What About Canon?To Home School or Not to Home School?

Right off the bat I'm fairly certain of the answer my public school friends will be shouting, NOT TO!! I've heard it all over the past 2 years of home schooling. "When do you get some ME time?", "How do you know when they pass a certain grade?", and my all time fav, " Don't they need to be socialized??". BAHAAHAAA!! That one always sends me into a tail spill of laughter. Mostly because my home school friends are some of the most social people I know. Plus my oldest used to get in trouble at school for socializing too much during class. :-) I've even had people look at me with great disgust and ask "why on earth would you do that?".

Kindergarten roundup is upon us! My Canon is 5 and that means in the fall he "should" be starting school. You know real school. I have been contemplating this idea all school year. My reasons for home schooling were directed at the older 2, mostly my oldest kiddo. As we shared the idea of pulling out the kids from public school, so many of my well meaning friends asked with great concern, " what about Canon?", "he needs to go to public school!". I love how other people know just what my kids need. :-) So naturally I have thought the same over the years. After all, he's never been to school. The other 2 struggled a bit and who knows Canon may sail through with zero problems. Or would he? Don't know.

These thoughts have caused me to soul search and wonder why I home school my kids anyway.

At first it was to help my oldest with some issues with anxiety. We thought we'd just do it a year and evaluate after. Surely it wouldn't be a long term deal. Surely when Canon came along he'd go to school.

The past 2 years have been full of ups and downs. The first year we barely made it through. Loneliness gripped all of us by November but thankfully we made some great friends and by May looked back and realized what a treasure our year had been. Over the summer I plotted and planned out our next year. We had it down to the very last book we would read. The school year started and 3 days later Zion was diagnosed with cancer. Crap. There goes my BIG PLAN!!!

So this year has been a year of survival. Reading the basics, learning the math needed to pass to the next grade. Getting by. Or so I thought.

As I look back on our year, it's been so much more than getting by. My kids have had an education they wouldn't have otherwise had if they'd have gone to public school. I'm not sure I could even tell of all the "education" they have had. My sweet Eden has learned extreme compassion for little kids who are bald. (chemo patients). We have learned to look for opportunities to serve with abandon, and to look for the good in every situation no matter how crappy. I'm pretty sure that's not in the public school curriculum. Nor would we have had the opportunity if they had not been with us every step of the way.

As I ponder these things, I've come to the conclusion that I love having them here. I don't get much "me" time. Though I didn't have kids to get me time. :-) I have to work hard making sure they get all the learning they need. But does loving having your kids home mean you should home school them? Again, my public school friends are crying out a known answer. :-) To me it absolutely is. You see, one thing I was educated on this year was this; time is so short with my people. So so short. We were faced with an ugly reality that had Zion had melanoma in his lymph nodes his life would not have been very long short of a miracle. My mind can't camp there too long. But the thought lingers in my mind as I pray about our schooling decision. I don't base my choice based on fear or what if's, I base it on I love teaching my kids, I love having them experience life with me, and I so love teaching them God's ways every minute of every day. We could teach them about the Lord even if they went to school I know, but it's so great to able to use every situation to point them to Him.

Likely Canon will be home schooled next year. I'm sorry if that disappoints most of you. :-) Our little crumbcake enjoys his momma being his teacher. His momma enjoys having him here learning and growing along with everyone else. In Weir, Tx we just don't do things apart. We home school, Marck now has a job from home, and I do hair from home. Home is a great place in Weir,Tx. I think we'll keep it that way!