The fall back-to-school buzz is everywhere, and many of the homeschooling blogs I follow are already talking much about burn-out, fear of failure, the “honeymoon” of starting homeschool being over, etc! If your kids are in public school or Christian school, you might be feeling those things too, in a different way. Did you make the right choice, how is this teacher going to be, will I be able to get them to school on time every day?? (that would not be an easy one for me!!!)

Obviously, as I have shared, we are starting our journey down the path of homeschooling – God has clearly led us in that direction, although I definitely don’t think it’s the best option for every family. I was sad to receive an email from a pastor’s wife who struggles with the fact that she cannot homeschool their children – she has felt condemned and judged by other Christian women because of the fact that she isn’t homeschooling. I wish that was the first time I had heard that from/about a pastor’s wife… but it isn’t.

After posting the “Stupid in America” 20/20 video on facebook, it stirred up quite a little controversy! One of the things I shared in that discussion was that I think that so much of our little territorial wars over issues from bottle feeding to schooling choices stems from fear that perhaps we didn’t make the best choice – that maybe a different way is just as good, or even better (*gasp!*). We do what seems best to us for our families and our children, but then instead of respecting the choices of others we declare them to be absolutely wrong (either in our heads or verbally!) and seek to prove that we have made the superior choice. It gets ugly.

Already with a 3 year old doing rather informal preschool, I feel a bit pressured. I don’t do “circle time” – is that bad? Should I find a co-op so she can play with other kids more often? The other night I found myself browsing preschool Bible curriculums that were just Bible stories retold… and then I thought, “hello! You don’t need a curriculum for that!!” Somehow because other people said they were using a resource that I wasn’t I felt like I was jipping my kids. There are so many awesome resources now for homeschool, but it is easy to start comparing yourself and wondering if you’re doing something wrong if what you’re doing is different.

My friend Julie over at Come Have a Peace shared some great wisdom today. She is a wise and godly woman who has had their kids in every form of schooling (two different ones right now) and understands the blessings and stresses of each. If you’re feeling pressured or frustrated or you just aren’t sure this is going to work… take a minute and listen to someone else who can share some balanced wisdom! You can read her post “When doing good goes bad” here.