I took the plunge this Fall and started to homeschool my
oldest two children (the youngest is still 4). It was a HUGE decision for my
husband, Ed, and I and really broke my heart in a way because we truly loved
the kids’ school that had become like a second home to us for the last 5 years.
I was on the school board at NCCS(North Cariboo Christian School) for the past
2 ½ years and was a part of and even chaired different committees over the
years. It is a school that I believe in and will continue to promote even in my
children’s absence. You are probably wondering why, then, did I choose to
switch to homeschooling? Well, it wasn’t really a matter of choosing as much as
a matter of obedience- obedience to God.
Back in February of this year I started hearing my friends
talk about how they were going to homeschool their 4 children and how much they
were looking forward to it, and I thought back on other conversations I had
with other friends in the past about how fulfilling it was as a parent to teach
your own children and watch them learn at home. In the past I always thought, “Good
for you, Supermom. Glad you like it. I’m gonna just keep sending my kids to
school thanks.” But now, all of the sudden, I had a sudden urge to do it too! The
kind of urge you only feel from the Holy Spirit when He gently nudges you
forward, and you, all of the sudden, feel completely equipped to do something that,
in times gone by, brought up feelings of dread and horror. I approached my
husband about it and he thought it was an interesting idea, but wasn’t so sure.
I asked the kids how they would feel about homeschooling if they would ever have
to. Bethany gave an excited yes!!! Lets do it!!! While Jacob stated
emphatically that he wouldn’t do it. Period. So I let it rest, but the Holy
Spirit kept nudging. The next time I brought it up with Ed he seemed quite
interested and wanted to know how it would work, so I went to an information
session about it with a couple friends and found out that I was in for a crazy
amount of information overload. Still, I was urged onward. Spring break brought
me the final confirmation I needed and from that point on I was sold. By this
point Ed was also convinced that we needed to do this and even Jacob had
reached, as he put it, “90 percent ok with it.” So, with much anticipation and trepidation,
I enrolled Bethany into grade 6 and Jacob into grade 3 with Heritage Christian
Online School.
The adventure of ordering ciriculum almost did me in, but I
prevailed like the supermom I must be becoming! The curriculum came in a week
late, after getting lost in the mail and needing to be reshipped, and I was
getting extremely anxious to just begin this journey. So when Monday, September
9, 2013 came around and we were finally able to start our first day of school I
was so relieved and excited despite the butterflies taunting my tummy. It’s been quite a week of learning, and the
kids learned something too I think… I have enjoyed reconnecting with my kids in
a way that I haven’t since they were toddlers. I have had God’s unlimited grace
to have an uncharacteristic amount of patience, and I have built a ‘house’ in the middle of the
bush…with my kids, not because of them. Having thirty degree weather to swim at
the lake for P.E. hasn’t hurt either.
I’m looking forward to what next week has to offer!
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