After a short break that turned into an extended break, I am back! (Yes, again. To those of you who are bothered by this fact, why are you reading this?) As any mother on the planet understands, life gets in the way of the things I want to do for myself some days. We have had a wonderful summer with our girls, so much so that we didn't want it to end. So...after many long conversations, hours of research, thought, and prayer...we have decided to homeschool our children this year. Let the criticism begin...now! Why? Because deep down, it's what we all long for. MORE judgement and criticism from family, friends, and total strangers!
I'm not going to defend my decision, simply because, well...I don't have to. I've heard all the arguments for and against. I've read brilliantly written essays full of fancy words and religious convictions, penned by far more gifted writers than myself. My husband and my God are on board with me; homeschooling is legal in my state, and the truth is, that's all that's necessary.
We all know that people enjoy gossip, particularly if it's juicy and hurtful to other people. No one ever really bothers to check the facts, because the bad stuff is easier to believe. So for that crowd (and you know who you are) I'm about to rain on your parade. My children loved the public school they attended from Kindergarten to second grade. They adored their teachers, they made excellent grades, and they weren't victims of bullying. (Although I must say, with the massive ad campaigns that are out there, my kids are convinced that if another kid so much as looks at someone sideways, they are a "bully." Can we say overkill? I don't mean to sound insensitive at all, but that term has been overused to the point that it doesn't mean anything close to what it meant when we were kids.)
So there you go. There's no juicy backstory or hurt feelings to gossip about. My decision wasn't based on the fact that I disliked pubic school...it was simply based on the fact that I love my kids and for now, homeschool fits our lifestyle better than public.
Our kids participate in barrel racing events at least once a week for most of the year. I participate in them that much or more, both in and out of state. We spend precious time together traveling to and from those events as a family. I found out last year, through a not so lovely letter from the state, that my straight A students had missed too many days due to our travels. Looking at the schedule we have planned for this year, they would have been at their maximum allowed absences before Christmas!
Part of my job as a parent is to create people who will become productive members of society. An important part of that is teaching them that setting goals and achieving them requires hard work, time, and sacrifice. We are each granted a limited number of trips around the sun. My hope is that by giving my children a strong moral background and good time management skills, I can teach them to maximize every single day they are given. My happiest days are those at the end of which I fall into bed, utterly exhausted, and think, "Yep, I squeezed every single useful second I had out of this day. I accomplished everything I wanted to today." I truly hope that my girls will feel the same way.
So here's to new adventures! I get the feeling I'm about to have a lot more blog material to share...
