I am in awe of you parents

[RedWine]

I posted a thread in the Learning at Home Forum, and then realized it would be more appropriate here.

I'm a homeschooler, but I don't believe in the one-way-suits-all mentality. I am friends with folks who send their kids to school, and I overhear bits of conversation on the playgrounds from other parents who send their kids to school.

I think I -- can't speak for all homeschoolers -- have it pretty easy, in that I don't have to deal with teachers, principals, worrying about which school my child can get into and go to, lunches, activities, etc. etc.

I truly think that what you all do is awesome. I don't have to juggle half of the things you folks do, and I don't think I COULD juggle that much successfully.

i'm in awe of you, and of my "school-parent" friends, who successfully do what needs to be done for their kids and their kids' educations. I don't think I would be successful at getting the kids out the door on time, packing everything up, and generally multi-tasking on a huge scale.

Parents don't hear the kudos they need to hear as often as they should, IMHO.

So -- my hat is truly off to you folks. You rock.

[SkiMama36]

Thank you for your words.

I hear mostly about those "bad parents who have jobs outside the home" and don't "care enough about their children to keep them home" enough that it makes me want to puke.

Everyone does what is right for their family. One family who homeschools is not in any way better than one who sends their kids to school. And vice versa. And those that think they are "better" for homeschooling their kids are just plain arrogant in my opinion. You should do what is right for YOUR kids and YOUR family, and NO ONE has the right to judge which is better.

Your candor is appreciated and reciprocated in kind when I say that you have your own set of issues that we, as parents who send their children to school ouside the home, could not fathom of accomplishing.

Hats off to all.

[UUMom]

Originally Posted by RedWine

I posted a thread in the Learning at Home Forum, and then realized it would be more appropriate here.

I'm a homeschooler, but I don't believe in the one-way-suits-all mentality. I am friends with folks who send their kids to school, and I overhear bits of conversation on the playgrounds from other parents who send their kids to school.

I think I -- can't speak for all homeschoolers -- have it pretty easy, in that I don't have to deal with teachers, principals, worrying about which school my child can get into and go to, lunches, activities, etc. etc.

I truly think that what you all do is awesome. I don't have to juggle half of the things you folks do, and I don't think I COULD juggle that much successfully.

i'm in awe of you, and of my "school-parent" friends, who successfully do what needs to be done for their kids and their kids' educations. I don't think I would be successful at getting the kids out the door on time, packing everything up, and generally multi-tasking on a huge scale.

Parents don't hear the kudos they need to hear as often as they should, IMHO.

So -- my hat is truly off to you folks. You rock.

This is a much better place to post your awe of us. I read the other post, and you also asked about getting the right clothing, lunch boxes and other items so kids will fit in. You also mentioned that people at the playground were worried about scrambling to get vax files in order for schools. I'll try to answer what I can.

My schooled child turned 14 last week. We (our family) participates regularly in school events and work days, and it is a joy for what ds gets in return. DS is not very interested in clothes, and he is a vegetarian. He wears basic blue jeans (mostly old navy things) and shirts & sweatshirts. He's easy to dress- but he likes things plain. So when I shop for him, I need to make sure it's all boring! :

He does not eat meat, but he is one of 3 veggies in his class and it's not an issue. He brings soup or stew in a thermos (his lunch box is black, from the local market-- it's a soft sides one). He sometimes brings a pnut butter sandwich--he doesn't like jelly. Sometimes he brings a burrito or cheese wrap.

He's not immunzied (and I know in the other thread, getting the paperwork together for that semed overwhleming) but my state allows for exemptions, so he has an exemption on file that has never been questioned.

His dad drops him off in the morning, and sometimes we work at his school. I enjoy that. The people are nice. I especially like working the rummage and book sales. We have a nice time. My hsers help us. I pick ds up after school. I try to combine errands with that, so it's not been a problem. Sometimes I carpool with folks. His school does not have a bus.

I don't like when pick up is late. DS plays afterschool sports-- soccer and basektball-- & sometimes practice goes until 4:15. It's fine when it's warm and light out, but a pita when it's freezing cold and dark by 4. I don't like leaving the house when it's cold and dark. But about 1/3rd of the time my 15 yr old hser has an activity that I need to fetch her from as well, so I am out anyway. What I *would* like is a chauffeur. : My hsers keep me on the go as well. I would love to not have ferry kids places alone. I love it when dh works at home.

All in all, there is nothing so miraculous about my life with a kid who attends school. Our kids need us, so we do what we need to do. Whether they are at home or at school, they have needs that dh and I try to meet. We find it a pleasure and a gift to tend to our children. It's not that hard for me to pick our son up after school, as I am eager to hear about his day. We are always interested in his school activities, so attending those are a joy more than anything. (Although come March or so, I've had about enough muscials, poetry readings, science fair etc to last me a lifetime. Although I feel pretty muich the same about my hser's fairs and gatherings by then as well. ) To be fair, by the time September rolls around, I am eager to start attending these events again.

I don't expect admiration for taking care of my schooler anymore than I expect admiration for caring for my hs'd kids. We simply do what needs to be done and feel blessed to have the experiences and the great opprotunity to care for these children. .

[RedWine]

Originally Posted by SkiMama36

Thank you for your words.

I hear mostly about those "bad parents who have jobs outside the home" and don't "care enough about their children to keep them home" enough that it makes me want to puke.

Everyone does what is right for their family. One family who homeschools is not in any way better than one who sends their kids to school. And vice versa. And those that think they are "better" for homeschooling their kids are just plain arrogant in my opinion. You should do what is right for YOUR kids and YOUR family, and NO ONE has the right to judge which is better.

I completely agree with you -- I am so sorry you've heard the "bad parents" routine. I'm friends with a few great parents who have their kids in school. One woman in particular kvetches to me about the juggling -- she loves the school itself, so it's not even an issue about a "bad" school or teacher. But getting her daughter out the door, making sure the homework is done (and this is K!), having to invite everyone to a birthday party so no one gets their feelings hurt, making sure there is quality time in the evenings, etc. etc. etc -- well, it makes my head spin. I don't have to deal with these issues. I don't think I COULD deal with these issues, I'd be a terrible juggler. I juggle outside activites now (we definitely are not home all day!), but to add what you have to deal with on TOP of extracurricular activities...I don't think I could do it.

I honestly think my life is way easier than if my kids were in school. I think you guys have it tougher, on average.

Anyway, thanks for responding. You should feel good about yourself and all that you accomplish on behalf of your kids.

[Mary]

I tend to think that no matter what we do regarding schooling, we will all have our hurdles to leap. I know that during school breaks, I really enjoy us all sleeping in and not having to get dressed. My kids end up not getting dressed until after lunch! I also enjoy not having to go to bed by a certain time. I was really fretting my son going to full-time school this year.

On the other hand, I love that my son goes to a wonderful school where he is really and truly challenged in creative ways (that I honestly wouldn't have come up with) gets to be with a bunch of great kids and then when he comes home he can tell me all about it. I feel like I am a part of a team rather than it all being on me. At home we explore the things that interest him and I actually have the energy to pull it off. If it were all on me, I feel like I would truly be overwhelmed.

We don't have many of the negatives of school happening here. Once I found the right school, everything has fallen into place. They wear school shirts, so clothing isn't an issue. My first grader is doing second grade now and will be in 3rd grade next year. There is little to no homework. Since we are at a small charter school it seems like everyone is there for a reason- we all bucked the regular school. It's nice. My son's best friend, in fact, was homeschooled until this year.

There's so much that I love about homeschooling, but I don't think I would pull it off the way I would want it to be. I've said it to dear friends that homeschool and I'll say it to you too- my hats off to you.

[MamaMonica]

Originally Posted by Lisa Lubner

PS and HS parents rock all around for sure.

[mommy68]

Originally Posted by RedWine

Parents don't hear the kudos they need to hear as often as they should, IMHO.

So -- my hat is truly off to you folks. You rock.

My kids are in school now but when I homeschooled I actually found it harder to get things done each day. I very rarely had a moment to myself...ever! I went from wife to teacher to mom constantly, part-time employed, all of that 24/7. So in my opinion what you are doing is a lot harder or atleast equally as hard. Give yourself some credit too!!