Today I was setting in the bathtub thinking of 1000 things at a time. I was washing my hair with Green Tea Shampoo, bathing in Stress Relief Bubble Bath while a one year old and two year old were about to break down the make shift gate between the master bathroom and bedroom. My seven year old and almost five year old were not able to help control the toddlers for five minutes because they were sprawled out on my unmade bed, next to 4 loads of laundry watching Monster's Inc. for the 248th time. Melting into the soapy water, I was thinking about EVERYTHING at once.
This past year, we had adopted two additional children...which doubled the number of little people in our house. My husband had finished his Master's and we had relocated 6 months prior for him to begin his first Pastoring "job". Besides all of this- we had sold our small but cute little house, moved into a rental, because the market was not that great for our family size and budget. Oh, and my 1st grader had started a new school...which leads me to the reason for THIS blog.
For the past several years we have discussed homeschooling. I must admit, I was frozen with fear. I have been on numerous mission trips...several of them have literally taken me around the world and the language barrier was HUGE. I have taught large groups of students and adults through out the years and even had to use translators in some locations. But the thought of teaching my 7 & 5 year old paralyzed me. I was and still am slightly overwhelmed.
Despite all of this- I WANT to do it...I think. I really want to know my kids. Let me preface, simply because this is my first entry, that I am in no way implying that others do not know their children if they do not homeschool. I have fears that I am going to be ready to give this up by Febuary...however, I want to be very honest in what I am feeling, thinking, and seeing during this first year. I have asked alot of people that I know about their homeschooling experience and honestly, their responses have all been extremely positive. My desire is to show my "guts" during this transition. I fear that people will say that this is my "soapbox" NOW because I am doing it...however, people said that when we fostered, when we adopted and when we switched from Maxwell House to Starbucks...Oh well!
I just want to talk about the real stuff that happens everyday when you have 4 kids and pull one of them out of school at semester and start homeschooling. I am sure that this will reveal more than I even know about myself at this point.
Tomorrow I will blog about my fears...Our first day of school is on Wednesday.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
5 comments:
I think it's great that you want to homeschool your kids, and actually, it's a smart thing to do in Greenville. They will NOT get a decent education in the public school system there, as you and I both know. You can provide a more liberal (and I don't necessarily mean politically) and wideranging education for them and expose them to things that kids there would never see because their parents are too small-minded to show them.
I say Hurray for you and Good Luck!
I honestly have some reservations about the idea of homeschooling. I could list them, but I'm quite sure you've heard them all.
I will say, though, that your honesty in sharing your fears is something I've never heard from a homeschooling parent. Most parents I have encountered who homeschool approach it with such certainty and arrogance.
Or, at times, stupidity. We have people who come into the store all the time looking for homeschooling materials, and after a few minutes of talking to them I realize why we have public education.
But if anyone is qualified, and can make me believe, in homeschooling, it's you. The fact that you are approaching the responsibility with reverence, and even a little bit of timidity, speaks volumes about your character and decision making.
Good luck, and everything will turn out just fine. You and Greg are great parents, and you'll be a great teacher.
I am so excited about this blog. Once again I get to live vicariously through you, and experience the ups and downs of a road I hope to travel in a few years. Can't wait till the next post, and the next, and the next!
i just wanted to post so I could comment on your first entry, too.
As usual, just amazing. We've talked about this so many times, but I still like reading the "verbal diharrea" as you are typing everything you think. LOVE IT!
And I love the humility, too...not many parents openly admit what fears they have about ANY step they take in their kids' lives.
I'll do whatever I can to help--even if it's just to be a sounding board.
You Rock!
Post a Comment