for myself and my family is to be prepared. Prepared to prevent tick bites and prepared to act if a bite occurs. We’ve had about 7 bites among the four of us over the course of 3 years. Prior to moving to the country and while out here.

I’ll reiterate here that God does not want us to live in fear – to hide out in our houses, away from His beautiful creation. That’s not His plan for our lives. So, get prepared. Create your own tick kit. Have some of these preventatives and action tools on hand – and get out there and enjoy the beauty of God’s world!

References

1 History of Lyme Disease - Bay Area Lyme Foundation

Fun fact about me, back in 2020 I found myself in a toxic work environment doing already stressful social work. My family saw how it all weighed on me and my mom, being the entrepreneur she is, suggested I start a business of my own. I knew I’d need something to support my family if I was looking at stepping away from my job.

To be honest, it was my mom’s idea to do curated gift boxes. But my own spin on the idea was to include a gift card in each box to a local business and to only fill the boxes with items from small businesses in the USA. Small businesses were really struggling during the pandemic with shutdowns, and I felt passionate about supporting them by making it easier to find intentional gifts for loved ones. It’s very easy to shop on Amazon. My hope was to do the gift shopping for the customer to avoid that pitfall.

I’m also somebody who doesn’t like cheap, breakable, will-go-unused gifts. Whenever I gift, business or not, I ensure it’s thoughtful and leans a bit more practical.

Once we made the cross country move, I was also consulting as a researcher and trainer during the time and we decided to start homeschooling, I couldn’t keep up with the business and ended up letting it dissolve. It was fun to make curated gift boxes, especially the themed ones and those paired to the recipient’s interests, but homeschooling took precedence for me.

Mid-Spring Baskets Over Easter Baskets

Several years ago, I decided to stop giving my children Easter baskets. I began to feel like it was detracting from the real reason of the holiday – the resurrection of Jesus Christ. My kids began looking forward to the gifts on that day more than time at church or reflection on their salvation.

There are other Christians out there that weave the story of Christ through their Easter giving, but we transitioned to doing May Day baskets instead. [We don’t celebrate May Day as a holiday, we’re just marking it as what feels like true spring.] It actually worked out perfectly because both of my girls’ birthdays are in April and usually fall around Good Friday or Easter – it’s just a lot of concentrated gifting overall. Spreading it out to May worked perfectly for our family logistically and more importantly to better align with our faith.

I see it as a win-win. My kids still get fun-filled baskets and Easter is spent more on reflection on Jesus than receiving gifts. It’s a personal conviction decision. There’s no shaming from me if you do.

But Lexi, you might say, it’s already mid-June, why are you posting about Mid-Spring baskets? Well, it’s been a very busy spring (see why here) and my girls have been very lovingly reminding me on a frequent basis that I hadn’t given them their gift baskets yet.

I had a *rare* free day to myself where I could put together the baskets and have the items be a surprise. Otherwise, my girls are with me everywhere I go. As an added bonus I was able to find a lot of the items on clearance or at our local thrift store. At last, they have received their long-awaited gift baskets and they were a hit.

Anyway, here I am giving you a back story like an online recipe when you’re here for the gift ideas. Without further ado, here are my scrunchy, homesteady, homeschooling gift baskets.

*Full disclosure I will be posting affiliate links on some items – these are brands I’ve purchased before and am not sponsored for this post – I simply want to provide URLs for easy access to those interested and support my family a bit in the meantime. Only buy what you’re truly interested in and can afford!*

Scrunchy, Homesteader, Homeschooling Gift Basket Ideas

Snack Foods

You just can’t go wrong with adding fun snack foods or treats to a gift basket. Most people won’t turn down food, unless they’re picky. And if they’re picky, they probably need to be working on balancing their gut microbiome.

My kids’ gift baskets always. Include. snacks. They’re always asking for them anyway, so why not. Here’s what I included this time:

· Aspartame-free gum

Listen, my little one has loved chewing gum since she was 3-years-old. She has a grandfather that always has Orbit gum on hand. She learned quickly that if she asked, grandaddy would give her some. So, at three she walked around chomping on that gum like she was a full-blown teenager from Clueless. However, I do not like the fact that most gums on the market contain aspartame. Aspartame is a known carcinogen and potential neurotoxin – like, wait, what?! Some studies have even found it to have effects on mood (serotonin & dopamine) and memory.

Basically, my point here is I stopped allowing my little child, with a developing body and brain to chew just any gum. It’s rare she does get gum now, but for special occasions I’ll make an exception – as long as there’s no aspartame.

· Annies Fruit Tape

This is another “for special occasions” treat. I’m not the biggest fan of Annie’s brand, thanks to General Mills acquiring them, but I’m also not a never say never type of person. I allow pre-made treats or buy from big corporations from time to time.

· Made Good Bars

These are little rice crispy alternatives by Made Good. They’re gluten-free and in this case, that was enough for me. I didn’t check the label for seed oils or ingredients. This was a fun gift for my kiddos. My oldest, who has a gluten allergy, loves having Made Good products from time to time.

· Justin’s White Chocolate Cups

I just can’t resist these cups as a little treat for myself – and anything that I find as a treat, usually becomes something my kids long for as well. My oldest always asks for her own. In this case she got them as part as her gift basket.

Beauty products

My youngest is a girly girl. From a very young age she enjoyed putting on lip gloss, was interested in makeup, and always getting in my things. I have always found this interesting because it’s rare that I wear much makeup or lip gloss, I suppose it’s just been woven into her DNA. Therefore, I usually try to find a way to work in a beauty item for her gift baskets.

To be clear, she is not allowed to wear makeup and “lip gloss” is usually chapstick. Because, one, I want my little girls to enjoy being little – not little adults. Two, I think we should all embrace our natural beauty. And three, it’s really hard to find lip glosses without toxic ingredients and the clean ones have a hefty price tag.

My oldest is the complete opposite and is appalled if my youngest wants to put lip gloss on. Her beauty gifts are usually more practical as you’ll see here:

· Bamboo Nail Brush

Living on a homestead is dirty work. There’s constantly dirt or grime under your nails from animal care, gardening, fun outside, you name it. This was the perfect gift for my practical eldest.

· Mineral Nail Polish

Just like lip gloss, nail polish is often full of some really awful chemicals. It’s not always cheap to swap out for better options, but I’ve been working on doing so over holidays and birthdays the past few years. This brand is quality and I scored it on the clearance shelf.

· Organic Face Masks

Both girls love a little pampering. Yes, even us grimy homesteaders. It’s been something they’ve both enjoyed from a young age; it’s become sort of a fun shared activity from time to time. My youngest fell asleep wearing hers and when I went to remove it, I couldn’t find it until the next morning. Ha.

· Hair Detangler

I’m honestly not aware of this brand, but it was on clearance at Natural Grocers and I had just brushed through some very tangled curls that very morning. It just made sense for my little one who loves beauty products – and who was the culprit of the tangled hair.

Educational Gifts

What homeschool mom doesn’t love adding a little learning opportunity into their gift-giving? My kids really enjoy the things I add in as well, so it’s not simply imposed upon them.

· Math Flash Cards

Math is one of the areas that doesn’t come as easily to my oldest daughter. I was at the thrift store and found these pocket-sized flash cards to help reinforce math facts for her to memorize.

· ASL magnetic poetry

The proclaimed favorite gift within the basket for my oldest. She has been working on learning ASL in her free time over the past year and learned part of the lyrics to Forrest Frank’s “Lemonade” in ASL to perform at her co-op share day. We usually check out library books with different signs to learn but thought these would be a fun way to view and learn them on a daily basis.

Homestead Relevant Gifts

The gift baskets themselves were thrifted and will double for usefulness on the homestead. My oldest has been needing an egg-collecting basket and my youngest has wanted a basket while collecting items from the garden. Both can be re-used after the gifting and were roughly the same price as new gift bags from Target.

· Organic Seed Packs

My girls have both asked for a garden bed to take care of this year. We’re honestly behind on our garden and it has sadly taken a back seat to figuring out sheep husbandry and building out our apartment space. This really saddens me because I very strongly believe in growing your own food, but other things have simply taken priority.

When choosing which seeds, I was mindful of their capabilities (flowers for the younger) and timing (what can be planted later in the season). I purchased seeds that require more care for my older child (carrots and lemon balm). Can you get free seed packets from the library? Absolutely! And we do, this was just something to add dimension and fun to the gifts.

What do you think? Are these things you would add to gift baskets for your children? Are there other ideas that have been meaningful and a hit that you would have included? I’d love to hear!

Blessings,

Lexi

Do you ever find yourself wishing that something with a catchy beat you have stuck in your head had meaning behind it that aligned with your faith? There are some fun Instagrammers out there that “redeem” popular secular songs and remix it with new lyrics. I always find these entertaining to watch.

We aren’t a family tha…

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Let’s be honest, not all Christians embrace holistic healing. In fact, some run from it. There is an air of fear of the unknown, the misunderstood, or simply jumping to conclusions. This is largely because it is something that has been unlearned in our current generation and among many Westernized nations.

For thousands of years cultures have turned to God-given remedies for their maladies, ailments, and injuries. Herbs, poultices, teas - all things that grow from the ground or come from animals, have been utilized for miraculous healing. Why miraculous? Because what’s from God is good, and God is thee Miracle Worker.

Are there people who have used what God has given us in perversion? Absolutely. Through witchcraft, in worship of false gods, as a sole source of healing.

I understand the hangup.

It can be hard to navigate good and evil in this fallen world. What’s good is being called wrong and wrong right. Operating in today’s world calls for discernment, lots and lots of it -which requires prayer and time in the Word.

I see where people are coming from. I truly do. But who actually told us that natural healing tools were wrong, and why did we believe them?

I have some ideas about where this specific perversion came from (research the Flexner Report; contemplate money, greed, and power).

The enemy also loves to take what God meant for good and twist it, but why “holistic healing is bad” became blindly accepted among some believers is something I’m still working through myself.

God does reveal himself in various ways. A lot of times it’s in a still, small way - or through His Word, but we’re too busy living of this world to see or hear it.

So, dear reader, I’d like you to contemplate this along with me. Why are the things God has given us - good, beautiful things - now considered evil?

What’s From God is Always Good

In Genesis, God blesses the world with abundance. An abundance of plants, light, herbs, and living things for our use.

When God gave us these things, He allowed us to utilize them. He asked us to steward them, just as we are called to steward our bodies. He knew the world would become broken after the fall, and if you look around, He has already provided everything we need to be restored: red light from the sun, healing energy through grounding, day and night for rest and wakefulness, seasons. I could go on.

He also gave us signals within our own bodies to understand what we need: the condition of our eyes, skin, nails, tongues, and our nervous system. In short, we’ve fallen out of touch with understanding ourselves and those around us. Great-grandma knew though. If little Sally was pale and listless, she knew what to pull from the pantry to help.

I know there will be “what about-isms” even here. “But what about life expectancy?” “What about extreme measures in extreme situations?” Absolutely there is a time and place for medicine and medical intervention, one hundred percent. But that should not be our first response to every bump, bruise, or cold. I’m not criticizing medical advancements. I’m questioning our overutilization of and sole trust in them.

In Ezekiel 47:12, Ezekiel is shown trees along the bank: “their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” Plants are capable of healing.

So what about that?

Things We’ve Let Culture Steal

Holistic healing isn’t the only thing we’ve let culture distort.

The rainbow, God’s covenant sign, is now almost exclusively associated with a cultural movement. Christians are afraid to let their child wear a rainbow because of how it will be perceived. Is the rainbow wrong? Of course not. The symbol predates any modern movement by thousands of years.

Frequency and grounding. Our bodies have electromagnetic frequencies. This is not new age mysticism, it is biology. The nervous system utilizes bioelectric currents to communicate throughout the body. These signals can be picked up by instruments to give us further insight into what’s going on internally.

God commands the very electrical currents of our world. In Job 38:35, God asks: “Do you send the lightning bolts on their way?” All around us we are surrounded by electrical currents and frequencies. Grounding (simply going outdoors barefoot, feet in the grass) is not a new age practice promoted by wellness culture. It is a physical one with documented effects on the nervous and immune systems. God created the earth. He created our bodies. He made them to communicate.

Bees are another example. They hum at 150 to 400 Hz, which falls within a documented range of emotional healing therapy for humans. God-given, and remarkable.

Herbs and plant medicine have been utilized throughout history by believers; mothers, healers, and medical practitioners. These Christians were not practicing paganism, but stewardship. And there are testimonies where prayer, laying on of hands, and herbs in conjunction provided miraculous healing.

When did we decide that because something has been claimed by a movement we disagree with, the thing itself is off limits? Is that actually a biblical framework, or does it teeter on the legalism of the Pharisees - the ones who missed the miracle of Jesus because they were consumed with the rules?

Pharmakeia — A Word Worth Considering

Understanding Greek and Hebrew gives further insight into biblical texts. One word particularly relevant to this conversation is the Greek word pharmakeia. It appears in Galatians 5:20 and Revelation 18:23 and is translated in most English Bibles as sorcery or witchcraft.

Though there is some nuance to this. It is often difficult to find a 1:1 translation between languages. Take déjà vu for example. Try explaining the complexity of this in two English words.

Sources suggest pharmakeia referred to the use of drugs and potions in pagan ritual. A deliberate manipulation of the body and mind through chemical means to access spiritual powers and deities other than God the Father.

I bring this up to point out that there are Christians who would not touch an herbal tincture who are completely comfortable consuming synthetic pharmaceuticals, some of which contain heavy metals, adjuvants, and compounds derived from sources they would find alarming if they read the ingredient list with a keen eye.

Not to mention the symbol for pharmacy is known as The Bowl of Hygeia – which is a serpent coiled around a chalice. Just a little too coincidental if you ask me.

This is not an argument against all pharmaceutical medicine. Many are derived from natural sources to begin with (e.g. penicillin), then often laden with much more. Rather, this is an argument for consistency. If the concern is what goes into the body, that concern should always be applied.

This is not to encourage a pendulum swing to fear pharmaceuticals. My hope is to invite discernment and faith-driven decision-making rather than fear-driven.

The Danger of Idolizing Doctors

“Let doctors be doctors” is something I’ve been told as I bring to light my concerns with the medical establishment we have today.

“Trust the science” was an oft touted statement over the past 6 years (which as a biologist is a very silly statement to me, as science is literally meant to be probed and tested).

“I trust my doctor” is a common statement around health concerns.

But where should our trust actually lie?

Those versus make it abundantly clear where our trust should lie.

Ultimately, our trust belongs to God and God alone. There is a difference between respecting the gifts and sacrifices of medical professionals and outsourcing the stewardship of our bodies entirely to a system and calling it faith.

Consider 2 Chronicles 16:12. King Asa did not seek the Lord but only the physicians. This is not an argument against physicians. It is an argument against making physicians the primary authority over our bodies in place of God.

I view medicine and holistic care alike as tools God has given us to cope with living in a broken, fallen world; a world where we will not realize our full potential until we receive our heavenly bodies. I see herbs, homeopathy, biofeedback, and iridology as tools from God to be used wisely, not in place of God but ultimately from Him.

God’s provision sometimes looks like a surgeon in the right city at the right moment of a rare diagnosis. That is God working through medicine, not medicine replacing God.

Three Pitfalls to Avoid

The pitfall of fear and avoidance. We can become so avoidant of seeking any care (whether from distrust or cost) that we end up worse off. A small malady becomes a kidney disease. An infection leads to losing a limb, which I have seen happen to someone I know. My own ancestors were Christian Scientists (I am not) who refused medical intervention for my great-uncle when he was twelve years old. He ultimately died. That is not walking in faith, but a theology that has let fear and Gnosticism lead.

The pitfall of miraculous healing. Praying for healing doesn’t always result in that miraculous restoration. We still continue to trust in God. Be pragmatic about it. God can do it, but He doesn’t always do it.

The pitfall of Gnosticism. This is the belief that the body is a prison and that spiritual life is all that matters; physical life and physical sins are less relevant. Jesus rose again in his body. Gnostics would see this as counterintuitive as they view the body as a prison we get released from when we die. Paul writes that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit - the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. Our bodies matter to God. If Jesus’ body was worth resurrecting, ours are worth stewarding.

I’ve heard Christians take a stance of apathy toward their physical health. They say, “I know I’ll die eventually, and at least I know where I’m going” as a reason for neglecting their health. Well yes, but, you are not practicing a posture of stewardship. Stewardship includes ALL blessings from God, including the body He gave you. Some Christian circles view physical health as worldly, idolatrous, or prideful, when God’s word says He will raise our heavenly bodies upon Christ’s return.

Taking care of our bodies is a delicate balance. Neither fear nor obsess. Neither avoid nor idolize.

The Wellness Obsession Danger

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we can find ourselves obsessed with wellness. Whether that be in the pursuit of low-tox living, perfect fitness, or overcoming illness/disease. These pursuits, while good in proportion, can become their own idol. Chasing perfect health can become all consuming.

Terrain theory, biofeedback, herbal protocols, and eating clean are not inherently bad. But when we begin to trust them over God, we have moved from stewardship into obsession. When we are more anxious about seed oils than we are at peace in God, we’ve gone off track.

Health is not the goal. A relationship with God and being well enough to share the gospel is the ultimate goal. Utilizing what God has given us to steward our bodies well is a means to that end - the great commission.

It never hurts to check in with yourself, or with a trusted friend: am I caring for my body so I can better serve God and others, or has caring for this body become my purpose?

Tools, Not Idols

There are a lot of health and wellness tools out there that can be used to detract from our faith. I’m sure some come to mind without me listing them off. My point here isn’t which ones do or don’t, rather we can get so caught up in calling things evil that we miss what God has made available to us.

A knife in a kitchen is not malicious because it can also be used as a weapon. An MRI is not wicked because it uses electromagnetic fields. An ultrasound is not evil because it uses sound waves to see inside the body. A tincture is not sinful because of the properties of the plant. Many tools themselves are not inherently bad. Often times it’s the intent behind it and the authority over it that remains in question, unless we can discern is outright wrong.

I’ve encountered fear over biofeedback for the fact that it gathers information through the palm of the hand, and has been likened to the practice of palm reading. I believe this fear comes from a place of wanting to live righteously. I also think it comes from a lack of understanding. As biofeedback utilizes the nervous system to identify stressors in the body. Similar to standing on a scale that can tell you your fat content and bone density. It is not accessing the spiritual realm. It is reading the nervous system God designed.

I’ve seen biofeedback utilized as a tool for people who have been told for many years that no one could find out what was wrong with them. I’m one of those people that was helped by it, when for many years nobody else could. And I knew it was a good thing because many divine appointments lead me to the point of having my own biofeedback scan done for the first time:

God laid a friend from church on my heart. I felt encouraged to ask who she sees for medical care – I already knew we aligned in skepticism of our current medical system. She pointed me in the direction of an herbalist who utilizes biofeedback and iridology – and is also a Christian. She read my blood work carefully, identified my low HCL and likely MTHFR, and became my mentor - another divine appointment. Multiple of my clients that I’ve since scanned have told me they were praying for answers in their health and my business was brought up in a divine way.

As a society, we embrace PET scans, MRIs, EEGs, CT scans, and ultrasounds. All of which assess the nervous system and tell us what’s going on internally. Why not the lesser-known tools like biofeedback and iridology?

It all comes back to discernment. Does this tool help me understand and steward the body God gave me? Is it being used in submission to Him or in replacement of Him? Asking yourself these questions will help you navigate the medical and wellness industry, while weaving your faith throughout.

Steward What You’ve Been Given

One of my favorite biblical wellness verses that serves as a call to action for all believers is 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” - 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Let us honor the bodies God has given us. Not because we fear getting sick. Not because we want a beach-ready body, but with wholehearted gratitude for the blessing God has given us – in recognition that He knitted each of us together in our mother’s wombs. That we are His masterpiece. With understanding that we are uniquely and bio individually made by a Creator who cares so deeply about each of us that He knows the exact number of hairs on our heads.

Let us not only thank God for what He made, but that He sent His only begotten son to the cross to redeem it.

Bottom line: Let’s stop fearing the things God made. Stop yielding them to movements that have claimed them. Take back the rainbow. Take back the herbs. Take back the frequencies. Take back the faithful stewardship of our bodies that Scripture calls us to.

I’m doing that by closing the door on fear, on obsession with feeling “my best”, on the pursuit of crunchy perfection and instead running full speed into the arms of my Father who knows me intimately and has given me an abundance of blessings readily available on this earth, waiting to be rediscovered and understood while embracing the tools He’s given me to do so.

Fear not the tools nor the ailments so much so that you forget the Ultimate Healer, the Prince of Peace. May God bless you and lead you on a similar path of peace.

Blessings,

Lexi

This pretty much sums up how my spring kicked off.

Blogging has been on the back burner and here’s why. This is essentially a blog about why I haven’t been blogging. How ironic.

What’s Been Happening

Have you ever had so many good things happening at once - you’re excited and overjoyed, then suddenly it becomes too much and you realize you can’t be fully invested in each thing at the same level as before?

Welcome to springtime on the homestead.

I started my Substack fired up and energetic, and then life. I’m still on fire about writing on homeschooling, homesteading, and most importantly biblical wellness. That desire is still there. But there are real-life things currently taking priority.

Priority number one: finishing a small apartment space in our pole barn.

As much as I’ve loved that we could pull off tiny living, there are some inefficiencies that have been wearing on me. No plumbing, small solar load, inclement weather. I see the blessing that will be coming from this, but otherwise we’ve not been living optimally for the past year.

In December we had contractors frame out a 500 sq ft space in the upper level of our pole barn and now we’re DIYing ourselves to the finish line. Easier said than done, but we’re chipping away at it.

Here’s why I’ve been anxious to complete this project sooner than later.

We live a football field’s distance from our tornado shelter, in a tiny home. Tornado season and tiny homes in the Midwest don’t align well. Which means I’ve been experiencing high cortisol (already trying to heal from adrenal fatigue) and cannot sleep through a strong wind or a thunderstorm. It is windy out here.

I’m so grateful for the community we’ve found. They have been kind enough to offer help finishing the space - I’m working to get it to a point where it makes sense to have multiple families out here for a big push. Prayers would be appreciated for wisdom in knowing how others can help, endurance to see it through, and the timeliness of it all.

So yes, writing has taken a spot on the back burner. That saddens me. But there are seasons, aren’t there?

There’s more.

The Homestead Is Alive

You can’t possibly live on a homestead and only be torn between two things. Make it a semi-off-grid homestead you’re building from scratch and the idea becomes laughable. I’m laughing so I don’t cry.

I knew we probably didn’t need more chickens. But the idea of different breeds was enticing, and when you hear those little chirps in the farm store, who can resist? My husband spoke sense into me and we held off for a while. Then he gave in and we came home with six baby chicks: two blue eggers, two barred rock, and two California gray.

Baby chicks are always such a delight.

Sadly, we had our first chick ever pass away, which was heartbreaking. And yet, homesteading has a way of acquainting you with the reality of life and death.

Spring is also a season of birth and rebirth. We welcomed three baby lambs onto the homestead, born to our two ewes. It was beautiful. It was thrilling. It was such a blessing. And we were not entirely prepared.

But that’s how we roll.

Our Great Pyrenees puppy sounded the alert on a Tuesday morning, a yelp that told us something was happening. My husband went down to find our youngest ewe, Beylah, had delivered her first lamb. It was beautiful, the sunrise making a backdrop of it, and Beylah was an attentive mama from the very first moment. We were thrilled.

Then, surprise.

Two days later, at three in the morning, the same puppy yelps. My husband came running back with news: our other ewe had delivered twins. Two boys. Twins are uncommon for a first-time mother sheep. We woke our oldest daughter so she could witness it, watch Bren (the sheep) clean them up, and take in the whole wonder of it. By the end of the week we were very, very tired.

Our three lambs are named Ceyla, Bijarni, and Sigurth.

Ceyla is a variation on Selah, after her mother Beylah. Bijarni means bear. Sigurth means victory.

A Time of Celebration

Spring is a busy season for most people. Graduations, weddings, gatherings. Everything wakes back up after the quiet of winter.

Three of our four family members have spring birthdays, and our two girls are born just two weeks apart. We celebrated them with special tickets to Winter Jam, their favorite meals, birthday dinners with family, bundt cakes, and homemade treats.

They also joined me on a trip to Wisconsin while I attended an herbal conference - that trip deserves a post of its own. We found some truly wonderful gems.

That’s a Wrap

We’re finishing Year 4 of Ambleside Online and Kindergarten. It was a good year. My Year 4 daughter loved the history reading, particularly the biographies of Abigail Adams and Isaac Newton, and George Washington’s World. Our favorite read-alouds included Robinson Crusoe and The Incredible Journey (if you’ve read it tell me I’m not alone in choking back tears for most of it – even knowing it had a happy ending).

There was real growth this year for all of us. My oldest performed in her first play, alongside both children and adults. My youngest taught herself to ride a bicycle. We all became more capable on the homestead. Woven through it all was early American history, multiplication, reading comprehension, Latin, and mythology. Life skills and bookish learning both hold weight in my view, spoken from someone who was book-smart and had to learn essential life skills rather later than she should have. My children will be better equipped.

Biblical Wellness

In addition to teaching at home, my husband and I stretched our faith by volunteering to create and teach a twelve-week Biblical Wellness course at our church. Inspired by BiblioDiet and several podcasts I had listened to over the fall, I felt called to bring my passion for this subject to other believers. Thus our class was born.

The enthusiasm from participants is what carried us through days already depleted from homesteading. The spiritual opposition during this season was real and not taken lightly. But all of it was for the glory of God.

Business Launch

And if all of that weren’t enough.

My excitement over unlocking my own health mysteries led me to want to help others do the same, to offer nutritional support tailored to each person’s bio-individuality. God knitted each of us together uniquely in our mother’s womb. Why wouldn’t our approach to health reflect that?

So I launched a business offering biofeedback sessions. In short, biofeedback is like a survey for the body, examining stressors by receiving feedback from the nervous system. Through this process, individuals can better understand what their body needs, whether that’s herbal supplements, identifying which systems are under stress, or simply gaining a clearer picture of what’s going on from a root-cause perspective.

Have you ever searched your symptoms online and discovered there are dozens of possible causes for migraines or eczema? Biofeedback helps narrow that down. I think of myself as a nutritional detective, truly listening to a client’s history and partnering with them to figure out what’s going on, without diagnosing, and providing a path forward through nutrition and herbal support.

I also offer pantry audits, walking clients through their pantries to identify hidden sugars, ultra-processed foods, and glyphosate sources. Some clients choose a more extensive protocol that includes circadian rhythm support, exercise guidance based on their scan, and more.

I’m having fun discovering what I can offer: tinctures, balms, herbs, electrolytes, whole food proteins, and education on how to take charge of your wellness. And for those who are interested, exploring the theology behind why it all matters.

I’ve already worked with a number of clients, and it truly fills my cup to help people begin to feel better.

You’re starting to see what I meant when I said there were an overwhelming number of good things happening all at once.

What’s Coming

Summer is closer than it feels. We’re looking forward to week-long camps at home, gardening, pushing homestead projects forward, some travel, and catching up on a few school subjects we fell behind on.

I’m beginning to feel the weight lift as weekly commitments wrap up and the schedule winds down. It’s time for toes in the grass and sun on our faces, garden strolls and firefly-lit walks, hammocking under the stars and popsicles on the pavilion.

I’m hoping to bring more biblical wellness content here this summer, along with herbal education, homestead updates, and anything we learn along the way through travel. Perhaps some cooking, some baking, homeschooling preparation, and science and biology. Really, I’m looking to see where the Lord leads.

If any of that interests you, subscribe, follow along on Notes, or reach out. I’d love to hear from you.

Lexi

I’ve grown up in a family shaped by injustices. Both social and medical. I would have had an older brother, yet he died at the hands of doctors – proven in a malpractice lawsuit. My mom had a brush with death when delivering my oldest brother – the doctor had showed up slightly inebriated and cut into her intestines during the surgery & still sewed her back up without fixing it. I’ve experienced judges who didn’t listen during custody cases and watched cops brush off decrees about my father’s frightening behaviors toward us.

And still – questioning what was laid in front of me wasn’t always the way I operated.

I grew up in a moral family and operating from a default of trust was a big part of that. So if someone was positioned as an authoritative figure or an expert, the general attitude was to trust what they said or told us to do. In school, I was a top-performing student who never questioned the authority of my teachers out of respect.

But deep down. Deep down a spark was being ignited. I’d watched the adults in my life wronged many times – yet no justice came of it. This spark lit a fire that kindled quietly and slowly over time. As I aged, I became less trusting of new acquaintances. By the time I was a teenager, I was more of a skeptic than any of my other family members.

But still, teachers, doctors, figures of authority were not to be questioned and I maintained a general sense of trust. The injustices toward my family were simply running across some “bad eggs” in the system, otherwise operate with a sense of trust unless proven otherwise.

A Skeptic is Born

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly where my skepticism towards the medical system began. Attending my Master of Public Health program was the first time I learned about the failures of our country’s medical system. The pay-per-test model that encouraged doctors to perform more x-rays, more strep tests, more “diagnostics” that may not necessarily be needed, but were overutilized due to higher payout.

This was also where I learned pharmaceutical company tactics. That several had gotten in trouble for their incentivizing doctors in unethical ways – fancy dinners, tropical vacations, new cars. Incentivizing them to prescribe their drug exclusively or excessively. Therefore, rules needed to be put into place to keep the bribery from happening to halt the bonus driving the push.

I have a few favorite documentaries and dramatizations on this: Dopesick on Hulu, PainKiller, The Pharmacist on Netflix, and Love and other Drugs.

Regardless of this, I still held a belief in the goodness of medical professionals. That there were people like me who went into the field to help as many people as they could. Surely, they were doing their best with no ulterior motive or lack of compassion.

Unfortunately, my personal experiences to the contrary were beginning to add up. Misdiagnoses, lost lab tests, and being sent in circles for relief from my symptoms – some still with no answers.

And whenever I spoke with some authority of my own - having studied anatomy, physiology, chemistry, organic chemistry, etc. - I was met with a “well how could you know” look, because of course I didn’t go as far as to attend medical school. My own life experience, knowledge of body systems, and intuition wasn’t enough to hold any weight in that white-washed room.

Once I became pregnant with my oldest daughter, like the good student I am, I wanted to know the best environment and birth experience I could provide. So I began researching. I quickly dove into how to live a non-toxic environment while pregnant, what foods to avoid for baby’s health, and how to keep my daughter well during a birth by avoiding an epidural and other medical interventions.

I immediately knew I wanted a low-intervention birth, as long as there was no emergency. Watching The Business of Being Born was very eye-opening to me. Seeing the history of medical involvement, how they would tie women down during labor after giving them a hallucinogenic pain reliever to keep them from jumping off the bed. Nothing about that seemed natural to me. I wanted to do what my body could on its own to bring my child into the world.

Maybe this was the moment. It was one of the few times I cared about history up to this point. I was invested in the history of childbirth and how it was handled. But it was very telling. And seeing how they treated childbirth as unnatural and putting women into unnatural birthing positions really disgusted me.

Maybe the medical system wasn’t what I thought it was? After this, I’ve had numerous experiences. Docs who told me to have life-altering surgeries rather than make lifestyle changes to heal – I didn’t do the surgery. Doctors who told me my liver was failing via teledoc. Then hearing no, I was just dehydrated, but couldn’t speak to why I had rashes all over my body. Three years without figuring out it was actually celiacs. Doctors who talked about my daughter being “malnourished” into a microphone right in front of me, not believing that she’d been in the 1^st percentile her entire life – my husband and I were both small children ourselves. Lost labs. Antibiotics that only made the problem worse. Doctors who wouldn’t see me because I was too ill and sent me off to urgent care?

It was disappointing really. I chalked it up to moving to a new state and figured their standards just weren’t as high as the state I moved from – wrong.

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Pandemic Panic

Then the pandemic hit. It was scary. I had a newborn. Public health officials everywhere were in alignment with the lockdowns. The masks. The distancing. The quarantine. Same with my fellow peers from my Master’s program. Honestly, I was navigating a tough work environment and a newborn, trying to avoid postpartum depression – I didn’t really have time to think about whether there was anything nefarious in what was going on.

So I fell back into my old patterns. Follow the rules. Don’t question authority. The one thing I did know, was I wasn’t about to sign up for an experimental vaccine as everything in science needs a trial period. A time to test its efficacy. So I knew above all else that I’d at least wait before signing up for a new vaccine.

It was at the crux of when vaccines started becoming mandatory for travel that I began to wonder if it was something worth considering. I lived halfway across the country from all my family and friends – “What if I could never see them again?” I wondered.

This wondering lead to a heated discussion between my husband and I which turned into an argument – he felt strongly against getting the vaccine because he had a feeling something bad could happen to him if he did. I didn’t see it back then, I do now.

It was enough of a disagreement that I figured I should finally do some digging of my own. Up until this point I was only consuming mainstream media’s take on things and whatever was posted online. And it was becoming increasingly hard to find anything about natural healing – and I’d always believed in the healing capabilities of herbs, food, and exercise.

I knew there were some public health figures who I had enjoyed reading post-grad. Those who spoke clearly and authoritatively about addressing public health programs. Those who had been in the trenches of epidemiological outbreak.

Research Taken into My Own Hands

So I began searching. What did they think of what was going on? I saw a lot of public health practitioners speaking up publicly - nobody I’d heard of before.

My searches proved to be fruitful. My eyes opened.

I found the blog of a cardiologist who was mentioned in a book I had read. He was sharing his concern around the vaccines effects on spike protein and cardiovascular events. He had anecdotal evidence from his own work that supported his concerns. Him ringing the alarm bells was met with threats to his career, to him personally – he was shadow banned online and de platformed. [I wish I’d saved the blogs, because searching keywords doesn’t return any results - it’s probably been scrubbed]

This really didn’t sit well with me. Science is meant to be questioned. Trust the science is one of the most anti-scientific phrases that could be uttered. Science is always changing, always evolving. We’re making new discoveries all of the time. Hardly any hypotheses become a Law – meaning they are irrefutable such as the Law of Gravity.

This was a big eye opener for me. I started to be more alert to the messaging that was going on around me. Masks and hand sanitizer were flying off the shelves, but vitamin C was still stocked full. People were told to stay inside rather than outdoors in fresh air and getting vitamin D? People were being bribed to get a shot with some of the worst foods possible – donuts, fast-food – you could even win a car! This also went against my scientific education – you are NOT to bribe people when asking them to participate in research, even when voluntary. To complete my capstone project, I had to be very careful how I worded asking parents in Tanzania to fill out a questionnaire in order to not coerce them. Some of these tactics for vaccination seemed… very coercive.

Alcohol could now be delivered to your door? Hand washing went out the door for messaging. Ivermectin (a Nobel prize winning discovery) was mocked by the CDC as horse medicine. A lifesaving pill!

The flu magically disappeared and any flu-like symptoms were automatically the big C. Prevention messaging was all but buried and the only way to stop what was happening was with what seemed to be a magic shot.

None of it made sense.

It was like the scales had finally fallen from my eyes and I was seeing the world in a whole new light.

Sharing out of Love

I kept quiet for a long time. Shocked at how people attacked my husband for what he posted on the mishandling of everything. Hurt and in awe at being uninvited to weddings or other gatherings because we didn’t comply.

Many of my friends and family chose to do what was asked of them and I’ve stayed quiet for a long time. Some people know where I stand, but I’ve never wanted anyone I know to feel ashamed for the choices they make – it should be a voluntary choice after all! But the fact that people are making this choice without the full picture of the inherent risks and small sample sizes and length of study is against the Nuremberg Code.

Still, people should be able to decide how they would like to approach their and their children’s health – as long as they’re fully informed – and not be shamed, ridiculed, threatened, or fired.

Sometimes it feels as if there was a before. Before I started questioning everything and an after. A time when you can’t go back to sleep as to the corruption going on around you, nor do you want to.

It was a lot easier then. In the before. A lot less to worry about. A lot less vigilance. Easier to connect with others who also don’t care.

But I wouldn’t change a thing. And I’m glad I am where I am now. Now I only wish I could wake up others I love to see what I have seen, but they must come to it of their own accord, like I did.

This is Part 1 of my Big Food & Pharma Series. Stay Tuned for the next part where I examine how the two industries are one big revolving door and what those ultra processed foods are actually doing to your body.

If you liked this post, subscribe so you don’t miss out on the rest of the series.

This post has been a long time coming.

I tend to be a fairly quiet person - an observer. I gather my thoughts and feelings and keep my cards close to my chest, unless I know it’s a safe space to share.

Well, I’ve been gathering and quiet for long enough. I now feel comfortable sharing what’s been on my mind — and why — about the industries holding us hostage to our health. Our poor health, to be exact.

I’m not a big feather ruffler. If I’m speaking out loudly, it’s likely because I’ve reached my boiling point or enough time has passed to feel safe doing so. While we’re still in the midst of it all, I’ve lived far enough beyond my eyes being opened that I can say confidently: I’m glad they have been.

After I realized the blog post I was writing on Big Food and Big Pharma was quickly turning into its own novel, I figured it’d be best to break it into a series to make it more digestible. I know how many of us have goldfish attention spans anymore -- a 20-page document as one post just didn’t make sense. So here we are.

Why Do I Get a Say?

I’m not a big-name celebrity, influencer, or award-winning scientist. And honestly, I think that’s what makes this more worth reading. I’m just an everyday mid-30s, child of the 90s, Midwestern mom whose eyes have been opened to the greed and nefarious activities of two big industries designed to keep us sick.

And I pack a punch, because I have a degree in biology and a Master’s in Public Health. I know what I’m speaking to from both an educational and a personal perspective.

Rather than the voices of the so-called “experts” drowning us out, I think it matters to lean into those of us living through the frustrations. Those of us who don’t have endless cash flow to live above the current circumstances.

I’ve had plenty of experience with the medical system to speak to its flaws. I’ve studied the errors in its ways. And I was raised with Big Food lining my fridge and my pantry — I’m no stranger to microwaveable meals and boxed everything. Home-cooked meals were a rare experience for me, so I can speak to the damage it’s done in my own life.

As someone passionate about wellness from a young age, enough to study it for six years, I have the knowledge to speak on body systems and the wherewithal to find legitimate research and suss out what doesn’t add up.

But more than my education, it’s my lived experience. My trial and error. My failed attempts at clean eating until I finally figured it out. And even more than all of that — my faith. My faith has helped me discern the truth about eating well, moving my body, and knowing what’s right.

God has a plan and a purpose. Though I’m a homeschool mom now, He’s using my degrees and my passions to share what I’ve learned, and am still learning, with others. To educate and encourage people to steward their bodies well and care for the temple God has blessed them with. It wasn’t all for naught after all. Hallelujah!

What It’s All About

What do I hope you walk away with after this series? Not necessarily being more informed, there’s plenty of that out there already. More than anything, I hope to nudge you toward listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. To utilize your God-given discernment to open your eyes to God’s truth in our fallen world.

This series is not about living in fear or losing all trust. Swinging your pendulum too far can lead to a life frozen in “what ifs”. That’s not how we’re meant to live. Fear is mentioned numerous times in the Bible and God’s response is always the same: “Fear not”.

This series is for anyone curious about how someone traditionally schooled in wellness walked away from what she was taught. For anyone questioning messaging in health and wellness. Or anyone who can relate to what it’s like to wake up from the daze of blind compliance.

What to Expect

I’m going to launch this series with my own personal experience of walking away from Westernized medicine & diet, the injustices my family experienced to push me to where I am, and how the pandemic shook me fully awake. It goes deeper than my blog on how I became interested in wellness. This one is about how I got radicalized.

From there we’ll move into the biology behind what today’s foods are doing to your body.

I’m genuinely excited to dive deeper into what the Bible says about all of it. God’s ways are higher, and He knew we’d be here, right now, experiencing all of this. Yet, the Bible is timeless, and as applicable today as when it was written. That’s why it’s the Living Word.

I’m still writing this series, so you’ll get it fresh — straight from my brain to the keyboard.

A Note Before We Begin

I am not a medical doctor. I did not attend medical school and I am not suggesting you break up with your doctor or stop taking your prescriptions. That would actually be dangerous without proper guidance. I am however, hoping to urge you to realize that not every malady is fixed by a pill, and that there are things you can do, even while on prescription medications, to better your overall wellness.

Come in with an open mind. Willing to hear one person’s experience and thoughts on Big Pharma and Big Food. I’m not the first to say any of this, nor will I be the last. I just hope to plant a seed that makes you a little more curious about the food you eat and the pills you take.

I understand not everyone is ready to go there, and that’s okay. I just ask that you respect my stance as I respect where you are.

Why It All Matters

Because you matter. God created you with a purpose. And you deserve to know what’s going into your body and how it’s affecting it.

With an increasingly loud number of voices telling you what supplement, pill, or workout will fix everything – I hope to point you toward utilizing your God-given discernment and toward the Bible for what you don’t yet understand.

I hope this series gives you the perspective shift that I’ve received over the past seven years and especially in the last seven months. If this sounds like something you’d want to follow along with, subscribe so you don’t miss it as it comes out.

I look forward to bringing you along on this journey.

- Lexi

Words I used to say when it was a new month, and I was expecting mail from the Kirby Kangaroo Club. I honestly don’t remember much of what was inside, but I remember the feeling – the feeling of joy and excitement that there was something in the mailbox waiting for ME. Not boring old bills, or advertisements, but a letter with my name on the front meant for nobody else but me – in any month that wasn’t my birthday.

There’s something special about allowing a child this experience. Someone speaking directly to them, letting them know they matter enough to reach out from the other side of the mailbox to say hello, to share something that mattered to them.

I wonder if many kids are getting that these days. I’d referenced in my previous blog that children today are living in a world of instant gratification. Texts, calls, facetiming. No thought that crosses their mind has to wait to be answered – or not long anyway. No “How are you doing?” with a 3-day to -week wait in between, wondering if today would be the day you’d hear back.

A lot of millennials talk about recreating the 90s for their kids, well I think this is one form of nostalgia worth revisiting, that offers a lasting impact.

Why we still teach handwriting and cursive

Handwriting is an important skill that we incorporate in our homeschool lessons. It’s important because it engages the brain differently than typing; it improves memory, comprehension, and fine motor skills. The format we use to teach handwriting, from a Charlotte Mason approach, is called copy work. It’s a method of teaching handwriting and language art skills by using rich literature. Beautifully written. Copied down.

We personally started introducing cursive in 1^st grade and my 4^th grader is fairly proficient in reading and writing in it. Cursive specifically activates reading and writing centers of the brain simultaneously. I’ve read that, sadly, many teens and Gen Zers today cannot read or write in cursive – so much so that some brands have adapted their brand names to manuscript because it wasn’t able to be read. Some young adults today struggle to sign their own name in cursive - and honestly, it wasn’t until the last two years that I could confidently write a check without second-guessing myself, so I’m not entirely throwing stones.

Cursive is also imperative to learning because it creates a connection to history. Many historical documents, letters, and family letters were completely cursive. A part of me is saddened thinking a generation will pick up a letter like that and be at a loss to what it says.

When cursive goes, a kind of literacy goes with it.

What screens have quietly replaced

While I and many others benefit from the technological advances we’ve lived through and grown with, there are some things that have been lost along the way.

The Waiting

Remember when we had to wait for the next episode of our favorite show to come out? It required clearing the calendar or gathering with friends on a specific day so we could all experience it together. One Tree Hill or The OC parties – anyone? Learning to sit with anticipation and live through delayed gratification are their own kind of development. Lessons that will serve our children well as they become adults and learn not everything comes instantly (falling in love, growing a child, saving to buy a home, a car, etc.)

The Physicality

There’s just something about holding an item made by someone else’s hands. Not 3D printed, not computer generated, a real creation that was formed by hands and came from the heart. Something we miss out on in a digital world.

The Permanence

As much as we value hearing from our loved ones via text – we can easily keep in touch with those who are states or oceans away – it’s not something that will be saved. It will disappear into the ether, be forgotten about - not stored away in a box, waiting to be rediscovered. The past versions of us - what we thought and how we felt are erased by the here and now. Lost on the ever-refreshing media feed.

The Personalization

Opening up the mailbox and receiving a letter addressed to you (that’s not a bill or ad) means someone took time out of their day to think of you. They made a conscious effort to put pen to paper, fill an envelope, stick on a stamp, and transport it to the mailbox. There’s something special about that.

Why a letter in the mailbox hits different

I’ve touched a bit on this already, but there’s just something different about communicating via mail.

It’s slow. It’s called snail mail for a reason.

It’s intentional. The writer who sent the mail was committed to their thoughts. There’s no going back and editing a letter once the mailman has picked it up.

It’s heartfelt. It says you were worth my time in a way a text cannot. This leaves a more lasting impact on children who aren’t used to receiving mail.

What instant gratification costs

There’s a cost that comes with instant gratification. One that is worth sitting with and reflecting on. When we can no longer wait for the things we want – instant coffee, instant delivery, instant messaging – what does that say about us? We want, we get. But what does that teach our children? How is it affecting our brains? How is it preparing the next generation?

When it comes to communication, instant gratification has led to the erosion of written self-expression. Kids who never write letters often struggle to write anything personal.

Reflecting on all of this, finding the letters left by my grandma and great-grandpa and the feelings it stirs within me, hearing from others about the family legacy their ancestors left behind in writing, and how those of you are already incorporating this into your own homes – makes me want to not only lament about the loss of the beauty, but actually do something about it.

Apparently processing this out loud amongst family members and in front of my daughter is having an impact. Enough so that grandma has reached out with an idea for how my daughter can do something.

My daughter is passionate, and I mean PASSIONATE, about encouraging other children to get off screens and interact with the world around them. She just presented an opinion writing to her 4th grade homeschool class titled: Should kids be glued to the TV?

Her little heart breaks when she sees kids fully immersed and in a zombie state in front of a screen. She also calls it to attention when I get caught up in doom scrolling – the true millennial I am. She wants something different for me and for our family – and I wholeheartedly agree with her. I appreciate other posts I’ve read about breaking up with Instagram or smart phones. We need more encouragement and real-life examples like that.

We’re still teasing out the details of what it might look like, but my daughter wants to bring her encouragement to other kids, in a way that meets them at the mailbox. She's already further along than I expected. More on that very soon.

In week 1 we followed a single drop of water through the full water cycle.

Week 2 we slowed down and went outside - to notice how water gives life to everything that gathers near it. Plants. Civilizations.

This week we lift our gaze to something bigger.

Week 3 is called Forms and Flow of Water. It encourages children to hold two thoughts about water in their mind – something most of us have never considered together:

Water is always moving. And water is always resting.

Right now, at this very moment, water is locked inside glaciers that have barely shifted in centuries. In other places, it is seeping silently through soil and stones beneath your feet. At the same time, it is traveling invisibly through the atmosphere above your head, waiting to fall as rain somewhere thousands of miles away.

And somehow, all of it - every ocean, every glacier, every hidden underground spring, every cloud - is part of the same single continuous journey.

“He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deep in storehouses.” — Psalm 33:7 (NKJV)

God doesn’t just send rain. He stores water (in ice, underground, in the air) and releases it at exactly the right time. Week 3 helps your child see that provision does not always arrive quickly. Sometimes faithfulness looks like a glacier.

This week’s nature walk invites students outside to observe water in whatever form they can find — frost clinging to leaves, dew resting on grass, a puddle slowly shrinking, a trickle from a drainpipe. Not to collect data. Just to notice. To ask where this water has been, and where it might be going next.

The narration prompt this week is deeper than nature study alone:

How might our own spiritual life mirror this rhythm of motion and rest?

A Charlotte Mason-styled narration prompt. Created for children, about water, that lands like theology.

That’s what this series is.

Week 3 - including the full lesson, nature walk guide, narration prompts, notebook work, art connection, simple experiment, and faith reflection — is waiting below.

If you’ve been thinking about joining, here’s what’s available:

Full subscription — $6/month — everything listed in the nature study plus wellness deep dives, biblical meal planning frameworks, and all paid content.

One time purchase options coming soon to Gumroad for those who prefer not to subscribe.

Subscribe now

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To be honest, no two days are identical, but we do have a “go-to rhythm” that keeps us going. If I look back just four months ago, even a year ago, the way we lived looked vastly different. Here is a look at how we currently spend our days.

Rise and Shine (and the “Pellet Stove Sprint”)

On our slow days, when we are on the property and don’t have to rush off to “the world,” we start slow. I’ve never been a “get up and go” morning person. In this Midwest cold, that looks like crawling down from our lofted bedrooms and starting the pellet stove immediately. Because we have to save our solar power overnight, we often set a timer for our heat to turn off in the early AM hours. While we stay warm cuddled up (husband and wife in one bed, kids in another), getting out from under those blankets into a room that has dipped into the 30s can be... a shock to the system.

Solar Check-In: Living with finite power centers your day. One of my first tasks is checking our solar levels. I’ve become a bit of a weather-obsessed planner. Will the sun shine today to recharge us, or are we looking at three days of clouds? If it’s the latter, I have to be conservative with every power draw and appliance. - cooking and using power when the sun is up is my best bet.

Before the chaos of the day begins, I prefer to start by opening my Bible. I’ve found that if I align my heart with God’s Word before I start our homeschool day, the entire atmosphere of our home stays more peaceful. Starting with God before the noise starts is the habit that makes every other part of the day possible.

The Morning Chores

When it’s freezing outside, it takes every ounce of willpower to bundle up and walk across the property. Full disclosure: I did not grow up as a “country girl.” I was a suburban kid with very few responsibilities. To imagine that I have learned to love and embrace this life is a miracle in itself. I suppose obedience to God looks like that sometimes - jarring at first, then overwhelmingly beautiful.

Reframing my mindset is key: each animal is a blessing from God, and I am their steward.

• The Kids: My eldest feeds the rabbits and chickens; my youngest cares for the cats.

• Me: I handle the dogs and check the sheep (who are remarkably self-sufficient as long as they have hay and water).

  

The Classroom: Living Ideas & Nature

Once the animals are fed and we’ve had breakfast, our school day begins. My oldest is in Year 4 of AmblesideOnline. We follow a Charlotte Mason approach, which means we trade dry worksheets for “living books” - rich, thought-provoking narratives that make history and science come to life.

Because of my biology background, I’ve taken the lead on our Nature Study. I’ve actually created two 12-week plans following the Ambleside rotation! These are being made available to other families who struggle to make nature study a consistent part of their week - currently releasing one week at a time for paid subscribers. (Shout out to my friend who is currently “beta-testing” these lessons with her kids!)

This weekend we took a walk around our property and found a tiny brook. My 5-year-old was mindful of the fact that even though it was a small brook, that it was important to care for water because it is living and small microbes make a home there. My 9-year-old was curious of where the source of the water was from - after learning that each brook, stream or river has a source - so we followed it until we no longer could. I’m grateful to see the lessons we explored together 7 months ago are still strongly present within their minds.

I love utilizing the Charlotte Mason approach because it doesn’t “talk down” to my children. They read rich literature and are exposed to deep ideas, even from a young age. My oldest has been reading George Washington’s World and finished Poor Richard first term this year. This past week we went to the local history museum, and she was able to identify Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Ben Franklin - and connect to the historical pieces at the museum. We saw letters, household items, and appliances we imagined Abigail Adams using. Besides the way living books draw you in emotionally by connecting with the historical figure, this is exactly how the ideas come to life in our day-to-day.

A Shift in Conveniences: Trading Speed for Intentionality

Our days look nothing like they did in the suburbs. In our old life, dishes were “easy” with a full-sized dishwasher. Laundry wasn’t a “trek” across a field. Cooking was simple with a four-burner stove and endless counter space.

And yet, back then, I still felt those things were a chore! Now, everything takes more effort. I’ve had to learn the failures of living off-grid the hard way: like the time I realized I couldn’t run the burners and the tea kettle at the same moment without a minor solar crisis.

It is a massive perspective shift. I’ve had to see these barriers as invitations to a more intentional life. To remind myself that I must do everything to the glory of God. I don’t always have a perfect attitude about it, but I realize I needed this reality check. In the conveniences I was offered in my suburban life, I often filled my extra time with social media or TV. Here, the work itself provides the time for reflection - and growth.

Small Space Management

How do you keep a tiny, semi-off-grid space clean while homeschooling and homesteading? The short answer: You don’t. At least, not easily. Maybe if it were built for the purpose of tiny living like you see on TV, we’d be more successful in this.

Just two things out of place can make the whole home feel cluttered. We’ve had to become ruthless with “stuff,” donating anything unused and storing out-of-season items away. Everything in our home must have a “home.” I frequently find myself asking the kids, “Is that its home?”

In a book club with my mom-friends, we’re reading Habits for a Sacred Home by Jennifer Pepito, and we just finished the chapter on Habits of Simplicity. It was the reminder we needed, that minimalism isn’t the goal - that’s often devoid of personality and practicality when you have children - but rather simplicity in order to free up our time to build strong relationships and spend more time with God.

The Heart Shift

When I view this acreage as God’s provision, my attitude changes. When I see myself as a steward of all the blessings He has bestowed upon me, I take a different approach. The dishes feel less daunting; the chicken coop feels like a privilege, not a punishment. To be clear: I am human. I live in a fallen world and I get cranky or discouraged. But when I pause to realize that every task is an act of stewardship, I can “do everything as unto the Lord.”

I’ve been overburdened by dishes lately. We cook a lot at home and in a space with no running water and no kitchen sink - the cleanup can be daunting, to say the least. I often would put it off, save it for another day. But when I realized the blessings of being able to feed my children home-cooked meals - in order to steward our bodies - I can see this as a worthy effort versus something to put off until later.

Ending with the Sunset

Our days end with a final check of our resources. Do we need to carry more water over? Is the battery charged enough to get us through the night? What does the weather look like for tomorrow’s chores?

Living “Grounded and Centered” isn’t about achieving a perfect Pinterest-worthy homestead. (I found that out quickly) It’s about the posture of my heart, laying it all down at the foot of the cross in order to be a blessing to the family He has placed in my care.

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How God Designed Your Cycle to Work for You

Tired. Hormone depleted. Living on a cycle of ups and downs that felt less like a rhythm and more like a weather system I couldn’t predict. (For those of us in the Midwest, you know exactly what that means)

Mid-30s wasn’t supposed to feel like this.

I’d done the work. I’d taken the pills. I was working out, eating relatively healthy, checking the boxes. And yet, I was still fatigued. Still moody. Under control of the symptoms that I couldn’t get under control: bloating, cravings, acne. Ugh.

It wasn’t until I fasted from social media for 30 days (no Instagram, doom scrolling, or loud noise of the internet) that I gained clarity. I finally had enough quiet to hear something different. I found myself reading more. Taking longer walks. Playing podcasts while I completed chores. Space in my day to follow a thread all the way to where it led.

That’s when I started asking a different question. Not how do I suppress this, but what is my body actually trying to tell me?

I knew hormones were important. I’d been actively trying to get them under control for three years. I’d studied the hormonal cycle in school. Looked at them from the lens of a biologist, which told me what the hormones were doing, but not in a practical application type of way. What it really meant to live with them as a woman. What you read in a textbook versus living with hormones or a hormonal imbalance are two entirely different things.

I knew there was more to the story. God loves patterns. He writes them into seasons, into water cycles, into agricultural harvests. It didn’t surprise me that He’d written one into this too. I desired to understand it, instead of fighting it for another decade.

What Nobody Told Us

Years ago, with my firstborn, I learned that fighting the phases of childbirth was the wrong approach entirely – thanks to a wonderful 12-week birthing class taught by a midwife, Coral.

She taught us about leaning into the waves: to work with my body instead of against it. This paradigm shift was what allowed me to bring both of my children into the world without medication. My body knew what it was doing. I just had to stop treating it like an obstacle and start trusting its design.

Somehow, I never applied that same logic to my cycle.

The messaging is so loud. Your period is an inconvenience, but fight through it. The pain is normal, just medicate it. Being debilitated is just what some women deal with, buck up. And if it’s really bad… here’s a pill that will smooth it all out. It’ll help your acne too! You might even forget you have a cycle at all.

What they forgot to mention was the wreckage.

The birth control pill suppresses your natural hormonal production for three weeks straight. No natural undulation. It doesn’t regulate your cycle, it replaces it with a synthetic version and calls that regulation. This is why it takes time to get pregnant after stopping. Your system has been hijacked and needs time to remember how to run itself again. That is not a side effect footnote. That is the mechanism.

And then there’s the pain. The cramping so severe you can’t get through a school day or a work shift, even a morning of parenting without medication just to function. We’ve been told that’s normal. It isn’t. Pain at that level is your body sending a signal that something in the terrain isn’t right, something needs attention. [See my blog on Terrain Theory 101 - the body communicating verses symptom suppression]

Stewarding our bodies looks completely different from managing them. Understanding what your body actually needs in each phase of your cycle, and applying that, has the ability to change your entire experience with your cycle. Not because you’ve suppressed anything. Because you’ve finally stopped working against a design that was never broken to begin with.

The same God who designed the water cycle, the seasons, and the agricultural harvest also designed the female body with a monthly rhythm. That rhythm is not a flaw to be corrected. It is a cadence to be understood.

And like any good rhythm, it has four distinct movements.

The Four Hormones — Your Body’s Seasonal Language

Think of your hormonal cycle the way you think of seasons. Four distinct phases, each with its own character, its own demands, its own gifts. None of them wrong. All of them necessary.

Four hormones orchestrate this rhythm — estrogen, progesterone, luteinizing hormone (LH), and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). They don’t operate independently. They communicate with each other in a carefully sequenced conversation, each one rising and falling in response to the others, all of it working together toward the same purpose: preparing your body, month after month, for the possibility of new life.

You don’t need to memorize the clinical details. What you need is a map. A way of understanding which season you’re in and what your body is asking for because of it.

That’s what the next four sections are.

Phase One: The Rest & Replenish Phase

Menstruation — Days 1–5

Exhausted. Irritable. Overwhelmed.

And then the guilt about being exhausted, irritable, and overwhelmed on top of it.

We live in a culture that has told women — loudly and consistently — to push through. Show up. Perform. Break the glass ceiling on a Tuesday when your body is quietly begging you to lie down. The girl boss era didn’t leave much room for a woman who needed to slow down once a month, so most of us learned to ignore the signal or medicate it into silence and keep moving.

What if that’s exactly backwards?

Your body during menstruation is doing significant, metabolically demanding work. Estrogen and progesterone are at their lowest point in the entire cycle. This is when uterine lining begins shedding. This is a completely normal, healthy process. Not a malfunction. Like any process, it requires significant energy and needs support – not to be suppressed.

Rest during this phase is not laziness. It is not weakness. It is obedience to the body God gave you and the rhythm He built into it.

What Your Body Needs

This is a phase for warming, nourishing, mineral-rich food. Your body is losing iron and minerals and needs them replenished from real sources; not synthetic supplements that pass through without being absorbed.

• Focus on iron-rich foods like grass-fed beef, organ meats, and dark leafy greens.

• Bone broth, the real, gelatinous kind made from pasture-raised bones. Not the boxed version. This is one of the most supportive things you can give your body right now.

• Warming soups and slow-cooked meals over raw or cold foods.

• Traditional fats to support the hormonal rebuilding that begins quietly in the background even during this lowest-energy phase. [You can find more about this in my Terrain-Building Shopping List — free for new subscribers]

This is not a phase for fasting. Your blood sugar needs stability. Your energy reserves are already being drawn on. The body is working whether you feel it or not. Give it the fuel it’s asking for.

Honoring the Slowness

Here’s some conviction I’ve felt that I want to invite you into as well. I say this knowing how hard it is to do this with children, stewarding a home, and managing a life that doesn’t pause just because your hormones did:

Let your schedule be lighter during this week if you can. Go to bed earlier than usual. Sit down for your meals. Don’t rush through them or eat over the sink. Save your hard workouts like HIIT, heavy lifting, and long runs for phases when your body is built for them. Great alternatives during this phase include: walking, gentle stretching, even slow movement is enough right now. Trust me, your body will thank you for not pushing it past its limits. It has a limited amount to give right now. (This isn’t always easy for me to incorporate, especially when I’m on a roll with my workouts or following a weekly program, but my body always appreciates when I do.)

This is the phase where the most Type-A among us will struggle the most. The of us who feel behind if they’re not being productive. If that’s you, and it has been me, hear this: the harvest requires a fallow (rest) season. You cannot pull from the field every month without giving it time to rest and rebuild. Think of your body as the field. The Israelites were called to let the land rest every season, so apply this but on a monthly basis.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul.” — Psalm 23:2-3

Rest is not incidental to God’s design. He designed it into the soil, into the Sabbath, and into the monthly rhythm of the female body. It belongs as part of your rhythms too.

Phase Two — The Build & Cultivate Phase

Follicular (Days 6–13)

In this phase, you begin to experience an energy shift – estrogen begins rising. The body is building toward ovulation. Creativity and focus return. This is the phase where women tend to feel the most like themselves and don’t realize why.

What’s happening hormonally? Estrogen has begun rising. Follicles are developing. And the body is preparing to release an egg.

What the body needs:

• Fermented foods for estrogen metabolism

• Cruciferous vegetables for estrogen support

• Sprouted grains

• Lighter whole foods

• Wild-caught fish.

Gentle fasting windows become appropriate as energy rises — but always listening to the body first.

How to steward your body at this time: this is the phase for starting things. New projects, harder conversations, creative work. Your body is giving you an opportunity, how are you using it?

It’s just as Charlotte Mason approaches education: brevity and beauty. Just as a seed needs the right conditions to germinate, so does a new idea, a new habit, a new season of growth.

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” —Ecclesiastes 3:1.

Phase Three — The Flourish Phase

Ovulation (Days 14–17)

During this phase, you’ll find estrogen at its highest. LH begins to surge triggering ovulation (egg release). Energy and confidence will be at its fullest.

In this phase, your body is primed for connection and generosity.

What’s happening hormonally? The body is at its most fertile and most energetically abundant. A time for deeper connections and when babies are made.

What the body needs:

• Anti-inflammatory foods, raw fruits and vegetables, whole fruit

• Shellfish and salmon for mineral density.

• The critical terrain note: seed oils are particularly disruptive to hormonal signaling in this phase. Just as Dr. Cate Shanahan urges the importance of removing seed oils.

Longer fasting windows are tolerated well here if appropriate for your individual terrain.

In terms of stewardship think on who needs you most right now? This is the phase designed for pouring into others: for community service, deep conversation, showing up fully for the people God has placed in your life.

“She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” — Proverbs 31:20.

The thriving woman gives from her abundance. This phase is about abundance.

Phase Four — The Steward & Surrender Phase

Luteal (Days 18–28)

This phase is more introspective. Progesterone in the body is rising. The body is preparing for either implantation of a fertilized egg or the next cycle. Energy begins to wane. The need for rest and nourishment increases. Though we women fight this phase the most, it’s also the most needed.

What’s happening hormonally? Progesterone is dominant here. The body is in a holding pattern and blood sugar is more sensitive than any other phase.

What the body needs:

• Complex carbohydrates for blood sugar stability

• Magnesium-rich foods for PMS symptom reduction

• Root vegetables and warming soups

• Celtic sea salt for mineral support

Shortening fasting windows is important here. Blood sugar instability in this phase drives cravings, mood swings, and the symptoms most women associate with PMS. If you use the terrain theory to address the root, working with versus fighting against what your body is calling for, you can reduce these symptoms.

This is the phase where you’ll be tempted to reach for sugar, to push through when you need rest, to interpret your body’s signals as weakness. They are not weaknesses. They are signals.

What does surrender look like for you in this phase? Earlier bedtime, lighter social calendar, more time in prayer and Scripture? These are just a few suggestions. The body is asking you to slow down. Following that call is not weakness, it’s wisdom.

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” — 1 Peter 5:7.

The luteal phase is the invitation to release what you cannot control and trust the One plans the seasons.

A Note on Fasting and Individual Terrain

After understanding what having a high anion gap meant on my bloodwork (my blood is currently acidic), I gained a deeper understanding of why fasting wasn’t appropriate for me. Understanding your own terrain is essential to knowing how to apply nutritional advice to your own situation. What I hope to share here is a framework rather than prescribing a specific protocol. I myself am still learning to apply this knowledge with wisdom and discernment.

There are specific individuals who should not fast or exercise significant caution – if you have a primary care provider it would be good to check in with them. Some of those individuals include: pregnant and nursing mothers, those who are underweight, those managing electrolyte imbalances, adrenal fatigue, metabolic conditions, or a history of disordered eating.

The terrain principle that underlies all of this: you cannot borrow from a reserve you haven’t built. Fasting is a tool, not a requirement. Food is the foundation.

With this, I encourage you to seek out a practitioner who will look at your full picture, examining your entire system to address your symptoms. Finding one who combines root-cause thinking with genuine care is harder than it should be, but worth pursuing.

For years I’d been fighting with my body, attempting to “hack” solutions that would help me survive “that time of the month”. I felt resigned to the awful symptoms I was bound to experience each month. Living hostage to a cycle I was never taught to understand. I now have a framework to give it all meaning: support, rather than suppress.

Your body is not a problem that needs to be “solved”. God created the rhythms we experience. He designed with purpose and intention. Provided us with the foods and rhythms we need to support it. And wrote the pattern of rest and thriving into our DNA.

You don’t have to just “survive” your cycle anymore. No more medicating it into silence. Nor do you have to earn your rest in the phases that demand it.

It’s a matter of paying attention and stewarding what you’ve been given.

I know this feels like a lot. We’re already busy moms trying to keep track of everything AND now I’m asking you to track your hormone phases too?

I offer this only to educate and support, not to add to your load. Stewarding our bodies requires real time and real effort. Understanding them requires a genuine desire to learn. That’s largely why I put a one-page guide together, so you can take what you’ve read here and have an easy reference to come back to.

Start small. Pick a few foods from one phase and see how your body responds. Then try another. You don’t have to overhaul your entire life this week. Just pay a little more attention than you did before.

Come back and tell me how it goes. I’d genuinely love to hear.

I put together this one-page reference guide - initially because I needed it myself and then loved it enough to share. It’s called “Eating with Your Cycle: A Biblical Stewardship Framework”. You can use it as your practical companion to this post. It’s the cheat sheet for your fridge, your meal planning, and your weekly rhythm. You can find it below.

Eating With Your Cycle

3.74MB ∙ PDF file

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This one-page guide helps you know which foods to eat during the four different phases of your cycle. Supporting your body in its natural rhythms.

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This week we go slower. And closer.

Week 2 is called Water as Life and Stewardship — and it asks a question that sounds simple until you really sit with it:

Why does life gather where water is?

Not just plants. Not just animals. People too. Every great civilization in human history built itself near water. The Nile. The Tigris and Euphrates. The Mississippi. The Jordan. There’s a reason the cities are where they are — and a reason the land around them looks the way it does.

My daughter already knew this. She remembered it before I finished asking the question, which is exactly what living books and real observation do that a worksheet never could.

This week’s nature walk takes students to any nearby water source — a brook, a pond, a drainage ditch, even a place where rainwater gathers after a storm. Not to collect facts. Not to fill in a chart. But to notice. To move slowly. To listen before they look.

Is the water moving or still? Quiet or lively?

How long might this water have been here — days, years, centuries — and where is it going next?

How much more abundant is the life at the water’s edge than just a few feet away?

The narration prompt this week pairs what they observe with what Scripture already told us:

“Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters…” — Isaiah 55:1 (NKJV)

God didn’t just design water to sustain life. He used it as the language of invitation. Of provision. Of Himself.

That’s what Week 2 reflects upon.

The full Week 2 guide — including the complete nature walk instructions, observation prompts, Scripture study, narration questions, and stewardship reflection — is available below for paid subscribers. If you’ve been thinking about joining, this is a good week to do it.

Subscribe to access Week 2 →

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It’s a question I’ve gotten frequently over the past few years — more so in that first year after pulling my daughter from public school. But it still comes up from time to time.

Choosing to homeschool is actually a very nuanced decision. I suppose some people have a specific incident — bullying, a bad teacher, a single moment that made everything clear. For me it was multifactorial. There wasn’t one thing. There were many.

How It Started

My oldest daughter started kindergarten in likely one of the toughest ways a child of her generation could. Her first experience with school — after years of daycare — was smack dab in the middle of the pandemic.

We lived in Washington state at the time, where rules around containing the pandemic were especially strict. My poor firstborn started her school career wearing a mask all day, not knowing what her teachers’ or peers’ faces looked like until halfway through the year.

I didn’t actually have many qualms with her school out there. She had a wonderful, kind, above-and-beyond kindergarten teacher. There were a few kids who picked on her, but I chalked it up to the usual stuff — kids being rude, figuring out the social world. Nothing that alarmed me.

We had one neighbor who homeschooled her daughter, and acquaintances at church who sent their kids to a co-op, but none of it made me feel like homeschooling was a path I was being drawn toward.

And then we moved.

The Veneer Began to Fade

As we made our transition back to the Midwest, school ratings were a major factor in where we chose to live. I wanted a diverse school so my kids wouldn’t feel like spectacles, and I wanted strong educational outcomes. I was still very much in the system, planning accordingly.

We just so happened to be moving during one of the hardest seasons in recent memory for homebuyers. Houses were selling after a single day on the market, with multiple competing offers, going tens of thousands over asking. That was pretty much our story exactly. But we got a home in the school district I wanted, in a quiet neighborhood, on a dead-end street. It seemed perfect.

And then the veneer began to fade.

My daughter joined her new kindergarten class with about two months left in the school year. Nobody offered a tour. No one reached out to ease the transition. The expectation seemed to be: put her on the bus on the first day and let her figure it out. I had to ask for a tour. I had to ask to meet her teacher.

We lived close enough to walk, but we had her ride the bus — it seemed convenient, and I’d ridden the bus from kindergarten on. She’d be fine.

I should have known better. The bus was exactly where I got introduced to all the worst stuff as a kid. I don’t know why I thought it would be any different for her.

The bus, in my experience, is just not a space for kindergarteners or young elementary kids. Fights. Bullying. Conversations about topics my daughter had no business being introduced to yet. It’s a free-for-all in a lot of negative ways — the only upside being the convenience of not having to do pickup and drop-off yourself. That convenience starts to feel a lot less worth it when you realize what it’s costing.

But there was no sudden moment. No dramatic incident that made everything clear. Just God slowly prompting me, quietly laying something on my heart over time.

A Seed Gets Planted

Then one day, driving in the car, my daughter said it out loud.

“Mommy, I wish I could talk about God at school.”

She had a yearning to weave her faith into her days — not just a Wednesday night lesson or a Sunday morning message, but woven all the way through. She wanted to know what God thought about the world. Not a sanitized version of it. The real thing.

I heard her. And something shifted in me.

We have wonderful Christian schools in our area, but tuition wasn’t something our budget could absorb. I was doing sporadic contract work, we were already paying for daycare, and private school simply wasn’t on the table.

But a seed had been planted.

Something Kept Pressing

Then I started hearing about homeschooling everywhere. On the radio. While scrolling through social media. In conversations I hadn’t been looking for.

So I brought it up to my husband. Maybe it was an option. Something we could try over the summer, low stakes, just to see. He was hesitant. He knew that my daughter and I butted heads in the mornings when I was trying to rush her out the door, and he was worried that’s what most of our days would look like. It was a fair concern.

But something kept pressing.

When I brought the idea up to my daughter, she started to open up. Things she had never mentioned before. She told me her teacher here yelled a lot. That an art teacher had made her cry over a project she didn’t know about — because she was a new student and no one had told her. She told me about kids on the bus acting like animals, biting her. About a bus driver cursing in front of the children.

These things didn’t sit well with me. I knew I wanted something different for her. Something better.

Over the summer I researched as best I could. I’m a biologist — I know how to dig into information — but what I found online was genuinely confusing. So many options, so many philosophies, and no clear sense of how to execute any of it well. I kept landing on unit studies. I didn’t love the idea — it felt too forced for my personality, and my daughter was indecisive — but that’s where we started.

She decided she wanted to learn about sharks. So I found as many library books on sharks as I could, and we began.

It felt clunky. It felt sporadic. I felt like I was missing structure and had no idea what I was doing.

We gave it a good go. We made it through the summer. We enjoyed our time together.

And I still wasn’t sure.

An Answer From God

I wanted a clear sign from God. Not a nudge — a sign. So I prayed, simply and directly: Lord, give me something clear. Show me if this is what you want for us.

I don’t remember exactly how long after that prayer it happened. Not long.

I went to my Wednesday night class at church. For whatever reason — God — I didn’t go to my usual back corner spot that night. I sat down next to two women about my age. Women I hadn’t really talked to before.

After class we got to talking, and I mentioned that I’d been asking God whether we should homeschool.

Their reply: “We both homeschool our children.”

That was all I needed. God had made His sign clear. We would be homeschooling that fall.

When It All Fell Into Place

I was locked in. But I still didn’t have a philosophy.

The women from church mentioned a homeschool program their children attended one day a week, which helped — but I still wasn’t clear on curriculum, or how to actually structure our days. I needed a person, not a search engine.

So I texted our pastor and asked if he could connect me with a homeschool mom. Someone who had done this and could talk me through it. He said he’d passed my information along to two women and to wait to hear back.

One reached out.

We talked for about thirty minutes. I came with my concerns — most of them things other people had planted in me more than worries I’d actually had myself. The big one: “But what about socialization?”

She laughed. I understand why now. It’s the number one question every homeschool family gets asked, and once you’re on the other side of it the concern almost doesn’t make sense anymore — because homeschooled kids can’t not socialize. What homeschooling actually gives you is the ability to choose who your children socialize with. Families whose values align with yours. Not to shelter them from the world, but to connect them more intentionally to it.

Then I mentioned my curriculum problem. I didn’t know where to start or what I was looking for.

That’s when she said the name that forever changed our homeschool trajectory.

Charlotte Mason.

She talked about her love of the approach, the beauty of the philosophy, the way it treated children as whole people rather than empty vessels waiting to be filled. I wrote the name down and that night I went home and started researching — but this time with direction.

Everything fell into place. I found Ambleside Online. I found their Facebook community. And I loved that we could jump in without dropping hundreds or thousands of dollars on a packaged curriculum.

Where We Are Now

That was the beginning. We’ve followed Ambleside Online from the start — Year 1 all the way through Year 4 now. And somewhere along the way I became the one sharing Charlotte Mason’s name with friends who were just starting out, the same way that mom (now a dear friend) shared it with me.

The short lessons designed to hold a child’s attention. The time outside in nature. The rich, living literature. The fundamental belief that children are not empty vessels for us to fill — they are born persons, naturally inclined to learn, creatures of God to be stewarded by us as parents and educators.

There is so much beauty in this educational philosophy that I can’t do it justice at the end of a blog post. It’s something I’m still learning and growing in myself. And honestly, that might be my favorite thing about it.

If you’re a homeschooler, what brought you to homeschooling?