Full Schedules, but never too full for......

It's August and school has started. If you're on social networks, like Facebook, you can see it by all the 'first day of school' pictures posted by parents. How about you homeschool mommies?  Did you take first day of school pictures, too?  I hope so. Why not?  It's a good way to see how the kids grow and change from year to year. We have a picture frame with a picture for each year of school. And it's so special to me because I can easily see their physical growth from the time they were five years old until their cap and gown graduation picture at eighteen years old. Yes, we have a homeschool graduation with cap and gown.  And they get to choose any color cap and gown that they want. Our daughter just graduated, and I'm surprised she didn't pick a tie-dye cap and gown. I'm telling you, she would've tie-dyed it herself, like she does with most of her T-shirts. She chose, instead, a pretty baby blue....although, I would've been fine with tie-dye. Homeschool graduations are far from boring, though, with our graduate slide shows and personal dedications.

So now my graduate has started college. Her plan is to stay home and attend our local college for her Associate in Arts degree. Then she plans to transfer to a university when she has a better idea of what she wants to do. Right now she's thinking of going into education or be a sign language interpreter, but that could change. This semester she's taking a sign language course, which may give her a better feel for that field. She's registered as a full time student this semester. She's also working part-time. And she now has a boyfriend. Yes, a boyfriend. If it were up to me, that would not be happening. Only because she will always be my little girl and it's a little hard to accept that she's growing up. Having said that, he's a really nice young man. Her mom and dad approve. ;)  We're really not concerned with her making a bad choice in that department. Dad doesn't have to put the fear of life into him. Instead, we trust we've raised her smart enough to be with someone who will honor and respect her. This week we got to see a lot less of her. She was either at school, at work, on a date with her boyfriend and friends, or with her nose in a book or computer. After a summer of just hanging out together at the beach, watching movies, going out for ice cream...or just hanging out at home, this is a new routine.  We will need to get used to her full schedule...but never too full for some family time here and there.

Moving right along to our next child still at home and homeschooling is our son in his last year of homeschool high school. He's got a full load as well. He's also working part time. He works with his sister, who is in a supervisory position at work and is the one who does the scheduling for all employees. This can be a benefit for both of them when they need a particular day off. It's also a benefit that they get to drive to work together or play tag with the car as one arrives to work while the other one is leaving work. Noah is also dual enrolled in high school at home and college. He's taking English 1101 at the same college as his sister. At home he's doing math, anatomy, pre-calculus, worldview, and a Literary course. He also meets with his local Sea Cadets on a weekly basis and serves in the children's worship team at our church. Full schedule for him, as well....but never too full for family time here and there.

Last but not least is our youngest, Samantha. We homeschool Samantha all year. Because of her Down syndrome, it's just best that we don't take time off from school for more than a week or two at a time. She did take a week off each summer month. Now that we're officially starting a new year, we're working on some lesson reviews. For math we're reviewing her first grade homeschool curriculum.  We use Time4Learning curriculum for Math, Language Arts, Science and Social studies.  In Language Arts we're reviewing 4th grade and then moving on to 5th grade. This is one of the things that I love about this curriculum. She can work at her own pace and at the grade level she is really at. She's not struggling to keep up or moving ahead before understanding a lesson.

We've added a P.E. day to her schedule this year, which she is really excited about. We have a homeschool sports organization that is simply amazing. There are about a hundred kids on each P.E. day meeting at different parks around the city. Kids are taught about almost every sport, including archery, which is a favorite. But most importantly, kids are taught to encourage and respect one another and work as a team. I'm also looking into adding a science day at the park with a group of kids from our homeschool support group. We did this a few year ago with a few families. The kids learned a lot from the park naturalist. It was nice to get out once a week and do school at the park.

As you can see, each of us has a pretty full schedule.  I don't know how people are still asking about homeschoolers and socialization. Looking at our homeschool support group's calendar, we're going to have a hard time saying no to a lot of events and activities planned for the year. Already this month we've registered for a field trip to the zoo.  Even my daughter in college is coming with us. We're excited about this field trip because it's been a long time since we've been to the zoo, it's been a long time since we'be been on a field trip with this group, and we'll be seeing lots of old friends we haven't seen in months. And we're happy to have a day planned ahead for family time.

What does your school year look like? What are you doing differently this year from last year?  Please comment below. I love new ideas or comments.

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I Can Let Go

I've been thinking today of moms whose kids have graduated high school this year and will be going off to college in the fall, just a few weeks away.  My daughter just graduated this year from our homeschool high school, but she is staying home. She'll be attending the local college and then transferring to a university in a year or two. My son, hopes to go away to college as soon as he's done with homeschool high school. And the reason I'm thinking of moms sending off their kids is because we just dropped Noah off for a two-week Recruit Training with the Sea Cadets. This is the longest he will be away from home.  It's only been three days and I miss him terribly. I think it's even harder for me because I cannot communicate with him. He cannot just pick up a phone and call.

A couple of years ago he and his sister went to a church retreat, which was a few days. But they were together and we could communicate with each other.  This time he has no electronics. So that means no texting, phone calls or emails. Parents can send emails. The emails get printed and passed out to the recruits at the end of the day. He cannot email us back, though. He can only write to us.  I packed him a mailing kit...addressed and stamped the envelopes so all he had to do was write the letter. We just received our first letter from him. He must've been too tired to write because the letter was quite short. But it was clear that these first two days were pretty rough. I know the first day there, the cadets were awakened at 4:45 am and went on to do physical fitness training immediately after waking up...then breakfast.  So I can imagine that by the end of the day, the only thing he wants to do is just sleep.

You may be wondering what possessed me to send my son to recruit training! Well, it wasn't my choice. It was his. He is 17 years old now and he's been looking forward to this for a long time. He knew how hard it was going to be, and still he wanted to go. He has a desire to join the service some day. It's not a direction that we have been taking him in, but it's a desire that has grown in his heart. So I think this is a very good opportunity for him to get a small taste of what it would be like. I think these two weeks may be life-changing for him. It will certainly be character-building and teach him self discipline.  I'm happy he's learning time management and to set goals and remain focused. I've been told by parents of recruits from previous year that their sons went as young boys and came back as responsible young adults.

These are all good lessons he's learning, of course.  But I cannot help but then think of the near future when he goes away to college. I'm not even half way into the two week period and I'm missing him. I cried reading his letter and I tear up talking to my daughter about where he is and what he may be doing. So I cannot even imagine when he goes away to college...or if/when my daughter goes away to college. I still have a year or two to worry about that, but I'm also aware that time passes oh so quickly.  It seems like just yesterday I was trying to decide what elementary homeschool curriculum to use. I cannot forget I still have my youngest daughter, and she's a long way away from making plans about moving.

When I start thinking of my kids leaving home and what I'll be missing with them, it is so easy to fall into depression or sadness. I can't let myself stay there for long.  I've found that it helps to remember that I've not just been raising children, but I've been raising adults.  This was the goal.  To raise adults who are productive citizens in society and live out God's plan for their lives. I change my focus from what I'm losing (the past) to what my kids are gaining (their future).  I meditate on their bright futures and my future with my husband and the time we'll have together, rather than the past.  The past is beautiful, but it is past. It had its purpose. I treasure those moments, but they are just beautiful memories now. Instead, I want to get excited for the opportunities, the new experiences, the new life lessons and adventures they will have, and that my husband and I will have, and that we can share with each other.  We'll be able to have some very cool talks. In the meantime, they are all still home and my work as a homeschool mom is not finished.  I can work on friendships with my children, my soon-to-be adult children, by being intentional with our conversations and time together. I need to start counseling more than disciplining, releasing them, allowing them to make mistakes, and letting them fly. It helps to know that God is in control and I can let go.

Winter Camping in Florida....includes fun learning lessons

I'm thankful that my teen kids have flexible jobs that allow them to take the time off when we want to take a mini-vacation.  And because we homeschool high school, it makes it easier to take the time off from schoolwork, too.  So we went camping last weekend.  I know in most parts of the country you wouldn't even think of sleeping outside in a tent! Well, if it weren't because we had already planned this a few weeks ago with several other families, I may have chosen to stay home because it was soooo cold!! But my husband had already requested the time off work and he couldn't change it.  Oh, and have I mentioned we live in Florida?! Yes, I've lived here all my life.  So anything below 65 degrees is too cold for me. Well, it was as low as 34 degrees sleeping in our tent. Ahhhh!  It was not easy getting a full night's rest.  Even snuggled up close to my hubby, and with the kids' sleeping bags zipped up completely, we were freezing.  I think each of us slept with multiple pairs of socks on, gloves, and hats to keep our heads warm, and still we were cold.

I gotta tell you, though, we had soooo much fun. We went on hikes (yes, on flat ground), made s'mores, some went canoeing, and we took lots of pictures. My daughter and her cousin enjoy photography.  So they had fun taking some creative photographs on railroad tracks, abandoned boxcars, and some old shacks they found. They really impressed me with some of the photos they took.  My niece actually entered a photography contest with some of them and won several awards.

Some of my friends tease me that I love camping so much. I really love being out in nature. I love the night sky most of all.  We live in the city, so we don't get a nice open view of all the stars at home. One night one of the guys went to the store and purchased night sky lanterns for all the kids.  We had nine kids between all the families.  It was a little scary when after releasing one of the sky lanterns we noticed a hole on the side of it.  We were praying it would keep rising and not fall in the trees. Of course we had a lesson on the laws of physics, hot air being lighter than cold air and what makes the lanterns rise.  Well, thankfully all went well! The kids loved watching them rise together and separate in their soared in their own directions out of view.  The night sky was absolutely gorgeous.

Another reason I love camping is because the guys do everything! When we arrive at the campground, dad and the kids put the tents up.
Once the tent is up, I set up everything inside because I like to be organized and be able to find things easily. My son Noah is in charge of the fire and the husbands are in charge of the meals. Sometimes I wash the dishes, but this time the guys did that, too.  So it's really a vacation, especially from one of the things I like to do the least: cooking!  I also enjoy the little hikes we take through the trails. Samantha and I took several, just the two of us.  We talked about facts about animals we saw on the trails, like the alligators.  The week before we left her online science lessons online were on change in matter.  So every time she or I noticed a physical change in matter, we would point it out, like when my son was chopping wood, or when we made biscuits on a stick.

Noah chopping wood

Biscuits on a stick

Learning is just part of everyday life, isn't it?  I can't wait to go camping again!

Homeschool Regrets

Someone asked me today if I've had any regrets with our choice to homeschool.  I can say without a doubt that this is the best choice we've ever made.  And we've never doubted this choice. Although there are regrets within my choice to homeschool, meaning there are things I'd do differently, I have no regrets of homeschooling our children.  I think most homeschoolers, at one time or another, wonder if we've made the right choice with curriculum or if we've spent enough time learning certain subjects or learning enough material.

One of my regrets with my older children is changing math curriculum too often. My oldest daughter Amber has always struggled with math.  I kept trying to find a math curricula that she would like, so I kept changing. I think this did more harm than good. If I had to do it over again, I would've stuck with one math curriculum once we reached higher elementary and from that point on.  You see, each math curricula teaches skills and concepts in a particular order and with different formats.  I think the frequent changes caused confusion for her and just aggravated her math anxiety. If I had to do it over again, I would do what I finally did last year. Together with three other families we hired a math tutor.  We took the four girls to her house for an hour twice a week. The tutor charged us by the hour for the four girls, so we just split the cost. We picked a tutor who loves math and is tutoring more for the love of teaching than for the money. Amber and another girl in the group were both behind in math and disliked it very much. By the end of the year, the tutor had transferred her love of math on to the girls and they were caught up!

My other regret would be that I started to panic once my kids became teenagers and I started homeschooling middle school.  Well, I didn't panic.  I'm being a bit dramatic. I did start to worry that I would not be able to teach them well. In part that was because of my struggles and my own weaknesses in math.  I worried I would mess them up somehow.  It's funny how people's first concerns seem to always be related to socialization.  That has always been the least of my concerns. They've always had plenty of activities and friends from 4-H clubs, boyscouts, drama club, music classes, ballet classes, field trips, yearbook club.  Too many over the years to name.  I think my biggest concerns have always been about record-keeping and making sure we covered the requirements for their high school transcripts.  I started to notice that a lot of parents would start talking about high school and college requirements as early as middle school.  But I'm so thankful for the large homeschool community that we are a part of and for the internet.  I've had a lot of homeschool high school help. My kids seem to be doing fine. So there was really no need for me to panic or worry.

What about your family? Any regrets with homeschooling?  Anything you'd do differently?

Why Homeschool...a discussion with extended family.

This year was a most memorable Thanksgiving.  We spent five days with my two sisters and their families. We rented a big house where we could all stay together near the parks in Orlando. Between the 3 of us, we have 13 children ranging in ages from 6 to 28.  We also had my son's fiancee and her 3-yo precious daughter.  We rented a 7-bedroom house with a swimming pool, a pool table and a theater.  Yes, a theater!  The older kids ended up sleeping in the comfortable theater seats since they'd start to watch a movie late in the evening and just fall asleep.  A teenager's dream come true.  The house was absolutely beautiful, but that's not what made our vacation so memorable.  The time we spent together is priceless.

The kids have a lot in common even though they have a different upbringing and have lived in very different states or parts of the country. My youngest sister and her family have lived in Central America for the last 4 years. Their kids have always attended private schools and have an affluent upbringing, but are genuine and humble. They're very close to their parents. My  other sister just moved back to Florida after living in Montana for 8 years. Her older kids attended both private and public schools. They're 19 and 21 and have been on their own for a couple of years. Their youngest was homeschooled last year for 3rd grade, and is back in public school now. And we have always lived in Florida and homeschooled all our children except our oldest, who attended public school.

At one point the older kids had a discussion about education.  My son's fiancee mentioned that she wants to homeschool.  She was also homeschooled her high school years.  Although my son was not homeschooled, he has a desire to homeschool his children.  My nieces and nephews made the same arguments we always hear about socialization.  One niece is still in high school and the other two have recently graduated. My kids and I shared some homeschool statistics with them, but also agreed that homeschooling is not for everyone.  More and more families are homeschooling, but there is still a lot of naivete about homeschoolers; particularly that homeschoolers are 'sheltered'.  This came up in the conversation several times.  I tried to explain that all homeschooling families are different and that while there may be some families that may be what they consider sheltered, the homeschool trends are changing and evolving.  For example, we're homeschooling high school and we have access to every good thing a student in a brick and mortar school has. My kids can participate in a homeschool athletic organization or even a public school sports team.  We have our own yearbooks and yearbook committees. We have a Homecoming Dance and Prom.  We have art clubs, Speech and Debate Clubs, Drama Clubs and many other clubs.  As a matter of fact, if a family has a unique interest and wants to start a club, like a Lego Club, there are plenty of families that will join and help to coordinate meetings. One of the things I love most about homeschooling is that we're not segragated. We all work as a team and play as a team.

As passionate as my family and I are about homeschooling, though, we understand that we're not all called to homeschool.  Fortunately the conversation was light-hearted for the most part.  My nieces and nephews are all respectful and loving. Also, my brother-in-law has a great sense of humor, so he would throw in a light-hearted joke here and there.  As strong as our opinions may be about education, our love and respect for each other is stronger still.  All in all a good time was had by all and we're already planning our next get-away.  Spring Break!!  Maybe my three brothers will join us with their families for this next reunion.  Won't that be a full house!