Please welcome Michele Marshall, this week's guest columnist.

I suffer from “reverse intimidation.”

You see, many people consider how intimidating it is to homeschool three (or four or eight or twelve) children. 

But, as a parent homeschooling an only child,  I’m less intimidated by the act of homeschooling many children and more intimidated by the homeschool mothers of multiples themselves.

If God only gives us as much as we can handle, I must be considered pretty flaky in His book.

These other moms have four (or often more) and I have one, yet they seem to have all the great ideas, the great programs, and some really neat experiences.

I start to read a post from one of my online friends about what each of her four school-aged children is “doing for school” and my eyes glaze over somewhere between child #2 and #3.  I’m interested, I really do care, but it’s overload.

And, really, once I get down the list to a child at or below the age of my only, I’ve gleaned (hoarded away) all the future ideas that I can.  I’ve created a book list several titles long, with many read-alouds for all those long afternoons cuddling on the sofa or out on the porch.

These homeschool moms of many have scheduling programs to create assignment grids and lesson plans and guides so they can see what each child is doing.  I mean, they even know how long each subject in their homeschool might take! 

It’s intimidating. And mentally you start beating yourself over the head with an unused lesson planner.

I have a pile of books.  And a general order of topics, subject to interruptions, of course, like impromptu figurine re-enactments or group cat snuggles or a sudden urge to explore the math topic of the day for hours, rather than minutes.  I mean, how undisciplined can I get?

These multi-child homeschools have enough children to do the games and activities that fill the pages of supplement books.  Need to play “Ancient Roman Market?”  They have a built-in crew with an real interest in the colored bead necklaces and rubbery spiders that came in the kit.

After a quick game, our trinkets became birthday gift-bag stuffers.  To find the gift bag box, we cleaned out a closet and found last year’s mummified fruit from Ancient Egypt. We photographed it and “unwrapped the mummy” (hear the spooky voice?) just like Egyptologists.   Of course, dd wanted to keep all the neat jewels we found in the wrapping.  No cheap plastic earring for me!

Of course, parents homeschooling multiples have just about every ____ book known to man–-fill-in-the-blank with your favorite curriculum subject.  They know they are going to use them more than once, so the cost is worth it.  They get to explore all those cool ideas, teaching techniques, and become wiser and more knowledgeable by the purchase.

Meanwhile, I sold my phonics book (singular) a year ago, knowing I’d have no further use for it, thus freeing up my bookshelves for something new.  Even though my only is almost eight years old, maybe I should fill it with that really neat preschool program I wish we had done?  It would fit nicely next to the books left from the neat program we did do.

I’m reverse intimidated because I see folks doing great things and managing to do it with many more children than I have.   I know the amount of time it’s taken me to learn what little I do know about homeschooling my unique only.  I know how much time I spend planning.

And, I’ve decided, God just knew I didn’t have time to do that for more than one child.  That’s why he made us all “Super Moms” for whatever sized homeschool family we have. 

Michele Marshall, DW of 17 years, MOM of 8 years, and PhD, homeschools her only in SW Indiana.  Aside from loving HOO-ville and chairing her local homeschool group, she's also "pro-owl-pellet" and not the least bit squeamish about biology or "chewy" discussion topics.