Every Day Is Different

So, I was talking to my friend about homeschooling the other day and she mentioned that she didn't understand how I did it. She conveyed an interest but at the same time mentioned how she would go absolutely crazy being home all day with her kids. I always laugh when interested parents think that homeschooling would be any different than when the kids are in school. I mean, when your kids are in any other kind of school aren't there difficulties? Personally, the few times when my older son was in school I found that it was WAY more difficult. I had to deal with teachers, administration, massive amounts of homework that didn't seem engaging or interesting, and the "friends" that came over. Frankly, give me the "hardships" of homeschooling ANY DAY over what parents have to deal with when it comes to carting the kids to school in the morning on a set time and having to stick to that schedule. I guess it just goes to show that each family has their own definition of what works.

Then I think about my own day. My family gets up when they have had enough sleep, for the most part. Tristan would probably sleep all day if you let him... so I guess really, I get as much sleep as I need. I wake him up when I get up. But once we get up, we eat, and we get started on our day. Sure, I have a schedule in mind but I don't stick to it if something comes up. All that is on my mind is providing a learning environment where he is going to get experience and educated. There are days where I want to pull out my hair. Those are the days we take apart the car or go on a hike. It's called practical learning. I never will get what is supposed to be learned in a classroom that can't be learned in day to day life. But hey, that's just me.

When I am asked what I do all day, I can't ever give a simple answer. I can't say that day to day we do lessons or that we sit from this time to this time. I can say that we spend a solid 6 hours doing something. I can say that sometimes "school" happens on the weekends. I can say that I don't count summer or winter break as time off. Learning is possible at all times - even on vacation. I don't encourage turning the brain off. I don't offer down time. Even movie night constitutes merit. Work and play go hand in hand. Every day looks different.