Gettin' Schooled

This post has been tumbling around in my head for a while, but I'm not sure where to start.  I'm not sure where the "start" even is.  But the fact of the matter is that I've decided to Homeschool Elise this year.  I've always been intrigued with the idea of homeschooling, but have always been incredibly intimidated by the idea as well.  Its one of those things where there's this thought in my head that says, "I could totally do that!", while at the same time thinking, "There's no way I could do that!"  

It started out with a difficult 5th grade year for our sweet Elise, who had her first taste of what it feels like when someone just dislikes you for no reason, or for a stupid reason.  She was strong and brave and she made it.  But it was tough.  As we struggled with how to help her get through the year, homeschool was something we tossed around.  But in the end, it just didn't feel like the right thing do to.  When the school year came to an end, I was still thinking that it might be something to try for the next year, but mostly, although I had tinkered with the idea, I didn't think Cory was 100% committed to it.  So I pretty much put the idea on a shelf.  And then, out of the blue, the thought came to me one Sunday that I should consider it again.  The idea struck me with enough force that I literally snapped to attention.  And I started thinking seriously about what it would mean for Elise and for our family.  But I hadn't really brought it up with Cory, assuming he was still of the mindset that it wasn't for us.  When out of the blue, he said he was totally on board if I was.  There were so  many pros and cons that we considered on both ends of the equation.  But when all was said and done, it just felt like the right thing to do.  And then I got truly terrified.

Its one thing to think about homeschooling in theory, and another to completely commit to it.  And once I did, I realized I had no idea what to do.  So I did the only logical thing I could do--I sent off panicked emails to three dear friends who have "been there, done that", hoping to get some sort of guidance and direction on what in the heck I was supposed to do now!  And they came through!  They invited me over to talk, walked me through curriculums and filing paperwork and mostly just giving me such hope and confidence that I could do it.

What I love about our decision, is that we're going into it for so many positive reasons.  I'm excited about Elise being able to just focus on school without a lot of truly unnecessary distractions.  I love that our relationship is good enough that we enjoy being together and can handle a little more togetherness.  I'm excited about learning along with Elise.  I'm excited about watching her learn and grow and blossom this year.  I'm excited about trying something really hard, but just doing it anyway, even if we're both a little scared.  

And so here we are.  Ready to tackle 6th grade.  Books are here, ducks are in a row and we're ready to start!  I still have some butterflies about the whole thing.  But mostly I'm excited about this unique time in our lives where we can do this.  So ready or not--homeschool here we come!