We all have our reasons why we decide to homeschool all the way through high school or to send our kids to public or private school when they get to the teenage years. 

For our family, I just simply cannot imagine raising our children any other way.  We pulled our two boys out of public school during the middle of 3rd and 6th grades.  Our daughter wasn't old enough to be in school yet. 

We saw our oldest son, now 18 years old, begin a downward spiral around 5th grade that was going to soon overwhelm him and was convincing him that he was neither smart nor capable of doing things the "normal" way.  Well, hmm, we have come to the conclusion he will never do things the "normal" way.  Good for him!    He is who God created him to be and I'm very proud of him.  He does not fit in with the youth group at church or even very comfortably with the homeschool group of kids here in our area.  He tends to be a loner and loves the great outdoors.  His music of choice makes many homeschool moms cringe.  Jazz and the Blues music fills our home these days.  What will it be next month?

His long ponytail confuses many who know us as homeschoolers.  (Where's the clean-cut boy that we see on the cover of all those homeschool magazines?)  He lifts weights and has recently found a renewed interest in basketball.  But there's another side to him, too.  The side who considers Francis Schaeffer a genius and has read most of his books and watched his videos and has yet to tire of any of them.  The side that reads and studies the worldview of C. S. Lewis beyond the Chronicles of Narnia series.  The side that watches the old 1950's Moody Science videos and and actually enjoys them.  The side that dreams big dreams and believes they will all come to pass some day.  I just love that boy.  I really and truly cannot imagine sending him off to sit in classrooms listening to lectures designed to fill up exactly 50 minutes - all day long - every day.  And then having to do homework every evening besides all that.  When would he have the time to learn all about the complex person God is creating him to be?

Our next son will soon be 15 years old.  That child could sit in front of a Gamecube 20 hours every day.  (But he doesn't!)  He loves Tolkein and Peretti and is excited about getting started reading Ted Dekker books.  He is outgoing when comfortable with friends, yet cautious when forming new friendships.  He thinks deep thoughts and insists that when he thinks about eternity, he gets a headache.   He loves doing things in an orderly fashion and enjoys reading his Bible that way, too - beginning in Genesis and ending at Revelation.  His theological questions are too deep for Mom and are usually referred over to Dad.  I am thoroughly enjoying watching him grow and becoming the man he will be someday.  

The difference between our two sons is night and day.  But they are friends - most days.  They laugh and carry on like two brothers who enjoy each other's company.  They learn many things from each other and are not even aware of it.  Why would I even consider splitting them up and sending them out of the house going their separate ways - every day?  Knowing their friends better than each other?  LIKING their friends better than each other?

I am thoroughly enjoying teaching our 9 year old daughter.  I have taught her from the beginning and she is an absolute JOY!  She loves learning and has devoured the Lord of the Rings books as well as many, many others during the few short years that she has been reading.  She also is learning from her brothers unaware of the vast amount of knowledge she gleans from them as we all go about our days here at home.  I am so very excited at the prospect of teaching her all the way through her high school years also. 

Now, FYI, we do have our down days.  Our bad days.  Our very teary, overwhelming days where we all wonder why in the world we are all together in this little house we live in, day in and day out, every stinking day of the world.  I sometimes stress over how my boys will make a living supporting a family.  I wonder how we're going to get everything learned that needs to be learned.  Will algebra EVER be conquered?  My kids don't know a foreign language!  Then I remind myself the Lord's hand is on my children and I simply need to trust.  Trust.  And rest...in His Word:

"The Lord will fulfill his purpose for (Ryan, Colin and Rachel)." Psalm 138:8

"The one who calls (Ryan, Colin and Rachel) is faithful and he will do it." I Thess. 5:24

His Word is Truth!  And I will believe that Truth - all the way through high school.