Time Management

When your children are learning at home, it takes up most of your day. It is not a matter of working through a couple of books in the morning and then you are done for the day. There are experiments to be done, projects to complete, papers to mark, outings, drama lessons and any other extra murals. Most moms clean there homes when the children are at school. When do homeschool moms get all this done? What about the cooking and paperwork?

This is what works for us as a family on a typical school day - school, starting with Maths first, until 10am, when we stop for a short tea break. School continues until 1pm, lunch time. Then it is back to the books until 2pm. On a Monday the girls and I tackle the bedrooms and bathrooms, on a Wednesday we do the kitchen and living areas. When we all get stuck in it takes only an hour. I do a load of washing every night and catch up with the ironing on the weekend. This keeps everything up to date and reasonably presentable if anyone decides to "pop in". On the inbetween days, we go to gym and I catch up on paperwork. My girls are also learning how to be self sufficient and love learning new skills, like ironing, sigh - every mom's dream. What they help me with is by no means perfect, but that comes with time and patience.

Homeschooling should not be looked at by what you are giving up, but as a ministry that you are providing to your children.

Peer Pressure

I have 2 daughters, aged 11 and 7. Over 2 years ago, when they were both still in a private school, my oldest daughter came home very withdrawn and quiet after a school trip she had been on. When getting down to the heart of the matter, she begged me to never buy her anything pink ever again! Girls had been making comments like "hmmm, you really like wearing pink don't you?!" Making her feel that pink was for babies. Is it really so wrong for a little girls, then aged 8, to like wearing pink?

Now, it is a common need that we all have in life - to be loved, needed and accepted for who we are by those around us.

Now days girls are colouring their hair, wearing make-up and have their nails done professionally - not at 16, but from about the age of 10! There are girls, aged 13, looking like they are 19 walking around malls at night with matric boys. Where and what will these children be getting up to when all is said and done by the age of 20?

My daughters at school were feeling left out for not having the latest ipods, cell phones, laptops and playing with toys where completely out of the question! I am now please to say, 2 years later, I have my children back, playing with dolls and climbing trees.

My prayer is that my girls grow up at the pace that they need to and be carefree and happy while they do.