"If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should
ask him what books he reads." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
I knew I wanted to home school my children after my son was born in Texas, back in 2001. Most of the families we became friends with in Texas all seemed to have something in common... many of them home schooled their children. I couldn't figure out WHY! How did they all come to be homeschooling their families? I was intrigued by the idea... though not pursuing it actively as my oldest was barely two years old at the time. We were very intrigued... and we kept meeting these families who were raising and educating their children in a much different way than what I was used to. My husband at the time thought they were ALL weird!
Of course now he is a firm home school supporter and an active participant in our children's learning and education. But the results spoke for themselves... the older children of these families impressed both my husband and myself. In general {yes I am making generalizations}, many of these children were more mature than their public schooled counterparts, they took on more responsibility at home willingly and joyfully, and they even enjoyed being at home! The families seemed to be closer, more connected, and less out of touch with one another. It was definitely something to be curious enough to consider it further. It was because of my introduction to those families that led me to homeschooling. And I have to wonder by looking back now, if it wasn't all in the Lord's plan all along for us to meet these people at the time that we did?Fast forward to 2007...we now have 5 children, with one growing in my womb, my oldest is almost 7 years old and we are thoroughly enjoying {and sometimes stressing!} our way through this journey of homeschooling. We have moved to the Great Pacific Northwest and we are blessed to have a great amount of support here for our choice in educating our children. We attend a weekly co-op with like minded families and my children LOVE that! We have a great email group here and the moms get together once a month for Mom's Night Out. {Those are a big hit of course!}
My husband and I decided to make the leap to home school when our oldest daughter Hannah had turned 5 years old and was approaching the start of kindergarten. I had planned on, prepared, and dreamed about homeschooling our children all those years since our time in Texas. At the time that kindergarten registration came around, I had a momentary wave of panic come over me... wondering if I could REALLY do this? It seemed too hard and too different than what I was used to! What if I failed my children and messed them up forever? All their education would be on my shoulders! EEEK!
But the one thing I hadn't done was to take my plan to Our Heavenly Father and ask what HIS will was for our family? So I registered our daughter for Kindergarten and as I was there signing her up, I had this sick feeling in my stomach that I was in the WRONG place! I had the impression to leave immediately! But I didn't leave because I was afraid... petrified actually. I knew some wonderful homeschooling moms and felt that I could NEVER be as good at this as they were! So I went and cried all the way home, knowing that I wasn't sure what we were going to do... and yet wishing that I had more courage to trust myself and God. So I spoke to my husband on the phone that night {he was deployed at the time} and asked him if we could pray together about what to do. We prayed together on the phone and then separately and an enormous amount of peace came over both of us. My husband was assured that this was right for our family and that it would require a lot of work and responsibility. He was not as afraid as I was, but then again he has never been a big worrier like I am! So I promptly went back to the school office and retracted my daughter's registration for kindergarten. I was asked why I was retracting and I told them because I planned to home school her instead and I distinctly remember the secretary rolling her eyes at someone sitting next to her and saying, "Another one."
We have not looked back since then and my fears and worries are not as strong as they once were {that is not to say that I don't have momentary lapses of stress and panic} but I have come to see that instead of believing that ALL of my children's education rests on my shoulders, I have come to believe that Heavenly Father and my husband and I are partners in this together. We are not doing this alone. We are united. I am grateful for my husband's support and for his passion for educating our children in a way that fosters their love of learning. Most importantly I am trying to rely on the Lord's plan for our children's education. Whenever I remember to consult the Lord first and foremost in my decisions in regards to my children and their education, I am always pleasantly surprised to find that His direction is always the better way. It is when I take my eyes off of God, let pride seep in, and I focus only on myself that I lose track of what I am doing. With God in the lead of our journey, we can't go wrong! I desire for our children to love to read so that they will also love to learn and above all to love the Lord their God and serve Him with all their might. I guess it needs to start with me relying on God first so that my children will have the opportunity to learn from my example. {Ok I will try not to freak out about that either!}
"But Jesus called unto him, and said, "Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of God."
Luke 18:16
