ShannonS Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I am thankful for all the encouragement on this forum. Next month will mark the end of our first year of home education. I am completely exhausted and really doubting if I can do this. My husband is halfway through an extra long deployment. I am home with the kids almost all of the time. I don't want to get out of bed lately. I feel like I need space. I knew my fantasy of home schooling was not going to match up with the reality, but I wasn't expecting to feel so stressed out all of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 Can you put your finger on the stressors? Make a list of the 5 most energizing things in your life, and the 5 most difficult. The Hive is good at brainstorming. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 You have four young children and your husband is deployed. Add homeschooling on top of that and the results are beyond exhausting. You don't even get a break from the kids during the school day as you're their teacher, too! Does it help to know that you are entitled to feel stressed and tired? My husband is not military, but his job does involve a great deal of travel. When my kids were young there were many, many days when I felt like we were just holding on to survival. I wanted to do more than that--I wanted us to thrive! And you know what, in the long run we have. But there were days and nights that were long and difficult, and some years were truthfully more about survival, because doing the parenting thing solo (not to mention homeschooling) is tough. It helped me tremendously to have a group of homeschooling friends for support and encouragement (and childcare!). A teenager to come over and play with the kids for a couple of hours one afternoon a week is also a great break for mom AND fun for the kids. Find a way to give yourself a break once in awhile, and then step back and know that you are in the thick of this and it is difficult. If your children need to return to school, that's okay--do what works for your family. Celebrate the small victories and take it one day at a time. Know that it does get easier, and look forward to the day when your oldest is old enough to babysit your younger ones. That day changed my life, let me tell ya! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeeterbug Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 Are you taking a break at the end of next month? I hope so! Give everyone a complete break including yourself, no planning or anything. (Of course, reading the boards is excused!) Sleep in every morning even if it means (ack!) letting them watch a movie in the mornings and getting their own breakfast. Actually, you're excused if you want to take a week off now instead of waiting. If you are burned out it's harder on everyone. We had a no school day yesterday. Everyone stayed in their pj's including me. They watched tv, I finished a book, and woke up refreshed today. And relax! Even if something gets totally messed up, your kids are young and there is time to recover! (That's what I tell myself anyway!) You can do this! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I remember the end of my first year. I felt stressed too. I found homeschooling to be more difficult than I envisioned and I kept expecting it to just magically fall into place. I was nervous about the second year because I was losing momentum. I cut back on lots of curriculum and worked on Lang. Arts and Math mostly. My kids were then 4 and 6 yrs. old, so it's not like I short-changed them. But I felt like I was. I'll be honest and say I didn't feel on top of everything until my 3rd year of homeschooling. I had finally found my groove. I was involved in a very active group. I had friends for the kids. We were using fun materials. It was all just so fun. Over the years, we lost our homeschool group and friends so I'll admit we became lonely. But the homeschooling lifestyle was, and still is, a very positive one. I don't regret my decision to homeschool. It hasn't been all roses and kittens though. But I managed to get through the rough times because I knew good times were around the corner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PentecostalMom Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I have BTDT, and it is hard. What helped me the most was a homeschool support group, especially if you can find one with other military moms. It is a difficult situation for civilians to understand, even though they may have compassion. Hang in there, will pray for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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