Homeschool blessings

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Today I loved being a homeschool mom because...

First, the opportunity to take my time in the morning with my Bible, coffee, and journal is precious. I don't have a deadline to meet...a certain time I need to get myself in the shower or out the door. If God's speaking, I get to sit and listen. If the checkbook needs balancing, or emails need answering, I can take an extra 15 minutes and do it. My kids will usually sleep till I wake them up, and although I do have a basic schedule in place, it's flexible. We start when we start, and we finish when we finish.

This morning I did kick some butt when I woke them up, because we have indeed fallen into the winter sludge, but they responded pretty well and we worked hard, together. When we have a good school day, we all get to share in that ownership. We do it as a team.

Next, I love that I get to read and talk with my boys as we go. We read good books (historical fiction much of the time, interesting textbooks the rest) and have natural conversations about the world events they cover. I believe this cements the information into their minds and hearts. I love when they take an idea and question it, or apply it, or challenge it. That's knowledge building.

I also love that I can give my boys breaks when they need them. Because they are boys, they get squirrelly and restless. I can send them outside to shoot hoops for 10 minutes and then pick the books back up again.

Last week math facts fell completely out of one of my sons' heads and he melted down over his math lesson, which was introducing a new concept. We have been able to go at his pace, slowly, step by step, until the math facts came back to roost and the new concept made sense. He feels so much more confident now than if he'd been rushed through in a traditional classroom and made to feel dumb for not understanding. Same has gone, in the past week, for his cursive lessons and his writing class project. I am so thankful that I get to listen to him, identify the point of trouble, and work from there baby step by baby step. Today, we had success moments in all three subjects--priceless!

Different days bring different reasons for gratitude. This is our 9th year homeschooling, and although not every day brings those success moments, I've not had any "ohmygoshI'msendingthemtopublicschoolTOMORROW!" days in a really long time. Thank You, Jesus, for bringing me--and my kids--home. I am going to bed feeling blessed.