Whirlwind!!

So this past month has been such a whirlwind adventure!  In the beginning of the month I began thinking about homeschooling.  So that brought me to a whole months worth of researching, asking friends who homeschool questions, observing some friends styles and so on!

Our conclusion is that we will be homeschooling next year!!  I am so excited, nervous, anxious....!  After doing a TON of research on learning styles, teaching styles, homeschooling styles, I think we have it narrowed down to our final choices!  I am so amazed at the free resources that are out there.  I am finding tons of web sites, and books that offer lists of websites with free resources.

Although I am finding lots of free resources or nearly free online I still feel that a formal curriculum for Big E will be the best since he is used to being in school and does really well.  For Little N I am going to go for a more relaxed teaching and allowing him lots of free play along with the basic pre school knowledge stuff!  He is struggling with some little things like writing, coloring, tracing, mostly because he has never liked doing those things so we never made him.  So for Little N I am coming up with manipulative games for him to play, he will also be doing some writing workbooks, and basic coloring/following directions type of activities.

Little N with one of the games I found at Confessions of a Homeschooler!

In the beginning I was strongly leaning towards a formal curriculum for Little N, mostly because Big E would have one so why not.  Then the more we narrowed down and found what we would be using for Big E, I realized that we would be doing some subjects together so instead of wasting money on a curriculum that we would only use half of, why not just get a few workbooks for him to go through and use those.  Subjects that we will be doing together, hopefully, are Bible, Science and maybe History/Geography.

I am ready for this homeschool conference that is coming up in a few weeks, I am ready to actually see the stuff we have only been able to look at online!  I am such a planner that I am getting antsy not knowing for a positive what will be taking place next year!!  I know CRAZY!!  I think I am driving my dear hubby nuts!!

Here are all the books I have accumulated in the last month!  Most I found on Amazon, some at Goodwill!

We are also needing to buy a bookcase, and we are struggling to find a good quality one that doesn't cost a ton.  The one we found is at IKEA, and that is a 3 hour drive for us, plus we can't take our children with us or we wouldn't be able to get the bookcase home.  So then we need to find someone willing to watch our children for an entire day!  Hopefully over the summer we will find time to get up there.  In the meantime we are scouring second hand store, craigslist, and now garage sales are starting!! :)

Home-schooling??!!!

Home-schooling.... REALLY!!!  God are you serious?!  I can not even believe this word is existing in my vocabulary!  I was always the one that said "No way I could EVER home-school my kids!".  I have learned though that you should never say never, because that is when God will say "Oh yeah, we'll see about that!"  HAA HAA!

Let me start at the beginning... It all started last Monday night, my husband came home from work and here is our conversation:

Me: Hunny I think I have gone and lost my mind!
Hubby:  Why, what happened!? {probably thinking the boys had done something}
Me:  I think I am considering home-schooling next year.
Hubby:  {huge smile creeping onto his face} Oh really?!


After that reaction from my hubby I realized that he has been wanting me to do this for a while.  I have  been really resistant to it though because Big E and I are too much alike and butt heads way too much!  But over the last few weeks I think God has been placing thoughts in my head that maybe I could do it and most of all maybe its what He wants me to do!  While having a conversation with a close friend who is at the beginning of her home-school journey, I was saying something like how well Big E was reading. That he was reading way above his grade level.  Then I proceeded to say that they wouldn't let him get too much further because they wanted to make sure the comprehension was there (sounded reasonable to me at the time).  She just asked me why they wouldn't if he was comprehending it.  Huh?  I don't know, that's a good question.

Then I ran into an old friend while visiting a church who is home-schooling her kids.  She has a 9 year old, a 5 year old and a 3 year old.  They all seemed to be doing well, and she said she is able to do school 3 days a week and have the rest free for other activities.  Wow, that sounds wonderful!!

Then while at a Mary Kay open house, of all places, there was a lady there talking about her home-schooled kids.   One was about to get married, one was taking college classes at the age of 16 and the others were doing great.  How awesome is that to be taking college classes while other 16 year olds are just being immature and getting into trouble!?

All of those interactions built on what was already going through my head.  Also I had not been too pleased with some areas of Big E's schooling.  Like I said he is excelling in reading but not doing great with handwriting.  BUT I am not seeing where they are helping him to have better handwriting.

  So back to the conversation with the hubby, he was all for it!  That began a world wide web search for curriculum and answers as to how much would this cost and what laws are there to follow.  Fortunately we live in a really easy state that has very few home-schooling laws so that is not going to be an issue.  As far as curriculum, we had set aside money to pay for Little N's preschool next year (which by the way we will home-school him as well) and that will be plenty to get curriculum and supplies for the year!  How amazing that God laid all that out just when we needed it!  Not to mention there is a home-schooling convention coming up in our area next month!

I am so excited about this new journey that is being placed before us and I can't wait to get started!!