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mom2mpr
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I keep wondering what mine is. When I lived in VA a homeschooling neighbor had a back up plan, in case she couldn't homeschool anymore,or chose not too. She ended up using that plan with her ds's around third grade. Her plan was easy. Use Abeka and then put them in the Christian school around the corner that used Abeka :)
I have a third grader and can see that I might start thinking of a school "plan" for him. He is so lonely--we live rurally, there aren't any kids around us that I want him to hang out with. We do a co-op and he loves that and we do spend a lot of time "out."
Anyhow, just wondering what your "plans" might be--if you haved them.
Anne
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Paula in MN
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I don't have one and honestly have never thought about it. Good topic!
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 Paula
A Catholic Harvest
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Willa
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We would do something like the Robinson Curriculum The Robinson's mom died and the six children kept going basically on their own. Their dad was able to work at home and supervise. Robinson Curriculum
In our case too, my husband works at home. We both work hard to have a home-based life and education. We try to teach our children to be independent learners. This way they can continue to progress even during crisis times.
Good thread! I think that a family's back-up plans will be important in deciding what course they will steer in day to day life.
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AMDG
Willa
hsing boys ages 11, 14, almost 18 (+ 4 homeschool grads ages 20 to 27)
Take Up and Read
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lapazfarm
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I have thought about this some, but not much. But more like what if something happened to DH and I had to go to work to support us.
I think I would try very hard to have a home-based business, though I don't know what that would be. I would most likely go with unschooling, hoping at that point that dc have developed enough independence and love of learning to continue always learning on their own, with my guidance. For me, that would beat sending dc to public school.
There are no Catholic schools here, so I don't have that option.Not that I would be able to afford it anyway.
If something happened to ME I would ask that my husband come to you dear ladies for advice!
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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bfarmmom
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Great topic. I was just thinking of this as I have had a few days of dragging the kids through learning, and daydreaming about them being in school   But that is a whole different discussion!! I was thinking of a Montessori school. We have two that are close to us, that way if the children are not up to par they could go at their own pace.
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Kirsten
ds13,dd12,dd10,ds7,dd6, dd 4, ds 2
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Nina Murphy
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I never did have one. I assumed they would just be at home and be homeschooled. I certainly have built up quite a stock of curricula and a library from 13 1/2 years...!
But this is a relevant thread; we are actually very seriously considering our options right now and are deep in prayer about it.
Our traditonal FSSP Parish (with mostly large families who homeschool) is trying to start a school for next year, but just 7-12 and likely boys-only. We do have many Catholic schools surrounding us.
I am in a state of unrest right now and just do not know what God wants. Good thread....interested to hear other voices and the considering of options and thinking about getting to that point where it no longer is serving the children's best interests....????
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God bless,
~~Nina
mother of 9 on earth,
and 2 yet-to-be-met
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guitarnan
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Hahahaha...This IS the backup plan.
Seriously. We did the Catholic school thing for five years. We were sent to Italy by the Navy...no English-speaking Catholic schools, and a terrible base school...and here we are, five years later, still executing the backup plan.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Dawnie
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We are very fortunate to live in a diocese that has a stewardship plan...that means that if you tithe and volunteer in your parish and agree to do so for your entire lifetime, you do not have to pay tuition to send your child to a diocesesan Catholic school.
So, if we decide to stop homeschooling, we can always send our dc to our parish Catholic school, as long as we maintain a history of tithing and stewardship.
I think it would actually bring me greater peace, though, to be able to commit to homeschooling for the long-term, because since I don't know if we'll homeschool through high school, I feel like I have to "keep up" with the other children of similar age. That way, our children won't be behind if we do put them in our parish school.
Dawn
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mom2mpr
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Dawnie wrote:
I think it would actually bring me greater peace, though, to be able to commit to homeschooling for the long-term, because since I don't know if we'll homeschool through high school, I feel like I have to "keep up" with the other children of similar age. That way, our children won't be behind if we do put them in our parish school.
Dawn |
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I have felt the same. If I could just commit to homeschooling, and not worry about school, a lot of the pressure would be off me and I could enjoy the journey so much more  BUT, dh is probably drawing near the end of his support and ds is kind of lonely. I don't want ds to have to adjust to school(at 5th or 6th grade--not the best time to enter the "system")so I need to try to keep him up with the peers. I also think how nice it would be to have dd alone, as I did ds for so many years, and do the preschool stuff with her and enjoy her. I try not to get too involved in those thoughts because while it is hard to have both of them home, I think she is learning a lot!
I am still muddling through this and it is hard to do when you are not even sure you are going to still be living in the same location in a few years! I don't want to expend all the energy to find a "plan" then move 
Anne
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JennyMaine
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This is a good question. I guess a quick answer is that I do not have a back-up plan. . .I try to leave that in God's hands.
I started out as a SAHM with a wonderful husband and we knew before we even had our two children that we wanted to homeschool. When the children were about 6 and 4, he walked out on us. Talk about needing a backup plan! LOL I resisted everyone's pressure to work ft and put the kids in school. Our priest even offered to let them start school that year tuition free. Instead, I did lots of praying and felt that it was more important to be with my children than ever. God worked things out. It will be seven years this fall since I unexpectedly became a single mom, and God is still working it out. I leave the backup plans to Him, for Him to reveal in His own good time.
Why can I trust Him for the backup plan? Because I truly believe with all my heart that He called us to this homeschooling lifestyle for a reason. What reason? Well, in hindsight, I think it was to help ease my children's heartache and looking hopefully ahead, to help foster a vocation to religious life in each of them. So, because I rest in His will for us, even on my worst days I don't mentally scrounge around for a backup plan. It may sound radical, but my commitment to homeschooling isn't up for grabs. . .kind of like my commitment to my marriage never wavered. Even on my worst days, I was in it for the long haul (too bad he wasn't, also! LOL)
Rather than reconsidering your call to homeschooling when each problem comes up, it is a good tactic to expend your energy trying to solve that problem within your homeschool lifestyle. What can you do to ease your son's loneliness without giving up homeschooling? Make a list and implement one or two ideas. Also, be sure you aren't projecting your own needs and loneliness as a woman onto your son. . .is he complaining constantly of being lonely? Often, we as women feel the lack of companionship much more than our sons ever would! Just food for thought. . .
Jen
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--JennyMaine, Mom to Catherine (17) and Sam (15) "The countenance is a reflection of the soul. You should always have a calm and serene countenance." -- Therese of Lisieux
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Paula in MN
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JennyMaine wrote:
| It may sound radical, but my commitment to homeschooling isn't up for grabs. . .kind of like my commitment to my marriage never wavered. Even on my worst days, I was in it for the long haul (too bad he wasn't, also! LOL Jen |
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JennyMaine, you hit the nail on the head! Thank you!
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Paula
A Catholic Harvest
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Carole N.
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I so agree with JennyMaine.
I remember when we first started hsing (nine years ago). I thought well if it was to hard, I would just put them in school. But each year, I become more convicted that this is a way of life for us, a non-negotiable part of our life, just like our marriage.
Only on vary rare occassions have I thought about a back up plan. But I like JennyMaine's advice--to leave it in God's hands. We are committed to hsing, and I believe that He will help us should the need arise.
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Carole ... in Wales
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cathhomeschool
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We planned for the long haul from the beginning, always realizing, though, that God can have other plans! We live in a fairly decent PS district (as decent as the local private schools, anyway), so we think that we would put the kids in public school if the need ever arose. I don't base our schooling on that possibility, though, and I don't worry about it. God will provide a direction if it ever comes to that.
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Janette (4 boys - 22, 21, 15, 14)
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TracyQ
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The other day when my sister was here, when my sister asked what we'd do if anything happened to me (and she's a huge supporter of us, we were talking about life insurance and budgeting at the time). My dh answered, *Well, they'd have to go to school.*
I wanted to cry! But I also know that at that time, my dh would ask the Lord to lead and guide him in all of his decisions with the kids. Our oldest will be a senior next year, our second is in 9th, and our youngest is in 6th grade. I'm praying just to make 7 more years at this point! If it's my dh that would go before us, we have a good amount of life insurance that would help us through, I think, and I know God would see us through, because He's never let me down yet, and I know He never will! And we actually have pretty good insurance on me too, because when we got it, Marty thought he'd need to pay for daycare if something ever happened to me. But now, it would be used to send them to Catholic school.
Truthfully, when we began, WE didn't have the vision for homeschooling, and I didn't really WANT to do it. But I did know without a doubt (and with the gift of a sign from God) that He DID want us to. So in obedience, we obeyed, and our vision for our children has grown from there, right along with the Lord's.
I have trusted God in humble obedience and love for all of these 12 years on this wonderful journey with all of my heart, every single day that we homeschool. We've gone through good times, we've gone through bad. We've had good days, we've had bad. But we've had them TOGETHER, something I will never ever take for granted, nor never ever regret.
So when Satan keeps whispering his lies to me, sometimes every single day, especially through these high school years, the worst of all in terms of confidence and fear, and when I feel scared, lonely, and full of fear, sometimes excrutiatingly, I stop, and pray to the Lord in thanksgiving for the gift of each of our children, and the wonderful young men and lady that they've become already, for my wonderful husband who has supported us in every way through this journey, through his hard work, through his time and help academically, and through his support of me as his wife and their mom, and his support of our children in many ways, and for the example he is. I pray in thanksgiving for our family, and the family we have become BECAUSE of this journey, something I am most grateful for. I truly believe in my heart that our family would be a different family if we hadn't homeschooled, and that my relationship with each child, and their relationship with each other would be very different if we weren't homeschooling. And I pray in thanksgiving to the Lord for using me to serve Him in such a powerful, incredible, wonderful, and truly magnificent way.
All God's ever asked of me is to trust Him without explanation, in humble obedience, promising that He'd never leave me nor forsake me if I trusted and obeyed. We've both been faitful to our promise to each other, and I'm thankful. *God does not call the equipped, He equips the called!* I was certainly not equipped for this, but He has equipped me with His GRACE, and His love, and He's always given us everything we need, and led us in the way that He would want us to go. What a blessed journey it's been thus far! 
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Blessings and Peace,
Tracy Q.
wife of Marty for 20 years, mom of 3 wonderful children (1 homeschool graduate, 1 12th grader, and a 9th grader),
homeschooling in 15th year in Buffalo, NY
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TracyQ
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Jen,
You are a blessing and a wonderful example to me, and hold a special place in my heart. My mom raised 6 children on her own who were ages 2-10 years old after our father abandoned her/us. She is an amazing woman, and a wonderful mom. I am truly blessed, and I know your kids are as well. There is a mom in our homeschool group who is in the same situation, and I often pray for her in a special way. I'll remember to pray for you, and all single homeschool moms when I pray for her.
May you be blessed in all you do. What you said above really blessed me when I read it today. Thank you.
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Blessings and Peace,
Tracy Q.
wife of Marty for 20 years, mom of 3 wonderful children (1 homeschool graduate, 1 12th grader, and a 9th grader),
homeschooling in 15th year in Buffalo, NY
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Do you have a "back up" plan?
