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Why The Wild + Free Family by Ainsley Arment Will Always Be on My Shelf
Some books find you right when you need them. For me, The Wild + Free Family by Ainsley Arment became more than a book — it became a quiet anchor, a companion I’ll return to year after year. It reminded me of my why. It soothed the ache of hard days. It helped me feel seen, and gently reminded me: I’m not alone. Here’s what I’d tell her if I could…”
3 min read
Dear Ainsley Arment,
The Wild + Free Family has become a new favourite of mine — a motherhood manifesto I know I’ll return to again and again. Your words remind me of what matters most, especially when a season of motherhood feels too much.
You capture the beauty of both motherhood and homeschooling with such honesty — in all its joy, messiness, and transformation.
Your wisdom feels like the kind I always longed for—a mother’s warmth, gentle and compassionate. The kind of conversation I used to dream of having with my own mum—where I feel truly seen and deeply understood. Where I’m gently encouraged just as I am, and reminded that somehow, life will find its way.
You’ve put my thoughts onto paper — often articulating things I couldn’t yet name. You’ve helped me understand feelings I hadn’t fully made sense of.
I love that you share your story so simply, so beautifully, and so straight from the heart.
I love that you make me feel validated and understood.
I love that I found myself in your pages.
I love that you offer a glimpse into a life that feels possible — for me, and for my children.
I fell in love with the chapter To Become Together.
You began with an excerpt from The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams — and from there, you wrote about motherhood in a way that soothed my soul and let light in on a day I was feeling overburdened and lost in self-doubt.
You wrote,
"As the children grow, so do I — right alongside them, hand in hand in a dance that’s ours alone. Sometimes we stumble, sometimes we move with grace, but always, we grow together. I won’t have all the answers, and I’ll surely make mistakes along the way."
That line stopped me. I exhaled.
I realised I’ll never be “perfect” by the impossible standards my inner critic clings to — but I can keep showing up. With love. With hope. With a heart open to learning. And maybe that’s all that matters.
There’s another line from your book that has stayed with me:
"Let me tell you how well I've been loved. So well loved. I would never trade any of those bumps and bruises for who I am and who I have become."
That one has found a home in me.
Thank you for putting into words what so many of us feel but don’t always know how to say. Your book is a gift. And your presence in this world is a lighthouse for homeschooling mums like me — trying to find our way in a noisy world that so often leaves us doubting ourselves.
To the reader who found their way here,
If you’re walking through a season that feels heavy…
If you’re wondering if it’s okay not to have it all figured out…
If you’re longing for a slower, simpler way to live and learn alongside your children…
This book might just be the permission slip your heart is aching for.
It reminded me that growing slowly, together, is enough.
That love doesn’t need to look perfect.
That motherhood, in all its tenderness and trial, is a becoming.
We don’t need to have all the answers.
We just need to keep showing up, hand in hand.
With love,
A Little Life in Bloom,
Gwen x
Last updated February 2025