Managing Home & Homeschool

Quite a while back I wrote for an online homeschooling magazine called Heart of the Matter. I thought that I would share this article I wrote for them. It is several years old and a little outdated but still very timely for anyone looking to manage their home and their homeschool. I hope you enjoy.
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For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

Time management is one area that greatly effects my ability to teach my children at home. I wrote in an earlier post about prioritizing. Once you have prioritized and weeded out activities having a plan of action to carry things out is of great importance. One of the best ways to manage your time is in my opinion with a working schedule. I will readily admit that this is an area that needs continual work in my household.

Schedules must be revamped often. As the scripture above says, for everything there is a season. There are different things that happen in our lives that will interrupt your plans and schedules and these call for adjustments. In our home we are going through a few of those “seasons”. We have the season of an upcoming move and the season of morning sickness. Once your schedule is in place, try not to be so rigid that you cannot adjust for a change in season or a surprise storm or two.

A schedule is simply a written plan for ordering those things you deem as priorities into your day. You designate blocks of your time for specific activities. It helps you to find the time to accomplish the tasks you have before you. It can also relieve some of the stress of life because you have a plan. It is a way to direct your children to the next activity for the day without constantly being interrupted with questions about what to do next.

Everyone has a different comfort level when it comes to how much structure to put into their day. I find that with the larger my family becomes the more structure the better. There is simply more to get accomplished than before and I need to have a plan of attack.

I came across a great book that has been a tremendous help. What first caught my eye was the fact that the author was also a homeschooling mother of eight. She is someone who can relate to the sheer volume of things that pertain to a large family. I thought that if this worked for her large family then I could implement some of her ideas and have them work for me too! Her book would even be helpful for smaller families.

I ran into a friend who also used this book to organize her household. She is the mother of seven. She uses this plan and it is what enables her to manage her time wisely. When I received my book, I read if cover to cover in the first day. I was so excited! I pulled out the toolkit that comes with it and began to put our schedule together. After three days of trying to make this schedule work, I called my friend crying. I simply could not fit everything into our day. Her words of advice were to remind me that I could do all that the Lord desired me to do but that I could not necessarily do everything that I desired to do! I needed to prioritize and cut out some things. I simply cannot do everything that a mother of two has time to accomplish. I have more children with many more levels of educational needs. After prayer and discussion with my husband, I cut and cut some more. At last I had a working schedule.

It takes time and effort to implement a schedule and to get the family started. Once you have committed to it and worked at it for a while you will begin to fall naturally into a routine. You learn what takes longer and what is done more quickly. You simply adjust your schedule to fit your family. I found that I needed several schedules, almost one for everyday. Some days we had piano and other days we had to finish early for AWANA.

I do not currently have a written schedule. We have not used one this past year and I feel as if we have not accomplished nearly as much as we should have accomplished. After we are settled into our new home, a new schedule will appear and be implemented. My life is simply easier when we have one.

I suggest sticking as closely to your schedule as possible when you first start. This will help you to develop the habit of “running a tight ship.” Once you have that, make more adjustments. You can determine then how strictly to follow your schedule. It will differ for all of us. My friend I mentioned above followed hers to the “T.” Her life was extremely structured and her family thrived under that structure! I am a bit more relaxed. As an example, I do not schedule my nursing babies and needed some flexibility. The main idea here is to have a plan, a written plan. Not just to have a written plan but one that is actually workable!

Take some time and schedule your priorities and see how much more you will accomplish. Do you currently have a working schedule? Have you ever used this book? What have you found are the benefits of scheduling? Leave me a comment and let’s have a discussion about it to encourage each other in our efforts!

Here is that wonderful book I mentioned.

This book is written by Steve and Terri Maxwell.

I highly recommend this book for those looking to manage their home in a more effective way. There is such great information and the toolkit is included. If you look on their website you will find testimonials, information on what else is included, and schedules from other moms.

MANAGERS OF THEIR HOMES

Combine and Conquer

Why we Homeschool

There are many different reasons people decide to homeschool their children. I would like to share with you today why our family homeschools. Being fully aware of our reasons propels us forward and it gives us purpose. Placing these reasons ever before us pushes us on toward our goal.

Deuteronomy 6:4-7 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

This encompasses every aspect of life, at all times and in all things. I do not believe this can be fully accomplished if the responsibility is abdicated to others and children are put under the authority of those who disagree with the biblical approach to every aspect of life or are obligated to teach using a secular curriculum with a humanistic and atheistic approach. There truly is no real neutrality. Here is a quote from a book I have read recently, it gives a good summary. This is enough to propel me to move forward and count the rewards when I am feeling overwhelmed. It is what God has called me to do as a Christian mother.

The biblical mind is not compartmentalized into two distinct areas of though: secular and sacred. All of life is under the authority of God’s revealed Word, and children were to be taught in terms of this comprehensive authority all the time.

from: Standing on the Promises by Doug Wilson

I acknowledge that all will not agree with my reasons for homeschooling. Many will have other reasons and some will just flat out disagree and that is ok. We have our reasons and they are grounded in the Word. These reasons as propel to continue on our homeschooling journey. When we have a frustrating day, they urge us forward and help to keep us focused.

My Perfect Homeschool Experience

I remember the very first day that I started homeschooling twelve and a half years ago. I was so excited! I had my curriculum picked out and all of the supplies I needed gathered and set out on the table the night before. Things went perfectly! After all, I had read and reread the lessons like twenty times already. I was going to be the perfect homeschool mom and things were always going to be sunshine and rainbows. What I didn’t allow to enter my mind was the fact that in order to have a rainbow, there has to be rain! My perfect homeschool experience lasted three whole days and when day four hit I became, what I thought, was a total failure! I have grown a lot since then and realize that having unattainable goals will always leave me feeling like a failure. Why set myself up for that? Here is one thing that I have learned along the way and tried to apply to my life.

BE FLEXIBLE! Planning is a good thing, be prepared, but be flexible! Babies will cry, children will get sick, mom will get sick with 102 degree temperature, the dog will get sick, the bird will break free from its cage and the cats will go nuts! All of this will happen when hubby is out of town. Oh, did I mention mom is due in 3 weeks and always delivers early(can we say stress & fear?)?

YES, this is an actual week of my life. Guess what, no one can have a perfect school day when this is your week! Be flexible and remember things do not always go as planned. Remember your reason for being: to bring glory to God. Sometimes our plan is not His plan. During this week (several years ago), we did not get through our ABC’s but we learned a much more valuable lesson, to lean upon the Lord. If we learn to lean upon the Lord we will find things flow more smoothly even as we ride along all the bumps in the road.

Proverbs 16:9 The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

Following Footprints

When we moved into this house we had to purchase a refrigerator. Now of course it didn’t matter to my husband which refrigerator we bought; guys just do not seem to care about those types of things. I told him I had always wanted a refrigerator with the freezer on the bottom. So that is what we bought. I absolutely love it! Not only is the fridge, the part you utilize the most, on top and more accessible; it reminded me of when I was a small child. There were a few years when I was young that I lived with my grandparents. My grandmother had a refrigerator with the freezer on the bottom. I remember swiping ice cubes for snacks. This has become a scene in my home also. My little ones love to get ice cubes out for a snack, especially my 16 month old. It brings a smile to my face. As crazy as it sounds watching my little ones take ice cubes out of “the freezer on the bottom” lets me reminisce on one of the few good memories of my childhood. It also reminds me that my children will follow my footprints.

Today at lunch, I was sitting with my 3 year eating pizza. Daddy and all of the other children were in the other room. We chatted a bit and after a short silent moment a smile spread across her face. She looked up at me with the sweetest smile and said, “When I grow up, I want to be a mommy just like you.” Is that not enough to melt your heart?? It is also another reminder that my children will follow my footprints.

God provides so many opportunities to remind us that our children are watching us. That they are imitating us. It causes me to evaluate my life. Am I living in a way that I want my children to imitate? How would I react if my children did (my current action)? Would I approve?

I am not the perfect example, if left to myself, I will always fail. God is the one who allows any good to come of my life. If I want any good to come of my children’s lives then I must point them to the Savior. I must imitate the one that I desire them to imitate. I must be like Christ so that they will want to be like Christ.

• 1 Peter 2:21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.
• 1 Corinthians 11:1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

As my children follow in my footprints, these verses express my prayer.

• Job 23:11 My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside.
• Psalm 119:133 Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.

A Penguin at the Manger

Every year we set up a nativity set. It sits upon our piano away from little fingers that could easily break the figurines. Our children do on occasion end up getting away with playing with it. It has almost become a tradition to do something to the set to see how long it takes for mom or dad to notice. That usually means the shepherds and wise men trade places or the donkey is turned around backwards. Some may say this is inappropriate but in our home this has become a way to make sure that we are focused on the correct thing at Christmas time, our Savior. Do we really notice the nativity set or is it just another decoration? Last year was one of the most creative and we even snapped a photo. I noticed standing between Mary and Joseph gazing down at the baby Jesus was a penguin. The phrase, “There is a visitor at the manger,” was repeated over and over again. Do we visit the manger? Not just the sweetness of a newborn baby and the cute scene we display but the full picture? That day, even though glorious, showed the coldness of the world. Even in rejoicing that the Savior has come, we know He came only to die. Christmas is a time of wonder, joy, love, awe, and amazement. It should also be a time when we once again acknowledge our dependence upon a holy and just God. Let us not get caught up in the sparkling lights, pretty bows, ribbons, cookies, and presents. Let us make our main focus be the same as that which the little penguin upon my piano represented. Let us be a visitor at the manger and our focus be upon the Living Lord. Merry Christmas and may God bless you as you celebrate the risen Lord.