Tobin Drew a Bus

Back in August, on the first day of school for our county, Tobin drew a school bus.

I'm not exactly sure why, since we really hadn't made a big deal out of it being the first day for public school-goers--plus, school buses are not what he normally draws.  But for whatever reason, on that day, he drew one, and I thought his drawing was great.  :)

As I watched him drawing, I thought more than I normally do about what life would be like for me if my kids went off to school.  This year, that would mean that all four boys would be leaving on a school bus, and only Moriah would be here during the day with me.  It's hard to even imagine what that would be like.

Tomorrow is our official first day of school--a little later in the year than we normally start; but with Josiah and David spending a week in California, it seemed best to wait until their return for our beginning.  Tomorrow we'll make funnel cakes for breakfast, take pictures of each child on the front steps, take turns saying something to be written in our gratitude journal, read some, write some--and we'll do it together.

I want to be clear about this: I never want our choice to homeschool to be seen by other families as a criticism of their decision not to.  I know parents who send their kids to public schools, and that's a great choice for them--same with private schools.  Surely there is room within the realm of Parents Who Love Their Children and Want the Best for Them for a variety of educational options.

But as I stand on the brink of another year of homeschooling my children, I breathe a quiet prayer of fervent thanks to God for the freedom to homeschool, for His direction that led us to this path, for the lessons that will be learned this year, for the memories we'll make together, and for the uncountable blessings that await us in the coming months.

And it all begins tomorrow morning...  :)