Home Sweet Home, part 1

I have been busy organizing and cleaning and cleaning and organizing around the house. We are preparing to enter our fourth year of homeschooling in September. I am getting everything ready and planning and gearing up for it all. It has made me want to tell y’all about our home/school life. You will be seeing much more of it as school starts. I want to try to post more pictures for family to keep them updated on our school.

Some of you may not know any homeschoolers, some may know me but not understand it, or you may be a homeschooler yourself and you need encouragement, and I hope I can give it to you. Just as each family and home is special and unique, such is each homeschool. Each home has a story of how God has placed them on this journey, and why they feel called into this ministry. This is our story. You may not agree with it, but it is ours.

I remember beginning to wonder about school for our oldest when he was a baby. We had the idea that he would go to the private school at our church. I would get my teaching certificate and try to teach there when he started school. I began substitute teaching there when he was a baby. I learned a lot about school while I was there. I was asked to work the maternity leave for the elementary art teacher. This was just two days a week for three months. I arranged childcare with a friend, and took the job. I had my answer after the first month. The discussions at the first and second grade lunch tables! The idea that friends come before family! The idea that what ever the teacher said was so, even if it was wrong! And this was all under the fourth grade level. What was going to happen now!

I began to do what I do best, research. I looked at education in general and different philosophies. I looked at types of schools and the history of schools. I looked at learning styles, teaching styles, and standardized testing. I looked at what God said about education. All of this research led me to research homeschooling. I then had a surprising conversation with my parents. I was over at their house and my dad asked me “Have you ever thought about homeschooling? I know a fireman and his wife and that is what they do. You would be good at it.” I told him that we were thinking about it and I was looking into it.

The year my oldest turned two, I went to the state homeschool conference in Winston Salem. I had many objectives. I wanted to see other homeschoolers, I did not know any. I wanted to make sure that I didn’t have to wear denim jumpers, grind my own wheat, and not cut/color my hair (those are all myths!) I wanted to see what all was “out there.” I was surprised to run into people I knew from church. I was also able to hear speakers on different subjects. This helped turn this decision from a head decision to a heart decision. It also led me to pray a lot more!

We were going to be homeschoolers! That is, until I decided to run from God…….to be continued…….