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back-to-school

Home / back-to-school
Education & Homeschooling

Life: Back to School

by Ronda Bowenupdated on October 10, 2025August 17, 2012Leave a Comment on Life: Back to School

  It’s back to school time. It’s crazy how many supplies schools require families to purchase for students. Whether you homeschool or send your child off to a public, private, or charter school, you’re sure to be feeling the crunch. It’s also amazing how many different options there are for educating children. We’re sending Tiger …

wellcaffeinatedmom

Mom of 5, homeschooling family, coffee fanatic, Girl Scouts troop leader, blogger, author, editor

Squirrel punch needle project pre-frogging... I no Squirrel punch needle project pre-frogging... I now wish I hadn't frogged it bc/ it doesn't look NEARLY as bad in the photo as my brain said it did yesterday. So yeah. First punch needle project ever. Trying to figure it out as I go. It said it was a "beginner" project buuuuuut....For more about my life this past week, check out my Sunday Brunch post. Up on the blog now, link in bio.
The Algorithm of Us by Anh Sphabmixay – Rom-Com / The Algorithm of Us by Anh Sphabmixay – Rom-Com / Women’s FictionAmazon: https://amzn.to/4dLIbkj@RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #TheAlgorithmofUs #AnhSphabmixay #Romance Maya Lin never wanted to become the headline.As the architect behind HeartSpark’s revolutionary dating algorithm, she built her career on one belief: love could be understood through data, patterns, and predictability. But after a viral breakup puts both her reputation and her company under public scrutiny, Maya finds herself forced into the spotlight she spent years avoiding.Enter Eli Torres — sharp-tongued podcast host, relentless skeptic, and one of HeartSpark’s loudest critics.When public backlash pushes them into an uneasy collaboration, their clashing beliefs ignite a tension neither of them can explain away. Maya trusts logic. Eli believes love is chaos. But the more time they spend challenging each other, the harder it becomes to ignore the connection growing between them.Now Maya must decide whether love is something that can truly be calculated… or something that has to be felt.
When I was asked if I would be interested in revie When I was asked if I would be interested in reviewing A Brighter Year's mini coloring books, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. On the surface, the coloring pages looked super simple and like something I would be bored with. However, I'm glad I agreed to check these cute coloring books out. Not only is their small size super-portable, but it makes for a…...Keep reading:https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2026/05/22/a-brighter-year-mini-coloring-boo/
Book Blitz: Welcome to the World of Not Giving a F Book Blitz: Welcome to the World of Not Giving a F*ck by Oliver TurnerNonfiction / Self-Help Publication Date: October 9, 2025 What happens when life strips away everything you thought defined you? In Welcome to the Wonderful World of Not Giving A F*ck, Oliver Turner delivers a bold, brutally honest, and deeply motivational guide to self-love, spirituality, resilience, and personal empowerment. This Amazon Bestselling book is a fresh and unapologetic take on personal growth for readers who are tired of living for everyone else's approval.... Finish reading on the Blog - Link in Bio.
The Best Brush for Kids Who Still Hate Getting The The Best Brush for Kids Who Still Hate Getting Their Hair Done (But at Least It’s Faster)My four-year-old hates having her hair brushed. I don't think we've ever had a session where she doesn't cry. This reality has me on a quest for any hair products or tools that can help me tame tangles with fewer tears. To make matters worse, she has thick, fine hair that tangles when she moves. Often (perhaps too often) our solution has been to throw it up in a messy bun and go....https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2026/02/26/denman-d95-wet-detangler-brush/@denmanbrush
Happy Halloween Happy Halloween
Theme Song: "Little Girl Gone" by CHINCHILLA1 Yest Theme Song: "Little Girl Gone" by CHINCHILLA1 Yesterday marked three of my dad's birthdays, when he wasn't here. Well, I mean, his body's here. It's in a tin-can-urn-thing on my bookshelf in my family room (don't get me started on how weird that is.) I already know it's weird. I don't know where to put him. I figured this way he gets a "view" of the grandkids he never really got to meet…...https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2025/10/11/its-been-two-years-three-birthdays-two-halloweens-two-thanksgivings-and-counting/
We’re celebrating the release of Shattered Compass We’re celebrating the release of Shattered Compass by Lenore Greiner - MemoirAmazon: https://amzn.to/4jIvEhr@RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #ShatteredCompass #LenoreGreiner #memoirHow does a young woman cope when she cannot speak the truth?When nineteen-year-old Lenore experiences sexual assault while studying abroad in Italy, her entire world shifts. Survival becomes the focus of her daily life, physical illness grabs control of her body, and no one can free her from her pain. A ghost of herself, she takes the path of denial, believing it’s the only way to protect her loved ones and herself from her harsh reality.On her journey toward peace, she assumes the expected roles of mother and wife, but a traumatic diagnosis puts her at a crossroads. She must start living the life she wants or roam her days as a victim in the chaos of fear. Lenore’s escape through travel allows her to reconcile the imprisonment she’s suffered over the years.However, when another family tragedy strikes, Lenore understands she must finally come to terms with the silence she’s kept. But what if one incident that happened decades ago is too destructive, too deep to be excavated? Will she be able to find herself in the rubble? Or will she be lost forever?
My birthday was not yesterday but the week before. My birthday was not yesterday but the week before. I got to go to lunch with one of my good friends, then my husband and kids took me to @halfpricebooks to pick out books and @loweshomeimprovement to pick out some plants. And then we headed off to dinner. This is one of the things I picked up from the bookstore. It looks pretty cool, lots of concrete actions to take for those who want to change things. Some of them are simple, some of them take more effort. Just thought I'd share.
Saw this super - cute bee on our walkway today, so Saw this super - cute bee on our walkway today, so I had to try out the new phone's Camera Zoom feature. Turned  out  pretty  cool. #samsung24ultra #bee
Today's guest post comes from Joaquin Miranda of B Today's guest post comes from Joaquin Miranda of Build & Renovate. As global awareness of sustainability and carbon footprint grows, it's crucial to build your home's surroundings to be resilient and low on energy consumption. Adopting energy-efficient landscaping practices is one legitimate way to do that. The residential sector accounts for approximately 20% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from fossil fuels used to heat, cool, and power such built environments. ...https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/19/implementing-energy-efficient-landscaping-design-in-2024/
I mentioned in my previous post about starting to I mentioned in my previous post about starting to clean when you're not sure where to begin that making the bed daily is super important to me. I wanted to talk a bit more about how making the bed helps me and why I feel it's an important part of my daily routine. It's a Reminder That There's No "Done" in Cleaning…...https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/09/why-i-think-making-the-bed-is-so-important/
Self Help, Spiritual Inspiration Date Published: 0 Self Help, Spiritual Inspiration Date Published: 06-12-2024 Truths beautifully expressed Toby Negus, author and illustrator of The heart knows what the mind cannot see, has created a collection of lyrical inspirational prose messages coupled with colorful and mesmerizing symbolic illustrations that speak to the soul. The author has continued his exploration of the most transformational psychospiritual concepts that lie deeply within all humans, bringing the…...https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/08/book-blitz-heart-soul-by-toby-negus/
When you're bored, it's easy to check out. We watc When you're bored, it's easy to check out. We watch movies or listen to podcasts while cleaning. We mindlessly scroll through social media while waiting for more exciting things to happen. But if we're not careful, we can scroll long enough that life starts passing us by. Even worse, we start to become bored with our normal lives and long for the lives we see depicted by those we follow on social media....https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/07/lifes-more-fun-when-youre-fully-present-for-it/
I hate to admit it, but after the events of last y I hate to admit it, but after the events of last year, my home became a bit of a depression nest. We've finally come out of it, but knowing where to start when everything needs to be cleaned can be overwhelming. Here's the trick I used to fool my brain into thinking we were playing a game. Before I get into my trick, I want to share some things that have helped reclaim our house from the clutches of messiness....https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2022/01/05/dont-know-how-to-get-started-cleaning-try-this-trick/
At the end of 2021, when I changed the name of thi At the end of 2021, when I changed the name of this blog from Wining Wife® to Well-Caffeinated Mom, I also put some other projects into retirement. I changed the name of this blog to reflect changing priorities (I still enjoy wine and spirits from time to time, but there are other things I want to write about) with the idea that I could swallow the other two blogs into this one....https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/04/bringing-back-two-of-my-blogs-just-a-secular-homeschooler-and-activism-my-way/
I don't know about you, but I've had friends and s I don't know about you, but I've had friends and strangers recently both make comments that have led to me feeling bad at first then getting angry second. When friends and loved ones (let alone strangers) share their big scary hair audacious plans with you, are you someone who cheers them on, or do you start up with all the ways things might go wrong -- or worse tell them outright that it's not possible?Here's a post about why we should keep our fears about what others are doing to ourselves. https://www.wellcaffeinatedmom.com/2024/07/03/stop-asking-people-to-tamp-themselves-down-for-your-comfort/#supportotherwomen #stoptearingeachotherdown #buildupothers
Laughing is Forever by Jason Stocks – Poetry Amaz Laughing is Forever by Jason Stocks – Poetry Amazon: https://amzn.to/3VKXdN3@RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #LaughingisForever #JasonStocks #PoetryLaughing is Forever is my second book. And while it’s gritty, rhythmic, dark and dangerous it’s also fun, quirky, and inquisitive. Topics range from growing up in the Deep South to questioning the mainstream narrative of how it all . . . came to be. I want people who don’t read much and who hate poetry (the largest demographic) to give this collection a chance and fall in love with books by reading something that they can relate to and/or be awed by. Laughing is Forever is a standalone book, a brand-new beast, but follows in the footsteps of Blameforest in the sense that it’s reinventing what poetry can be. And hopefully inspiring folks to take risks with their own work and stand out from the maddening crowd.
Do you like tea? You might want to give the teas f Do you like tea? You might want to give the teas from The Art of Tea @artofteala a try. Today, I will review their products on the blog. #artoftea #teatime #teasforpoetryteatime #poetryteatime
When your partner takes you to a plant nursery to When your partner takes you to a plant nursery to pick a plant out for your 12th anniversary and buys you two because you were having a hard time deciding, they are a keeper for sure.#plantsofinstagram #variegatedplants
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