Thank you everyone. It means alot. I honestly just don't know what the right thing is. I am still just going forward with the idea of them being home. I haven't had a chance to talk with dh yet. That probably won't happen until tomorrow.
Leslie, Are you including the kids in at least some of the discussions? What do THEY want to do? If you DO homeschool, what will THEY do to help it run smoothly? What would be some rules that THEY think are good for running a successful homeschool? If they have a part in the process, they are more likely to work to make it succeed! (And besides, if they help come up with rules and consequences, they can't complain about you being too harsh or too mean!)
Good point, Deena. And yes, we have included them in many discussions. They do not want to go back to school. And my ds for one, is willing to make more of an effort in his schooling to ensure he can stay here! Dd...well, she intends to put forth an effort, but is easily swayed back to the "do I have to" attitude. And just doing as little as possible to get by and get done as quickly as she can. She just really doesn't care about learning anything right now. We talk to her, she does better, then it isn't long and we are having the same talk again. I know some of that is the amount of work I assign to her...which I have been requiring more lately. meaning, doing as little as she can to get by...I wasn't giving her enough to do) I feel somewhat selfish because when we continually go through that cycle with her (mostly) I just feel like I don't want to do this. Just send her to school and let her have a teacher other than me she has to answer. Now I am feeling guilty by making it sound like it is all her...and it really isn't. Ugh!
I know you are disappointed. I am sorry. Two of mine also cycle in and out of giving effort. It is frustrating. I will say, the longer we have been in it, the less frequent it happens (that was meant to encourage not persuade).
Leslie, I can relate with the circle of "Do I have to" do it, I got worn down and prayed for God to make a way where there seemed to be no way for my son (15 now) to go out. I gave Him an unbelievable tast of finding a private school at what I figured we could handle eeking out of our normal flow. Well He sure shocked me and came through! I was not ready for the change in my son. He went from a sweet kid who was always kind to his siblings and everyone else... always looked for the underdog to help out etc. He changed to Mr. arrogant the world revolved around him , I did not like that at all. My dh does not want him coming home to homeschool though he thinks his being out is working better for what he is learning, educationaly! Well that may be true, but where does one draw the line? Mind you, the worst thing my son does is think the world should bow at his feet, and have a bad attitude; so it is adaptable and his behavoir does improve. Sometimes I just wish I could keep my kids home forever and as I told my dd, have control over thier lives. Which is something we homeschool parents really have to a larger degree. The less they are in the world the less control the world has on them. It kind of made me think...God wants us to be in His control, less of the world more of His presence. So in the same way we want our kids with us learning and growing in our care, He wants us in His presence learning and growing in His care! It is okay to want your kids home with you, teaching and nurturing them as the Lord leads. I think that is the most important part of home teaching, is that we are guiding our children in the way they should go. Not letting someone else do it for us. Thats basically what I gave up when my son went out to High School, in my eyes. NOw he has other people guiding him, though I do have to say for him it has been good, after all ds15 is the one seeking Bible Colleges out so he can go become a Preacher-- pastor and a computer tech of some sort as well! He is keeping it real knowing if he is a Youth Pastor he may not be paid right away and needs a good job too. One he can do on the side! Okay I am rambling, but I also just got the lesson I am going to teach on tonight when I get to speak at DVR!
If you and your dh can come to an agreement to try it one more year, then that would take some stress off. Being "under the wire" as you homeschool makes you feel the mistakes and problems more than you might otherwise! If you can feel confident that you have until May or June of 2008 to work on this, then that would be one less thing you'd have to worry about and you could start concentrating more on other things! Next thing would be to sit with the kids and talk honestly and openly about it. If you have a whiteboard, list the pros and cons of homeschooling. Then go over discipline measures. Cover schedules, and sticking to them. Find Bible verses that talk about diligence, and doing "with all your might". Remind them that school is their "job". Just like Daddy has a job at Dairy Queen, they have a job at home of schooling. What if Daddy fussed and whined every day before he went to work? What if Daddy only did the bare minimum at work? Would things work out well for his business? NO! He knows how important it is to do his job well, not only for himself but as part of the family--to support them, and for the good of his customers and the success of his business! (you can include yourself also, cuz I know you do a lot for the business too!) Now if you all try to apply those principles into your homeschool, things WILL go better! But it takes everyone's cooperation! The only thing fussing and whining does is cause stress and disfunction in the family that could otherwise be happy and hard working! Maybe you can also write down everything daddy or you do in a full work day, and include that as examples in the discussion of what if he didn't do that job at all or didn't do it well. Most of all, and I'm saying this because I know you are a good, Christian person and family, you having morning worship together with them just starts the day off right! Somedays it doesn't keep the bad things from happening, but there's still that feeling that you have turned everything over to God, together! And I DO suggest that you look into the Mystery of History and/or Story of the World for History, because they are sooo good with activities and reading lists and fun stuff to make history exciting and help it come alive! It's very hands-on and very memorable! That would take a stress off too, since none of you like that right now! Maybe you and dh can label the stressors in your lives and see what can be done to alleviate or diminish the stess level of those! Anyway, Leslie, I don't know if any of this helps, but it's just some stuff I thought of that may help. God is looking out for you and things will work out! :love: :love: :love:
Deena...what you said in your post is more helpful than you know! Thank you so much. Dh said he would read it over and discuss it with me. We actually have had some good conversation off and on today. We got to spend the whole day together doing little "projects". So that has been nice. We did chit chat alot about different concerns he has and what I can do to help ease his concerns. As well as what he can do to help keep my organized. Then When I finally got on here and read your post, along with Tmom's, it just gave me so much encouragment! I will keep you all posted...but I am feeling much better today.
Leslie, I just wanted to share this quote with you from one of my favorite men. I hope it give you some encouragement. "Around here, we don't look backward for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things...and curiosity keeps leading us down new path" -Walt Disney I hope this encourages you to Keep Moving Forward. Whatever you decide, don't look back, look forward to new an brighter days.
Another good quote for my Copy Work!!! I think I might end up putting them all in a notebook for when I need something for them to copy!
That is a great quote!! Thanks for sharing it. I don't have long, but wanted to let Deena know that I think I have decided to go with MOH if we continue hsing! I wish I could see it in person and see some of the cool things you all have done with that!
Maybe she can bring some stuff with her when she goes East Leslie? Depending on how far east she is headed? Then she could show you some of her cool stuff...
If Leslie can come to Pennsylvania in July, I'd be happy to meet with her and show her stuff! How 'bout it Leslie?
I might even be able to get more King Tut tickets!!! Well, Leslie? Tickets are $15 each, and we're going to be there on Tuesday, July 17th! If you're interested, you'd need to pay the total amount by the end of this month.
Man, I would LOVE to go. But that is the same time dd and I will be going to Virginia Beach for a few days. She is competing at Nationals for tap. We are pretty excited about it. I wish it was not at the same time. I really would consider going with you guys!
Well, when we meet in Philly, we will take the time to remember your daughter and her competition!!! Good luck to her!!!
OH...I got an email today from Connections Academy giving us information about going through and finishing the registration process. That way, if not everyone that was picked finishes the process or changes their mind, we will be first in line to get in. Basically, it puts on on the waiting list and the sooner we get it completed, the closer to the "front of the line" we will be.
cool sometimes God works that way too, he lets us work out the just incase details then comes through so its a good idea! Like with my ds, I got 9th grade LIfe Paks ready for two years ahead of schedule for dd becuase we had ordered them for ds15 back before he went out to school
