From Where Does My Help Come?

I'm home this Lord's Day morning. Little Bit has a runny nose, a cough, and the worst case of "the runs" she's experienced to date. I am thankful for a washing machine, a bathtub, fresh running water, soap, and comet. Despite her not feeling well, it's been a quiet morning. It's been nice.

Last week marked the first full week of homeschooling. I wish I could tell you it was wonderful! Well, it was. The homeschool part was wonderful. But, by Friday evening, I had melted to tears. I'd been trying to get my floors swept/vacuumed since Monday. They'd gotten so nasty I didn't want to go barefoot. I'd been in bed by nine most nights and risen between 5:15 and 6 all but one morning, and still, there weren't enough hours in the day to accomplish my responsibilities. Upstairs was a wreck. My ironing pile had grown to massive heights. I felt like my house was out of control. And I was physically exhausted. And easily aggravated.

And it hit me. Roughly 12-15 hours of my week is now consumed with homeschooling. And my other responsibilities haven't lightened up an ounce. How do you recover that many hours? How do you make it work? The investment in our children is completely worth it. And it is hard.

One experienced homeschooling mama told me until my children are a little older, and more able to help with household responsibilities, I need to either hire help, or just let it go. I'm not hiring help. I don't want to let it go.

I am in the process of training our children to help. They make their beds, clean the guest bathroom, Sister puts her clothes away and Little Man carries his to his room, and Monday afternoons find us dusting the house - I put The Engineer's socks on their hands/arms and they dust the bottoms of the furniture. And right now, that takes more time than doing it myself. But, I know it will pay off in the near future, as they learn and develop the necessary skills and eye...

So...the first week was good. The time spent homeschooling was wonderful. But I'm not going to sugar coat it. It's been really hard to strike a balance. {And a good cry Friday night did help.}

But as hard as striking that balance is proving to be, the sacrifices are completely worth it. I wish you could hear Sister laugh. She has the most beautiful laugh and I am hearing it so much more. It's like a little wall around her heart has come down. It is good.

A friend of mine shared in her blog, regarding homeschooling her two boys, that it's as if homeschooling takes everything you want to make a priority and forces it to become a priority. I don't think I can put it any better than that.

It is hard. It is a sacrifice. And it is rich. And good. And wonderful. I wouldn't trade the time I am getting with our children for ANYTHING. God clearly called us on this path. His grace is sufficient. God forbid I drop my eyes and keep them on my floors.