After spending most of June and July working on the yard, it’s time to refocus on homeschooling. Normally we don’t take a summer break and instead take more time off in the spring and fall for planting and harvest. But with a highly attached baby in the mix, sticking to a schedule has been impossible. We’re currently doing our best to catch up from where we left off and get a good review in. Time to get back in learning mode.
Queue: the TREE.
Something I do miss about public school is the thrill of the back-to-school season. That odd feeling of socks on your feet and crisp new sneakers after going barefoot all summer. A backpack full of shiny new folders, notebooks, writing utensils, almost too pretty to use! If you’re really lucky, you’ve got a great teacher that set up a warmly welcoming classroom, with themed decorations, coordinating bulletin boards, and even a comfortable reading nook in a corner. This year, it really hit me that I get to BE that teacher for my kids.
The theme I’ve been wanting to chase this summer is “glowy camping”. Roasting marshmallows beneath the soft twinkles of stars and fireflies (lightning bugs, as we call them here.) My idea was to create that sort of environment right in our dining room and living room area where we do most of our book work.
I’ve really always wanted to build an indoor tree just for fun anyway, and this was the perfect opportunity!
It only took a couple days to get up, thanks to Ms Rachel and Blippi babysitting while I built the chicken wire frame, brown paper maché bark, and tissue paper foliage. Then of course I topped it off with string lights and added a jar of “fireflies” and a candle lit campfire. It’s such a fun addition! It’s not an eyesore at all in our living room (I had worried it would be) and it’s magical at night. I love that my kids want to read books now, without me asking. I’m so, so pleased with the results. We’re already looking forward to changing the leaves to fall colors later on, and my daughter even wants to leave it up over Christmas and decorate it with snowflakes and icicles. So much fun!!!
Matthew 5:14-16 fits right in with our theme.
So begins another school year! Wish us luck! 🍎
Hodgin Homestead 
love it!! What materials did you use?
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What are the black pieces at the bottom of the tree?
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I think you might be referring to the wreath holder I built into the tree to hang our firefly jar on! I might have forgotten to mention that in the post. It’s a fun little extra feature.
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What a beautiful creation! Such a fun; cozy and inviting environment you’ve created for your children! I’m looking to build an indoor tree and your post has given me courage to take on this task. Thank you! Best school year to you and your family!
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Aw thank you!! It’s now been a year since we built the tree and we haven’t once even considered taking it down! The kids love changing it with the seasons. It’s SO worth the effort; definitely go for it!! 🙌
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How did you secure it to the wall? I would love to make something like this for one of our Sunday School classrooms!
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It’s barely secured to the wall at all, actually! Since I wasn’t aiming for it to be a permanent feature of the room, I tried to make it as self-supporting as possible to keep from making too many holes in the walls. A little hard to explain- but I put two nails up high near the ceiling (one at each corner where I wanted the farthest branches to extend) and ran a wire between them. I then attached the tops of the branches to *that* wire. Other than that, the chicken wire and paper mache have basically held their own shape! If you’re planning on a more permanent feature, I totally recommend building some sort of wooden frame for even more durability. I might do that in the future, with a ladder going up to a loft built within the tree! ☺️
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