Lesson #1:  I think God wants me to homeschool so I can see how much I need Him.  I was very prideful when I started this journey five years ago.  Not that I have conquered that sin in my heart by any means, but I am certain that I am not the perfect mom or teacher nor do I have perfect students.  However, God is so very gracious.  He knows what each of us needs each day and we are never left lacking in any way.  The joy of the Lord is most certainly my strength.

Lesson #2:  My girls are fearfully and wonderfully made.  Period.  I have one student who learns differently from the average child.  This has not been easy for me to accept.  I want it to be easy to teach her, to pull out the manual, do what it says, and then have her understand each concept right away.  But the way she learns requires a lot more hands on kinds of activity and a lot of patience.  It really stretches me.  And yet, she is made in the very image of God.  There is nothing wrong with how she learns.  In fact, it is a gift because it forces me to depend on the One who made her to show me what she needs.  I am so very thankful for who she is.  So, so thankful.

Lesson #3:  My husband is the best out there, no doubt in my mind.  I was made to be his helpmate, but I promise you that most days I feel like he is the one helping me all the time.  He came home the other day with all sorts of notes from his own "research" on how to teach our daughter.  He spent a few nights working with the girls on some hands on lessons this week.  He does devotions every night to lead them into a closer walk with God.  I'm not sure it was intentional, but he has even made these devotions good in the area of language arts as they are currently making their own notebooks about the book of Acts.  I was feeling very burdened for one of our girls the other day, but God has shown me very clearly this week that I do not carry this burden alone.  I have my Father, who knows everything already, and I have Jason, who takes full responsibility for his girls.

Lesson #4:  It's gonna take a lot more than a few activities in a box to keep Betsie busy during school time.