We rushed down to my hometown the other Wednesday evening. Nana obtained tickets to the circus for Thursday evening. The last time we went to the circus was before Gorgeous (now 2) was even a thought.
There is nothing like the circus. Where else can really wierd human tricks earn you money? Where else can you race motorcycles around in a metal ball? Where else can you act like a fool and have people laugh with you?
Needless to say the kids had a blast. There was a bit of trepidation on the part of the 4 almost 5 yo. He is not fond of crowds or animals. Even he began cheering on the performers!
I've always loved the circus since the first time my folks carried me. I remember the high wire acts. I remember the pretty girl on the back of the elephant. The lion's roar. I probably still have the big coloring program book. (I can be a pack rat sometimes.) I hope they will retain such fond memories.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Sisters (anonymous)
(This was sent to me via email by a wonderful lady named Mrs. Alice. I doubt she wrote it because of the way she worded her first comment of it being "Not new but lovely nevertheless." I must agree with her sentiment.)
Sisters
Sisters
A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day,
drinking iced tea and visiting with her mother. As
they talked about life, about marriage, about the
responsibilities of life and the obligations of
adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her
glass thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance
upon her daughter..
"Don't forget your sisters,' she advised, swirling
the tea leaves to the bottom of her glass. 'They'll
be more important as you get older. No matter how
much you love your husband, no matter how much you
love the children you may have, you are still going
to need sisters. Remember to go places with them now
and then; do things with them..'
'Remember that 'sisters' means ALL the women...
your girlfriends, your daughters, and all your other
women relatives too.. 'You'll need other women. Women
always do.'
What a funny piece of advice!' the young woman
thought. Haven't I just gotten married? Haven't I just joined the
couple-world? I'm now a married woman, for goodness sake! A grownup!
Surely my husband and the family we may start will be all I need to
make my life worthwhile!'
But she listened to her mother. She kept contact with her sisters and
made more women friends each year. As the years tumbled by, one after
another, she gradually came to understand that her mother really knew
what she was talking about. As time and nature work their changes and
their mysteries upon a woman, sisters are the mainstays of her life.
After more than 50 years of living in this world, here is what I've
learned:
THIS SAYS IT ALL:
Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.
Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Men don't do what they're supposed to do.
Hearts break.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favors.
Careers end.
BUT.........
Sisters are there, no matter how much time and how
many miles are between you. A girl friend is never farther away than
needing her can reach.
When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you
have to walk it by yourself, the women in your life will be on the
valley's rim, cheering you on, praying for you, pulling for you,
intervening on your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the valley's
end..
Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk
beside you...Or come in and carry you out.
Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law,
sisters,-in-law, Mothers, Grandmothers, aunties, nieces, cousins, and
extended family: all bless our life!
The world wouldn't be the same without women, and
neither would I. When we began this adventure called
womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or
sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we
would need each other..
Every day, we need each other still. Pass this on to all the women who
help make your life meaningful.
I just did. Short and very sweet:
There are more than twenty angels in this world. Ten are peacefully
sleeping on clouds. Nine are playing. And one is reading her email at
this moment.
(I guess I should point out that I am not the woman of 50 years that added these tidbits. Haven't reached that milestone yet. I agree with them though.)
(I guess I should point out that I am not the woman of 50 years that added these tidbits. Haven't reached that milestone yet. I agree with them though.)
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Homeschooling Differences
I subscribe to dozens of blogs, online newsletters, and facebook fan all kinds of homeschool related items. It can be quite entertaining to see all the various takes on those of us who keep our children at home instead of sending them to public or private schools.
What parents who send their kids to school, or folks that have no children, seem to miss is that no homeschool is like any other homeschool. My neighbors unschool. I just saw online an article that slams that philosophy relentlessly as near negligence in parenting. Frankly, the young lady next door that just had her 14th birthday is the only babysitter I have ever hired. After living beside these "crazy unschoolers" I know that she was better qualified and mature enough to handle my five with no concerns than most "normal" kids. (More on "normal" in other posts. Trying to stay on topic here.)
I do not school at home by any stretch of the imagination. My hubby is a teacher. I spent all my time in college working towards a teaching degree. I even worked as a teacher for 2 1/2 years. There is no way having my five sit at a desk for 45 minute time periods doing worksheets would teach them anything. I wish I had known and understood what I do now as a parent back when I did teach. My classroom would have been radically different and my students would have had fond memories of field trips to the playground to follow bugs, paint rocks, and barely any memory of silly repetitive worksheets. True, my students now have workbooks to practice math and writing skills. They also have businesses. My eldest son runs the snack machine at our business. He is responsible for making sure it is kept stocked. My second son is more willing to try new things. He will find plush animals or toys that would appeal to our customer base and stock them. Both have jobs to do within our business having to do with stocking, store upkeep, and customer interaction. We go to the zoo. We go to museums. We go to the library. We go to the park. We read. We play games. We go to family functions. We go to the local university for the occasional lecture series. We do all this and more. We do it on our time. If there is going to be something of interest at noon across town, we load up and go. I do not have to provide an excuse to a teacher. I don't have to worry if our trip out of state will keep them out of school for more than the 10 allowed days per school term. If my husband gets extra time off and wants to spend time with our children at a movie, we can go. No homework for hours after hours at school interfering with his ability to have conversations about physics or video games with our kids.
Do I know families that are more structured? Yes. I know families that buy boxed curriculum each year and follow it precisely. Even then, school doesn't last from 8am to 3pm like at the usual institutions. They do their workbooks. Read their assignments. Follow the prescribed day's activities. They learn right on the publisher's timeline and use their expansive free time to pursue other interests.
The majority of homeschoolers I know do everything differently from every other homeschool family I know. Even when they purchase the same curriculum, they go about completing it differently.
Eclectic, classical, Charlotte Mason, unit studies, lapbookers, notebookers, the list goes on and on for different titles for homeschoolers. There is a reason that we each chose to teach our children at home: So we can teach them as individuals, not as an age group. If you ask each parent why they do this, answers will swing from one end of the spectrum to the other.
My answers have even changed over the years. After having Blue Eyes in a pre-kindergarten, we realized hubby would get to see him for about 30 minutes each school day. At the time, he had Fridays off. We would pick up Blue Eyes at nap time and head off somewhere. We had to wait until after lunch so that the days would not add up. Too many absolute absences equaled removal from school and we were trying to get him "properly educated". Hubby missed the boy. So my first answer for why was so that he could spend time with our children.
Now it is along the lines of God telling us in the Bible that we should raise up our children in the way that they should go.(Proverbs 22:6) My 10 yo and 9 yo are most of the way through a pre-algebra program. They read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and The Time Machine in the last couple of weeks. My 6 yo loves to read and asks for math pages whenever she gets a chance. My 4 yo builds and runs and talks and draws and gets to be a boy. My 2 yo joins in everything she can with gusto resulting in various adventures and messes.
It's loud. It's quiet. It's organized. It's chaos. It's running over with extra kids. It's just us few. It's our school. Even with a schedule, it is different everyday as we learn and discover together.
One of the best things about homeschooling is our differences.
Have a blessed day.
What parents who send their kids to school, or folks that have no children, seem to miss is that no homeschool is like any other homeschool. My neighbors unschool. I just saw online an article that slams that philosophy relentlessly as near negligence in parenting. Frankly, the young lady next door that just had her 14th birthday is the only babysitter I have ever hired. After living beside these "crazy unschoolers" I know that she was better qualified and mature enough to handle my five with no concerns than most "normal" kids. (More on "normal" in other posts. Trying to stay on topic here.)
I do not school at home by any stretch of the imagination. My hubby is a teacher. I spent all my time in college working towards a teaching degree. I even worked as a teacher for 2 1/2 years. There is no way having my five sit at a desk for 45 minute time periods doing worksheets would teach them anything. I wish I had known and understood what I do now as a parent back when I did teach. My classroom would have been radically different and my students would have had fond memories of field trips to the playground to follow bugs, paint rocks, and barely any memory of silly repetitive worksheets. True, my students now have workbooks to practice math and writing skills. They also have businesses. My eldest son runs the snack machine at our business. He is responsible for making sure it is kept stocked. My second son is more willing to try new things. He will find plush animals or toys that would appeal to our customer base and stock them. Both have jobs to do within our business having to do with stocking, store upkeep, and customer interaction. We go to the zoo. We go to museums. We go to the library. We go to the park. We read. We play games. We go to family functions. We go to the local university for the occasional lecture series. We do all this and more. We do it on our time. If there is going to be something of interest at noon across town, we load up and go. I do not have to provide an excuse to a teacher. I don't have to worry if our trip out of state will keep them out of school for more than the 10 allowed days per school term. If my husband gets extra time off and wants to spend time with our children at a movie, we can go. No homework for hours after hours at school interfering with his ability to have conversations about physics or video games with our kids.
Do I know families that are more structured? Yes. I know families that buy boxed curriculum each year and follow it precisely. Even then, school doesn't last from 8am to 3pm like at the usual institutions. They do their workbooks. Read their assignments. Follow the prescribed day's activities. They learn right on the publisher's timeline and use their expansive free time to pursue other interests.
The majority of homeschoolers I know do everything differently from every other homeschool family I know. Even when they purchase the same curriculum, they go about completing it differently.
Eclectic, classical, Charlotte Mason, unit studies, lapbookers, notebookers, the list goes on and on for different titles for homeschoolers. There is a reason that we each chose to teach our children at home: So we can teach them as individuals, not as an age group. If you ask each parent why they do this, answers will swing from one end of the spectrum to the other.
My answers have even changed over the years. After having Blue Eyes in a pre-kindergarten, we realized hubby would get to see him for about 30 minutes each school day. At the time, he had Fridays off. We would pick up Blue Eyes at nap time and head off somewhere. We had to wait until after lunch so that the days would not add up. Too many absolute absences equaled removal from school and we were trying to get him "properly educated". Hubby missed the boy. So my first answer for why was so that he could spend time with our children.
Now it is along the lines of God telling us in the Bible that we should raise up our children in the way that they should go.(Proverbs 22:6) My 10 yo and 9 yo are most of the way through a pre-algebra program. They read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and The Time Machine in the last couple of weeks. My 6 yo loves to read and asks for math pages whenever she gets a chance. My 4 yo builds and runs and talks and draws and gets to be a boy. My 2 yo joins in everything she can with gusto resulting in various adventures and messes.
It's loud. It's quiet. It's organized. It's chaos. It's running over with extra kids. It's just us few. It's our school. Even with a schedule, it is different everyday as we learn and discover together.
One of the best things about homeschooling is our differences.
Have a blessed day.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Snow Days
It's been quite a while since I have posted. The holidays simply got too busy to handle everything I wanted to do. Plus, after my reminder at Thanksgiving (See Not Finished Yet) I decided my priorities could be adjusted.
For the first time since 1882, Georgia had snow on Christmas. It was beautiful and fluffy. I've been in New York to see "real" snowflakes so I know these were tiny little crystals. They still coated the world in a layer of pristine white. It was a reminder that Jesus was born so that He could wash us whiter than snow. Just a little, "Hey down there, don't forget why you are celebrating."
Needless to say, other adults were complaining about the drive home, slushy messes to come, but all I could think was my memories of wishing and praying for a white Christmas as a child. I grew up due west of Savannah. We hardly ever got ice! That changed recently.
This past week has been an exercise in Northern Style Living. As I now live due west of Atlanta, we were in the latest snow and ice storm. I still don't like the thought of driving but I have obligations out of the house starting Tuesday. *sigh* No school for the whole week for university or grade schools. I laughed at facebook posts concerning what to do with trapped in the house kids. I loved posts of kids on cardboard sleds. I even got the princess to give it a try. Singular. I don't think she liked going that fast without a serious braking system. I assured her she would go no further than the tree line. She did NOT find that an enjoyable thought. If only I'd been younger...or at least had another adult home to call the ambulance. :-)
Sad news for the week as well. My cousin passed away. She was only 55. Although she had lost 200lbs, the damage had been done to her liver. I don't know the name associated with the condition. I just know that when she began to deteriorate, things went down hill rather quickly. Thank God she was a believer and we have no doubt that we will meet again. She left behind two sons. The second one she raised with her husband but the first she was forced to give up for adoption decades ago. Unwed mothers were not always so prevalent. My first thought was that now she knew what happened to her little baby boy as well as sadness because if he finally learned her name, it would be followed by his learning of her death.
Well, this seems rather disjointed. Not such a great start for 2011 in my blog.
For the first time since 1882, Georgia had snow on Christmas. It was beautiful and fluffy. I've been in New York to see "real" snowflakes so I know these were tiny little crystals. They still coated the world in a layer of pristine white. It was a reminder that Jesus was born so that He could wash us whiter than snow. Just a little, "Hey down there, don't forget why you are celebrating."
Needless to say, other adults were complaining about the drive home, slushy messes to come, but all I could think was my memories of wishing and praying for a white Christmas as a child. I grew up due west of Savannah. We hardly ever got ice! That changed recently.
This past week has been an exercise in Northern Style Living. As I now live due west of Atlanta, we were in the latest snow and ice storm. I still don't like the thought of driving but I have obligations out of the house starting Tuesday. *sigh* No school for the whole week for university or grade schools. I laughed at facebook posts concerning what to do with trapped in the house kids. I loved posts of kids on cardboard sleds. I even got the princess to give it a try. Singular. I don't think she liked going that fast without a serious braking system. I assured her she would go no further than the tree line. She did NOT find that an enjoyable thought. If only I'd been younger...or at least had another adult home to call the ambulance. :-)
Sad news for the week as well. My cousin passed away. She was only 55. Although she had lost 200lbs, the damage had been done to her liver. I don't know the name associated with the condition. I just know that when she began to deteriorate, things went down hill rather quickly. Thank God she was a believer and we have no doubt that we will meet again. She left behind two sons. The second one she raised with her husband but the first she was forced to give up for adoption decades ago. Unwed mothers were not always so prevalent. My first thought was that now she knew what happened to her little baby boy as well as sadness because if he finally learned her name, it would be followed by his learning of her death.
Well, this seems rather disjointed. Not such a great start for 2011 in my blog.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Not Done Yet
There used to be a cartoon on my grandmother's refrigerator that said, "God put me on this earth to do a certain number of things. Right now, I am so far behind that I will never die!" I got reminded on Thanksgiving evening that as silly as that cartoon was, it is pretty accurate.
The family met at my uncle's house in Jonesboro for our Thanksgiving meal. I and 4 of 5 of the children planned on continuing on to Nana and PaPa's house for the weekend. Daddy let the 4yo and 6yo slosh through the ditch ruining their shoes and pants. Thankfully, I had their clothes for the trip and we changed on the back deck.
Well, everyone said their goodbyes and we were on our way. My folks in the truck with 2 kids and me in the van with the other 2. We didn't even get to the interstate before we realized we had left the muddy clothes and must turn around. Then back on the road again for about 20 minutes before we had to stop for gas and bathrooms. After hitting I-16 we had to pull off to find Gorgeous's arms. She had pulled them into her sleeves and could not get them back out. It gets dark early now. I didn't sleep much the night before, so I did not complain when Blondie asked for a restroom break. (You just don't get far with kids in the car.)
Coffee purchased and potty used, I told my passengers no more stops until home, please. Nana and I had been alternating who was in front of who on the road. She was back in the lead. As we approached exit 62, I noticed cars parked along the side of the road. Georgia law requires you to move over one lane when there are vehicles in the emergency lane. No problem.
BIG PROBLEM!
Nana's truck suddenly swerved back right. It's amazing how fast your mind can work when something is happening. I knew instantly that there must be something extremely wrong and hit my brakes as my fingers disengaged the cruise. The thought that I might have to fight it to slow down crossed my mind. I wanted to hit my emergency brake but it is in the floor and I had both feet on the regular brake. I came to a halt about 15 feet from a car sitting across the entire lane. There was silence from the 9yo and 23 mth old but a glance in the mirror showed they had been kept in their seats in the farthest back bench seat and that there were cars still coming up behind me. I hit the flashers as I began searching for a way out.
The car in front of me had obviously been hit by another car. It's primered side was dented. The interior light was on showing no signs of anyone still being inside it. The emergency lane on the left hand side of the road was blocked off because of construction. Cars were coming up along the right hand lane. I waited. Three cars passed before I could pull out and around it. I drove about half a mile down the road and pulled off.
That was the longest few seconds of my life. I took a deep breath and called 911. They had already dispatched help. Then I dialed Nana.
I did not get to see where the truck went after it's sudden maneuver. I had not passed it as I got the van to a safe area. My little "mud pies" from earlier were in there with my parents. The first attempt did not go through. She hung up as she answered. I dialed again. This time she did get it answered. She had fallen apart. Apparently, she had been forced to sharply steer the truck up the exit ramp before slamming to a halt. As PaPa said, her ambulance training kicked in to handle the vehicle. Then she didn't know where we were. He had to work hard to get her moved to the passenger side so he could get the truck moved somewhere safer. She had seen a man on the side of the road waving frantically just before seeing the wrecked car. If not for him, she might not have noticed it.
If not for the truck suddenly turning in front of me, I wouldn't have known to stop.
If not for one of those potty stops... gas stops... coffee... All those delays just timed to keep us out of the wreck.
When we got to the house, I hugged my mother and told her she saved our lives. Her driving kept the truck and passengers safe. Me seeing her do it focused my attention to where the real danger was.
God kept us alive that night. I am sitting here typing very aware that that list of items on God's agenda must not all be checked off.
I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my children. I am thankful to be alive. I am thankful that I am not done yet.
Did you have a wonderful, thankful Thanksgiving?
The family met at my uncle's house in Jonesboro for our Thanksgiving meal. I and 4 of 5 of the children planned on continuing on to Nana and PaPa's house for the weekend. Daddy let the 4yo and 6yo slosh through the ditch ruining their shoes and pants. Thankfully, I had their clothes for the trip and we changed on the back deck.
Well, everyone said their goodbyes and we were on our way. My folks in the truck with 2 kids and me in the van with the other 2. We didn't even get to the interstate before we realized we had left the muddy clothes and must turn around. Then back on the road again for about 20 minutes before we had to stop for gas and bathrooms. After hitting I-16 we had to pull off to find Gorgeous's arms. She had pulled them into her sleeves and could not get them back out. It gets dark early now. I didn't sleep much the night before, so I did not complain when Blondie asked for a restroom break. (You just don't get far with kids in the car.)
Coffee purchased and potty used, I told my passengers no more stops until home, please. Nana and I had been alternating who was in front of who on the road. She was back in the lead. As we approached exit 62, I noticed cars parked along the side of the road. Georgia law requires you to move over one lane when there are vehicles in the emergency lane. No problem.
BIG PROBLEM!
Nana's truck suddenly swerved back right. It's amazing how fast your mind can work when something is happening. I knew instantly that there must be something extremely wrong and hit my brakes as my fingers disengaged the cruise. The thought that I might have to fight it to slow down crossed my mind. I wanted to hit my emergency brake but it is in the floor and I had both feet on the regular brake. I came to a halt about 15 feet from a car sitting across the entire lane. There was silence from the 9yo and 23 mth old but a glance in the mirror showed they had been kept in their seats in the farthest back bench seat and that there were cars still coming up behind me. I hit the flashers as I began searching for a way out.
The car in front of me had obviously been hit by another car. It's primered side was dented. The interior light was on showing no signs of anyone still being inside it. The emergency lane on the left hand side of the road was blocked off because of construction. Cars were coming up along the right hand lane. I waited. Three cars passed before I could pull out and around it. I drove about half a mile down the road and pulled off.
That was the longest few seconds of my life. I took a deep breath and called 911. They had already dispatched help. Then I dialed Nana.
I did not get to see where the truck went after it's sudden maneuver. I had not passed it as I got the van to a safe area. My little "mud pies" from earlier were in there with my parents. The first attempt did not go through. She hung up as she answered. I dialed again. This time she did get it answered. She had fallen apart. Apparently, she had been forced to sharply steer the truck up the exit ramp before slamming to a halt. As PaPa said, her ambulance training kicked in to handle the vehicle. Then she didn't know where we were. He had to work hard to get her moved to the passenger side so he could get the truck moved somewhere safer. She had seen a man on the side of the road waving frantically just before seeing the wrecked car. If not for him, she might not have noticed it.
If not for the truck suddenly turning in front of me, I wouldn't have known to stop.
If not for one of those potty stops... gas stops... coffee... All those delays just timed to keep us out of the wreck.
When we got to the house, I hugged my mother and told her she saved our lives. Her driving kept the truck and passengers safe. Me seeing her do it focused my attention to where the real danger was.
God kept us alive that night. I am sitting here typing very aware that that list of items on God's agenda must not all be checked off.
I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my children. I am thankful to be alive. I am thankful that I am not done yet.
Did you have a wonderful, thankful Thanksgiving?
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Fairness? Not Really.
I am seething. I just got an email encouraging me to call my representative. It wanted me to ask them to end the Bush tax cuts. WHY? My husband works THREE jobs. He is a full time teacher with one night school, and part time (with full time hours) at a university, and we own a business that he opened while in college. Exactly how much of that money belongs to someone else? In my opinion, God gets 10%, the rest belongs to the person who earned it. History has proven time and time again that lower tax rates equal higher tax revenue, higher employment, and greater wealth creation.
The president himself admitted as much. George Stephanopoulos asked why he wouldn't support the Bush tax cuts since lower rates equaled higher revenues. President Obama said it wasn't about revenue, it was about fairness. What in the world is fair about someone working hard and not keeping his money? What is fair about some lay about getting a check when he has done nothing to deserve it? If he wants to give some one's money away, perhaps he should reach into his own wallet first.
Do you know why my husband became a proponent of homeschooling in the first place? When our oldest went to pre-k he saw that he would NEVER get to see his kids. He was asleep when it was time to go to school. He was at work when it was after school. Weekends were spent at the store. He saw our son when he picked him up from school to drive him to me on his way to work. 15 minutes a day during the week. Homeschool is the only way they know him as something other than a picture.
Now tell me that he should have to give away his money to someone else because of "fairness".
The president himself admitted as much. George Stephanopoulos asked why he wouldn't support the Bush tax cuts since lower rates equaled higher revenues. President Obama said it wasn't about revenue, it was about fairness. What in the world is fair about someone working hard and not keeping his money? What is fair about some lay about getting a check when he has done nothing to deserve it? If he wants to give some one's money away, perhaps he should reach into his own wallet first.
Do you know why my husband became a proponent of homeschooling in the first place? When our oldest went to pre-k he saw that he would NEVER get to see his kids. He was asleep when it was time to go to school. He was at work when it was after school. Weekends were spent at the store. He saw our son when he picked him up from school to drive him to me on his way to work. 15 minutes a day during the week. Homeschool is the only way they know him as something other than a picture.
Now tell me that he should have to give away his money to someone else because of "fairness".
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Thankfulness
A friend posted on facebook a wise comment. "As children we wish for Christmas to hurry up and get here. As adults we wish it would slow down!" It is now the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Where did the year go?
I am so thankful this year for so many things but most of all for my family. I hear my children giggling and falling over while attempting to follow a kid's yoga video with my hubby coaching from the sidelines. Notice he is not trying to do it himself. I think the 911 operator might have her own emergency if I had to call to get him untied out of the lotus position. Not that I would ever attempt it...
My five blessings can drive me up a wall, out a window, and around the world but I wouldn't trade my life as their mom for anything in this world. Occasionally I threaten to trade them for anything to get a few moments of peace and quiet. When people learn I homeschool, I hear comments along the lines of "I could never do that!" and "My kids would drive me nuts!" You want to know what would drive me nuts? Sending these little beings away for 8-10 hours a day, 180 days a year. I was a teacher. I would hate spending all those hours with another person's children while someone else got to watch mine discover, learn, and grow.
I am thankful that after sitting down and going over the financial side of my working versus my staying home, it was obvious that the studies were right. Many researchers find that a mom's income barely adds a few hundred to the annual family budget. Especially once you factor in wardrobe, transportation, childcare, lunches, etc. See? I wasn't always a homeschool only kind of person although I have become that. Even if I ever have to work, my kids will be schooled at home. I've studied the philosophy of schools, looked into the people who are major influences, have read John Gatto, listened to David Horowitz, and read more on studies, ideas, histories... School is potentially the worst thing to ever happen to so many children. Even watching the nightly news seems to reinforce that conclusion. The Bible says we are to train up our children. I don't think that handing the job over to an institution is the best way to accomplish that goal.
I am thankful that God has allowed me to borrow for this short time these small people to care for and love. One day the last will move out of our home to begin a journey without us right beside them. When that time comes, as with each time before, I will pray that the foundation that was laid in our time together will help keep our child on God's chosen path. Then I will box up the last of the kid's stuff in the house and unpack my sanity.
Until all that peace and quiet drive me up a wall, out the window, and around the world.
I am so thankful this year for so many things but most of all for my family. I hear my children giggling and falling over while attempting to follow a kid's yoga video with my hubby coaching from the sidelines. Notice he is not trying to do it himself. I think the 911 operator might have her own emergency if I had to call to get him untied out of the lotus position. Not that I would ever attempt it...
My five blessings can drive me up a wall, out a window, and around the world but I wouldn't trade my life as their mom for anything in this world. Occasionally I threaten to trade them for anything to get a few moments of peace and quiet. When people learn I homeschool, I hear comments along the lines of "I could never do that!" and "My kids would drive me nuts!" You want to know what would drive me nuts? Sending these little beings away for 8-10 hours a day, 180 days a year. I was a teacher. I would hate spending all those hours with another person's children while someone else got to watch mine discover, learn, and grow.
I am thankful that after sitting down and going over the financial side of my working versus my staying home, it was obvious that the studies were right. Many researchers find that a mom's income barely adds a few hundred to the annual family budget. Especially once you factor in wardrobe, transportation, childcare, lunches, etc. See? I wasn't always a homeschool only kind of person although I have become that. Even if I ever have to work, my kids will be schooled at home. I've studied the philosophy of schools, looked into the people who are major influences, have read John Gatto, listened to David Horowitz, and read more on studies, ideas, histories... School is potentially the worst thing to ever happen to so many children. Even watching the nightly news seems to reinforce that conclusion. The Bible says we are to train up our children. I don't think that handing the job over to an institution is the best way to accomplish that goal.
I am thankful that God has allowed me to borrow for this short time these small people to care for and love. One day the last will move out of our home to begin a journey without us right beside them. When that time comes, as with each time before, I will pray that the foundation that was laid in our time together will help keep our child on God's chosen path. Then I will box up the last of the kid's stuff in the house and unpack my sanity.
Until all that peace and quiet drive me up a wall, out the window, and around the world.
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