***Because it\u2019s Monday and we could all use a friendly voice.***<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m ready to put them all in school,\u201d a dear friend and new-ish homeschooling dad told me last week. \u201cThere is never a moment of peace. \u00a0It\u2019s too cold to send them out to play, they keep waking up the new baby, and I work from home and can\u2019t get anything done. \u00a0I\u2019m thinking that it would be easier to just put them in school.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all feel that way sometimes.\u201d I told him.\u201dThere are days I\u2019m grateful there are no gypsies going down my street, because I would have sold them the children along time ago. \u00a0We all have days and weeks, sometimes, where we want to quit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should write that ,\u201d he said, \u201cbecause no one ever says it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So, here I am, saying it.<\/p>\n
We all have moments where we want to quit. \u00a0Now someone has said it out loud. \u00a0I\u2019m not sure why we don\u2019t talk about the frustration level or that we all have days where we fantasize about the magic yellow bus which comes and takes children away for almost an entire day at a time. \u00a0I don\u2019t know about everyone else, but during the times of year when the weather prohibits sending them outside, it can easily be several times a week.<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n There are days when I resent homeschooling. \u00a0There are days when I fantasize about running away to some magic mommy land where they lave lattes, pretty shoes, and grown up people who I can talk to about anything other than poop and childbirth.\u00a0 I dream about days where I don\u2019t have to wipe noses or behinds, and free from fractions and spelling words. \u00a0 These days are normal, so if you are quietly hiding under the bed, hoping for five minutes alone, and dreaming of adult conversation\u2026.you\u2019re not alone. \u00a0I\u2019ve been there, too, and pretty often\u2026especially the first few years.<\/p>\n
This life is not an easy one. \u00a0I love it and think it has been an incredible blessing for our family, but I won\u2019t lie to you\u2026this is one of the hardest things I\u2019ve ever done. \u00a0If you are feeling that way, you are completely normal.<\/p>\n
I think that the feeling of wanting to hide is not a bad thing. \u00a0I know it sounds weird to say that, but it\u2019s a great reality check for you. \u00a0How often are you locking yourself in the bathroom for some \u201calone\u201d time? If it\u2019s more than once ever couple of weeks, you might need to sit down and reassess, because your burnout early warning system is sounding the alarm. \u00a0It\u2019s the perfect opportunity to take stock of where you are, and make sure that this is still something you want to do.<\/p>\n
Have you thought about why you are homeschooling in the time between when you made the decision to do it and now?\u00a0 Is this still working for you?\u00a0 Have you given yourself adequate amounts of non-teaching grown-up time?\u00a0 Have you taken the time to establish a support system for yourself?\u00a0 Do you have people you can call on the days which feel as if you\u2019re being pecked to death by a duck?\u00a0 Can and will your husband talk you down off of the ceiling?\u00a0 How \u2019bout a close friend?\u00a0 Do you let them?<\/p>\n
Is homeschooling still the best choice for your family, not just educationally but mental health-wise, too?\u00a0 Is it meeting the needs of everyone in the family?\u00a0 Did you remember to count yourself in \u201ceveryone\u201d?\u00a0 What can you do to make your life, including homeschooling, work better for you?\u00a0 What three things could you change in the next week which would make it easier?\u00a0 (Mom\u2019s night out, play dates with other families, a different curriculum, taking more breaks, a regular phone date with a girlfriend, a brisk walk alone or with your husband in the morning or at night, throwing away all the markers in the house\u2026that\u2019s not just me\u2026right?)<\/p>\n
The rewards of teaching our children at home are so great, that it is easy to overlook the cost to ourselves.\u00a0 It\u2019s so very easy to get in the habit of putting everyone first so often, that Mom seems to fall off of the list of priorities altogether.\u00a0 While we can be absolutely certain that this is the very best decision for our children (and there are days when I second guess even that statement), and still want to just sit down and stop for a day (or a month).\u00a0 This is important work, and it\u2019s hard work.\u00a0 Calling it hard doesn\u2019t make it less important. There is strength in being able to call things what they are.<\/p>\n
Too often, we fall into the trap of presenting a smiling face and united front to the rest of the world and we ignore the dirty little secrets about homeschooling.\u00a0 It\u2019s dishonest to not mention them at least every once in a while. We\u2019re not Stepford families marching perfectly in lockstep in our perfect lives.\u00a0 We put enormous pressure on ourselves to look and act a certain way, and maintaining that facade, even just for our families, is exhausting.\u00a0 Let\u2019s start today by just admitting that this is one of the biggest hardest things we\u2019ve ever taken on.\u00a0 Let\u2019s be honest that while some days are amazing and wonderful, there are some where selling the children sounds like a brilliant option.\u00a0 Let\u2019s be honest with each other about where we really are, because we\u2019re all there from time to time, and it only makes it worse to feel like you\u2019re hiding under the bed all alone.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
***Because it\u2019s Monday and we could all use a friendly voice.*** \u201cI\u2019m ready to put them all in school,\u201d a dear friend and new-ish homeschooling dad told me last week. \u201cThere is never a moment of peace. \u00a0It\u2019s too cold to send them out to play, they keep waking up the new baby, and I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1979,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
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