We’re a full semester into homeschooling, so I feel like I can really share where we’re at with our decision to educate our girls at home this year. I’ve wanted to share about our decision for a while, but I also wanted to make sure that the newness and excitement of it all wasn’t giving me rose-tinted glasses. This may end up being a multipart post, because I have a lot to say about the matter and I’m not sure where to begin.
So many people have asked why we chose to pull our kids from public school. While there wasn’t one particular event that pushed us over the edge, there are several reasons, and I’ll get to those. What has been so amazing through all of this is how my mindset has shifted, and all credit for that goes to God. I truly believe that He put the right people in my path at the right time, and literally opened my heart and mind to this being a possibility. He has molded my heart in a way that I never knew was possible, and he has rearranged our circumstances (work schedules, co-op opportunities, etc) to make all of this work.
There were two prayers I had been praying before the thought of homeschooling came into my brain. The first was that I asked God to increase my faith. This is actually a prayer that I had been scared to pray for so long. So often our faith is strengthened through trials, and I was scared that if I prayed for God to increase my faith that I would be opening the door for some sort of suffering in our life. But through my studying, and something that was mentioned in our class at church, I got the courage to finally pray that prayer. I asked God to increase my faith.
The second prayer I had been praying was for God to lead us to the right location when it came to where to live and what school to send them to. We had been casually looking at homes, but weren’t sure what school system we wanted to be in. We had started to see problems arise in Madison City, and had expanded our search to East Limestone and had even begun to talk about Athens City. Through talking with some people in these school systems, it seemed that some of the issues were a little better, but we weren’t going to escape them completely. And at this point we couldn’t afford private school, so I had also been praying that if they were meant to be in private school that He would provide these means financially.
Well, God answered both of these prayers in a way I never thought possible (which is one thing that makes God so incredible – He sees the big picture).
Homeschool wasn’t a new concept to me, of course. I knew people who homeschooled, but I had always thought I could never do it. I had all the typical excuses – they need the socialization, my kids don’t listen to me when I help with homework, how could I be their teacher?, I need my quiet time while they’re at school, etc. etc. I’d been saying for a while that I wanted our kids out of the public school system, but homeschool was never on my radar as a solution to this problem….until it was.
Then one day in March, a coworker mentioned that she was planning to homeschool her kids starting next year, and we started talking about it. Instead of immediately saying “oh that’s great, but I could never do that” like I typically do, we had an in depth conversation about it. That is the very moment that God erased every pre-conceived notion I had about homeschooling and replaced it with an open mind. As she was explaining all the reasons she had made the decision to homeschool, I began to think wow that sounds pretty amazing.
That very day I started texting people I knew who homeschooled and asking them everything I could think of. My thoughts became consumed with this possibility and I wanted to know everything there was to know about it. I wanted to research the different curriculums, listen to podcasts, watch curriculum review videos on You Tube, follow homeschool moms on Instagram to see what their days look like. It had taken over my thoughts.
When I first brought it up to David, he thought I was crazy. For both of us, our biggest worry was that I would miss my time alone while they were at school. We worried that it would stress me out to not have time to get things done that needed to get done. I had a conversation with a friend who began homeschooling her three kids home for the first time the year before, and she told me that this was her biggest worry too, but that it had actually been the biggest blessing. It all starts with a change in mindset.
As my thoughts were consumed with this new possibility, my prayers changed. I prayed that my job would be flexible enough to allow me to change my work days so that I can get the maximum time with them to teach. I prayed that Hannah’s schedule would allow for me to teach as well. I prayed for a change in mindset, for patience and for strength. I prayed that God would lead us to the right co-op and would put the right people in our path to help us transition. He has been there every step of the way and has laid everything out just as He wants it to be.
Looking back, I can see His perfect timing in all of it. Just two weeks after that initial conversation with my coworker, a co-op that several people from our church go to was having a new student open house. We were able to meet several people and do a walk through that day, however they told us that there was already a wait list. We didn’t waste any time registering so that we could get on the list. Then we began to pray that if this is where we belonged, that a spot would open up for us. During the summer, we got an email letting us know that a spot had opened up. I can see in hindsight that if this conversation had happened much later, we probably would have missed the opportunity to join this year. I’m so thankful to be a part of this school. It’s such a relief knowing that every teacher is a Christian and every student is being raised in a Christian household.
I spoke of how I prayed for a change in mindset, and with this, I noticed how God began to shift my thinking from negative to positive. I had started out thinking of all the negatives of public school as our reason for wanting to pull them out, but then I began to see all of the positives that come along with homeschooling. That just made me even more eager to pull the trigger and say “let’s do it!” I was ready to jump in and start ordering curriculum before David was. He prayed about it as well, and ultimately we both came to the agreement that this is what was best for our family.
Speaking of God’s timing + a proper mindset, I’ve wondered why He didn’t present this as a possibility sooner? We could have skipped all the mask drama in the schools during covid and Raley wouldn’t be as behind as she was on certain things. But looking back, I think that if I had homeschooled during covid just to keep them from having to wear masks, and didn’t have the mindset I have now, then I probably would have put them back in school as soon as things were back to “normal.” If we had done it at the wrong time, it likely would not be the fulfilling experience it is now. I also would not have known about some of the effects of the school system they were in, such as how Raley had fallen behind due to covid policy (being in and out of school, trying to learn from teachers with a mask), and how the amount of screen time had gotten out of hand. It’s not all negative though – they also would have missed both having the same teacher back to back years (Raley had her for 2nd then Audrey had her for 1st), who was an absolute blessing. I also would have missed out on precious time with Hannah as a baby. So while I would have loved for them to not be forced to wear masks for nearly two full school years, I can also see how God’s timing in the matter is bigger and better in the long run.
I had prayed for God to increase my faith and all of this absolutely has. I can see how God answers prayers in ways that we don’t consider because He knows what ultimately is best. I can see His hand in every turn and every decision. When first considering the possibility of homeschooling, I would get butterflies in my belly because it was such a big decision. But they weren’t nervous butterflies, they were excited butterflies. Every time I’d feel those butterflies, I would pray on it. I was forced to put my trust in Him that He would fully take the reign on this decision and lead us where we needed to be. While I was ready to just jump in, I wanted to make sure that God was in control of this situation.
I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is the right decision for our family. How do I know, you may ask? Because even on the hardest days, I have never once wished they were in school. In fact, I have a sense of relief that they are not there, and that tells me that we are right where we need to be.
Back at the end of March, when we were still deciding if this was something we were going to do, I wrote my thoughts down in the back of my planner. The thing that kept popping into my head at this time (and still does) is the faith that if this was something God was calling me to do, then He will provide me with the strength, and the patience, and the means (and the energy!) to do it. He has provided me with all of this and I know that He will continue to do so.
I figured that this would end up being a two-parter. I didn’t even get to the actual reasons we homeschool (I’ll share those next). For now, I’ll share these verses that I wrote down at the bottom of that journal entry back in March.
“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” – Deuteronomy 6:6-7
“For nothing is impossible with God.” – Luke 1: 37
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” -Philippians 4:13
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