No school today?

Lots of people look at me weird when they find out I homeschool. It usually happens when I am out and about in the middle of the day with all three of my younguns. Someone will inevitably ask Vanessa "No school today?" She always answers that she is homeschooled which is always followed by an "oh" and a sympathetic look in my direction. Nobody is forcing me, and to be honest most days I really enjoy it. I know a lot of people who would go crazy if their kids were with them 24 hours a day, but I think I must have been given a bigger dose of kid-tolerance grace than everybody else.
Just because I homeschool doesn't mean I am anti-public school. Its kind of a necessary evil. Don't get me wrong, I want absolutely nothing to do with it, but like I said, not everyone can be with their kids 24-7 So what are they supposed to do? What if they can't afford a Christian private school? What if both parents have to work? This is real life. I am blessed enough to be able and willing to homeschool. Not every minute is bliss either. Neither of my school age kids are particularly easy to teach. No one jumps for joy when I announce that its time for school and getting things done in a fluid timely manner with a toddler on the loose.....please! There are groans and contortions and tortured looks. Then there are days when the kids are super motivated and things go quickly. You just never know what to expect with these little people.
Now the question I get most often is why do I carry such disdain for public education. Well, I will tell you. It has to do with a very important subject that was kicked out of most circles of education a long time ago, the Bible. I think this world is bad, real bad. I remember what it was when I went to public school. People also say that I don't seem too damaged having survived the rigors of public school. No I am not damaged, but when it comes to the education and the hands that will guide the development of my precious babies good enough just won't do. I also get the argument that they will be sheltered and socially inept. First of all children should be sheltered. They should really bring back this antiquated idea called childhood where your biggest problems were homework and chores, not being shot or offered drugs. Kids are just shown too much too early and they aren't emotionally or intellectually equipped to handle it. Let them grow up first and have a partial clue about who they are before the secular world barrages them with all things vulgar and pornographic. Give them a fighting chance.
Second, my kids will not be socially inept. Your peer group is not the real world. In reality you have to learn to deal with all ages and walks of life. My kids learn next to their siblings who are quite far apart in age. They have to learn to deal with someone who doesn't like what you like. The older ones can learn to help the younger ones and the younger ones thrive on the attention.
My kids get playtime with peers, but they also get exposed to real life settings. We do get out. We do expect them to listen and behave and to know how to act in many different settings. Well rounded is better than fitting in and making sure you are current with the next tween fad. There is a bigger picture I want them to see.
I think its a God thing I want them to see the most. I want to be sure they are seeing creation, sex, math, and any other subject they learn through the eyes of the father. I want them to know the world as he intended it. I want them to know him most of all. They need to read the Bible. I want them to go to college and if they choose a secular college I want them to know God's word, because it will be questioned and scrutinized at every turn of their adult life. I am sending them out to be someone and stand for something. They will have the ultimate choice in who they choose to be, but I want to be able to rest my head at night knowing I gave them all the opportunities and showed them the right way. You only get one shot and then they are gone. They grow up and leave. I know it won't be perfect because I am not perfect, but God doesn't expect that of me or my children. Do I think everyone should home school? Certainly not, but I do think that if your kids are out in the world every day for hours on end then you gotta squeeze in some family Bible and prayer time. They need it to refuel just as much as you do. Maybe more. Its not easy, but you have to pick up the slack for your kids and fill in the blanks. You can't depend on Sunday school for that. I am at the beginning of my home school journey and it is ever changing. At the end of the day I know I have made the right choice. I know that God has directed me to do this and he will give me the grace and patience as needed.These children will make sure I am tried and tested. So if you see me out and about during normal school hours you can relax and remember that we are probably listening to some educational cd while we run errands. We are not, I repeat not, watching nickjr dvds or Hannah Montana videos in the van. Even if you can see them through the window while I am driving, you are mistaken. Just don't take pictures. I will deny everything!