Home is where you start from: a peek at those less than stellar homeschool moments

Saturday, February 05, 2011

a peek at those less than stellar homeschool moments

A fellow homeschool blogger on the hive boards suggested we dare to chronicle the less than wonderful moments of our homeschooling week. I am convinced no one really wants to see how messy most of our bedrooms are right now, or the pile of laundry in my room, or the toothpaste gobs my younger two kids leave everyday on the sink.

Every.
Day.

Maybe it'll change your perception of me to know that I do not clean up those globs everyday, or make the two guilty persons clean it up everyday...but I ignore it for about a week and then clean it up/or make them clean it up.
I'll spare you the photographic proof.

I will share our Friday with you, however. This is what our dining table looked like after we finished our lessons for the day. We finished up, and then all my obedient, loving children scattered to the four winds, leaving this mess. Kind of makes me want to scatter, too. The one good thing about doing our schooling at the dining table is that the books do need to be put away by dinner time, at least.

So, my kids scattered- and I began putting the books away. I looked over my shoulder and noticed this stellar moment happening behind me. The three youngest students had gone straight to the couch in the family room and turned on the wii. I looked over and was struck with their slack-jaw/mesmerized expression and remembered this blog-dare. I knew this would be the moment I would capture.

Notice, for bonus points, the unfolded laundry piled on the foosball table. I have a laundry "nook" with no counter space, so I usually put clean laundry on the foosball table until my kids fold it and distribute the piles to their respective owners.

So, is a little bit real good to read on a blog, or can too much real be a turnoff?

Labels: homeschool

posted at 12:04 PM
17 comments

17 Comments:

At 12:59 PM, Anonymous said...: Im all about posting it how it is! I make no apologies for how messy my house is or how much laundry I still need to fold.. I focus on the important things first.. and yes I value a clean house and work a lot at cleaning it, but when you are a homeschooler and home more than most people then your house tends to get messier than most peoples.. As long as we have our other duties done then this is just fine by me
At 1:27 PM, Theresa said...: Love the reality! We have to all stick together and be honest...it makes me feel better knowing that I am not the only one with a pile of books and projects on a dining room chair and a coffee table piled high...and laundry...fuhgeddaboutit!

Oh and my kids also have the toothpaste gob issue and I only clean it up about once a week too!
At 1:56 PM, Jessica said...: Thank you for sharing this!!! Just yesterday I was thinking about my messy house. While most kids had almost 3 days of school off for snow days, my boys (6 and 2) worked hard on (messy) science projects while we were snowed/iced in. Even though my house was a mess, it was a great week of much accomplishment!
At 2:18 PM, Our Peculiar Lives said...: So true. You should see my desk. . . and my table. . . and my kitchen counter. . . and the top of the school cabinet. . . you get the picture. While I love a clean tidy house, I have resigned myself to the fact that it may not happen but once in a blue moon, and not stay that way for long. . . . on a photography side. . . am I the only one who loves the clone tool? For those times when there's a wonderful photo of the baby or toddler against the nice wood floor. . . and a piece of crumpled paper off in the background corner since the broom hasn't made it out yet. . . :P
At 2:42 PM, Aimee said...: Love it! I don't think we've made a bed all week!
At 3:36 PM, Emily said...: The toothpaste globs, the laundry, the immediate Wii playing, the books all over the table... You just made me feel incredibly NORMAL! Thanks!
At 6:03 PM, Unknown said...: It is always nice to see and hear that my home is no different than anyone else's. Thank you so very much for sharing your "real" life.
At 7:53 PM, Hen Jen said...: Khourt, yes-this. It drives me a little batty sometimes, I would love to wake up to-come home to/live in a show-worthy house, heck- company ready would be great! But, I am a homeschool mom, and the schooling comes first, even if dishes are piled in the sink and the floor needs to be moped.
At 7:55 PM, Hen Jen said...: Theresa,

yeah, I don't know what it is with the toothpaste, my older girls did not have such a problem! We've tried diff. types, but still a mess, the old-fashioned tube seems to be the least messy...

Jessica,

yes, I have to remind myself of all the wonderful moments, so a messy house won't bring me down
At 7:56 PM, Hen Jen said...: Jennifer,

Exactly! I love the clone tool!! It's great for taking off dirty fingerprints on chairs/windows! The photo of the kids on the couch, normally I would have cropped the laundry out! :)
At 7:57 PM, Hen Jen said...: Aimee,

we should make the beds?

?

[hah!]
At 7:58 PM, Hen Jen said...: Emily,

so glad I could help! [grin]. Um, yeah, there will be no photos of our bedrooms for a while, until I dig us out- dirty laundry and stuff everywhere. I do wish my house was clean all the time, but- eh, this is where we are at right now...
thank you for commenting!

much grace and peace to you this coming week,
At 7:59 PM, Hen Jen said...: Lynda,

I get the feeling most of us struggle with us, unless you are a true type A person- which I have known one or two..
At 10:44 AM, Anonymous said...: It's like you are peeking through my windows.
At 11:51 PM, Hen Jen said...: supermom- hah! we must be soul-sistahs!

I'm feeling the link/twitter love, thank you! So glad you commented;)
At 4:53 AM, The Adventurer said...: Glad to know my children aren't the only ones who leave toothpaste blogs in the sink:( I do make them clean it up every day, you would think they would do it on their own by now, but nope I have to tell them every single day, UGH! Stopping by from HHH
At 6:15 AM, alecia said...: Hi stopping by from HHH, love reading you rblog, we definately can relate with the laundry piles, bedroom mazes and oh lets not forget the gobs of toothpaste on the sink... thnaks for posting that's great!

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