5.20.2011

my kinder grad and our journey to homeschool

Thad the Man
My Little Thaddeus graduated kindergarten on Wednesday. Bittersweet day!  He looked every part the little man in his striped tweed suit and zipper tie.  He thought his outfit was pretty cool stuff.  He insisted on wearing his tie outside his vest just he could zip it up and zip it down.  Really, whoever invented the zipper tie is genius.

I am so proud of my little boy.  I've watched him mature leaps and bounds this past year.  He's overcome a lot and  to see him standing ramrod straight completely at attention for the entire two hour kindergarten bridging ceremony was nothing short of a miracle!  My heart just about burst.  He was such a little gentlemen.



I think I'm just about as excited for school to be over as Thad is!  This year has not been without it's difficulties.  Kindergarten was a big transition for Thaddeus who had never been to daycare or preschool and had to adjust quickly to an accelerated program.  He loved school and loved his teacher, but there were a lot of immaturity issues (not being able to stand still, pay attention, making noises, etc.) and it was hard for him.  I'm just so thankful that he was surrounded by teachers and administrators that loved him and were praying for him.  I was certainly praying for him!  All day every day!  

I've had a couple conferences with Thad's teacher and she told me what I already knew:  Thad learns best one on one.  You know how there's some things you just "know"?  I've known for several years that I want to homeschool my kids.  With our busy schedule in the ministry and working part time, homeschooling just seems like the best option for keeping or family first.  This year, I noticed character traits that I want to help Thaddeus learn, but even more importantly than that, I want him to learn things through the truth of God's word.  I want to teach his heart AND his mind.  Moral excellence should always come before academic excellence.  And I'm not saying that's impossible if children are in public school.  I've just learned this year that it puts me on the defense (constantly having to refute the negative influences) instead of the offense.

I don't think homeschooling is for everyone.  I'll be the first to say that.  I went to public school and that worked for me.  It was the best decision for my family then.  Although I will say that I was the only person in my class from fifth to eighth grade--it was a small two room country school!  Joel attended private school and that was the best decision for him.  Every family is certainly different.  And every school district has its pros and cons.

It's been pretty amazing to witness how God has led us to this decision.  Even though I knew I wanted to homeschool, Joel was decidedly against it.  We shared our concerns on both sides and talked freely about it but we both felt very strongly about our differing opinions.  I was beginning to feel desperate and was convinced that I had to make Joel see things my way.  That only pushed him farther in the other direction.  I knew I needed to let him make the final decision and Joel rarely makes decisions that I don't agree with, we are always able to compromise and reach common ground.  But this time it was different.  He wasn't budging.  So I let it go-- I don't know how I did it, I can only say that God gave me the grace!  I handed it over to God.  I submitted myself to God's will and I respected my husband's decision.  I didn't hold it against him and nag him constantly about it.  I prayed about it instead.  I asked God to change my husband's heart if this was the direction He wanted our family to go.  

And you know what?  God did it!  A few months ago Joel came to me and told me, "Baby, I was wrong and you were right.  I think we should homeschool.  I'm 100% for it."  And now he is almost as excited as I am about homeschooling!  Wow.  Prayer works!  I've been looking at bible-based curriculum on the web and I've been so impressed.

I've never been so excited for school to start!

"yeah, I'm cool."

The Outtakes:

19 comments:

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness what an adorable little man! Love the pics, congrats on the graduation:-)

Heather @ Life Made Lovely said...

girl, you inspire me so much.
i really appreciate you sharing your journey to the decision of homeschooling. my hubby and i are at odds on it just like you and joel were. i need to follow your lead and just turn it over to the Lord. thanks friend!

Lindy said...

what's for lunch? HA! Great decision for your family. Prayer is the only way to get there. Good luck and continued prayers on your journey!

Leslie @ top of the page said...

my little kindergartner man wore a tie today to school for the end of year awards and he got one! they are sooo precious, those boys, aren't they? thanks for sharing about homeschooling. it's been a small but growing seed in my heart...

Olivia Grace said...

Such a beautiful family!!! Good luck on your new journey, God will see you through as He most certainly always does! The best decisions are the ones made together as a couple!

Unknown said...

Ya'll are such a beautiful family! Good luck on the homeschool journey.

LisaMarie said...

First, he is totally adorable in his little man outfit! Second, can I just copy and paste this as MY homeschooling post?! Ha! It pretty much happened like that for us as well and now we are so excited (we are even starting this summer)! I hope you have time to share your homeschooling adventures as much as possible; I can only imagine how much inspiration one could get from you about that, too, after getting so much from the rest of your posts about life!

PaisleyJade said...

He is just so cute! Love how God changed your husbands heart after you had given it to Him. xoxo

Bethany said...

Yea! Another blogger I love is going to homeschool! I started homeschooling my oldest this past year and we love it. It's definitely not for everyone but it is for us and if God calls you to it, He's faithful to help you through it... even in the hard times. Which there will be. But man, is it worth it!

bethany@thetharpesblog said...

best of luck w/ homeschooling! i homeschooled my girls this past year for K but they will be attending school in the fall. hs is hard. i'm not gonna sugar coat it :) my girls need the discipline of school right now . . . hopefully, in a few years, we'll be able to do hs again b/c i SO agree w/ you on the moral stuff over the academic stuff!!!

Abbey said...

Thad looks so cute and all grown up!!! Im sure you will do a great job homeschooling. Yall are a well rounded family! By the way, I love the granny-chic wall on the last post!

Lisa said...

Welcome to the club! Have you checked out Heart of Dakota curriculum? Great stuff! We have used it for the past two years and thoroughly LOVE it!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Family!!!! time sure does fly by!!!!

Sammy said...

Love that you are seeking Him for your family. Sounds like homeschooling is the best possible option for you! I look forward to hearing how it goes xx

Mich said...

You have the most adorable family.

Prayers as you start this new chapter. isn't it exciting when it is clear at how God answers prayer? Love that!

Holly said...

Both hubs and I went to public school but I would really like to send our kids to the private Christian academy that uses our church as a building

Theresa Miller said...

I'm excited for you! Part of me truly desires that, too. I will be excited to follow you on this journey!

jeanna said...

hey there, i stumbled upon your blog a while back and i love it. i just wanted to share that we too are a homeschooling fam of 6 in the ministry, my hubby and i are former public school teachers and he is now the sports & outreach minister at our church. we aren't anti-public school, but this really is a perfect option for our family and our ministry. we are able to join him in his work and if they were in school, they'd never see their daddy. ours' is a lifestyle instead of a compartmentalized existence with school, family time, church, activities, and recreation all being separate entities. it wouldn't work for every fam., but it is what God has called us to do at least for this season of our lives. when we were teachers, we could have never imagined we'd homeschool. God is so good! Feel free to visit my blog or contact me if you ever want to chat about ministry & homeschooling. ; )

Kelly @ Sufficient Grace Ministries said...

That is awesome...and a beautiful testimony of what happens when we trust the Lord instead of trying to push and manipulate! God blessed your obedience and honored your prayers beautiful Joye!

May He continue to bless you as you begin this next adventure.

But for now...

HAPPY SUMMER!

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