Whew! Homeschooling has been such a whirlwind since we started in January! I finally feel like we have a good routine in place. We absolutely cannot go by the clock at this point in our lives because having a preschooler and baby in the house makes for many interruptions. I heard one homeschooler say once "when there's poop, there's poop, and school stops!" That is absolutely true!
Gracie is learning so much and makes my job of teaching her so easy. If there is one thing I wish could be different, it would be for us to find a co-op group. The one we were supposed to be a part of is temporarily cancelled. And because of illness, we haven't left the house much! But in spite of that, the girls have been playing together well (for the most part). We are reading and learning together, and that was my original vision!
I have been stressing over what curriculum to use for first grade. I love pouring over curriculum and would even love to write my own someday. But one day that was particularly hard for me as I was agonizing over what decisions to make, Jesus spoke. I was given a book recently that has been so amazing at reaching me right where I am. It is called Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. The passage that helped me on that day said, "I am leading you, step by step, through your life. Hold my hand in trusting dependence...I will show you the next step forward, and the one after that, and the one after that. Relax and enjoy the journey." Wow! Jesus is good. It brought me immediate comfort and reminded me that I don't have to have everything planned out from here to high school graduation! It is amazing how God opens up their little minds to learn and helps all the pieces fall into place.
Another book recommendation is called God's Guest List by Debbie Macomber. It is all about having your eyes wide open to the people God brings into our lives. You never know who God may put on the list or why, so you best give people your attention! You never know how they may help you or how you may help them. Thanks, Mom, for sending me the book!