Dreams, Dirt & Grace- Business, Homeschooling, Simple Living & Parenting Hacks for Moms

267 — Preparing for Your Homeschool Year (Even If You Don’t Feel Ready)

Preparing for Your Homeschool Year (Even If You Don’t Feel Ready)
🌿 With faith, flexibility, and a whole lot of grace

Feeling behind before the homeschool year even starts? You’re not alone, friend. Whether your books haven’t arrived, your plans feel scattered, or your confidence is shaky—this episode is a gentle hug and a deep breath for your homeschool mama heart.

In today’s episode, I share some of our messiest first days, the years we started late (or not at all), and how God lovingly led me to lay down my hustle and invite Him into the planning. It’s not about perfect charts and tidy shelves—it’s about connection, flexibility, and faith.

We’ll chat about what it looks like to:

• Let go of the pressure to do it all
  
  
• Pray over your year and ask God for vision
  
  
• Start simple, create rhythms, and make space for grace
  
  
• Trust that God equips the called—even when we don’t feel ready
  
  

Whether you’re planning with a latte in hand or praying in between diaper changes, you are not behind—and you are not alone.

💛

👣 Quick Takeaways from Today’s Episode:

• You don’t need a perfect start. Messy beginnings are still holy.
  
  
• Pray first. Let God speak vision into your year.
  
  
• Start small. Focus on 2–3 anchor subjects or rhythms.
  
  
• Make it simple. Use what you have. The learning will come.
  
  
• Reflect weekly. Adjust with grace and prayer.
  
  
• You are called. Not because you're ready—but because He is faithful.

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

266: Part 10: Hope – Holding on to what God is doing—even when you can't see it yet. Through the Fire series

Sometimes hope feels like the hardest thing to hold onto—especially when the ending of your story looks nothing like what you pictured.

In this final episode of our Through the Fire series, I’m sharing how God taught me to hold on to hope—not because I had all the answers or could see the whole plan, but because He was still with me in the unknown.

If you’re standing in the ashes, wondering what’s next, this one’s for you.

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

265: Part 9: Identity- Rediscovering Who YOU are in Him… When the Title is Stripped Away. Through the Fire Series

Who are you when the title is gone?
In this raw and reflective episode of Through the Fire, we explore what it means to rediscover your identity in Christ after the role, the dream, or the achievement you clung to has been stripped away. I’m sharing the personal journey of losing the title “Firefighter,” and the deeper work God did to remind me that my worth isn’t in what I do—but in who He says I am.

If you've ever felt lost in the in-between, this one’s for you. Let’s uncover what was always true: you are still chosen, still called, and still His.

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

264: Part 8: Rebuilding – Finding purpose again when your path gets shaken and How God used the fire to refine you into something stronger. Through the Fire Series

What happens when the dust settles after everything falls apart? In this deeply personal episode, I share how God used the fire—not to destroy me, but to refine me. I open up about the false identities I didn’t know I was still carrying… and how, in the aftermath of a dream that didn’t end how I hoped, God began to rebuild something deeper, stronger, and more honest.

If you’ve ever found yourself questioning your worth, wrestling with your identity, or wondering what purpose looks like after a hard detour—this episode will meet you right there. You are not starting over. You’re being rebuilt with grace, grit, and a God who never left.

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

263: Part 7: Faith in the Unknown- Choosing to trust God when the next step isn’t clear. Through the Fire Series

What happens after the disappointment—when the plan falls apart, and you’re left holding questions instead of answers?

In this heartfelt episode of Dreams, Dirt & Grace, we step into the vulnerable space that comes after the fire. The space where God feels quiet, the next step isn’t clear, and you’re wondering if you missed something—or if you’re just… stuck.

Kawailani shares what it looked like to trust God when there was no clear direction, no “next big thing,” and no plan to follow. Through raw stories, tender reflections, and a moment of unexpected wisdom from her 5-year-old, this episode reminds us:

Faith isn’t always a bold leap—it’s often found in the stillness.
In the pause.
In the surrender that says, “God, I don’t know where this is going… but I’m choosing You anyway.”

If you’re in a season of waiting, wrestling, or wondering what comes next—this one’s for you.

📓 Reflection for this week:

• Where in my life do I feel uncertain or unclear about what’s next?
  
  
• What would it look like to choose rest as a form of faith?
  
  
• How can I trust God’s timing, even when I can’t see it unfolding yet?

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

262: Part 6: Peace – Finding God’s Presence in the Heartbreak. Through the Fire Series

When the ending isn’t what you prayed for and the heartbreak feels heavy, peace might be the last thing you expect… and yet, somehow, it’s what God offers in the middle of the wreckage.

In this tender episode of Through the Fire, I’m sharing what it looked like to find peace after being released from Fire Academy—just weeks before graduation. The kind of peace that doesn’t come because everything worked out… but because God was there, holding me in the heartbreak.

If you're walking through a season that feels uncertain, painful, or unfinished—this one’s for you. Because even when the story breaks, God’s presence stays.

📓 Reflection for this week:

• What does peace feel like to you in this season?
  
  
• Where have you seen glimpses of God’s presence, even in the pain?
  
  
• What would it look like to ask for peace—not as an outcome, but as a daily gift?

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

261: Part 5: Expectation – When What You Hoped For Doesn’t Happen, and the Outcome Stings. Through the Fire Series

Through the Fire – Part 5 | Dreams, Dirt & Grace

What do you do when you obey God, pour your heart into the journey, and the ending still doesn’t look like what you hoped for?

In this episode, I’m sharing the heartbreak of being released from Fire Academy just weeks before graduation—and the peace God gave me in the middle of it. This is a real look at unmet expectations, holy redirection, and the truth that even when the dream changes, God’s faithfulness does not.

If you’re grieving an outcome you didn’t choose, this one’s for you.

 

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

260: Part 4: Provision – The Way God Showed Up and Sustained Me in Impossible Moments. Through the Fire Series

Sometimes God doesn’t remove the fire.
Sometimes... He just holds you through it.

In this episode, I’m sharing how God provided in the middle of my hardest moments—not by making things easy, but by giving me just enough strength, just enough grace, and just enough peace to keep going.

Provision didn’t always look like I expected. It wasn’t flashy or instant.
But it was exactly what I needed, right when I needed it.

If you're walking through a season that feels too heavy, too exhausting, or too uncertain—this episode will remind you that God is still showing up, even in the smallest ways.

You’re not forgotten. You’re being carried.
Let’s talk about what real provision looks like in the fire.

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

259: Part 3: Discouragement – Facing the Voices of Doubt, Fear, and Exhaustion. Through the Fire series

Through the Fire – Part 3 | Dreams, Dirt & Grace

What do you do when you’re doing everything right—surrendering, obeying, showing up—and still feel like you’re falling apart?

In Part 3 of the Through the Fire series, I’m sharing one of the lowest points in my Fire Academy journey. The moment I failed in front of everyone. The moment the whispers got loud—“You’re not strong enough. You don’t belong here. You’re failing.”

This episode is a raw look at the heaviness of discouragement, the lies that creep in during the middle of the fire, and the truth that pulled me through. Because even when the outcome doesn’t look how we hoped, God is still present. Still refining. Still carrying us.

If you’re feeling tired, stuck, or like you’ve lost your way—this one is for you.

 

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com

258: Part 2: Obedience – Saying Yes When You Don’t Know the End of the Story (“Through the Fire” series)

Part 2: Obedience – Saying Yes When You Don’t Know the End of the Story 

Saying yes to God sounds brave… until you’re walking it out in the middle of exhaustion, uncertainty, and doubt.

In Part 2 of Through the Fire, I’m sharing the real and raw moments of what obedience looked like for me—saying yes to Fire Academy without knowing the outcome, trusting God while juggling motherhood, training, and the constant feeling of “Am I doing the right thing?”

Obedience isn’t always pretty. It’s rarely easy. But it’s always worth it.
Because when we say yes, God doesn’t promise clarity—He promises presence.

This episode is for the woman in the messy middle, the one who’s following God but starting to question the path. If that’s you, you’re not alone—and I pray this reminder gives you strength for your next step.

 

If you want to learn how to embrace the Dirt on your journey, come join me over on Substack at kawailani.substack.com