ANOTHER SCHOOL YEAR APPROACHING...

This year we'll be entering our eighth year of homeschooling. The oldest will be in 8th grade this year and I'm already thinking about record keeping and getting the appropriate credits come high school time. Wow, that has come fast.

Last year was probably our toughest year homeschooling. We found out that two of our children have some identifiable learning difficulties. I hate to say disabilities because they will be able to work through it and overcome after some intensive remediation.

I began writing down their progress every couple weeks and I found that I was learning and growing as much as they were. The biggest lesson last year was one of acceptance. One of my favorite lines in Amy Carmichael's poetry is this - "In acceptance lieth peace." Accepting where my children are academically has been tough. I keep thinking about where they should be instead of where they are and that's not fair to them. God does not treat me according to where he thinks I should be and I should be just as compassionate with my children. That's not to say though that we shouldn't challenge them and push them to get better. This is where most of the frustration comes. When do I push and when do I relax?

Homeschooling is a sanctifying experience and mainly for the mother. I have learned so much about myself, my children, and God these past seven years and I wouldn't trade it for anything.