Saturday, February 3, 2018

another plan that wasn't ours.

train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. proverbs 22:6


let's go back to when james was in the army. you could have heard me say things like "i just want to be settled by the time the kids are in school." at that time we only had eliza and it would be years before she would begin. little did i know, james would get called into the ministry and a new life of uncertainty would be upon us. 

eliza started kindergarten in our comfortable country lutheran school. i was all set for her to be there throughout. to one day have her aunt as her teacher. to share recess and lunch with her cousins and best friend. 

God had other plans. 

plans that would start by taking us to western nebraska. 

the days, weeks, months before call day i said that a school was at the top of my list. sure distance would be hard, but we had been to korea after all. i just wanted a lutheran school, and i wanted the kids to be settled and not have to switch schools.

so when we heard the words crawford and harrison nebraska, in the wyoming district, i was shocked. the distance must be great, but my initial prayer was "please let there be a school." and i was disappointed when we found out there wasn't one.

"i will NEVER homeschool."

that was another thing i often said. sure my degree was in early childhood. i could handle preschool, but i did not have the patience to teach my own children past that. 

and yet here we are. diving in to that world.

when we moved out here, eliza started at the public school, and it's been a great experience. she has had wonderful teachers, but that hasn't stopped us from wanting more. we knew when she left the lutheran school setting we were going to have to pick up some new routines at home. i wanted her to still have that education. memory work, bible lessons. we have since begun matins in the morning, and learning the catechism at night. it has helped us. it has brought us together as a family, but also made that desire for more grow stronger.

we discussed homeschooling last summer, but it was late in the game, and i was so scared to move eliza again. 3 schools in 3 years? when i always wanted them to be settled, we can't drop this bomb on her. so back to public school she went. hattie is preschool age now, and so we tested the waters. we bought a curriculum and did a formal junior kindergarten with her at home. see how it goes, and maybe this would be something we could do in the future. 

between that, and what we are doing as a family, i am just blown away.

to hear your 3 year old recite the books of the bible, or your 5 year old belt out the venite, or your 8 year old tell you the meaning of the 10 commandments, it sparks something.

i realize more and more that they only get this one chance at an education. i want more for them, not state standards, but ours. and if we can't be in a place where a school is, we can make one. we can do this, and we can do it together!

i never imagined we would be here. not only in western nebraska, but also facing a year of homeschool. 

i realize that He had this plan all along. because of it we get to be active and involved in training our children.

what a blessing that is!



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