Thankful

Just recently, I realized how much my children have grown up. There are milestones that seem so big, and I think about them when they occur, but this was something different. I was listening to my son talking a few nights ago. His voice is still very young, and his speech disorder causes him to sound like he's gasping between words a lot of the time. But the content of the conversation really got me. I don't know what it is about that year of Kindergarten, but I swear they go into it like babies and come out of it like kids. Public school, private school, homeschool, it doesn't matter, they're going to grow up at warp speed during that little window between autumn and summer.

Similarly, my daughter has turned into this incredible person who has compassion, wisdom, intellectual and emotional maturity, and talent well beyond her years. I'm honored and humbled being her mom. She has the most beautiful spirit I have ever known in a person, and I am in awe of it. Part of me hopes she never changes, but the other part of me wonders what other precious gifts she has to offer this world as she grows.

This is one of the major reasons I wanted to homeschool my children; I felt as if strangers knew more about them than I did with traditional schooling. I enjoyed the amazing things my daughter brought home in Kindergarten and first grade, but I wanted to be there for the process, too. I wanted to nurture them and watch them grow. And, of course, I did not want their gentle spirits broken by bullies or their thirst for knowledge dampened by boredom.

Yes, this was just a sappy post with some of the thoughts in my mind today. It does a rather poor job of summing up everything I've been thinking about, but it's a general idea. I feel really fortunate to have this experience, and I am thankful for it every day. (Yes, even on the difficult days.)