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“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.” -Benjamin Franklin
Not a bad goal, I’d say.
The turning of a new year is a prime time for looking both backwards and forwards. I spent some time reflecting on 2017 at The Sparrow’s Home, specifically on which posts were the most popular over the year. Enjoy perusing them! And as we look forward, let me know what you’d like to see more of.
Happy New Year!
Top 10 Posts of 2017
#10 Ground Beef in the Crock Pot
Can I tell you…I’ve been doing this so often since I first tried it for this post! On nights that I tutor and don’t get home until dinner time, this is the BEST! All I have to do is drain it, season it and heat the shells for tacos. I usually freeze half (unseasoned) for an even easier dinner another night to make something like hamburger stroganoff or lasagna.
I tried it with thawed hamburger for the first time this week. Just cut a few hours off the time. Perfect!
#9 Finally, Online Math That Works: A Review of Mr. D. Math
As homeschool curriculum goes, Mr. D Math is on my short list of favorites. One of the best things about homeschooling is being able to find what works for your child. For us, math was tricky. We tried lots of different math curriculum over the years, some good, some not so much. Oh how I wish we’d have found Mr. D sooner!
#8 15 Disney Sites the Biggest Disney Fans Follow
It’s no secret we love Disney around my house, my husband most of all. Whether you’re looking to jump into full Dis-nerd status like Greg or just want to feel the magic a little, this post has got you covered.
For more Disney magic:
The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling Disney
How to plan a Disney trip with someone who doesn’t love Disney (yet)
Disneyland vs Disney World: When to Choose Disneyland
#7 What the parental reviews missed in Spiderman: Homecoming
My husband worked as a movie theater manager when we were dating and first married. Because they were free, we watched a lot of movies…and I can tell you, there are a lot of junk movies that come out. Now, we’re pretty tight with our movie dollars. But we do see most Superhero movies in the theater (I’m the mom of 2 boys, remember).
I’m not often shocked by content, because we do pretty thorough research. This one shocked me.
#6 100 Puns to Make You Roll Your Eyes, Groan, and Shake Your Head
I cannot get enough of these. Far and wide, I searched, to find this delightful collection of pun humor for you. It’s completely awesome.
#5 Simple Homemade Granola
This is pretty fantastic, so I’m not surprised it’s a favorite. And people love getting it as gifts! Crunchy, yummy, and you can customize it exactly how you want it. I have a big bag of walnuts on my counter right now to make a cherry walnut version. Mmmmm.
#4 Homemade Soap: It’s Not as Hard as You Think
It took me awhile to get up the courage to give soapmaking a try. It really is super easy! Follow directions and don’t be stupid with the lye and you’ll be surprised how simple it is. I had a group of ladies over to show them the process when I wrote this post, and I’ll tell you what I told them: You can do this!
#3 How do you repay someone who saved your child’s life?
I can’t do Allie justice in a blurb, so just check this out. You won’t regret it. Promise.
#2 Take a Meal to a Friend in Need
Is food your love language, too? When people are suffering, often times taking a meal to make things easier is one of the biggest ways we can help. I collected the best ideas to help you be a blessing.
#1 Moms, please don’t stop doing things for your teens. They can still grow into responsible adults…promise.
Parenting teens is a big change. It’s our job to apprentice them into responsible adulthood, not abandon them to figure it all out on their own.
This piece was a response to an article that encouraged parents to stop doing things for their teens to promote maturity (or something like that). I’m not in favor of coddling your teens, but there were some major flaws in the article. In fact, it contained one of the worst pieces of parenting advice I’ve ever heard. Ever.
We don’t stop parenting when our children become teens, but we do need to change the way we parent. Developing a Biblical worldview doesn’t happen by accident.
So tell me, which one of these was your favorite?
Did you know that The Sparrow’s Home launched our shop in 2017? We only sell my favorite things, things that I’ve been giving away for years to friends and family, and use myself.
You can get This Herbal Salve (an all-purpose salve that my family calls ‘Healing Salve’ and always has on hand) and my can’t-live-without tea blend, This Tea is for Ladies. I make both in small batches and ship it right to you.
The store also has my first e-book, Cut College Costs: Earn College Credits in High School. It tells you exactly how we’ve saved thousands of dollars on our boys’ college costs.
Thanks for checking them out and sharing with your friends!
My favorite is your #1; though i must admit that I am afraid to click on the Disney one… I LOVE Disney and have been dying to visit again for the last few years. However, as a family we have made the conscious decision to try out new family vacation spots since we’ve been to Disney many times. If I were independently wealthy we’d do a Disney trip AND check out some other place each year!
My husband and I had to work out a ‘schedule’ of sorts as well, alternating non-Disney vacations (like Yellowstone and Washington DC) with Disney. And he’s said exactly what you did (if we were independently wealthy) about doing both every year.