Although January 1st usually gets credited with New Year’s Resolutions, isn’t it really at the end of August, as you gather school supplies gearing up to return to your normally scheduled activities that you make your greatest resolutions? Maybe they include that this year there will be more family dinners, or less stress before the school day starts, or for many of us homeschoolers a shiny new curriculum that will make it all easier, better, or that will somehow magically cater to our child’s exact needs. We get caught up in the optimism and potential that seemingly comes with a brand new pack of crayons. Which makes me smile and think of the movie “You’ve Got Mail” when the characters talk of fall and how it makes them want to run out and buy a bouquet of freshly sharpen pencils. I totally get that!

So here we are embarking on year seven of our homeschooling adventure. My oldest is now in 5th grade! My how time flies. I can’t believe that it has been so long since I first wrote our sweet Harvest Time Curriculum. Reflecting back, I have spent more time and money then I probably should have navigating the jungle of homeschool curriculums, educational theories, and whatnot. I have a library packed with what appears to be a grave yard of tested and rejected resources. This year my resolution is to NOT find the perfect writing program, to IGNORE the math that will produce prodigies, and to AVOID joining the co-op with crazy science labs or hard core history. I want to return to the first few years when homeschooling was sweet, simple, and allowed us plenty of free time to explore. So yes, this year we are trying something new, but simpler, and at the same time returning to something refreshingly familiar.

This is our first week back to school and so far so good. Things are moving smoothly and we have had more free time then I can remember in several years. Case in point… I actually have time to blog about it. So I’m sharing a highlight from our first week back. A local artist is now offering classes nearby and the kids have enjoyed spending some time in her studio. Pictured are the projects that they completed this week.
 

I wish everyone a great new year as kids return back to school or back to the kitchen table!