Is It Worth It?

The other day, a friend of mine asked me how I felt about homeschooling.  The minute she asked me, I chuckled and paused.

I don't know.

I guess I haven't thought much about it because I am too busy doing it.  Truth be told, though, I miss sending them off to school.  I miss having the entire day to myself.  I miss how clean and organized my home was when they were in school. I miss meeting up with Mr. Level-Headed for lunch dates in the middle of the week. I miss all the activities I was involved in when they were in school.  At one point, I was doing karate three times a week and playing soccer in the evening with the kids.  It was an incredible two years!

But, my boys were suffering, one boy in particular, and so things had to change.  It was hard giving up my "me" time, but I enjoyed it while it lasted, and I know it will come around again.  

For now, I am knee deep in hands-on parenting once again.  My bed is always covered in piles of clean clothes at the end of the day.  The dust bunnies are building forts in every corner of my house, and sometimes, if I am motivated enough (and that is rarely) I can squeeze a half hour run in my day.

But as tough as it is, I am happy.  Sure, those two years were lovely and I look fondly back upon them often, but THIS is what life is about: getting your hands dirty, making mistakes, dragging your exhausted body to bed day after day, and spending every waking minute with those that matter most.

Homeschooling is the most frustrating, the most difficult, and yet most highly rewarding thing I have ever done in my life. I actually love it!

I love watching my boys play together and grow closer and closer each day:

I love watching them learn, especially those times when we close our text books, they get their hands dirty and create something they can be proud of:

I love being there to witness those moments when they master something that once was hard for them.

Elliot's biggest struggle is writing, but here he wrote a paragraph in ten minutes.  His paragraph had a topic sentence, was logically laid out and included varied sentence structure. I was so proud of him!


And I LOVE coming across all their inventions, their maniacal plots, and their booby traps:


Avery managed to set up this Nerf gun so that when you opened their bedroom door, it shot you. The crazy thing is that it worked!  But it also broke the coat rack that it was hanging from . . .  grrrrr!


Yes, for now I can honestly say that I love homeschooling and that it was worth hanging up my karate gi, my soccer cleats, and my mop to have my days filled with surprises, excitement, and these two boys:



That being said, two years from now, when I send them along their merry way to middle school and high school, I will be the one dancing in her slippers and housecoat at the end of the driveway shouting:

It's the most wonderful time of the year!