How the Teacher has been Blessed

It dawned on me the other day that I have never written a blog post about what the teacher (yours truly) has gotten out of this whole escapade called home schooling.   My husband and I definitely did not start this journey thinking about our own personal and spiritual growth, but looking back on the past 16 years (with SIX more to go!), I can definitely say that we are very different people now than when we started.  Of course, there were other factors, like being on a track of self education ourselves, but home schooling our children has definitely been instrumental in our lives. 

The most obvious benefit is that I have LEARNED SO MUCH!  For example, history was never interesting to me when I was student.  Kindergarten through a bachelor's degree in engineering, none of the history classes I took enthralled me much.  Then historical fiction, big picture ideas, and entertaining history books came into my life because I needed to teach someone else - and WOW!  Now I get it!  I will also point out that we chose to give our children a Christian point of view of history by teaching them to see God and His people working throughout history.  It isn't all pretty, but it's all important. 

Another blessing we have enjoyed is a concentrated time to pray and read the Bible with our children pretty much every day we have had "school".  It is the first thing we do when we start.  I will admit that the Bible we have typically used is a children's story Bible, but Catherine Vos does a great job with her version and we have been blessed by it.  We also incorporated Christian Apologetics into our curriculum.  With the older kids it was mainly science-based apologetics, but with our youngest (now 12) we have been studying a wider variety of topics related to evidence for the truth of the Bible.  I continue to learn SO MUCH!  And it's a blast.

The hardest part of home schooling is probably getting our children to do what they are supposed to do when they are supposed to do it.  It requires a lot of prayer, diligence, and patience to be the parent and the teacher.  Ask any home school parent you know.  They'll tell you.  I have found so much help in seminars, podcasts, books, and mentoring with someone who has gone before me.  I firmly believe that my husband and I have grown as people and as parents as we had to rely on God for so much.  Ask any home school parent you meet and I believe they will all say that it is only by the grace of God that they have been able to home school.  Additionally, we have not only had to plan each step, we have also had to be constantly working on being good examples for our children.  When you home school, you definitely realize that everything you do and say is teaching your children something.  EVERYthing.

And in the end, we have been blessed immensely.  The extra time with our children and the results of pouring into them for all these years is a HUGE blessing as the older two venture off into the world.  For us, it wouldn't have been like this without the home schooling path.  Seeds that we have sown have bloomed and produced fruit we never could have imagined 16 years ago.  

Blessings, 

Heidi

 

For Reasons Unknown (to me)

No - I am not referring to the song by the band The Killers.  😮  (Not that I know this song.  I just looked it up because I thought I recognized this phrase.  In fact, I have not listened to it and I cannot recommend it in any way.  LOL)

I am currently reading Walking From East to West - God in the Shadows, the autobiography of the late great Ravi Zacharias.  I am only a few chapters in, but it is apparent that Ravi looked back on his life and was able to identify specific people and events that God worked through in order to guide his life even as Ravi himself was not walking with God.  

As a Christian, I believe God is always working in my life and in the lives of those around me even though we have all been given a free will to choose our thoughts and actions.  It is an extremely complicated concept to think that God knows every single relationship and event in the world in minute detail.  He is outside of time itself and knows ALL things.  It is so easy to be blinded by the temporal physical world  - and have trouble seeing around or through it.  That is where the eternal and spiritual perspective lies.  There was a time in my life when a mentor kept reminding me to keep an "eternal perspective", and I am so thankful for the advice.  It is hard to remember, though, since my physical senses can only see, hear, feel, touch. and taste what is in the physical world.  

I say all of that to say this:  There is no way I could have foreseen the future in 2005.  That is the year we started homeschooling our oldest child.  What ideas would she and her brother have been exposed to if they had not been homeschooled?   Besides the proactive approach we took in teaching them why they should believe what they believe, we also taught them to be good skeptics.  A "good" skeptic gathers information and weighs the argument.  This includes knowing a good argument versus a fallacious one.  I have only recently been made aware of ideas being taught and promoted in our country's school system; ideas like Critical Race Theory, trans gender identity "options", and the 1619 Project, to name a few.  

It is a scary thought to think that my children could be extremely different if they believed these ideas were true - and good.  In fact, they could have ended up believing there was no such thing as absolute truth or that their Christian faith was an oppressive Western idea that is not really "loving" or "tolerant".   (Linguistic theft is a very effective way of making people question everything they thought they knew.  Listen here for a great explanation : Mama Bear Apologetics podcast #54)  

There is so much more I could go into about these ideas, but the more I learn about them the more and more thankful I am that we homeschooled - and still do. (I highly recommend Mama Bear Apologetics by Hillary Morgan Ferrer to learn more.)  It reminds me that God is in the shadows and he is watching over us.  We trusted Him when we felt the urge to homeschool, but had little to no knowledge on how to do so.  Remembering to trust Him every step of the way has not always been easy.  There is pressure and there are insecurities that rear their ugly heads all the time - just when you think, "I've got this."  Ultimately, He has been taking care of us this whole time, and I obviously believe He will continue to do so.  

An eternal perspective doesn't mean that we can see what God sees, it means we can trust that what He sees for us is the best for us.  

Blessings, 

Heidi

PS.  I also recommend Natasha Crain's books on teaching your children to know why they believe what they believe about their Christian faith - because, as apologist Frank Turek always says, "Kids are talked out of it [Christianity] because they have never been talked into it."  (One more book plug - I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist by Frank Turek)

To Love your Country or Not to Love your Country, that is the Question

Lately, I think I am more thankful than ever that in 2004 we took the bold, yet trepid step to start homeschooling our oldest daughter as she entered the year of Kindergarten.  The world has seemed to have gone nuts in the past few years, culminating in a culture that doesn't acknowledge Truth and rewrites history, among other scary ideas.  I shudder to think how my 21 and 19 year old kids would be at this point in time if they had been taught the ideas that are being permeated through our schools and universities.  

Would they respect their parents, or would they hate their parents, thinking we are bigots and transphobic because we are Bible-believing Christians?

Would they believe that America was founded on Christian-Judeo principles, or would they believe that we evolved from sludge and we need to overthrow the Constitution and the country it is based on?

Would they believe Marxist ideas like "atheistic collective guilt of oppressor groups" instead of an individual relationship with a God who loves you and forgives you if you believe His Son died and rose again to conquer all sin?  

Would they believe in free market capitalism or would they believe that socialism and communism are awesome ideas because they were not taught any history that refutes these ideas over and over again.?  

Would they believe America was founded in 1776 with a noble idea that had been growing and developing for centuries, or would they believe in the highly-refuted and inaccurate 1619 Project?  

Would they know they were wonderfully created by God to be exactly who they are, or would they be bobbing in a sea of uncertainty about who they are and what their purpose is?  

When we began this journey, I had absolutely no idea what was brewing in America's education system.  god's divine hand must have been guiding us.  And I am ever so thankful.

Until Next Time,

Blessings, 

Heidi

We Were Homeschooling When Homeschooling Wasn't Cool

I have been meaning to write again lately.  So - The Year 2020.  The Year of Covid-19 Lockdowns as well as protests and riots.  People think homeschoolers weren't affected by the closure of schools and events, but we actually participate in quite a bit of activities outside the home, so it has been a bummer to see our outgoing little girl stuck at home with her parents all the time.  She usually has at least a couple activities a week and time with friends.  Summer is when we really go crazy and sign up for drama camp, swimming lessons, VBS, etc.....

It has been interesting to be reminded that there is a HUGE difference between "doing school" at home and helping your child to love learning.  (The latter is actually less work, by the way.)  Most children are naturally curious and very smart.  They tend to remember everything they want to remember.  Every once in a while I will find a book about educating your own child and it will re-invigorate me in my mission.  The most recent one, which I am not finished with yet, is Unschooled by Kerry McDonald.  I heard her debate a Harvard professor online (via the CATO Institute) because this professor wrote a paper on how there should be more controls on homeschooling.  It is an interesting debate and it led me to pick up her book.  It makes me think that I should start referring to our education choice as "Unschooling" instead of "Homeschooling". :-)

Until Next time,

Blessings, 

Heidi

There is a Place, by Rosie

Today I was picking up Rosie's room because we are getting the carpets "pulled" tomorrow, ugh.

I came across a song/poem Rosie wrote a couple years ago and I wanted to do more than save it in a box.  I want to make sure I remember it forever. 💓  (in her own words and spelling.....)

There is a Place

i know a place were you can go 

if you are holy and trust you mhite find 

interesteing thigs like a river 

that goes on forever 

and a butyfull boat to go with it

and a punkcin that never stops growing

even in the darkest hour

i can find my way ther

there is a river that goes on forever

and a beutiyfull boat to go with it

and a puncken that never stops growing

go there

go there

you will be happy you did

go there

go there

you 

will 

be

happy

you 

did!!

Oh ther is a river that goes on forever

and a beutyfull boat to go with it.

And a puncken that never stops growing

you shud go to that place....

That place is heven.

- Rose Szymanski

age 8, I think

Launch! (The Book)

Mid-August of this year, I received a group email asking, "Has anyone ever read or heard of this book called Launch by Burlowski?  Is it any good?  Is it worth buying?" 

I had not ever heard of her or her book, so I looked it up and decided that the $35 was worth it. It came and I read it quickly since we have a son who is going to college next year.

I also went to hear her speak recently to get a a better sense of who she is.

Verdict?

She is the real deal.  

She really cares about the fact that kids are going into debt and making a lot of bad choices along the way that could have been avoided.  That much came across when she almost choked up a couple of times during her talk.  

No one is going to use every bit of information in her book, but if even one thing helps, the $35 is more than worth it.  

Did you know that most people make mistakes on the FAFSA that costs them many dollars in aid?

She also recommends figuring out what your child is truly interested in so they don't waste time and money.  And be a leader and get involved in something special.  (I love that we have had a lot of information on this through Life.)  

Ideally, start in eighth grade planning ahead.  So - if you think your child is too young for you to need to read this book, think again.  Well worth it.  Don't just go by my extremely short summary.

Have a Blessed Day!

SUMMIT!

I mentioned in a previous post that Sam was headed to Manitou Springs, CO for Summit  Camp.  I had no idea how amazing this was going to be for him.  Summit Ministries has been equipping young people to defend their Christian faith in a loving way for 55 years!  How did I miss this?!?!

They had over 60 hours of classroom lecture from amazing speakers who engaged and challenged them on various worldview topics, all the while loving them with Christ's love so they can go out and do the same.  And FUN.  They had a lot of fun as well.  And relationships that are Christ-centered ...deep and meaningful.

He wants to go back even if he has to pay for it himself.  It was that impactful.

Have a Blessed Day!

Don't Listen to Me

Yesterday it dawned on me that it would be a horrible thing for someone to read this blog and decide that this was the only way to home school -  and then decide not to.  

So that is why this entry is entitled like it is.  I don't think you could walk into any two home school settings and see the exact same thing.  Everyone is so different.  That is the beauty of it.  Of course, one plus one is still two wherever you go (unless, well, we won't go there), but how and when and why things are done can be so very different for every family......even for every kid.  

So - please, if you think you might want to home school, but my crazy way of doing it does not fit your family, then don't listen to me.  The actual concept itself has so many benefits for so many people.  Hopefully, those things have come across in my other posts even if you don't agree with exactly how we did it.

Have a Wonderful Day!

A New Era

Well, this is a big week for our family.  Hope is moving to San Francisco to take an apprenticeship with a software company as an Account Manager!   The Praxis program has been wonderful and will continue to be there for her.  We are so proud of how hard she has worked to get this far.  She is a self-directed learner through the Life system and other sources and is always absorbing information on how to be better and do better. 

The thing that is standing out to me the most this week, though, is that she is taking specific time today and tomorrow to spend time with each of her siblings before she leaves.  Today, Sam and she are hanging out in Stillwater together.  They have also been watching some Netflix series that had to be finished before she left.  Tomorrow she is taking her little sister, Rose, out for the day to hang out together.  So sweet.  

We will miss this young lady!  We will also miss Sam for a couple weeks while he is at Summit leadership camp in Colorado.  I am glad he has another year to be home with us!  

It feels weird that I am also going through my home school books to see what I have from when I went through Roman history with Hope and Sam.....because Rose and I are entering Roman History this fall.  I found some new historical fiction novels that either weren't written or I did not know about when Hope and Sam were little.  I also found a 3 book series called The Green Ember Series.  Should be fun!  I always need a little break at end of a school year, but always start getting excited to plan an awesome book list for the coming school year.  Rose and I read Little Princess recently.  So beautiful!  Now we are reading The Hobbit.  She loves it!  She even added some poems to her own book she is writing.  :-)

That is all for now.  It should be an exciting year as Hope goes off on her adventure and Sam figures out where to go to school and play baseball.  I am thinking Rose and Terry need to start their own You Tube channel where they discuss "Life, the Universe, and Everything".  Should be fun!

North to Freedom, a book review

When I was in fourth grade, my teacher used to read books to us after recess....or maybe it was during recess when it was too cold to go outside......(never happens).  There was one in particular that stood out in my mind.  It was so interesting, moving, and a cliff hanger at the end of every reading.  Many years later when I was looking for a book to read to Hope and Sam, I tried to remember the title, but I couldn't.  I don't know what finally triggered my memory, but I finally decided to Google some cryptic description I pieced together....and I found it!  Victory!  North to Freedom by Anne Holm, that's it!

I got it at the library when I read it to Hope and Sam years ago, but for Rose - we bought our own copy.  This is such a precious story!  The main character, David, is a young boy who has escaped from a prison camp in the early 1900's.  (World War I, as far as I can tell.)  He is hungry to learn and shows the most amazing appreciation for the most basic things in life.....soap, a clean soft bed, a bathroom, being clean, having good food, having a house to live in, and BOOKS.  He appreciates them and loves to read them.

He remembers hearing something about God in the prison camp, so he prays to God for help.  He does not understand theology, but he knows there is a God who loves him and helps him.  He understands and appreciates freedom.  He treats others with amazing respect, but does not tolerate evil.  He has to make hard choices throughout the story.  Emotionally, it would be easier to stay in the places that offer him some comfort, but he has an end goal that must be reached in order to stay free.  So he leaves "good" to press on towards the prize.

There are so many gems in this book.  Rose and I are only half way through it, but every time I read it I remember why I loved it the first time and remembered it so many years later.

I most highly recommend it!

Until next time,
Blessings!
Heidi

Mind, Body, Spirit

I have to continually remind myself that I can't control people or circumstances.   Just when I think I've got this concept down,  I find myself struggling mentally and emotionally to "coax the ball into the corner pocket", per say. 

I want the children to have amazing lives and achieve all of their dreams.  Don't we all?  We can prepare them and guide them and love them,  but in the end the most important thing is to pray for them.   I don't mean we are supposed to be hands off and whatever will be will be.   I just mean that I have to continually remind myself to do my best without doing everything for everyone and pray for God to guide them and me.

If I pray for them to be healthy in mind,  body,  and spirit,  I have to trust that will pretty much cover it.

The verse 1Peter 5:7 has always comforted me.  "Cast your cares upon the Lord,  for He cares for you. "  I assume that includes my children.  😆

Until next time,
Blessings,
Heidi

Lesson for the Day : Pay Attention

Hello All~

Well - I am laughing at myself right now because I was looking for my last blog article and could not find it....until I noticed I posted it under Rose's blog! LOL!!  You can find it here.... Rose's Blog.  (Title - Link to a Link to a Link)  Pay attention when you are blogging, Heidi!

Rose noticed that everyone in the family has a blog except for her, so she quickly rectified it.  She also started a You Tube Vlog while we were on vacay at Meema's.  It is too funny..... I don't believe it is public, but we can share it if you ask. 

I love that she is so creative and funny.  Challenging beyond belief, but fun, nonetheless.  Some people tell me they would not be able to spend all day with their kids.  Some people can't wait for summer vacation to be over.  I don't think it is absolutely necessary to be wonderfully skipping through the daises every minute you are with your kids.  Just like marriage.  People who go into it not expecting any challenges are sorely disappointed so quickly and think they are doing something wrong.  But - the only thing we do wrong is thinking we have to make everything look perfect to the outside world so we don't appear lacking.  Well, the truth is we are all lacking in many areas.  The sooner we turn to Christ and humble ourselves, the sooner we can relax and enjoy our imperfect lives. 

The more I pay attention to Christ, the more I feel His support.

Until Next Time,
Blessings,
Heidi

When the Snow Melts .... (Day 22/90)

My blog-writing career is kind of like the seed under the winter snow cover.  I am reminded of "The Rose".   OK - a little too sappy and a sad attempt at a dramatic introduction to long-awaited blog post that is way too long in coming from someone who said they were going to blog every day for 90 days.  Yikes!  Ouch!  Thanks to my huge fan base (which includes my amazing husband and ......... I my oldest daughter..... and ....... well..... Hi guys!  I appreciate ya!)!

So - when you You Tube a song, it can lead you down a road you didn't expect when you sat down at your computer to take care of important things.  Terry always warns the kids not to get on You Tube alone because you need someone to pull you out when you get too deep.  (I am waiting for Hope to come down and rescue me. :-) )  I am on my third song from X Factor America's Got Talent and I have never heard of this particular rendition of America's got Talent.  (Actually, I started in Ireland or England or something......some dude who didn't look like he could sing "The Rose", but he did that and "Total Eclipse of the Heart".  What can I say?  I am a child of the 80's.  It was the best musical era ever.)

Here comes Hope to rescue me so we can do something more important.

NEVER go into You Tube alone!

Until Next Time,

Blessings,

Heidi

Freedom! (Day 21/90)

OK - so the 90 days have been far from consecutive.  But we press on!

I guess what is on my mind this week is appreciating the fact that I can give my child the freedom to take a short hiatus from some schoolwork (a week) to focus on some things that take priority for a short time.  Sam wants to play baseball in college and he needed some time to go to some workouts and study for the ACT.  So - it is so nice to be the one he answers to for schoolwork so I can teach him about prioritizing, especially when there is a time constraint.

Who cares if he gets all of his hours in on every class this week if he doesn't get to the next step anyway?  What is the end goal?  What is the deadline for A, B, and C?  This thinking may fly in the face of modern experts, but if B has a deadline and you could spend some concentrated time to make sure it goes well so the next couple years go well, then why not?

On another note, I have to reminisce about when I was in high school.  No one studied for the ACT or SAT back then.  I remember being told, "There is no way to study for it.  Don't worry about it."  Well - it's not like studying to be on Jeopardy.  It is a game and a system.  Master the game of how to take the test and you master the test.  What does that have to do with being a great anything except a great test-taker?

Things that make you go hmmmmmmmm.

Until Next Time,
Blessings,
Heidi

Life Hack (and I didn't even know it) (Day 20/90)

SO - Yes.  You observant melancholy peeps have definitely noticed that I have not managed to string together any consecutive days lately.  Sorry.  Don't judge, though.  Really.  Don't.

Today - nothing about home schooling except that we home schoolers tend to be extremely cheap.  Probably comes from having one spouse forsake their earning potential to discover their children's potential in a very personal and hands on way (not judging the non-home schoolers in any way).

I was at Wal-Mart yesterday, which I dreaded.  The Wal-mart  in our town is not my favorite place.  The worst thing about it is that the checkout belts are really short and I run into a log jam of groceries and household products because the checkout person has no more room for my stuff while I am still emptying my cart onto the belt.  Ugh!  There must be a meme for that somewhere.  Someone find it for me, will you?  Time just stands still as I stare at the checkout person and start piling stuff up on the belt.

One of the things I needed was a new toiletry travel bag. My previous one was a mere 20+ years old and the inside zipper broke and stuff kept falling out of it.  So - time to give in and replace it.  I know - I give up too easily.  I tried duct tape.  What else do you want from me?

I was in the cosmetic aisle and the best thing I could find was a pink Caboodles thing for $12.99 with a latch that wasn't going to make it very long.  So - I put it into the cart in case I couldn't find anything better.  Next, I lingered in the totes area where I let my brain try to think if the plastic boxes there would work.  No.  Craft aisle?  No.  Cooler aisle?  No.  Then some water dripped on me from the ceiling.  I go find an an employee to tell her.  She looks like it is the first time she had heard that one.  Likely story.  Kitchen organizer aisle?  No.  Laundry room organizer aisle?  No. 

I was about to admit defeat and buy the pink thing when I walked by....... the camping aisle.  Nothing there, but I could smell victory.  There it was!  The fishing aisle!  You guessed it!  A soft-sided fishing tackle case with extra cute little pockets on the sides AND...AND..... 2 plastic organizer trays that close.  Multi-use, baby.  Terry will put nails or something in there.... unless Rose finds them first....Then they will become the new home of some Tsum Tsum's, or some other little tiny figurine that is extremely precious to her.  OR - she will come up with a much more creative idea that I cannot even contemplate because I am way past that stuff and way too practical.

Well - My husband pointed out this was my first Life Hack - or at least the first one that was pointed out to me. 

Until Next Time,
Blessings,
Heidi

PS>  The fishing tackle bag was only $10.49!!!!!  Score!

Snow Daze (Day 19/90)

We had almost a foot of snow today. 

This might be a little mean, but Rose doesn't need to know that other kids didn't go to school today.  (She gets a lot of days off.)

We read by the fire.

She still got to play in the snow.  What a great day for it.  A lot of snow and not too cold.

Papa, on the other hand,  did not enjoy his snow day.  Mother nature kept one step ahead of him all day.  Equipment failures didn't help either.

Until Next Time,
Blessings,
Heidi

Walk Parallel (Day 18/90)

I came across a quote in the book In His Steps by Charles M. Sheldon that struck me.  I've never heard it put quite like this : "It seemed one must walk parallel with Him or directly across His way. "

Seems pretty black and white and very convicting.  

Yesterday I had a conversation with a friend who is home schooling...and she is definitely feeling the pressure of her decision. If you know why you're doing it and that includes following a calling you have received from God,  then walk parallel,  my friend.  Anything else is across His way. 

Until Next Time, 

Blessings, 

Heidi

Know Your Why (Day 17/90)

Today I was reminded that I wasn't always so sure of our choice to home school.  Comments from others that didn't understand affected me more than I would have liked to admit. 

How did I get through it?   Define the end goal. ...and why you are doing it.  Then it is harder to be swayed.  I also re-read books like Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille and Passion Driven Education by Connor Boyack to remind me of why I home school.

I guess you have to know "Why? " in order to finish any worthwhile endeavour. 

Until Next Time,
Blessings,
Heidi

Field Trip (Day 16/90)

Home schoolers can turn any excursion into an educational event.   Home Depot?  Let's learn about Edison.  Grocery store?  What about the process for making yogurt?  Oil change?  This is how a motor works.  You get the idea.

We're in Bullhead City, Arizona with Terry's parents and they took us to Oatman, AZ where the burros wander free. ....and do everything else freely as well.  It is on Route 66 and used to be an old mining town.  Cute little place to visit.  Some good history as well.

Watch your step,  though!

Until next time,
Blessings,
Heidi

Skol Vikings! (Day 15/90)

OK, confession time......if anyone is paying attention to this blog (which I think my husband and my daughter are) I did miss two days. 

We are in Colorado visiting Terry's brother and family!   Hope,  Sam,  and Rose are currently on a ski hill somewhere - for the first time ever!  💪👍 I don't really appreciate this art form so every time there is a "home school ski day" at a local ski slope I promptly click "delete" before anyone sees it.  But this one there was no getting out of and they were very excited.

Sam is a natural.  Of course.  Hope is getting the hang of it pretty well too, although just getting over pneumonia and being at a higher elevation may take a toll.  Rose is hilarious.  At first,  a lot of drama.  But then she got bit by the need for speed.  Every time she comes inside she can't wait to get back out there.  And Terry is hanging in there.   He's the one teaching Rosie.  Pretty cute.  He'll be worn out,  though. 

I think I've mentioned this before,  but I definitely appreciate not being bound by the school vacation schedule.   From here,  we head to AZ to visit Meema and Boppa for a few days! 

And,  of course,  we've gotta give a shout out to all Vikings fans everywhere.  The supposed "curse " has been broken!

Until next time, 
Blessings,
Heidi