Ch-Ch-Changes

I think this song may be appropriate right now. Lots of changes going on at the Wilhelmsen household.

I have decided to home school the girls. I have been convicted about several things. For one, I'm not making seeking the Lord a priority in our daily lives, and I'm not doing a very good job in teaching the girls the importance of such a priority.

Secondly, I am frustrated that I do not know how to motivate Reagan. I feel, essentially, that I barely know her. I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that we are apart for 8 hours a day, and the remaining hours of her day I want her to play, do chores, and generally get to be a kid. I have long felt that school robs the kids of their free time; now I feel empowered to do something about that.

And thirdly, I have discovered that I am jealous for my kids' time and attention. I'm wondering if this is how God feels about us. The Bible talks about God being a jealous God; I think I'm beginning to understand. In some ways, jealousy can be a good thing. Not jealousy in the sense that I feel bitter or angry at some perceived injustice, but jealous for the short time together while they are home. Jealous because I realize that I will not get to see their faces when they discover something, and jealous that their closest connections are with people I may not want in their everyday lives, instead of with their family and the people that I think are good influences on them.

I am convinced that home school is our solution.

I am unsure about how it will work in our household! I will probably be stressed out, frazzled, and then hopefully, so glad we did it. Erik and I are in agreement, which has been huge. He's been a bit hesitant whenever I've brought it up in the past; but now he sees a lot of potential and he's willing to go for it. I love that about him!

I am busy trying to figure out what curricula to use and how much our budget should be. I'm trying to mentally prepare myself and the kids for August (when we'll start).