Am I the only one that keeps tabs open in my internet browser way too long? Sometimes I find something interesting, and I don't want to lose the link or forget about it, so I just open a new window and keep going with whatever computer work I'm doing. This can become a problem, especially on my phone where windows can stay open indefinitely (or until I reach the "open tabs limit" which is quite high). I just cleaned out my browser on my phone, and there were some tabs I had left open from a year ago!
Instead of dealing with this ridiculous browser tab backlog, I decided to start a series sharing a peak into my digital "notebook" each season, as a chance to bookmark seasonal freebies, podcasts, blog posts, etc., that I have found and enjoyed. Hopefully this will be a fun source of ideas and inspiration each quarter for you - and saving things here will allow me to feel like I can close some browser tabs!
Blogs:
I found a homemaking/decorating website randomly one day called Home Made Simple, and I am a little obsessed with her fall decor choices. Even though she falls into emphasizing neutrals more than color, there is something so cozy about the way she puts items together. Will I ever be able to decorate my house like this for every season? Probably not, but it's fun to look and get ideas for little touches I could add. I am bookmarking her budget fall decorating tips to read later, and she also has a printable resource library with lots of good stuff in it, including a holiday planner I like.
I've also been browsing the literary dinners on the Ardent Bibliophile quite a bit - the book-themed dinner party photoshoots are so beautiful!
Printables:
I already mentioned the Home Made Lovely resource library, but I've found a few great resource libraries this month. The Little Coffee Fox printable library has a ton of great bullet journaling printables, and I've also found some good homemaking resources in the Simple Living Mama library. The Kitchen Table Classroom library - though I don't endorse everything mentioned in there - has lots of fun activity sheets for kids (I found it because I was looking for printable gratitude journal sheets for my kids).
I also got a bug to get the kids writing more letters this fall, so I went on a hunt for free letter-writing resources and printables. I found a bunch of cute printable postcards (Christmas postcards, blank postcards to decorate, and wildlife stamp postcards), some really great tips on writing a good letter, and a post with fun things you can include in your envelope. There are all kinds of fun snail mail ideas in this post too!
(As a side note, I have also been trying to revive my letter-writing habit, and postcards are a great way to get started - I bought this set of bookish postcards, and they are extremely cute.)
At our homeschool support group meeting, my friend showed everyone a field trip report she has her kids fill out for each field trip. Hers was in a planning book, but I thought I'd seen something similar before, so I tracked down a couple free options online. One from ChristianBook, one from The Canadian Homeschooler. The one thing my friend's form had, which these don't, is a place for kids to grade themselves on how they represented Christ on the field trip, which I thought was a cool idea to include. We may try using one of these next time we go!
Magazines & Newsletters:
Sometime in the last year I signed up for emails with Homeschooling Today, and every quarter I get a new homeschooling e-magazine in my inbox. The articles have been really uplifting, and they often come with free printables as well! You can sign up to receive the magazine for free here.
Also, did you know that a Christian History magazine subscription is free? If you can donate, I know that helps them a lot, but yes, you can sign up to get the magazine for completely free. I've really been enjoying the C.S. Lewis issue that just came out, and it's making me want to pick up another Lewis book.
I recently read a post on Modern Mrs. Darcy about her favorite email newsletters - if I was to write such a post, Humility and Doxology's email newsletter would be on it. She sends out homeschool encouragement emails, which are packed with resource suggestions, freebies, etc. I especially love her poem suggestions, and have started to incorporate more poetry in our homeschool in part because of her emails.
Recipes:
I already mentioned this, but guys, pumpkin fluff dip is so good with apples, and easy to make. Plus it's not bad for you, especially if you make it with sugar-free pudding mix! We've all been devouring this as a snack this month.
Podcasts:
I've really been enjoying getting my news from the Morning Wire podcast - they keep me up-to-date without it getting too overwhelming or stressful. When I'm not in the mood for my longer news podcasts, this is the one I listen to!
I've also enjoyed the Elisabeth Elliot podcast - one of her recent ones on the Christian family was really challenging to me in my parenting.
That's all I have for you for my fall "notebook"! Now I'll be gathering a few things for a winter edition, coming in December to February!
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