READY FOR HOME-SCHOOL?

Dear Friends and Family,

I've updated this post for this year 2017/18!  Happy HOME SCHOOL YEAR from our home to yours! Get ready to read!

Our summer vacation (which is the traditional three months) is filled with building forts, dressing up as super heroes and fighting crime in the name of groovy, making movies, visiting the library, reading LOTS of books, drawing with LOTS of computer paper, messy painting, baking, swimming, and eating LOTS of frozen yogurt *yum*. 

Whelp... our summer... it's almost over. We resume our "official" school journey in September, the day after Labor Day. Personally, creating a schedule has always been a daunting task after a fun and lax summer. I seriously beat around the bush. Putting together a curriculum for each grade and trying to figure out if it's compatible with each individual child's learning style can be a bit daunting. Then there's putting together crafts, chore lists, incentives, and extra curricular activities.

Sufficed-to-say, it gives me a tad bit of anxiety. It's like that feeling you get when you know the laundry needs to be done or the garage is a mess and needs purging, but you put it off and jump in the car to head to the beach instead. The only part of me that's remotely eager about the new school year is that it's a chance to start afresh, like diving into a box of fresh new books. Except in my case, I buy used thrift store or old library books.

There's something about getting second, third, and fourth chances. Starting a new year gives you that feeling. Another part of me longs for winter break so I can cuddle with a blanket and the kids next to a fire with hot cocoa on a cold rainy day. Southern California in the summer (especially living in the desert) is ICKY HOT! My air conditioner doesn't work well so I have an excuse for winter to arrive... SOON! We really don't get much of the fall season, it usually passes real fast from hot muggy days, right into dry winters here in Southern California. Rain (if we get enough) is a big deal here. We all pray for the rain to water our grass and give pretty rainbows, but we hate to drive in it because for some reason Californians are notoriously bad drivers especially when it rains.

Do you get excited about going to the store to buy pens, pencils, notebooks, etc.? You might find yourself venturing through Wal-Mart or Target with all the other parents, squeezing and squirming through cramped aisles... anxiety flowing.

After the adventure, you're safe in your home sweet home. There you are on the living room floor unwrapping ink pens, boxes of "perfect" crayons, fresh (not dried out) markers, soft (not chewed) erasers and other fun things like messy paint and glue. Your desire is for everything to be "school" ready for the very first day. YIPPY! Hopefully, it stays nice and neat so you are able to enjoy the last weekend of summer.

The day after Labor Day comes and it's nothing like we dreamed the night before. The kids want to sleep in or complain about math. Reading is not an interest and there are squabbles to break up, messes to clean, and paper everywhere. You're tired from the night before. Nothing seems structured and the school day flies by and you think, "Did I do enough with them?" and you can't wait for hubby to get home. You feel inadequate... like something amazing should have happened. YOU AREN'T READY FOR THIS YET! We'd all rather be in Hawaii right? (Never been by the way.) 

Here's the deal. I'm talking to myself here if ya haven't already noticed. As homeschool parents, we have a strange tendency of stressing out about ruining our children academically, practically and spiritually. We are way too hard on ourselves. It's the feeling that the weight of not only their education but their souls is on our shoulders. We feel like we are constantly on trial from everyone, and we are the ones responsible.

Thoughts flood in like, "Will my children have a desire to learn? What about scripture memorization? How about bible, math, science, spelling, reading, creative writing, composition, literature, poetry, music, art-appreciation, reports, parent lectures, discipline, consistency, character training, breaking up arguments, cleaning up accidents, dishes, preparing dinners, (MEAL PLANNING ANYONE?) shopping (sometimes 3 different stores), park days, church, taking care of animals, reptiles, fish, laundry, bathrooms, making beds, vacuuming, dusting, essential oils, or in my case, photography and or painting. Some moms even homestead - that's crazy and awesome. I wish I could have a farm but I know I would accidentally kill everything.

In a BIG FAT nutshell. *fast talk voice get ready* Trying to keep a tidy house when you and your precious kids are home every week, month, year, day 24/7 round the clock is hard hard work! It's a serious calling no doubt! A very special calling! When all is said and done, when the day is over our job as a mom is still there. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Except that sanctuary called the bathroom.

How does one fit quiet time for herself into all this madness? Very carefully.

Seriously though, what about date nights with hubby, or adult-ing? It sounds as though I'm venting right? Whelp... this girl's just keeping it real RIGHT? This is a blog for me to look back upon and maybe laugh or cringe one day, but please by all means peak into my thought life. Heres the deal... no one has it "ALL TOGETHER." That's just not reality.

It wouldn't be fun if we had this thing called life all figured out... right? That's not adventurous! Games over if that's the case. If someone out there has "most" of life figured out, then I want to meet that Super Woman right now! Also, it would be nice for her to come help the rest of us freaks of nature right?!

Heres another lovely deal . . . LIFE WILL HAPPEN regardless of what season we find ourselves in, whether we find ourselves having a smooth year or a chaotic year. This is why I love the flexibility of homeschooling. Unexpected events and disasters of the day rear their ugly heads. We learn A LOT from all of the trials and tribulations that mount up as each year passes. Character is built within us, growing our faith, and we learn to embrace the lonely times, the rebellious child, the dishes, the messy house, car payments, the dead grass (my poor dead grass), the stinky dog, finger prints on windows that never goes away, unfinished lessons and of course the famous spilled milk. We learn to cast all our cares upon HIM. We learn to take each day as it comes, not worrying about the unknown possibilities of tomorrow.

Some people out there appear to have great answers and they navigate life well or at least that is how it looks from the outside. But they aren't going to live our life for us. Can I share what I'm still working on? If you're still with me, THANK YOU! Please humor me for the sake of all home school moms out there that have blogs no one reads. I believe we all may know these things that I'm going to share. Yet, we all desire certain things to actually play out in life. I pray to the Lord right now that the desires of your heart according to His plan, will play out within your life as well. If you have gotten this far reading this post I also pray as you continue to read the words I'm sharing, the Lord will bless your heart and bring an extra special blessing upon your home school this year. If they're just my words He will sift them out and make the ones stick that matter.

* Start by casting ALL your cares upon Him, because He cares for you (1Peter 5:7)

* Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart, lean not on your own understanding; acknowledge Him in ALL your ways, and He will direct your paths (Proverbs 3:5). 

* Love the Lord with ALL your heart, ALL your being, and ALL your strength. These words that I am commanding you today must always be on your minds. Recite them to your children. Talk about them when you are sitting around your house, and when you are about and out, when you are lying down and when you are getting up. Tie them on your hand as a sign. They should be on your forehead as a symbol. Write them on your house door frames and on your city's gates (Deuteronomy 65-9). 

* Abide in Me, and I in you. For without Me, you can do NOTHING (John 15.)

* I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13)

When I first began homeschooling 13 years ago, I knew nothing at all. Literally nothing! But I have learned SO much. Here are a few things I've learned along the way.

* God fills in ALL the gaps . . . trust me on this one. So relax and trust Him.

* Nothing rewarding is ever easy, but those challenges will be the biggest reward in your life if you don't give up.

* Don't over commit. Stop filling your plate with activity after activity. It will crowd out the Lord, and your family time. Cut back, NO SERIOUSLY . . . take heed. There's an acronym for BUSY . . .

Being
Under
Satan's
Yoke 

* Comparison not only steals our joy, but it robs us of contentment while putting unreasonable expectations on our spouse and children. It makes us depressed and sets a bad tone around the house.

KEEP READING...

* The best book on raising children is the Bible. The best way to raise your kids is on your knees.

* Character matters over academics.

* Each child has their own unique, God given gifts. Cultivate their passion without limitations.

* Limit Television which tells you how you should look, think, and act. Your children will truly cultivate a love and taste for God if you saturate them with godly things. Otherwise, you're raising cultural Christians who might turn from the faith. Church won't raise them BTW.

* Read, read and read some more. Don't give up! I'm not a very good reader but I strive to keep my mind sharp by reading instead of watching television. One of my kids are not enthused about reading but that's not going to stop me from encouraging (not pressuring) them to read. Two of my children are avid readers. They read textbooks, large novels, and anything they can get their finger tips on. They can think for themselves and they are highly educated because of it. I'm not boasting. I'm just saying this because I graduated high school with a learning disability and straight D's. If I can do this thing called HOME SCHOOL, YOU CAN TOO! WITH GOD all things are possible and He gets the Glory! If you listen to podcasts, go download a podcast called "READ ALOUD REVIVAL" you won't regret it I promise!

* Limit Social Media. It's one of those distractions that comes in and steals all your time. You see everyone's highlight reel through your phone or computer, while your children are left to their own (take it from someone who's allowed that distraction to steal a few years off of her life and the memories that could have been created!) I'm still learning to control this one. I've gotten better.

* Allow the kids to create. Yes, it's messy and there's A LOT of clean up. Nevertheless, remember that little saying, "Excuse the mess . . . we're making memories here." 

* Don't allow others to bully you into thinking that homeschooling your child is a bad choice. If I could do it all over again (as hard as it is) I would in a heartbeat, and I'd do it a lot BETTER. I'd stress less about what others thought. I'd stress less about whether my kids were academically up to par or not. I'd simply enjoy my kids as I do now. They are on loan to us, and we only have them once. By the way, most older moms I run into tell me that they wish they could home schooled their own children. 

* Time goes fast when you are having fun! If the curriculum is too rigid and your children hate school, change it up! Your desire is to cultivate a love for learning! You're the master planner, manager and teacher of your own home school under God and your spouse. Don't let a packaged curriculum put you into a mold or a box. If there's something within a curriculum that proves daunting for you or your child (who may be a kinetic learner), then simply move on to something else and maybe try later on in life. Some boys learn to read or cook better when they are in high school. That's the freedom with homeschooling it's not a one size fits all. You can have each child learn at their own pace, without grade level expectations because guess what? Grade levels don't matter. You're not in a public "system." It's a HOME. You can work one on one, or have an older child read to a younger one or help with math. You can exchange your gifts to help another moms kids while she helps yours with a subject she likes.

* Don't push your children to do something they may not be ready for. Please don't pressure them to be someone they aren't. Respect them for who God created them to be. I learned the hard way and I'm still trying to be sensitive to them in this respect.

* Don't be so hard on yourself. Perfectionism can kill your joy, trust me, I know.

* Don't worry!!!!!! LISTEN! I AM A WORRY WORT! PLEASE, IT KILLS! Take a BREATH DEEP and think on good things.

* Pray for those who think they can do it better than you. Sad to say sometimes a well-meaning parent, friend or loved one may freak out at the fact that you are not raising your children according to the exact same way they are raising their kids. Or a well meaning parent who raised you thinks you should raise your kids as they did. Sorry but they had their shot at raising a child. Often times a parent may forget (or may not know about) the trouble we got into or put them through. They see a well-rounded family and wish to make it better and sometimes "perfect." Simply pray, be ready to answer with respect as to why you do what you do. Trust me in 20 years they will be very thankful with how things turned out if you did things Gods way and not the world's.

*Try not to brag about getting to homeschool. I know it's a wonderful calling, but it's just that. A messy, difficult task of raising sinners to know Jesus and making sure they turn out to be a normal citizens. Some parents never had that option and it may hurt them to see something they wished they could have done. Homeschool is not The Way, The Truth and The Life. It's a movement of the Holy Spirit, yet God moves in different ways as well. So be humble and thankful at the same time. Does that mean we never share the truth? No, sometimes the truth of the public school system wakes people up. Most people have to admit the public school system is broken, very broken. But please share in context. 

* Get to know God. Simply cultivate your relationship with the Creator of the Universe and everything will work together for good to those who love Him. Know that God loves you and is wanting the best for you and your family.

* You may not have the best of everything, but make the best of everything that you do have.

There are some things I've learned and am still learning. Home schooling for 13 years now and I feel like I'll never stop learning. I've learned more these 13 years than I did in my 12 years of school. I'm on the brink of raising two teenagers at once and that is a learning lesson waiting to be met. One of my precious kids is already 13 going on 14... Yikes!

Heres the thing, I thought home schooling my children would be a challenging experience, and it's proving to be correct. Though not as hard as raising teens or as difficult and stressful as transitioning your teen into adult hood! My oldest son is almost 20 and has moved away from home to serve in the ministry. Kindergarten and stressing out about learning to read is a long lost memory I have with his first years of school at home. Why didn't anyone slap me for stressing about phonics back in the day! Because slapping wouldn't be nice right?! But I didn't listen to the seasoned homeschoolers, I stressed A LOT! Sometimes I still do. Slap time! j/k

Now it's college, job interviews, new friends and that weird empty nest feeling that some of us moms and dads go through. Now that I am forced to cut the apron strings and allow him to venture out make mistakes, new friends, having freedom from home school life and so much more, I've become more of a prayer warrior. Why was I lazy neglecting to pray hard for him when he was young? Why wasn't I more patient and loving? Why didn't I get down on the floor and play when he tugged on my shirt? I can't go back in time. I need to go forward NOW! I need to allow him to explore life for himself now! I remember when I was afraid for him to go down a slide or make a fake gun with his hands. Now He's shooting real guns and going on survivalist hikes! I'm just praying for his safety, and that he's keeping an accountable relationship with the God. And I'm praying for him to get a good wife!!!!. BOY OH BOY WHERE DID THE TIME GO?!

I remember reading " Love You Forever" I sang it out loud too.

 

All of those little memories I would NEVER trade for all the world and its success! I want my kids to share their lives with their future spouses and children... to laugh around their dinner tables about the time when one smeared toothpaste all over the bathroom, or when one called 911 to show off in front of their little friend. I want them to be blessed as any parent would.

I was reading a book called "Honey For A Child's Heart"

 

I rented this from the library and now wish to purchase for my own small library. This book was also the book that prompted me to write in my blog. Here are some awesome quotes from the book.

* Good books have genuine spiritual substance, not just intellectual enjoyment. Books help children know what to look for in life. Reading develops the taste buds of the mind as children learn to savor what is seen, heard, and experienced and fit these into some kind of worthwhile framework. ~ Gladys Hunt

* Books are no substitute for life, but a keener pleasure comes to life because of books. ~ Gladys Hunt

* Facing failures and tragedies with the characters of a story may vicariously give children the experience of courage and loyalty. ~Gladys Hunt

* As parents, we are concerned about building whole people- people who are alive emotionally, spiritually, intellectually. The instruction to train up a child in the way he should go has enormous dimensions. It is to teach a child to think, to influence character, to give high ideals, and to encourage integrity. It is to provide largeness of thought, creative thinking, imaginative wondering. How large are your goals for your children? Why have a small world when you can walk with God into the larger place that is His domain? ~ Gladys Hunt

* Tragically, we can live our whole lives inhibited and poverty stricken in human expression and creativity. We forget to notice, to see what is happening around us. We don't ask questions; we fail to listen. We are afraid of what is different, and uncertain about what is true and good. Truth and excellence have a way of springing up all over the world, and our role as parents is to teach our children how to find and enjoy the good and reject what is mediocre and unworthy. ~ Gladys Hunt

AND I' LL LEAVE YOU WITH THIS ONE LAST QUOTE

*What a difference there is between a vocabulary drill and feeling the beauty of words. ~ Gladys Hunt

Thank you for taking the time to read this lengthy blog post.

Yours Truly,
Jannette

Flowing Gel pens Are Fun!