2012-2013....Welcome Year 3

This is our 3rd year homeschooling, which seems surreal to me because it seems like just yesterday we made the decision to take our kids out of the only school I have ever known.  But, after 3 years I have to say that I have learned so much, and we have definitely found a groove.  I have been told that if you can make it to Year 3 as a homeschooler you can make it to college.  I can tell you that if our first 9 weeks is any indication of the remainder of our year,  there is hope for everyone in years 1 and 2...just hang in there!!
This year things are just clicking....and it is a beautiful thing!!!  We spent years 1 and 2 feeling like we weren't doing enough, worrying that the girls weren't being socialized (why does that monster always feel the need to be in the mix), and questioning our course of study.  Enter Year 3.....

Our girls have a very close knit group of friends at church that they have known since birth.  It is easy to overlook this amazing connection between these girls and somehow feel that they need more.  I spent most of year 2 trying to find a group of homeschoolers in our area that would give my girls some friends outside of our church.  All attempts were epic failures!!! Do you hear me???  EPIC!!!!

In year 3, I took a long hard look with they eyes of my heart and learned that this bond is so much more than your average friendships that the girls would have in school.  At 9, 10, 11, and 16 years old, these girls will text to encourage each other, ask for prayer from one another, and have a depth to their connection that is only by the grace of the Lord.

What more could you need in friends???

Why does the world tell us that one group of friends that is like family is not enough????

Why do I so quickly listen to the enemy when I know in my heart what is true and what is good???

I guess because friendships were hard for me as a girl and I remember getting the BFF necklace at school and having it stripped away before lunch without ever knowing why.  I had all my eggs in one basket in every friendship I ever had and most of the time it left me alone and empty and feeling betrayed.  I feared that for my own girls!!!

What if they get into a fight with these girls??

What if their family leaves our church???

What if their friends don't want to be friends with them anymore and they take back the hypothetical BFF necklace???

That was what swirled through my mind in Years 1 and 2!!!

But here is the kicker....

These are the mommas of those girls (and boys that aren't in the pictures) whose friendships are complete opposite of what the world tells us of friends.  One of the moms is missing because she had to stay home with her then newborn and couldn't join us!!!  Our bond is Christ!!  One of these girls lives an hour from me, one 45 minutes, one is the mom of 2 teenage highschoolers, and one is the mom of 4 boys, no girls to speak of.  We all have issues and quirky ways, but the Lord keeps our bond strong and keeps us grounded in Him.  When Christ is your bond, it is a bond that cannot be broken.

So, in Year 3, I have learned that friendships of this world cannot be compared to friendships of the Kingdom!!!  

And in year 3 I have somehow become okay with our curriculum choices and have finally been able to choose what is best for us....not best for the review sites, not best for the super smart family in the co-op...best for us!!!  We are doing some programs that we have carried over from last year and some that are brand new to us, but are tried and true methods that people have used forever.  Most importantly what we are using, is what works for us!!!!  I will have a curriculum post coming soon!!

And in year 3, the 4 mommas I was just telling you about and I joined forces to tackle the 2 subjects that have been giving us the most grief.  HISTORY AND SCIENCE!!!!!  While those subjects are certainly the most fun of the school day and the ones that everyone looks forward to, they are also the subjects with endless possibilities that are impossible to choose from and those that most frequently get put on the back burner when we over sleep (I may or may not have experienced this).   So this year myself and the veteran momma of our group will be teaching Science and History, one room school house style to all of our children...there are 13 in all (although one will serve as babysitter of the 18 month old who will be napping so she won't be joining us) ranging in ages 2nd grade to 9th grade.  This huge age range is so fun and before you jump to the conclusion that there is no way this big of an age group will work, Mrs. Beadle did it on Little House on the Prairie, why can't we???  

We are having a great time meeting together on Monday afternoons to learn the ancients and some physical science!!!!  You can't tell me its not rewarding to hear a 2nd grader tell you what force is!!!!  And the 9th graders love the Magic School Bus as much as the rest of the crew!!!  I will give you some more details on our History and Science afternoons in an upcoming post!!!!  I also hope to encourage you to get together with your closest friends and tackle a subject or two!!   Its lots of fun!!

So those are the biggest changes to our school year this year....they are all such great changes!!!  We are so blessed in this journey, and I can just see the Lord honoring our efforts daily!!!!  I will be back soon with our curriculum choices, so come back to visit again!!!!

xoxo,

Kellye