Are you Crazy? or why we have decided to homeschool

School registration has begun in our little town. That has prompted a lot of talk about which neighborhood school everybody's kids will be attending in the Fall.

In response to one sweet Pre-K classmate who announced he would be attending the same school as the Dynamic Duo, one of my boys asked something to the affect of, "Are you going to school in our basement, too?" Then they proceeded to tell the class how we would be having school down there, but it was currently very, very dirty.

I confess.

Everything they say is true.

Especially the part about the basement's cleanliness, or lack thereof.

Ten years ago, I would have cringed at the thought of homeschooling my children. And probably argued until I was blue in the face about why it would be a terrible idea.

Five years ago, my answer to you would have been more along the lines of, "Well, I can see where some people would see it as beneficial, but it's probably not something I will do with my family."

Two years ago, I was intrigued with the idea, but didn't see how it would be feasible for my family (or my sanity).

I think you see where I am going with this. Slowly but surely, I have become convinced that this is something I think is right for us. For so many reasons. I am actually excited about keeping my kids home and being their teacher next year. Choosing curriculum caused me some anxiety, but it was also super fun.

Yes, I am a nerd. I loved curriculum planning when I was a "real" teacher.

I think kindergarten in our basement is the perfect place for my kids to be come Fall. We are going to take it one year at a time and decide what is best for the boys and for the family. A commitment to next year is not necessarily a commitment to the 12 years that follow. On the other hand, it might be.

I in no way think that homeschooling is the only way to go, or even the best way to go for every family. I hope no one gets that idea from me. The beauty of the American educational system is that we have the freedom to choose what works for our individual families and even each child. One of the reasons I am choosing to homeschool is that I don't believe in one-size-fits-all education. Thus, the size "homeschool" may not fit your family, while the size "public school," "private school," or "charter school" might be perfect.

Huzzah!

I trust my judgement as a parent who knows what is best for my kids, and I hope you trust yours as well.

For the curious, here are a few of the reasons (some are, admittedly, better than others) why we are homeschooling:

• education that is custom-tailored to each child's needs
• smaller class size
• flexibility in schedule
• socialization not limited to age and geography
• interdisciplinary curriculum not limited/driven by standardized testing
• Spanish language acquisition (this doesn't certainly apply to every place, but the hubby and I are the most fluent folks we know where we currently live)
• family time and bonding
• interactive, hands-on education

I could go on. I could describe each of my reasons with more detail. But that sounds boring to type. If it is boring to type, it is surely boring to read.

I'm happy to answer questions if there happens to be something you actually do want to hear more about.

If you need me, I'll be sweeping the basement.

Just Perfect

"Are you going to keep trying for that girl?"

How many times over the past five years have I heard somebody ask me this question? Too many to count. It often follows close on the heels of this gem or maybe this one.

No. No, kind people of the world, I am not going to "keep trying" for "that girl."

And.

For the record.

The more I dwell on your question, the more offended I am becoming.

I resent your insinuation (or outright statement) that my family is not balanced or not close enough to some ideal because we do not consist of one boy child and one girl child. I even heard or read or something somewhere that one person felt sorry for the 3rd child of one gender in any family because it was "obvious" that the parents were trying to get the other gender. Really? As if no parent anywhere would desire to have 3 children for any reason other than to balance the sexes.

I have 3 boys. I have no desire to try for a girl. My 3rd boy was not the result of my trying for a girl. I do not in any way feel that my family is lacking. I do not think that I am missing out on anything. I do not consider it to be unfair in any way.


For those people I have heard comment about the need for a boy in their families as someone to throw the ball around with, I say throw the ball around with your daughters. I guarantee they will love it.

For those who think they need a little girl to dress up and chat with about the meaning of life, I recommend having a meaningful conversation with your sons. It might just open your eyes to some pretty amazing things.

For the folks I have heard lament the lack of a son or a daughter and how they long for the kind of relationship that would be possible with that child of a different gender, I would like to suggest trying to have a better relationship with the children you do have instead of longing for something that doesn't exist.

For anyone out there who might be tempted to open your mouth and comment about my need for a little girl in my family, don't. I really don't want you to make my boys feel like they have disappointed me in some way just by being who they are. They are God's gift to me. I wouldn't change my family for the world.

Let them Eat Cake!

So I had a little rant about Christmas and consumerism and the 12 Days of Christmas and Epiphany.

So we traveled and had company and all kinds of things between December 25th and January 6th.

So we didn't get as much done during that time as I had thought we might.

Here's what we did do:

In all seriousness, we did learn about Stephen the Martyr on St. Stephen's Day. We did learn about the 3 Wise Men and what their gifts to the infant Jesus actually symbolized. We did have an un-decorating party complete with one last day of Christmas songs. We did have an Epiphany Cake - B was the one who found the treasure & got to be "king" for the evening. We did have a good time finishing up the Holiday season.

We hope you did, too.

5 Golden Rings

Some thoughts on how our culture has changed over the generations and its effect on our Christmas celebration.

Traditionally, the tree was not put up or decorated until Christmas Eve and was left up until after Twelfth Night. These days between Christmas and Epiphany are the actual 12 Days of Christmas that we sing about every year. My dad even has memories of his early Christmases when Santa decorated the tree while the kids were sleeping on the evening of the 24th. Just a generation ago, but it seems so foreign to our current ideology.

Why would we put the tree up on the 24th only to take it down again on the 26th? It seems like a waste, doesn't it?

With our ever-increasing focus on gift giving as the most important part of the Holiday season, we often put up our tree before the Thanksgiving leftovers are in the fridge (and this year, we might have even started shopping between the main course and the pumpkin pie). Stores are ready for the commercialism to begin by Halloween, bombarding us with decorations, promised sales, and music to put us in the mood to buy, buy, buy.

Our Christmas Season lasts most of November and all of December.

Then comes Christmas morning and a flurry of wrapping paper and new toys for everyone. As soon as the gifts are unwrapped, it seems, we hurry to get the decorations packed up before mom and dad have to return to work and the kids are back in school. Christmas is all but forgotten by December 26th (unless we are among the throngs of folks returning and exchanging gifts for something just a little bit "better").

Having been shopping celebrating since October, we can't imagine carrying on through the new year, a week into January, or *gasp* February (yes, the Feast of Candlemas was a traditional marker for removal of the Christmas decorations). Gone are the 12 Days of Christmas. We have replaced the feasts and celebrations that actually bring Jesus to mind with a culture of consumerism.

Our stores and our hearts have already moved beyond Christmas and begun to think about Valentine's Day...our next nationally recognized opportunity to buy more junk.

Don't get me wrong, we celebrate the holidays with gift giving, music, shopping, and the like all through the month of December like any good American. Honestly, I love it. The first snow makes me giddy. I insist on watching Elf every year (and White Christmas, and A Christmas Story). However, we are in no rush to tear down. We always leave the tree up until Epiphany and the coming of the Wise Men. Each year we are trying to incorporate more of the meaningful and relevant traditions of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

I'll let you know how it goes this year.

What are you doing to keep the true meaning of Christmas alive in your house?

Advent Part 4

We have had a really fun time finishing up the Advent season and preparing our hearts for Christmas. Here are our last few activities:

Day 22 - Wise Men Craft

We read the story of the three wise men from Matthew chapter 2 and made a star mobile to hang from the ceiling and lead the way to the infant king. We also learned the chorus of "We Three Kings" to sing together as I sang the verses.

Oh! Star of Wonder, Star of Night!

Day 23 - Wild Lights at the zoo

We headed across the river to have Christmas with Grandpa and Gigi, who were able to join us for the zoo lights. The only thing that would have made the day more fun was if Daddy hadn't been on call.

W climbing on a giant beetle instead of enjoying the lights

N liked the trees with lots of colors

goofing with Grandpa

N and Gigi on the carousel: on the tiger and cheetah (he LOVES big cats)

W and Grandpa on the carousel: on a penguin (one of W's faves) and a donkey

so pretty

Day 23 - Find and open your "Christmas Eve" present

Each of us had a box under the tree marked as "Christmas Eve." The boys got the job of finding them, then we took turns opening.

W first: Angry Birds (red for him, of course) with Santa hats!

Next N: green (of course) with Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater with reindeer antlers

L's turn: Toy Story aliens with candy canes (maybe just striped jet packs, but close enough) and plenty of green and blue

Daddy got Santa Snoopy and buffalo plaid flannel pants. Mommy (not pictured) got Mickey and Minnie Mouse on ice skates

despite the fact that it was 11a.m., the littles had to try on their Christmas pjs

Day 25 - There was plenty of fun to be had! Waffles for breakfast, egg nog, stockings and presents at our house, the same at Yaya and Grandad's house, Christmas carols, gingerbread cookie decorating, hot chocolate.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!