What I've learned

Homeschooling has taught me to:
Trust the process
Respect my children
Engage my kids in their interests
Relax on things that do not interest them (to an extent)
When to push them (and how)
How to read their signals (hungry/anxious/need exercise)

I've also learned when and how to push them to do their best. I've learned when to give them a rest day, a day to do whatever they want academically. I've learned the kinds of things that interest each child and how to teach them that. I've learned to love them so deeply and so differently than I ever thought possible. I respect these little people and their opinions and observations.

This year, my kids adore me more than ever before. They make me feel like an awesome Mommy. I do my very best for them and they are old enough to appreciate my efforts and my love. And they make me feel respected and loved.  Our relationships have changed so much and developed into something that makes me feel SO lucky to be their Mommy. They are the BEST.

Homeschooling life

I thought that homeschooling my boys would mean lots of extra time. We would get to try out tons of new activities and spend days browsing the museums. It never occurred to me how busy we would actually be. But I sit here, having missed the opportunity to homeschool today because I had so many other things to check off my list. We got home from Jackson at around 12 last night, so maybe I'm being too hard on myself. I skipped the gym and homeschooling today in favor of getting my house organized. The boys had golf lessons and golf league, so I spent the entirety of the day driving up and down Sepulveda, while sprinkling in additional meaningless and monotonous tasks (like unpacking, getting the filthy car washed and quickly dropped off cookies for my bestie.)

What I thought we would do:
Museums
Project based learning
Exercise daily
Explore art projects
Meet up with tons of friends

What we actually do:
Schoolwork
Library
Enrichment activities (ASTEME math and computer coding, library, golf, golf league, soccer league, skiing, piano lessons, travel)
Playdates (but not as many as I expected!)

I am going to try to organize the schedule to see more friends, more often. I would also like to go to the museums and other homeschool activities more frequently so that we can meet friends. I recently spoke to a friend of mine from Elementary school and it's interesting how grounded a friend like that keeps you. There's something so important about having a friend who is a friend for life.