Welcome! I’m Rachelle, wife and homeschooling mama. I love Jesus, my man, my little ones, libraries, lemonade and theology. For years I’ve loved others’ DITL (day in the life) posts on social media and blogs/Substack, so I’m jumping in with my own. Consider this a chronicle of my daily life, a testimony of Christ’s faithfulness in all things big and small!
- July 13, 2026 -
6:30 AM: I awaken to the trill of my alarm this morning, a little surprised. Usually I’m up before it goes off, stirred by the sunlight peeking in through the window.
Throughout our marriage, my husband and I have always made it a point to go to bed at the same time and for 5 years he’s worked at 5AM (arrived at work at 5AM). So we’re always abed by 9PM even if we might not turn off the light until 9:30PM because we’re watching a show together. And a benefit to an early bedtime is an early waketime!
But the night before it took me a while to fall asleep so I get up with my alarm and go to the living room and start my workout. I’m working my way through my second round of Lindsey Bomgren’s (Nourish Move Love) Max 20 free workout program and really enjoy the challenge of it. Today’s leg day is only a little more than 20 minutes! Afterward I tiptoe to my backyard for a dose of morning sunlight (good for circadian rhthym!). Sometimes I do some short stretches outside; sometimes I open the Merlin app to identify the birdsong. Since incorporating this new habit of stepping outside for 3-5 minutes of sunlight this spring and summer, I’ve become a lot more aware of the birds!
7:00 AM: I return to the living room and pick up my current Bible study, Numbers by Lauren Chandler. I’m loving it. I never did guided Bible studies like this until a couple years ago and now I cannot get enough of them. They’re all over my Goodreads to-read list and Amazon wishlist now. I especially love Phylicia Masonheimer’s and Jen Wilkin’s Bible studies, but I had this Numbers one on my bookshelf from over a year ago from when my husband bought it for me for Christmas since I could not get enough of Bible study resources on the Torah that year. Let’s be real, I still can’t get over the Torah. Or Bible study in general. Numbers 13 this morning!
Why workout before the Word? I almost always do my workout before my Bible study because it gives my brain time to wake up and if I don’t have enough time before waking my children, then I know I will pick up my Bible study at another time of day or even bedtime. But seldom will I start a workout midday or in the evening (other than a walk! See below). Most mornings now I can fit both, which is a privilege not lost on this mama whose youngest only slept through the night starting last summer. On busy workweeks, I also get some work done here before …
7:30 AM: I wake my still-sleeping children (I know, I know, it’s a gift! They didn’t always sleep this well!) and carry them both (one at a time!) to the couch. We start our Morning Time read-alouds:
- A Saint a Day: 365 True Stories of Faith and Heroism — As Protestants sometimes I verbally edit the day’s reading, but I personally love hearing stories of the saints of old!
- How Great is Our God: 100 Indescribable Devotions About God and Science by Louie Giglio — A dear friend recommended this resource to me and we love learning this way! This is the only consistent science-y resource I used for my oldest’s first official year of homeschool. I think there are three in the series and we are on the second one. I know it will be a treasured reread.
- Then I read a picture book from our library book bin! Our favorites are here.
8:00 AM: We make our way to the kitchen where I start the scrambled eggs and Rosalie (6) stirs. Jack (3) just wants to be held so I go about gathering everyone’s cups and starter pages while we recite the Lord’s Prayer and Doxology. Some mornings they just listen to me; but if they repeat the Lord’s Prayer after me, they receive a single chocolate chip and I say “I want you to always remember that Scripture is sweet.” Cheesy, but may they always remember!
As we eat breakfast (they can have whatever they want from the fridge as long as it is protein-centric: most days this is scrambled eggs or Greek yogurt with sprinkles) we do a few catechism questions, change the calendar board (day, season weather, etc.) and discuss a card of the day from our many treasured Tiny Theologians card sets. Then Rosalie gets to choose the order of her schoolwork and usually chooses copywork or addition problems. Jack likes sweeping a single swipe of crayon across his Bible story coloring sheet and declaring he’s done. He can get down whenever he’s done and mosey over to the diswasher to unload the cutlery. I clear the knives first and he gets to work, at least one matchbox car tucked in one still-dimpled toddler fist.
8:30 AM: Rosalie and I work on her math or Phonics lesson. I have really enjoyed the Masterbooks curriculum for her Kindergarten and first grade years because its Scripture- and story-based. I purchased the digital files so I can reuse them for Jack when its his turn and print them on our home printer (something I’m so grateful for!). I thought perhaps I’d also like to be able to reprint pages where we needed more practice but I haven’t had to do that yet.
9:15 AM: I don’t dictate how much of each subject she must complete because she is very self-motivated so we just go until she requests a “play break.” While she does, I start the day’s load of laundry and consult the meal plan to do any dinner prep (defrost meat, set out a box of pasta, etc.) After a few minutes of play, I call her back to complete unloading the dishwasher so I can tackle any breakfast dishes.
Then we head outside! It’s stiflingly hot in South Carolina but we usually spend 45-60 minutes in the morning in the slightly-less-sweltering shade of our driveway. The children water the plants or “wash” the water table while I read a book. I save our water bill by declaring the hose all done at some point before the yard floods.
Some mornings we have a playdate or drive to the splashpad but this Monday morning there is nothing on the calendar so the children play inside until lunch. Meanwhile I start a loaf of bread in the mixer and put away the folded stack of laundry from last night (see below). I referee sibling squabbles and text a picture to the grandparents. These are the days.
I’m not unaware of the fact that my everyday is somebody’s Saturday. What a gift to stay home and homeschool my children. This is truly Kingdom work!
11:00 AM: The lunch rush! I assemble their lunch plates and toss my own taco bowl. I have perfected my preferred lazy lunch. Once or twice a week I put a couple pounds of chicken thighs into my Instant Pot and select Poultry for 15 minutes then let it slow release for up to (maybe over) an hour. Almost every single day, I toss 150g of chicken, salsa, cheddar cheese, lettuce and maybe some potatoes or rice, and I haven’t gotten tired of it yet.
I check to see if I already need to run the dishwasher again (I often do, especially if we’ve baked this morning!) and try to move the day’s load of laundry over before…
12:00 – 2:00 PM: Rest Time! Even for Mommy. Since my babies were, well, babies, I took the old saying sleep when the baby sleeps to heart. After Rosalie’s birth, if I didn’t sleep, I at least rested or read. After maternity leave, this became my work time! I do no housework but instead focusing on the amazing remote admin work I get to do for a church planting network I love. On busy weeks I also work for a few hours before they wake in the morning. I’m very blessed to be home with my children and still “answer emails for Jesus,” as Rosalie says. This is also Kingdom work I don’t take for granted, either. (How do I keep it all straight? The Todoist app.)
2:00 PM: Rosalie bursts out of her room in excitement, declaring it Art Time! She’s elated to have a few minutes alone at the kitchen table to tinker with her art supplies. She plays here until her brother wakes up and we fetch him together to return to the table for a snack.
3:00 PM: Daddy’s home! Always a time to party in our house. A filling snack and toy time begins afresh, usually intermingled with a rundown for Daddy of how our day has gone so far, complete details on any playdate or outing we completed, perhaps some proud presentation of artwork completed while he was away. If I haven’t moved the laundry along or tidied up from lunch yet, I do so here.
During the fall and winter months, we’re usually playing outside or walking to a nearby neighborhood park, but during the summer we stick closer to home and air conditioning! I schedule any work meetings or other special work projects here as well.
5:00 PM: We keep dinner simple over here! Protein and a vegetable with a kid-friendly alternative available. We ask them to take one thankful bite in respect for the chef (ahem) but then they’re welcome to make their own meal. PB&J sandwich in our uncrustable cutter. Yogurt parfait. More scrambled eggs. Sometimes baths happen before or after dinner, while the other parent does clean-up. Then we might play a game together as a family. Rosalie has really gotten into games lately. Or the children might build a block tower or construct a matchbox car city on the living room rug while Devin and I try not to fall asleep on the couch!
6:30 PM Alexa dings a reminder that it’s Bible time so we pick up the Children’s Storybook Bible we’re currently working through and sit down at the dining room table with another snack (so many snacks in this DITL!). The children each brush their teeth (one at a time helps reduce sharing-sink tension) then get individual time with each of us. Usually this looks like Rosalie and I reading a princess chapter book or library picture book on the couch together while Devin reads to Jack in his bed. Switch! I read to Jack and tell him night-night then make approximately 16 trips to and from his room as he remembers he’s thirsty/hungry/needs to use the restroom. Rosalie gets 10 minutes reading time in her room. Yes, the bedtime routine takes almost an hour so that’s why we start so early!
7:30 PM: After bedtime, I do any last-minute tidying in the kitchen and start the dishwasher (yes, our family of four usually does the dishwasher twice a day!). I bring in the laundry from the dryer and take out the rash. I then take a quick mile walk while listening to a podcast. (In the fall and winter, I don’t walk this late since it will be long since dark by then and I can walk earlier in the day without dying of heat stroke!). Devin usually kindly folds the laundry while I’m gone for 18 minutes! Since folding is one of my least favorite chores, I’m grateful and put the laundry away or put the piles on my dresser to attend to the next day.
8:30 PM : I shower and Devin and I watch a show together (NCIS, Blue Bloods, etc.) and then pray together before turning out the light. Another “mundane” Monday to some, but I know I’m living the life I prayed for…
I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Psalm 27:13
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