Thankful

My kitchen table is cluttered with homeschooling textbooks. There are a pair of scissors, ruler, scrap paper, notebooks, water bottles, and assignments scattered about as well. The sun is shining brightly through the kitchen windows warming our bodies despite the temperatures being sub zero all day long.

Josh is home from school; the district deemed it too cold to attend today. I am happy to have him here working on his own assignments while the other three kids work on theirs. As I watch them work I cannot help but whisper a silent pray of thanks. I am so thankful that I have been able to homeschool the kids these past 6 years.

A lot has changed this last year with Josh entering the public school system as a high school junior and a lot more is about to change at the end of this school year with Andy graduating along with Sarah going off to public school as a high school freshman this August. Elizabeth will stay home with me and get some much needed one on one attention day after day until she is ready to enter into the public school setting - my goal right now is to get her there by high school, but each child has different needs that don't always correspond to my own wants or needs so, as parents, Bob and I will let time determine when she is ready to enter into the mainstream educational world.

I feel once again like I am straddling two worlds - the homeschooling world and the public school world. Both have immense positive attributes and both can have immense negative attributes as well. I am thankful that I have had the privilege to inhibit both worlds at our family's own choosing. I realize that most people don't have that option, and this makes me immensely grateful that I do.