Homeschool

My mom, so graciously offered to take all three of my children for 4 (yes, I said FOUR) days!! She said she has just been missing them and wanted to have them over to play. I was in such a need for a break! I just needed to regroup, to spend some quality time with my husband and to just sit in silence. We've had such a rough year and a half, well almost four years and it was such a nice break! My husband took me out to dinner, twice!! We went to the movies for the first time since The Wedding Date was out in theaters, we stayed up late some nights and went to bed early other nights. Mom took the kids on Thursday, Chuckie was at work and Brit was over but Friday I had the house to myself. I cannot honestly remember the last time I had an entire day to do whatever I wanted to do. My goal was to get the house spotless, it didn't happen. I cleaned out the pantry, I took a nap, I forgot to eat breakfast and lunch, lol. I did some other chores but I mostly just enjoyed the quietness. No TV, no radio, no wining, no fighting...

My mind began to wonder about all those mommies that actually have the day to get everything done. You know the... crazy mornings just to get them to school on time then the hours they have during the day to grocery shop (in my case with only one child) to tidy back up the house to plan dinner, to shower without little ones at your feet, then rush to pick up the kids, eat dinner, do homework, etc, etc. Now don't get me wrong, mommies with children in school experience a lot of stress. I am not under the delusion that they don't but what I can say is that they do get a daily break. They get a little time to regroup, daily. They get to clean the house and it actually stays clean long enough to stand back and admire your work for at least a few hours unlike my attempts. I'll clean the bathroom and turn around and find dirt tracked in from the backyard, a cup full of snails, lol

My mind began to wonder some more. Thinking if homeschooling is the best for all of us? I asked God to please show me what I was supposed to do. Next year I'll have a first grader, a kindergartener and only one child at home. It is so tempting to just put my kids in school but then it happened, I read something and heard some stories from several different parents that made it very clear to me that I have no desire to put my children in 'school'. I don't feel that details are needed but what I will say is that I am confident that next year I will be homeschooling. My goal is to get our school room back in order and start within the next week or two. We are going to have a blast! I had dreams all night long about projects and lessons. Things that first graders can do that kindergartners cannot. I'm excited! I'm excited that I get to pick what my children learn about (picture above) I get to choose this. Not the state but me!
I get to watch them learn on a daily basis! I get to help them understand things that are difficult for them. I get to teach them how to have fun with school!
I get to watch them, very excitedly, toss their daily work into the 'done' drawer at the end of the lesson. I get to see how excited they become when they notice that just a little work every day creates a drawer that is chalk full by the end of the year!
I get to read to them every single day. I get to see them learn through books, relax, laugh and enjoy books and then begin to read them by themselves. There is always time to read to your children when you homeschool! They can sit on my lap, we can lay on our tummies, we can sit out under a tree, it doesn't matter. I'm teaching three children. I can teach them when ever and where ever I choose. I'm not sure any school teacher has that same freedom.
We do crafts (obviously we do way more than this but those angels are my favorite! lol) We play games, we play with blocks, we have tons of fun!! So... these four days brought so much more to me than just a break, it brought back the excitement I had forgotten.

So...thank you mom!! Thank you for the break, thank you for the love you show not only me but also to my family and thank you for your support. Even though I've chosen to do this 'a little out of the ordinary' lol. I love you lots!!