The Blessings of Homeschooling

Let's be frank! Homeschooling is hard and it certainly isn't for everyone. Homeschooling takes over your house, is time consuming, costs money, takes away a second income for many and requires lots of sacrifice on the parents' part.

I am writing this morning next to a dining room table that is overflowing with papers, books, water bottles and stuff while holding a rabbit that needs his antibiotics and a to do list a mile long. I need a shower and the kids will be up any minute. Yet I stand here before you facing the end of our 19th year of homeschooling, and I feel so very blessed. I have spent the week listening to mothers talk about their fear of sending their children to school and facing school violence. I remember well the school violence I witnessed attending a large urban school and later working in schools in two states. I have attended a meeting to address the bullying situation that my teenage daughter is dealing with in public high school (Goldilocks who does not live with us). I have counseled a family in how to start an emergency homeschool after their middle school daughter made a suicide attempt partially because of public school issues. It has been a heart-wrenching week for our country; and although we are safe and free of school violence in our little homeschool, we are certainly not isolated from the crisis gripping our nation.

All that said, my post about what we did this week seems so trivial. We did school, we went to dance, art and therapy. Dean and Anne saw friends and enjoyed the spring weather we are having. The end of the school year is just a few months off, and I feel confident that we are going to make it with most of our goals achieved. Enough said....

Dean's self portrait this week

So here are a few blessings from this week ~

• I can let my kids sleep. Why have we avoided the flu so far? I don't know; it is all around us. I do think that my kids being able to sleep most days until they awake is of great benefit to their growing bodies. 
• We can take advantage of the amazing weather we are having this week. We are not confined to a building, agenda or schedule.
• My kids can follow their dreams and passions. Dean is making amazing strides in portrait drawing. Anne received her first ever payment for performing with the adult company recently. She even framed one dollar of the money. Anne is also falling more and more in love with sign language every day. Our adult son, Tim, completed orientation with the Humane Society this week so he will be able to perform volunteer tasks with dogs.
• We can be the rock and foundation for our kids. I am here at all times to flush out concerns, help make important decisions, process social situations. My kids turn to me first. For that, I am so grateful.
• We have the margin to reach out to others in need and lend support.
• Anne and I attended an anti-gun rally. 
• WE FEEL SAFE and can live most of our hours WITHOUT FEAR.

So that is all for this week. Just so we are clear, yes, I  think assault weapons should be banned. Yes, I think our mental health system stinks and needs a complete overhaul. Yes, I think it is more important that our children stop being killed than that people have the "right" to own military style weapons. My husband was a soldier for 13 years and wasn't allowed to take his M-16 home. It lived in the weapons room at work unless he was deployed to a war zone. Yes, I have a child with mental illness who cannot live in a family setting, because she is considered too dangerous to have around her family. However, the mental health system is going to drop her like a hot potato on her 18th birthday in just a few short months. Friendly comments welcome.

Blessings, Dawn