Can I Get a Straight Jacket?

Homeschooling can be such a wonderful thing.  There are the times when my 5 year old tells me all about the Susan Constant, the Godspeed and the Discovery (the 3 ships the settlers took from England to Jamestown Colony).  There are the wonderful times my 7 year old can make amazing comments about our need to pray for people we read about and the tender moments we can share reading together.  And there are the times when I get to see my 9 year old light up as he is able to complete math skills that had him stumped only days before.

But then there is the other side - the days from hell!!!  The days where I either want to call for a yellow bus to pick up my children or a straight jacket for myself.  Very few people talk about these days because the right to homeschool was a hard fought battle.  Either that, or no one else ever has these types of days...but I'm pretty sure it's just a well kept secret.

Today was turning into one of those days - I was a bit grumpy to start off the day and then kids whining about doing math and crying if they did not know an answer did nothing to improve my disposition.  But even knowing I can be honest about it and "put it out there" that our homeschool is not perfectly run and is not filled with perfect children is a help to me.

It also helps me when I contemplate the fact that we would have these days even if I did put them on the bus and take a break from them each day.  I would still be responsible for overseeing homework.  I would still have battles over simply getting them up and onto that bus.  There are no perfect days because we are imperfect people.

And, of course, prayer is paramount - I could not survive a day like this without it.

I read recently on someone's Facebook status "even if the grass is greener on the other side, you still have to mow it."  This reminds me there are challenges to every lifestyle choice we make, even when we are tempted by something that looks better in the moment.  We have chosen to homeschool because we feel led to do so.  While I know it is the best for our family, that does not mean it will be easy.  I have to continually remind myself of that because I do get tempted to throw in the towel far too easily and quickly.  God is using this homeschool thing as yet another means to help me grow.