Why We Homeschool (Part 1)

I called this part one, because I'm sure I'll end up rambling on and need part 2, 3 and 4!

I'd like to say we homeschool because we are striving to raise perfect children, but as anyone who knows me can tell you, my children are far from perfect. As a matter of fact, as I type this, they are in their rooms, forbidden to talk to each other for a while, because they have been bickering all afternoon. And the baby is sleeping, which is why I have more than 2 minutes to do anything.

Anyway, back to the point. We decided to homeschool for many reasons. If I could sum it up in one reason, I'd have to say it's because we simply felt that God was calling our family to do so. Of course there are a million other reasons, but when it came down to it, we really felt that this was how we were meant to live out family life. (Just had to take a break because, despite the ban on talking, I hear alot of noise from down the hall. "Not talking - just wrestling," Damian informs me. Just goes to prove my earlier point about my not so perfect children. Cute, but not perfect!) Our decision has had a tremendous impact on the other decisions we have made for our family. For example, Steve has chosen to start his own business with the hope that someday it will do well enough to allow him more time to help with teaching. For now, he starts work a bit late so that he can do math with the boys and keep Ben out of my hair long enough for me to get one on one time with Christian. As a result, he works many, many late nights.

Another decision we have made is to limit outside activities for our family. Steve and I teach NFP (Natural Family Planning - another post in and of itself!) and mentor engaged couples, primarily because we are passionate about it, but also because we can do so out of our home in the evenings. We feel we are serving the Church in a way that fits our gifts without taking away from our family time. We have turned down a number of responsibilities, including parish council positions, because it would mean too much time away from our family. So when we are asked to serve in some capacity, the two questions we ask are 1) can we do it together and 2) can we do it at our home, with our without the kids.

One more decision that we made, that I'm sure drives my family nuts, is that we do not answer the phone for a good part of the day. This is simply because hearing the phone ring has the same effect on my children that the recess bell has on school children. Enough said!