Cyber Week HUGE Deals!

Every year Black Friday/Cyber Week rolls around and many, many of my friends lament the consumerism that has engrossed us as a culture. And I get it! I do! But... I love giving gifts, and I'm the one responsible for all the gift purchasing in our family... So I appreciate gift guides and deals that my friends share!

On that note, I'll be updating this post throughout the week/weekend with deals so that you can find them all in one place! Hopefully you can support some small shops (many in that post have coupon codes and will be having huge Small Business Saturday sales), and also find some good deals on items you can't "shop small" for.

First! Before you start shopping, make sure you're signed up for Rakuten (formerly Ebates) - you'll earn cash back on your purchases and a lot of stores will be running higher percentage cash-back deals, so it's really worth your time to click through Rakuten first before shopping.

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Our 2019 Advent Books {Book Stacks + Giveaway}

 

This year is one of those years when Advent begins on December 1 and syncs up with the secular Christmas countdown, and I kind of love it! Last year I put together a calendar of our Christmas and Advent books and coordinating activities, so feel free to use that as a basic guide for yourself this year. I couldn't help adding a few more to our list, though - here are some we're adding to our collection this year:

Kitchen Simplicity: How We Handle Large Family Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

About a year and a half ago, I got serious about menu planning—it made a huge difference in streamlining grocery shopping and eliminating stress from a normal day, but people often asked why I didn't "plan" breakfasts and lunches.

The reason?

We eat the same thing every day.

Does it get boring? Honestly, no. The kids appreciate the stability, it eliminates decision fatigue, cleanup is a breeze, and it's all stuff the *kids* can make themselves if/when I'm otherwise occupied.

It seems so obvious to me that this would be a reasonable solution, but every time I mention it, multiple moms *cannot believe* what a huge difference this makes!

So what do we eat?

Leave the Searching to the Experts: LitWits Review {A Homeschool Review Crew Review}

We are BIG readers around here. But there are some classic books that I wish we could dive a little deeper into... I read a ton as a child, but don't always have time to re-read what the kids are reading, so it's hard to remember much from the books I recommend to the kids! Enter LitWit Kits from LitWits! They do all the work for you, from suggestions & tutorials for related activities, to background information and vetted sites for further learning, to academic handouts.

46/52: Babes in the Woods

When to Outsource Math: Thinkwell Review {A Homeschool Review Crew Post}

 

Peter, Age 5

Mary Claire and Elizabeth, Age 7

We did it! 7 years of twins! (You can read all about their earliest years here) And just as we do every year, here's their birthday survey:

45/52: I'm Not Really Sure?

Mattie Richardson's Horses of History: A Homeschool Review Crew Post

Cecilia went through a phase last year where she read a couple horse books and desperately wanted to read more written from the horse's point of view. But... There just aren't that many out there. Most are (obviously) written about people and their horses just figure prominently. So when I saw Mattie Richardson's Horses in History Series from Author Mattie Richardson/Appaloosy Books, I knew it would be right up her alley!

One Special Gift: CrossTimber Review {A Homeschool Review Crew Post}

It's hard to find unique gifts when you've got a large family, particularly for younger kids. We already have practically everything we can fit in our house, and we often have hand-me-down toys and clothes so we don't need many new things for each subsequent child. Sometimes, though, it's nice to have something new and special just for a younger child, something the older children have never experienced.

When I saw that CrossTimber - Name Meaning Gifts would put together a video highlighting a child's name, I knew it would appeal to Peter more than any of the other children. Peter is almost 5, not quite reading, but just so very delighted by anything that's especially for him. We've never talked much with him about his name, beyond which saint he was named after. I didn't realize just how much the other children would love the video, too! We were so excited to sit down and watch Your Amazing Name - Personalized Adventures for EVERY name!

44/52: Pumpkin Carving, Snow White, and All Saints

2019 Shop Small Gift Guide (And Giveaway!)

I won't lie, I started my Christmas shopping this year in July. When you've got 4 November birthdays to shop for AND Christmas for 7 kids + other family members, you've gotta start early! I always aim to be done with shopping by the end of November so that I can really enter into Advent prayerfully, not concerned about material things.

This pays off tremendously when it comes to patronizing small shops! You'll find 33 small shops listed below, some of which I'm positive you've never heard of, and shopping early from these businesses means your support goes directly to small, family-owned businesses instead of some anonymous big box store.

So take advantage of the coupon codes, unique offerings, and giveaways. I hope you find something absolutely perfect!