Confessions of a HomeSchooling Mom

It didn't seem fair to wake them up early for school on Labor Day, after a late night, so I poured myself another cup of coffee, and relaxed my expectations for the day. This was really more of a school introduction today.

As a homeschooling mom to a ninth grader and a kindergartener, with my eldest off in his first year of college, school looks different this year. It is splashy cellophane-wrapped kindergarten kits of calenders and continents, with colorful alphabet banners, twenty-four-piece People Color crayons, and beautiful multicultural faces from around the world. Kindergarten still sits wrapped in cellophane on the table, though, while my ninth grader and I read Physical Science about atoms and molecules, and my kindergartener plays Wii games downstairs.

Confession 1.) Some days, school doesn't start at 9 am. And I haven't taken a shower yet.
Confession 2.) I am as excited as the students are -- often more so-- at the prospect of new books to read and things to learn.

As more people stream in and out of the kitchen and living room where we are reading, Morgan and I sneak away to a quiet bedroom to continue our science.

Confession 3.) I don't always have all items on hand to do the experiments before we read about it.

"Okay, I'm going to need to find two copper wires for this experiment," I admit sheepishly to my Morgan. "Let's read about it now, and then we'll do it later, okay?... Wow, look! We're actually ripping water molecules apart here! That's cool."

Confession 4.) I love learning along with them.

Lunch comes and goes, with family members fending for themselves in between subjects. The scent of grilling cheese and turkey simmer out from the panini-maker, and chunky apple wedges dot the table. Strawberries and chips are a mid-morning snack.

Dirty dishes line one side of my sink, while clean dishes from last night fill two counters to the left of the sink.

Mammoth zucchini boats were shredded down to towering wet mounds of grated green-striped pulp, and folded into muffins last night. The last of those sweet muffins was gobbled up this morning by the earliest risers.

School supplies adorn my kitchen table in glory, while photographic books of India, China, Mongolia and Japan stack in glossy piles according to country on my floor. Legos and plastic army warriors huddle as toys from the night before, scattered between school piles, and I still haven't started kindergarten yet. I think it will be afternoons, three times a week.

Daughter disappears downstairs, clicking into her internet links on Chinese History and Culture, and writing summaries about Chinese school systems, pagodas, the Hidden City, and more.

My husband and college-age son are out playing tennis today on their day off, while I introduce high school and kindergarten to the ones at home. I text both men, asking them to stop and pick up bread, ice cream and maybe some snacks on the way home.

Confession 5.) We're out of "good" food, my kids say, and lunch requires their creativity, or heating up leftovers.

Silence descends on my home as brains are being stretched and used. And that sound of learning? It's beautiful!

Excuse me as I grab some books, open some cellophaned maps and start kindergarten. I can't wait...

Linking with Ann at A Holy Experience.

Build Your Arsenal of Presidents' Trivia

New life bursts.  

From a late-night walk with my oldest, a sprig of tiny green leaves and white balled blossoms now perch in a bud vase on my kitchen sink. 

In the living room my teens stood, taking turns with verbal presentations on American presidents. The assignment was to research, memorize, and regale us with information on four presidents, their dates in office, and an interesting fact about each of them. 

“George Washington, the first president, was in office from 1789- 1797. He was the only president who never lived in the White House." My oldest stood broad-shouldered and tall, switching eye contact between his dad, sister and I. "Thomas Jefferson –president from 1801-1809—didn’t care for the White House very much due to the fact that his designs for [the architecture of] the White House weren’t picked. [He had submitted plans] under fake initials.” 

Husband and I listened from the couch, inserting cries of fascination throughout the deliveries. 

“Millard Fillmore –the thirteenth president—from 1850-1853 – his wife started the first library in the White House. Mom, I thought of you,” son said with a smile and a glance. 

On daughter’s turn she stood at center stage, swiping her hair behind her ears. "Okay, Ruther B. Hayes was the 19^th president, from ….1877 to…1881.” Memory jogged to the answer with recognition and quickened speech.  “He was the first president to put a phone in the White House and his phone number was One.” 

Our family laughed in delight at this bit of trivia and the thought of just one digit in a phone number.

“James Garfield was in 1881 and the 20^th president. He was only president for four months before he was shot at a train station. He died several months later,” she said soberly. 

We learned more. About Grover Cleveland who was forty-four years old when he married a twenty-one year old woman; and William Taft who was six feet two inches tall, weighed more than 300 pounds and who loved to relax in his huge tub. He was also the first president to own a car, and he switched the stables into a garage. 

Sunshine splashed across the kitchen table. Life budded and grew. The teens stood tall and spoke comfortably, remembering the info they had memorized. After applause from us and compliments, they ambled off to their next assignments. 

I plopped onto my husband’s lap. “Pray with me for this house showing, will you?” I asked. “Pray that our house would sell quickly and smoothly, please?” 

He grinned and kissed the back of my head. “How about if we pray for God’s will? He knows what we want.” 

“We’re allowed to ask him,” I burst out. “It says to ask him, and to ask again. We’re allowed to.” 

Arms wrapped around me, he prayed, seeking God’s will and timing on our house that’s been on the market for eight months, relaying my request and calmly leaving it in God’s hands. I leaned back into him, sinking into that strength, relaxing from the scurry of home cleaning. 

An hour later, we pulled away from a sparkling house on our way to the park for an hour. Birds sang, the wind blew, and I counted gifts. Life grew and bloomed. 

Linking with Ann, Shanda, and Michelle today, I thank you, Abba for:

-teens and their memory recall abilities

-fascinating facts about presidents

-laughter

-a preschooler’s kisses on my arm

-showings on our home

-a husband calmly praying for God’s will and allowing me to be the daughter running to her Abba with requests on her lips

-life growing and bursting forth from plants, teens, me

Hi friend. How has your day or weekend been? Or pass on your favorite bit of presidential trivia.