It Started With A Seed

Carvers Kindergarten teacher had all of the children in his class plant a seed, in a cup, toward the end of the school year. The cups sat outside so they could get sun and water…  you know… all the things they need to grow.

We had a lot of rain in May which meant the cups were toppled over… or flooded… on several different occasions.

On the day that the cups were sent home, I learned that Carvers seed did not sprout when most of the others did. The teacher had given up hope that it would but she wanted to send it home anyway… along with an extra that she had planted for ‘an emergency’ like this.

I also learned that day that while waiting in the car rider line… to make matters worse… Carver spilled almost half of the soil out of his cup.

I was pretty certain that his seed was not going to sprout after getting all the info on the poor thing. However… in an effort to avoid a potential melt down (because my boy has a big heart)… I placed them both in the windowsill.

Before long, Carvers seed DID sprout. It proceeded to grow straight and tall… standing right out of that cup. The other seed continued to grow… with some twists and turns… which caused it to stay inside the cup.

One day as I was looking at the cups, in the windowsill, I felt like God was telling me… “Carvers seed did not grow at school…. but look at how it has flourished at home”. While those words may not be the exact ones I heard/felt in my heart at that moment…. I got the point. For a month I couldn’t get peace. I was wrestling with what I felt like the Lord was telling me to do because it was different than what I felt He had been leading me to do previously. When I say I couldn’t get peace… I mean… I felt like God was constantly talking to me and revealing things to me…. so much so… that I had trouble sleeping at night because I couldn’t shut off the chatter in my brain and in my heart.

Fast forward to present day. While most children are back in school at the local elementary… this is what we are doing….

Yep… we are homeschooling!

I have no doubt… not one single doubt… that I am doing what the Lord is leading me to do.

Last year…. I was threatening Carver with homeschooling if he didn’t quit getting W’s (warnings) in his agenda for talking, etc. When I would ‘threaten’ it… he would say “Oh no… I don’t want that!!”… with this horrible look on his face. I can still see it!

This year… we are both so excited!

Carver is excited to sleep later and not have to go to bed so early. He is also excited about being home everyday. I believe if given the option… he wouldn’t leave the house 6 out of 7 days each week.

I am excited about having that time back with my little boy… even if we get on each others nerves daily! I am excited about what the extra time is going to mean for our family. With a youth minister husband/daddy… it is hard to spend time together when all the kids are out of school. This will allow us to have family time or take trips when Michael isn’t so stressed.

While I am excited about all of those things … none of them had an impact on my decision to homeschool.

My reason for homeschooling is plain and simple. I feel like this is what God is telling me to do at the present time.

We plan to take it year by year…. constantly seeking and obeying God’s will for Carvers life and our lives.

When I tell people we are homeschooling, a lot of people are supportive.

However… a lot more look at you like you have two heads, or they ask you why with a look and a tone that screams “are you crazy?”, or… they proceed to tell you why (in a not so subtle way) your child needs to be in a school/classroom with classmates setting.

Some people homeschool because they had a bad experience with the local school. Some want to shelter their children. Some people homeschool because their child has difficulty in school with learning or behavior. I don’t know all of the reasons that people choose to homeschool. I just know why we have chosen to.

Our boy is so smart! Too smart actually!

I was told recently, by a friend, that Carver understands sarcasm on a 15 year old level. I am not sure that is a good thing but…. he understands a lot of things on a 15 year old level. He amazes me on a daily basis… that is for sure!

Carver had a great Kindergarten year…. we had a great Kindergarten year. His grades were great with the exception of penmanship and conduct (he likes to talk). We have no problems with his school. In fact… Michael and I are still on the PTO for this school year.

There just isn’t enough time in the day, when he is at school, to teach the most important lessons of life. The ones that center around God and growing that relationship.

When school was out for the summer and we had time to sit down and breathe… I felt like it was revealed to me how quickly these next few years were going to go by. Carvers Kindergarten year was over in a flash and I felt like all we had time to do was…. go to school. I felt God telling me not to let this opportunity pass. This is the time to teach him what is important in this life and what isn’t. It is our job… as his parents… to teach him. It is the job that God has trusted us with. And for now at least, this is how He wants us to proceed with that job.

I am excited for what God is going to do in our lives this year! I know we are going to have a lot of challenging days ahead but I know who is going to be carrying us through everyday!

I am so thankful!