I know that parents have done this for decades and it is not only doable but many do it and work outside their homes.
But I honestly don't understand how they do it. Maybe I'm just feeling my fifty years...
We are into our fourth day of private school for our son.
He is playing football with the local middle school because he is allowed to do so if he attends a private Catholic school, but not if he is home educated. I do not understand this, but rules are rules.
His schedule is get up at 6:00 to get ready to leave by 7:15 to get to the school by 7:30. After school, he leaves around 2:45 by bus, which takes him to the middle school for 2-hour football practices. Usually, he is done either at 5:00 or 5:30. By the time he gets home, showers, and eats dinner, it is close to 6:30. Every (?) Wednesday he has a football game.
Right now, it is after 11:00 p.m. and I still need to shower before I go to bed. I have been helping our son with homework for hours. He had assignments in four classes. He still needs to get up early to finish his Spanish homework.
Doing homework at night is hard enough, but add exhaustion of the school day plus long and grueling practices in the heat and humidity and it is like slogging through mud for a child.
I am so grateful for the years I had my son at home.
I love him dearly and I miss him terribly during the day. Each time I get out school things and see a book with his name on it, I struggle not to cry. I also work not to cry when I think of all the times I got frustrated and yelled and had a bad attitude. I wish I could go back and do so many things over, and that desire also makes me want to cry. It also makes me cry when I think of the disruption of our nightly routines, since I can't read to my daughter now that I am homework helper.
If you are a homeschooling parent, please know that you have something priceless and the stressful days of having your child there constantly, being responsible for teaching and training them in academics, as well as in righteousness and character, are joyous compared to dealing with the stress of night time homework, fatigue, lost sleep, and lost fellowship with your child when they go away for school.
My heart is broken. God has called me to be fearless, and I am trying to be brave for my son. He is such a strong, brave boy. So big for just turning thirteen, but still so little in this mama's eyes.
Please, before you get upset about the mess in your home, or the schedule or curriculum that isn't working for you, or the discipline issues you are facing--STOP! Close your mouth, take your thoughts captive, and list all the rich and wonderful blessings that come from homeschooling. You ARE taking some for granted, and you never know when your life may radically change. Embrace this time, embrace your kids and all the messiness that comes from being with them all the time.
God has given you a gift in homeschooling. Don't forget to be thankful.
But I honestly don't understand how they do it. Maybe I'm just feeling my fifty years...
We are into our fourth day of private school for our son.
He is playing football with the local middle school because he is allowed to do so if he attends a private Catholic school, but not if he is home educated. I do not understand this, but rules are rules.
His schedule is get up at 6:00 to get ready to leave by 7:15 to get to the school by 7:30. After school, he leaves around 2:45 by bus, which takes him to the middle school for 2-hour football practices. Usually, he is done either at 5:00 or 5:30. By the time he gets home, showers, and eats dinner, it is close to 6:30. Every (?) Wednesday he has a football game.
Right now, it is after 11:00 p.m. and I still need to shower before I go to bed. I have been helping our son with homework for hours. He had assignments in four classes. He still needs to get up early to finish his Spanish homework.
Doing homework at night is hard enough, but add exhaustion of the school day plus long and grueling practices in the heat and humidity and it is like slogging through mud for a child.
I am so grateful for the years I had my son at home.
I love him dearly and I miss him terribly during the day. Each time I get out school things and see a book with his name on it, I struggle not to cry. I also work not to cry when I think of all the times I got frustrated and yelled and had a bad attitude. I wish I could go back and do so many things over, and that desire also makes me want to cry. It also makes me cry when I think of the disruption of our nightly routines, since I can't read to my daughter now that I am homework helper.
If you are a homeschooling parent, please know that you have something priceless and the stressful days of having your child there constantly, being responsible for teaching and training them in academics, as well as in righteousness and character, are joyous compared to dealing with the stress of night time homework, fatigue, lost sleep, and lost fellowship with your child when they go away for school.
My heart is broken. God has called me to be fearless, and I am trying to be brave for my son. He is such a strong, brave boy. So big for just turning thirteen, but still so little in this mama's eyes.
Please, before you get upset about the mess in your home, or the schedule or curriculum that isn't working for you, or the discipline issues you are facing--STOP! Close your mouth, take your thoughts captive, and list all the rich and wonderful blessings that come from homeschooling. You ARE taking some for granted, and you never know when your life may radically change. Embrace this time, embrace your kids and all the messiness that comes from being with them all the time.
God has given you a gift in homeschooling. Don't forget to be thankful.
Such a powerful post. I needed this today in my last year of homeschooling. I am tired, but you remind me of the joy is in being present this year, not what I achieve or don't achieve. Thanks! Love you! 💔
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