2026-2027

There’s something so special about the first day of a new homeschool year.

Maybe it’s the freshly sharpened pencils and untouched workbooks. Maybe it’s the excitement of starting something new. Or maybe, in our house, it’s the combination of bed head, cinnamon rolls, first-day pictures, and swimsuits waiting for after lunch. 😂

Whatever it is, our first day back to homeschooling was perfectly us.

The morning started with sleepy little faces and some truly impressive bed head. No rushing out the door. No scrambling to catch a bus. Just kids waking up at home, wandering into the kitchen, and immediately becoming VERY interested in one important detail about the day:

Cinnamon rolls.

Because apparently nothing says academic excellence quite like warm, gooey cinnamon rolls for breakfast. 😂

And really, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

First Day Pictures 📸

Of course, before we could officially begin, Mama needed the first-day-of-school pictures.

You know the ones.

The pictures where everyone has grown approximately seventeen inches since last year, even though you swear you just took last year’s photos yesterday.

There’s something bittersweet about those first-day pictures. I’m excited for everything ahead of them, but part of me also wants to freeze the moment.

These are the days I know I’ll miss.

The little smiles. The bed head that didn’t quite get brushed down. The excitement over new school supplies. The tiny hands holding first-day signs.

Another year older.

Another year of learning.

Another year I’m incredibly thankful to get to spend right here beside them.

Preschool, Kindergarten & Second Grade! ✏️🍎

This year feels especially exciting because we have preschool, kindergarten, and second grade happening under our roof!

There was so much excitement about starting their new grades.

Preschool brings all the fun—colors, letters, crafts, stories, cutting, gluing, singing, and discovering that learning can be an adventure.

Kindergarten feels like such a big milestone. There’s something magical about watching those early reading and math skills begin to click and seeing that little spark when they realize, “Hey! I can do this!”

And then there’s second grade.

Bigger books. Bigger ideas. More independence. Watching everything they’ve learned begin to build on itself is one of my favorite parts of homeschooling.

We may all be learning at different levels, but we’re doing it together.

And that’s one of the things I love most.

Our Classroom Doesn’t Always Have Four Walls ☀️

We worked through our morning lessons, practiced our skills, and settled back into the rhythm of school.

Was everything perfectly quiet and organized?

Absolutely not. 😂

There were interruptions. There were wiggles. There were probably pencils that disappeared even though they had literally been sitting on the table two seconds earlier.

But there was also laughter.

There was learning.

There was excitement.

And there was the freedom to make our school day work for our family.

So after lunch?

We went swimming. 💦

Because that’s homeschool, too.

Sometimes learning happens around the table with a pencil in your hand.

Sometimes it happens curled up together reading a book.

Sometimes it happens outside exploring.

And sometimes you finish your schoolwork, throw on your swimsuit, and spend the afternoon making memories in the water.

Here’s to a New Homeschool Year ❤️

The first day back wasn’t about having a Pinterest-perfect homeschool day.

It was about beginning.

It was about cinnamon-roll-covered fingers, first-day pictures, excited little learners, new grades, and the promise of another year together.

There will be hard days this year. There will probably be days when someone cries over math—and there’s a decent chance that someone will be me. 😂

There will be days when the schedule goes completely out the window.

But there will also be discoveries and breakthroughs. Field trips and crafts. Books piled on the couch. Kitchen-table lessons. Adventures. Laughter. Ordinary afternoons that somehow become the memories we treasure most.

Today, though, was simply Day One.

Preschool. Kindergarten. Second grade.

Bed head.

Cinnamon rolls.

First-day pictures.

A little schoolwork.

And swimming after lunch.

I’d say we’re off to a pretty great start. ❤️

Here’s to another year of learning, growing, exploring, and doing life together.

Happy first day back to homeschool! 📚✏️🍎