From the outside, I think it can sometimes look like we have this whole modern stay-at-home family thing figured out. We share the fun moments, the family adventures, and homeschool activities. Highlighting our movie nights, little traditions with our boys, and all of the ordinary things that become special when you slow down and enjoy them. We genuinely love the life we are building, and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be so involved in our boys' childhood.
What you don't always see are the days that don't go according to plan for this modern stay at home Family.
Sometimes the boys are stubborn, sometimes we're exhausted, and sometimes the homeschool lesson we planned simply doesn't happen. Michael and I both have chiropractic offices to run. We're still massively building The Modern Stay at Home Family, and content creation takes far more time and work than a picture or thirty-second video might make it seem. There are days when work gets in the way of our plans, the house is a mess, the kids aren't cooperating, and we're left wondering how the day disappeared so quickly.
That's the reality of our family life. It isn't always pretty, but it is real.
The Reality of Our Stay-at-Home Family Life
Being a stay-at-home family doesn't mean we don't work. In many ways, our days are packed. Between our chiropractic businesses, building our modern family content business, homeschooling, taking care of our home, and raising two little boys, there is always something that needs our attention. Finding the balance can be difficult, especially when we're trying to grow something that requires so much of our time while still making sure our family gets the best of us.
Homeschooling is one area where we've learned to give ourselves a lot of grace, especially because the boys are still so young. If we planned to complete a lesson and the day gets away from us, we can do it tomorrow. If they're not interested in what we planned, we can change direction. Learning doesn't only happen when we're sitting down with a curriculum; it happens while we're reading together, cooking, playing outside, running errands, asking questions, and exploring the world around us.
That flexibility is one of the reasons we love homeschooling at this stage of life. We don't have to choose between checking every box on a school schedule and allowing our boys to simply be little boys. Sometimes the lesson doesn't happen, and that's okay. Childhood is happening too, and we don't want to rush through it.
Why We Still Choose This Life
We've thought a lot about what our alternative would look like. If Michael and I both worked traditional 9-to-5 jobs, or even longer hours building our businesses away from home, we'd miss a significant portion of our boys' childhood. Our families are an incredible part of our village, but they can't realistically provide five full days of childcare every week, which means we'd need daycare or another regular childcare arrangement.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with families who choose that path. Every family has different circumstances and different needs. For us, though, we knew we wanted something different. We didn't want someone else spending the majority of our boys' waking hours with them because our work schedules made it impossible for us to be there.
Instead, we're trying to build our work around our family as much as possible. Even when that means working at odd hours, juggling too many things, and accepting that some days will be messy. We want to be there for the conversations, random adventures, the cuddles, homeschool discoveries, and the moments that don't seem important until you realize they're the moments you'll remember.
It isn't the easiest model, but for our family, it is still better than the alternative. We'd rather figure out how to balance our businesses, homeschooling, content creation, and family life than look back years from now and wish we had been there more.
Looking to Jesus When We Can't Do It All
The truth is, we can't do this perfectly, and we were never meant to. There will always be more work to do, another mess to clean, another lesson to teach, another piece of content to create, and another responsibility waiting for us. Some days we'll handle it well, and other days we'll wonder how we're going to make it through.
That's where Jesus comes in.
When we don't know how to balance everything, we look to Him for wisdom. During the times we're exhausted, we look to Him for strength. When our patience is running thin, we ask Him for grace. Our faith isn't something we want to add to our family life after everything else is taken care of; it is the foundation underneath everything we're trying to build.
We're not trying to create a perfect family. We're trying to create a family rooted in Christ. Where our boys know they are loved and they get to experience their childhood with their parents beside them. All while learning to trust God through the seasons that feel completely overwhelming.
Some days the homeschool lesson won't happen. Sometimes the work takes longer than expected. Some days the house will be a disaster and the kids will test every ounce of patience we have. Those things don't mean we've failed. They mean we're raising a family, building businesses, and trying to do all of it faithfully in the middle of real life.
Final Thoughts about the Modern Stay at Home Family
Our boys will only be this little once, and one day this season will be over. The toys will be put away, the homeschool books will be packed up, and we'll look back at the years when they were little and remember far more than the things we accomplished.
We'll remember the chaos, the laughter, and the stubbornness. We'll treasure the family traditions, the prayers, and the moments we almost missed because we were too busy trying to make everything perfect.
So yes, we're the Modern Stay at Home Family, but we're also a struggling modern stay-at-home family.
We're still figuring it out. We are still building. We're still learning how to balance it all.
And through every messy, beautiful, exhausting season, we're looking to Jesus for the strength to keep going.
Because this isn't the easy life.
It's the life we chose because we believe it's worth fighting for.
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