My son crawled onto my lap and hugged me.
“Do we have time to read the same amount of Frog and Toad as last night?”
I picked up the book, and we began slowly working through the pages. He slowly sounded out words while I pointed out those breaking the usual phonetic rules.
About 30 minutes later I tucked my sweet boy in bed.“Hey buddy, I’m sorry I was grumpy today. “
He looked at me completely baffled.
“I don’t remember any grumpy stuff.”
Then he perked up and started quizzing me to find out exactly where I had slipped up. I managed to make a quick escape.
His words stuck with me for the rest of the night. (Probably partially because it’s unlike my children not to revel in any concession from mom.)
I mentally reviewed the day.
It felt like a tough day. Every child had wanted something he, or she, couldn’t have. The bigger kids were reigned in several times to keep quiet so the baby could sleep off a fever.
Each of the three oldest children refused to do something, resulting in lost privileges. By bedtime, they were all exhausted. I was exhausted. But they were also incredibly sweet. More importantly, they were content.
In reality, that day was probably one of my most successful homeschooling days. It was such a good reminder that successful homeschooling is mostly good parenting. And it’s not really about how I feel. It’s about meeting my children where they’re at and giving them what they need to grow.
