Why I Love School

Looking back, I can honestly say that, although it was one of the VERY HARDEST, it was also one of the VERY BEST decisions we ever made when we chose to homeschool our children.  I seriously doubt that there is any other decision we could have made that would have brought us more peace, more fulfillment, and more opportunity to learn and grow as a family whose foundation is based on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And I can make that statement with a firm conviction, even though we have stumbled through it most of the way so far with no one really to show us how to do it well.  It is a little bit like Nephi trying to build a ship that was not like other ships in his day, "after the manner of men."  We know we have to build something that is different from "after the manner of men," and even though we started with no idea how to do it, Heavenly Father has provided us with tools and plans along the way so that we can be successful.

The way we conduct our day-to-day activities over the years has certainly evolved and changed based on our family's needs and our experience and research.  This is our sixth year.  What we do now is a lot different than what we did when we started, but it is working well and we enjoy it so much!  We rarely have a "perfect" homeschool day, but every day we do our best to cheerfully persevere and follow through with our commitments and goals.

Why do I love it so much?  Because I get to share every day with the people I love most in the world, guiding and directing their amazing minds and watching them work and achieve and learn and understand and develop talents and love and teach and serve each other.  And because I get to testify to them every day of truth and arm them with the tools to overcome the challenges they will face in life.  And because we have developed an amazing and harmonious family atmosphere and bond and rhythm that is rarely seen in the fractured families of our generation.  And because these children take my breath away with their talent, their intelligence, their maturity, their wisdom, their gentleness, their creativity, their self-confidence, and their testimonies.  These blessings I pay for by dedicating my whole self to creating an environment where they can flourish.  It's not an easy price to pay, but man is it worth it!

As always, here are a few pictures to share:

Avery does math.  Boy, does Avery do math.  Mostly in his head.  And mostly at lightning speed.  Numbers are his friends!  Keep your eye on this guy; he's going to go farrrrrrrrrrr!

Lovely Coco is a creator and a problem-solver.  And, she's fun, to boot!

Brothers who "get" each other.  These two are like Sam and Nephi.  Or Joseph and Hyrum.  Minus the prophet part.  They are just brothers that go together, like two peas in a pod.

Word Auction with our Greek and Latin root words.  Underachievers!  Ha!

Haha!  I guess this is what a "sick day" looks like in our homeschool.  Avery had a bad headache on this particular day, so he was able to listen to the lesson while laying down on the couch.  Here he has tied an ice pack to his head with a dish towel so he can drink his peach smoothie (I make a fruit or green smoothie for our mid-morning snack just about every day).  Poor guy!  He felt better pretty quickly, however, and went back to work.

School is a huge blessing in our lives!  We read the scriptures and the words of prophets as part of every subject we study.  We work hard together.  We sometimes annoy each other.  We laugh together.  We sing and play together.  We correct each other.  We LOVE each other.  And that's why I love school!