I can't count how many times people have said to me, "I don't have the patience to homeschool."  I'm not sure what makes them think I do.  It's true that I have no problems standing in long lines at the bank, waiting for two hours to finally see the doctor or could care less if that car just cut me off.  When it comes to my children though I'm not that patient.  It irritates me no end that I have to spell everything out.  I get mad.  I yell.  

Yes, homeschooling is hard work but it's also so much fun!  Even in the midst of my yelling I have burst out laughing when my son Happy Camper says, "My eyes awr pewfectwy fine!"  

So what keeps me going?  Even though I've said that public school is not an option it doesn't mean that there haven't been days that I wanted to get away from my children.  When things are going wrong I take a look at what is going on and see if I can fix it.  It's not always a quick fix.  Sometimes I have to be really honest with myself.  I will bite off more then I can chew and will fool myself into thinking that I can handle it.  (Makes me sound like a druggie doesn't it?)

More often then not when my children are way out of control the problem lies with me.  I have seen parents choose to put their children back into public school because they don't want to deal with themselves.  If the child goes to school it looks like the problem is solved but it's not.  The problem still lies within them, they've just rearranged their problems so that one or two faults are hidden or disguised.  It's a whole lot easier to spend forever on the computer if noone is standing there wanting to be fed, wanting you to correct their work, or just plain want you to play a game.  

While I've had to get real with myself I've also had to get real about curriculum.  Man, some of that stuff is boring!  I have wanted to keep plugging away because I paid good money for it.  My children are crying, I'm yelling, and that curriculum is still sitting there on the desk.  Again, I have to step back and ask myself, "Just what is going on here?"  "How can I make this better?"  I can't afford a new curriculum but I can afford to change the way I use it.  Curriculums are just guides, not prison wardens after all. 

One year for math Eyebright was really struggling.  One day by accident I started using a Fisher Price Little People king to "teach" her.  His kingdom was falling and he needed her help.  I would talk in a silly, deep voice and waggle the king this way and that.  He didn't have arms so he couldn't write the math problems himself and would "order" her to do it.  Eyebright loved it!  She wanted to help the king solve his problems and save his kingdom. 

Another year, another curriculum.  Same old song and dance.  That  year I had read a book that showed me how to use index cards to make games.  We turned Eyebright's math problems into games she could play over and over.  We were using the curriculum we had, just doing it differently.  Neither of these ideas took a ton of money.  I just needed to figure out how to use what I had.  As long as you are willing to search for a solution instead of the escape hatch you can find a cure to the problem. 

The only reason your situation would require a true escape is if you won't take care of a growing problem sooner.  A pilot doesn't just let a gas leak keep on leaking on his plane.  He finds out why it has a leak and fixes it.  He's only going to need that escape hatch if he was too stubborn or lazy to take the time to fix things while the plane was still on the ground.  While a plane can get a sudden leak, unlike a plane your child doesn't just up and become a problem that is about to blow.  The problem was there you just refused to face it.

So that's my second tip.  Get real with yourself and the situation.  Don't expect a quick fix.