Past Niki: How did we end up here? I would have never in a million years imagined we would be a home school mom! What the heck happened?
Present Niki: It was a very unexpected journey, but know that it was the right choice and you will love it!
If only past me had a time machine to see the future. I am ashamed to say I was one of the "but how will your kids be socialized?" people! But you don't know until you know, right? I was a public schooled child who then grew up to be a public school teacher. It was my world. It was what I knew. So when my own mother pulled my youngest sister from school to homeschool her in middle school I thought she had lost her mind. But even though they only home schooled for one year, it was 100% the right decision for my sister. She flourished when she returned to public school. She had gone ahead a grade level and was now in the exact right place in her learning to excel.
But it still took me many years to come around to this whole "homeschool" thing. When my sister-in-law decided she was going to homeschool her children, while I was defiantly more supportive, I still could never imagine myself with that lifestyle. I vividly remember the conversation we had driving in the car to a home school meet up for the first time...
"I don't know how you can stay home all day. That would be so boring (how dumb I sound to my current self... *face to palm*)! I defiantly need to work." If only that time machine could take me back to that day!
But a few short years later, we have arrived at the time to make a decision on school for our first child. And to my horror (I kid), homeschool enters the conversation. Our oldest had sever social anxiety. I'm talking cry in the corner of a room full of people level anxiety. How was she going to do in a room full of people every day in school?
My own kindergarten experience was not great. And I whole heartily believe that it created a negative association with school that hindered my love of learning in my childhood. Even though I was a good student, I didn't like school. And I did not what that for my daughter.
So we decided to go ahead and home school for kindergarten and give her more time to learn to cope with her social anxiety. What we didn't expect was that we would fall in love with this lifestyle. The freedom it gives up in so many ways is enchanting. And we wouldn't have it any other way.
To learn more watch my video over on my YouTube Channel:
What is your homeschool "birth story"? Did you always know you were going to home school? Or were you like me and thought all these homeschoolers were nuts? Comment bellow!
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