Danielle Farnham has lived in Oklahoma City with her husband and six children for about a year.
“We moved here from a small town in Texas because the house next door to my sister was for sale at a great price,” she said. “My adventurous husband said we should buy it and I thought he was joking, but he wasn’t. And we bought it!”
Her husband is an IT analyst who works from home so it was fairly simple to relocate. Farnham said she’s loved exploring the city with her kids and some of their favorite things to do are go to libraries and visit Science Museum Oklahoma. A flute and Kindermusik teacher before her children reached school-age, Farnham now spends her days homeschooling her kids. Being one of four kids married to one of six, she said they always knew they wanted a big family.
Here’s what a day in her life looks like:
5:40 a.m. The toddler is not supposed to wake up this early, but I hear him calling my name so I roll out of bed and hurry to get dressed. When I get to his crib, he reaches for me and I smother him in kisses. Although I wouldn’t have chosen to start my day this way, I am really thankful for the sweet snuggles on the couch with some board books before the rest of the house is awake.
6:10 a.m. My oldest joins us in the living room. He likes the quiet too. We have homeschooled him since kindergarten, but as a middle schooler he has really taken ownership of his education. He sets his alarm so he can work on his Latin, grammar, and pre-algebra textbooks before his siblings wake up.
6:45 a.m. Everyone is awake now and we have breakfast. We have some food allergies in our house so I make almost everything from scratch, but I am often blessed by my 11-or 9-year-old wanting to make muffins or the like. Today, we’re keeping it simple with oatmeal. While we are eating, we recite memory verses and I read aloud some poetry and literature. Today it’s Emily Dickinson and “Little Britches” by Ralph Moody.
7:30 a.m. My husband goes into our bedroom to work, and I say, “Checklists, Everyone!” All the kids except the toddler get ready for their day and do their “job.” For the 3-year-old, that is pouring the bathroom trash can into the big one so the 9-year-old can take out all the trash. Many hands make light work.
8:00 a.m. The 3-year-old wants to play house so we do that first thing. Now she will draw pictures at the table while the older four practice writing. The toddler decides this is a good time to take all the books off the shelf.
11:00 a.m. Today we don’t have any errands or extracurriculars breaking up our study time and so the kids have already finished school. My kids are motivated to be diligent because they know when they finish, they can play. They run outside while I make lunch.
1:00 p.m. Lunch dishes are put away and preschool games are played. The younger three are all down for a nap. The 7-year-old uses this time to play with Legos knowing no one will break or eat her pieces, the 9-year-old is writing a book and the 11-year-old is reading. It is time for me to have a break! I start the slow cooker, read my Bible and make a phone call. I also use this time to grade schoolwork.
3:30 p.m. Naps are finished and we head for the park. When we get back, everyone draws from the clean-up cup. We clean whatever area we draw and put finishing touches on supper.
5:30 p.m. Dinner and dishes. It’s family night! We have it once a week. Tonight it’s the 5-year-old’s turn to pick a treat and an activity. She chooses ice cream and a movie.
7:40 p.m. Everyone is in their pajamas and we have family devotions together before bedtime. My husband and I divide and conquer to get everyone in bed. The younger four are in bed at 8, while the older two stay up until 8:30. I try to finish all my chores and lesson plans by 9:00 so that my husband and I can have time to connect before we head to bed too.
