Today I was not...

Today, I was not: Battling back to school traffic. 

I was driving out on the back-roads in Colorado...

I was not wondering if my kids were getting answers as they competed with many others for one teacher's attention:

I was hanging out with them discovering new learning opportunities like when we ran across the Budweiser Clydesdale's in the parking lot of a truck stop (the handler talked a lot to use about the horses, their history, and their care):

I was not worried about if my child was being picked on, being left out, or making friends:

I was delighting in my children interacting and building their relationship (a relationship that is going to matter in 20 years...which is more than I can say for school relationships):

I was not filling out stacks of paper with redundant information...I was not watching the clock to make sure I was in the right place to get my kids at the right time, nervously waiting to make sure they found me....I was not worried that someone would pull a gun on my child...I was not worried that a child that was being exposed to ugliness at home would share that ugliness with my cild.

I was taking time with my children, enjoying their presence. I was guiding them as we went to a visitors center and learned about the area. I watched as they interacted with two elderly women who told them stories that sparked interest we had to explore when we got home (about the Ludlow massacre and Kit Carson). I marveled with them as we discovered three species of animals we didn't know existed. I watched them help one another. I watched them work out their problems. I knew what food they ate and basically what was in it, AND I let them have more if they were still hungry. 

Yes, we are blessed. :)

Talk about humbling...

Over the past few weeks I have been saddened to see posts on facebook that people are posting about their kids returning to school. You know, the one's like "My kids are driving me nuts, I am so ready for school to start" and "I need some 'me time', come on school!". I have pondered these posts and thought to myself "Boy, I am glad I don't feel that way about my kids". Then, it happened. Facebook has a new feature that shows you your posts from that day a year ago. Today mine from last year made me catch my breath, and made me extra sad. This is what it said: (screenshot)

Talk about stepping on my own toes! When we moved here in March 2010, we had decided to try public school. We had heard the schools here were so wonderful. Well, the last 2 months of 6th grade were wonderful for our daughter. We went through the summer planning on putting them into public school in the fall, and that was where my mind was. Funny, if I had only known then that they would do less than two weeks in public school before it was obvious they needed to be home.

I can just praise the Lord that I am in a different place than I was then. I am so excited about school to start here at our house on the 29th, but it has nothing to do with getting my children out of my hair. It has to do with the time we will spend together learning and growing and being together.

Here are my two other status updates from later that day:

What I realize & the love of flexibility

I realize there is a great reason why public schools fail, and even though I knew it before, it hits home. Public schools can not adjust to meet the needs of the individual child, period.

Troy is NOT ready for kindergarten in many ways, and in others he is. He is ready to learn reading, but not writing. His fine motor skills are just not developed enough to write. His attention span...well, let's just say it needs attention. LOL

At first we were doing all of his activities right together, but it was causing him to be frustrated and more distractible. In light of this I have done the following:

<------Troy with his beads,

(he did dress himself, by the way)

• removed science and art and penmanship (for now)
• reduced Bible down a LOT, we will do short Bible stories and a memory verse
• Moved his story time to bed time
• Removed his geography rhymes

We are focusing on numbers, phonics, and fine motor skills. Today he worked hard (and had a GREAT time) stringing beads. He loved it.

I love that I can meet his needs at his level, and allow him to excel where he is ready, and work harder on what needs more work. I am blessed that I can educate my children at home.

One week and one day of public school, plus a lifetime

I am going to give a short backstory. We were homeschoolers, and we moved to a new place. Chris, being the leader of our home thought the kids should try public school. Thought troy would benefit from the socialization and the older kids would enjoy sports. He reasoned that this is "West Texas" and schools were just better here. After all, that is what we heard from the public around here. So, off to school they went.

First day: bus didn't come for older kids, I was not available immediately because I was 30 miles away, so I called and the bus dispatched a new bus for them. I called the school to insure they got there, they inform me "there is no way to find out if they are here or not". So, I made a trip up there and let them know they *better* know where my children are at all times. Troy got picked on, came home in tears.

Subsequent days: It was something everyday. I *knew* the kids needed to be back home, but I respected Chris' position. Troy's K teacher became increasingly frustrated with him being "needy". M's schedule got all messed up, and because she had been homeschooled they tried to put her in remedial classes (I did get that fixed and she went to gifted instead). I could go on and on, but Tucker was the only one doing "okay".

There was an immediate change in our home. Everyone was cranky. The older kids were picking up things unGodly at rapid speed. Their attitudes reflected as such. Troy would cry, a lot. I had a hard time getting cooperation with *anything* here at home. Troy became more clingy and would cry for his sister. We had seen a setback to wetting the bed, talking babytalk, and so forth.

That next Monday, Six days into the new school year, Chris called me to have lunch and told me he felt in his spirit that it was wrong for our children to be in school, and to go pull them out. He did have one thing he would allow, if they really honestly wanted to stay, they could. Only Tucker wanted to stay. We really struggled with this, but allowed him to stay with a "three strike" condition. Meaning, three things go wrong at home or at school, and we will pull him anyhow. He is on strike one, and has been beat up at school. Not good. But yet we allow him to stay, because we feel like his spirit will not be in the right place if we don't keep our end or if he doesn't make the decision to come home himself.

I can honestly say that we now know that it is 100% God's plan for us to homeschool. I know that this little experiment with public school has introduced things we never meant to open the doors to.