Well, it is that time of the year...the months after the honeymoon has dimmed!  Everyone has probably been schooling several weeks, maybe even a month now and the excitment of a new year has worn off.  Also, the extra activities have started back up...soccer, ballet, piano lessons, youth bible clubs.  Help!!! I am burned out, resentful, tired and owverwhelmed already...how in the world am I going to get through 8 more months of this?!  And if all this isn't enough the days are now getting shorter!!!

I know what you are feeling...I have been there and felt the very same feelings!  I homeschooled for some 20+ years. So, today I want to be the voice of reason to you...hopefully dispell some of the panic you are feeling.  And because I know your time is limited I will try to keep it as short as I can.

First, keep in mind that you were called to this lifestyle, this ministry, so for that very reason God is not going to let you sink.  But, you have to go to Him, not just daily but hourly or maybe even more.  He has to be your heart and soul!  Through Him you can do anything, without Him you can do nothing.  Pray for our Lord to help you keep this a ministry...the most important ministry you will ever do, not just one of the daily chores.  Pray that he will help you to let yourself die and in replace of that you can put the needs of your children with His direction.  Attitude and focus are so important but we get caught up in being the homeschool police that we forget that the focus in really on what the Father is trying to do with our children.  He wants us to teach them and train them to be selfless disciples of Christ first and foremost.  And our attitudes say so much about how much or how little you trust our heavenly Father.  In a quiet place, with only you and our Father, evaluate how much you do trust him to order your time...your days and weeks.  Are your attitudes with your children a living example of being led by God or are you constantly frustrated, short-tempered, and unpeaceful with the children?

I know you might be thinking all this sounds great but I need specifics....I have 3, 4, 5 children and they do need to graduate with some book knowledge.  We want them to go to college..they have to score well on their SAT's....this one or that one is not motivated and they can't keep on track, and this one is full of ginger and spice, a real class cut-up which keeps us from getting anything done!  Could these be some of the concerns...of course!  Remember, there is more than one way to run our schoolroom.  Your inital plans are just that...anything that you find that is not working you have the ability to change!  Just because you have a notebook the size of a medical dictionary and have charted everything out for this year doesn't mean that can't change.  After all, life is ALL about change. Remember when we brought home that first baby? Oh, we had a plan...babies sleep soooo good in the hospital nursery.  So, when we get home, we are only going to nurse every four hours, give the new baby a pacifer, and let him sleep.  That lasted about half a night...do you remember?...up and down, up and down...boy, he wants to eat every hour and nurses for 35 minutes..he keeps spitting out the pacifer...one dirty diaper after another, and he makes noises all the time and I can't relax for jumping at every squirm and noise!  Is it coming back to you now?!  That was the beginning of being able to be flexible and realizing that you have to have a plan but that you have to be able to switch it up when you need to.

Go back to some alone time with God!  Ask him to clearly show you things that will make you more peaceful.  Are you getting up at a reasonable time?  My husband for twenty years was a fireman so he was away for 24 hours at a time.  I tried to use that to our advantage.  Many nights we would use the evenings to do our reading or bible study lessons.  And as the children got older, because their dad was at work at night and it our house wasn't run like a tradional household (everything runs differently when Dad is home), they would spend the evening reading their history or biology, which gave us more time during the day to do math problems and complete our English and grammar. 

Or maybe there are too many outside activities or you need to find an activity that all can participate in together instead of going ten directions 4 times a week and loosing valuable school time.  For a season, in our family, the children belonged to a year-round swim team.  We went together as a family...they swam, I had some fellowship time and usually did lesson plans and graded papers. Another part of our homeschooling years we, as a family, were part of a archery club and a stamp club...together as a family.  We had one place to get to, only that one allotment of time but yet we were getting out and doing something fun.

I just realized how long this post is and I don't want to sway you from your schoolrooms so think and pray about what I have said thus far and I will post a continuation of this tomorrow.  And if you read this and want to voice concerns or frustrations please feel free to comment.  For now, seek time with our Father as I will be doing and let Him do his work...after all HE IS THE MASTER!

Constantly ask God's help inprayer and pray always in the power of the Spirit.  To this end keep watch and persevere, always interceding for all God's people.          Ephesians 6:18

He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, and reveals his thoughts to man, he who turns dawn to darknes and treads the high places of the earth--the Lord Amighty is his name.           Amos 4:13