It’s hard to believe that we are done with yet another school year. This one has been particularly difficult for me. Last year I had one in Kindergarten, one almost finished with school, and three grades in between. I felt overwhelmed for most of the school year and never really found my “groove”. Matthew needed my help with everything – since he had never officially been in school before – and I had my hands full with lesson plans, teaching/helping, and grading for the others.

My emotions over teaching Kindergarten for the last time, and seeing one finish her Junior year of high school, were at times too much for me to handle. Tears were shed, in private of course. I felt like I did my worst year of teaching ever. I also felt more frustrated and inferior for the task at hand than ever before. Fortunately for me, I have felt this way at nearly every task I’ve faced in my life, including my own school days, so I knew what to do and where to go: to the Lord!

My Heavenly Father sustained my weary mind and soul all these months. He helped me find a rhythm for each day – even if it was a different one every day. He blessed me with a wonderful husband who let me vent, gave me guidance in tough situations, and was always ready to say, “You’re doing fine.”  I cherished the moments of having my children around me, which was one of the main reasons I wanted to homeschool in the first place; I wanted to be with my children as much as possible, to watch them learn, to see them grow.

As I filled out report cards and filed away samples of their progress, I realized that they did learn. They didn’t just learn facts and figures, but they learned about getting along, about giving, about facing a struggle and meeting it head-on. They learned about being flexible when sickness stole a few of our school days. They had great experiences in sports and music. They learned facts, too, but the most important lessons were not in textbooks. As I reviewed the year, I realized that it was okay. It wasn’t perfect, but it was enough.

I have tried to find  our  my weakest areas, and work on solutions. I am fully expecting next year to bring all new challenges, but I hope that I have found detours around the old ones for the new school year.

First day of school, August 17, 2015

Last day of school, May 19, 2016

Leslie was proud of the stack of vocabulary word cards she had made throughout the year.

Our walls were bare and boring in the beginning, but they are full and colorful at the end. The kids accomplished a lot this year.

I don’t have a Kindergartener anymore! Here is Matt with some of his crafts.

A few more of his art pieces. He has a bursting folder of all of his art work.

I am thankful for the opportunity to homeschool my children. It has not always been easy. I know I could send the kids off to school and find a job and help Terry with the bills to make life a little easier or more comfortable for us. But the years with my children are so few and so short, that I couldn’t bear to miss them. God has blessed my desire by providing for us in miraculous ways. In fact, just to share all of those blessings would require another blog post.

Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. ~ Psalm 103:1

The kids have finished another year of learning…and so have I.

With love,