Behind the Scenes Homeschooler

“The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes selves with everyone else’s highlight reels." Steven Furtick

We've got a little boy turning six in two months and about a year ago we decided that we were going to homeschool. Why? is usually the next question. The short answer is because that's the direction that God has lead us. Many families find success in public and private schools because that is the direction that God has lead them. Most of my friends we met when our kiddos were just two years old are happily gathering school supplies and excitedly waiting for that first bell to ring. I'm happy and excited for them! I'm sure their children will thrive because they have parents that pray over them and love them and God is with them, too. It's just not the direction we've chosen. 

A lot of people who ask me about homeschooling like the idea and would consider it, but don't feel like they can based on their "highlight reel" perception of homeschooling. My Pinterest homeschooling board is filled with cute, fun ideas to teach concepts...I've done very few of them. Maybe the people I talk to think they have to have the patience of a saint, the craftiness of Martha Stewart and the knowledge of...someone really knowledgeable. I've learned that homeschoolers don't need any of those things. Just a love for their children, the desire to do it and a supportive family and friends really helps.  I hope this blog can serve as a record of our family's journey and also a behind-the-scenes, real-life view to others considering or just plain curious about homeschooling. 

The long answer to our decision began three years ago when I had never even considered homeschooling. I had heard of homeschooling. I had met a few families that home schooled and their children were awesome. But, I had never considered it for our family. Then, two years ago I started getting nervous seeing pictures of people putting their kids on school buses and thinking of sending my kids to school one day. I didn't understand why I was getting nervous...wasn't this the plan? I put my teaching career on hold when our first son was born to stay at home with our children. I never regretted that decision. We'd send our kids to Kindergarten and when we had sent the last one off then I'd be able to restart my teaching career. But, once again in our lives, our plan apparently wasn't lining up with God's plan. Once again, God was bugging me about something that I wished would just go away. And, once again, I knew that God's plan was always better, even when it seemed impossible. 

I loved teaching. I taught a classrooms of 25+ kids music for six years, but the idea of teaching my own children at home was terrifying. I spent the next six months struggling with the question to homeschool, public school or private school our children, all the while my husband is blissfully unaware that this thing called homeschooling even existed. I didn't want to tell him it existed. Then it would be out in the open...where discussions happen and the possibility of us actually homeschooling might take root. 

After it became obvious God wasn't going to stop bugging me about this, I told my husband that I had been struggling with this question. "Honey, there's this thing called homeschooling, you teach your own kids...at home. I have no idea how it works or why I'm even talking about this, but thought you should know...it's out there." It's out there alright. We started reading books about homeschooling and the discussions came and the possibility indeed took root. I talked with some Christian moms who had sent their children to public school and another Christian mom who was homeschooling. I wanted to hear about both sides of the fence in hopes that our decision would become clear. Honestly, I was rooting for public school. But, of course, our final decision was to homeschool. 


Our first son, Aaron, turned five in October of last year. Although school usually starts in the Fall, we decided to start Kindergarten in January. Part of the decision was because he and I were ready for it. But, honestly, the behind-the-scenes truth was that if this homeschooling thing was a total failure, I could still send him to public school in the Fall. However, in the past few months we've found a lot of freedom and flexibility in homeschooling. Thankfully we still have that freedom in  this country. Other countries are not so lucky, but more about that in another post. We look forward to building our children's education on a solid foundation of Jesus Christ. Also, selfishly, I am excited to spend this time with my boys (I've got three younger ones) and see each light bulb of learning come to light. It's as exciting to me as seeing them take their first steps. 

And, a bonus to starting early is that Aaron is so far blissfully unaware that his best friend who lives across the street and the vast majority of his other friends are getting to go to the "big school". I haven't talked about it. I also haven't not talked to him about it, it's just something that hasn't really come up.  So far, when people ask him when he's starting school, he just says he has school at home. It's completely normal to him and I don't want him to find out that we aren't as normal as he thinks we are...not yet.  Another behind-the-scenes truth...we've got a fun family field trip to the zoo planned for the first day of public school in case word gets out that he's not going. 

So, although we've been homeschooling for a while now, it feels like this has just been the warm-up lap.  When Monday comes and goes and he doesn't come and go from the big building down the street, it will become more real. And, although homeschooling has been a blessing to our family and it's working really well, the uncertainty of this decision creeps up on me every now and then. But, we live by faith and rest in His blessed assurance. 

Up next...how school looks for us.