Monday, September 19, 2011

School is in session

Last week we had our first official full week of homeschool. It was fun. It was chaotic. And I have a few thoughts on the whole issue. One thing is I have felt completely like our family is right where we need to be. Homeschooling is perfect for us right now. It works great. I have said over and over this is what we will do until it doesn't work any more. And right now it feels like the exact place, time and thing for our family.

That being said it is hard. It is a lot of work to prepare lessons that are fun and actually teach. On top of that we still have other parts of life. We are a part of a co-op that meets once a week with other homeschool families. And that has been really fun but it has been a challenge to navigate new material. I was beginning to wonder this week if my house was ever going to recover. It stayed a mess most of this week. Part of it was new schedules and trying to get everyone and all their stuff where we needed to be this week. And my normal cleaning schedule was the morning which is now filled with school. So I am trying to figure out how to do all the things I need to in our new schedule. And how to get done all those things I planned to get done.

I am also learning that I am going to have to say no to some things. I like to be liked. I am a people pleaser so to say no to people or things can sometimes be hard for me.

But on another note we checked out a church gathering last week that is being lead by some old friends of ours. During the gathering the speaker was talking about how all throughout the old testament God would say to Israel "I will be your God and you be my people." Israel would complain and demand their own way and God would say no. "I will be your God and you be my people."

I am learning that I cannot control things. I cannot do everything. And honestly I am a little scared to death of the thought of homeschooling my kids all this year, let alone throughout the rest of their lives. But I sat this afternoon with my Bible open and thought about those words the teacher said. And I prayed that God would be my God and I would be His people.

In the end I will probably disappoint someone. I will probably not teach my kids everything they should have learned. I will probably forget something really important. I will probably forget to do something I told someone I would do. My house will not be spotless. My kids will watch tv and eat junk food. But this one thing I want to get right. I want God to be our God and I want our family to be His people. And if my kids learn that I will count it a success.

2 comments:

Margie said...

My comments after the *

In the end I will probably disappoint someone. *or you might not

I will probably not teach my kids everything they should have learned. *or you will go wherever God leads (which I am sure you will) and they will know EXACTLY what is important!

I will probably forget something really important. *or you will remember that you are God's and that IS what is important.

I will probably forget to do something I told someone I would do. *and there will be grace

My house will not be spotless. *In 25 years who will know the difference anyway (that's what my gram said)

My kids will watch tv and eat junk food. *so? They will also learn from someone who loves them and have a balanced diet -sometimes super healthy sometimes not so much - that's called balance! :)

But this one thing I want to get right. *and you will!

I want God to be our God and I want our family to be His people. *He is, and you are!

And if my kids learn that I will count it a success. **they will !!!!

Be encouraged! You are an inspiring loving FRIEND, MOM, WIFE, DAUGHTER, TEACHER! and much much more!

Amber Land said...

Hi Jessica! So happy that you are paper pregnant!!!! We are so excited for you!!!!

Glad to hear you're homeschooling! We love it so much, this year we have 4 homeschooling! Scheduling is always a challenge. You will fall into a rythm that works well for you guys. Don't worry, your house will be clean again soon! I promise, it just takes some time to work it all out!

Feel free to call me or email me if you ever need to chat or have a question. chamberfultz@yahoo.com or 313-330-9742!