One of the things you are always taught in any social media training is connect with your audience and connect regularly.  Well here I am with my regular connection....about once every year or two!  Yes I realize that is probably not what they intended. 

This blog is an outpouring of my thoughts, a journal of changes, and a log of the trials and tribulations we have experienced over the years.  This past year has been one for sure.  

Our on-farm creamery has grown exponentially since we began almost 4 years ago.  Last summer we spent maxed out on what we could do.  We were fortunate to be awaiting larger processing equipment, but as we waited, we ran batch after batch in our small 30-gallon pasteurizer.  We spent more time in those 4 white walls than we did in our house.  I wiped more milk jugs than tears.  It was a hard season for us.  It was a blessing from God for sure that we had outgrown our initial goals long before we projected.  Those blessings also brought hardships...growing a business is hard...not only financially but it's also hard on your family and your faith.  It stretches you far beyond where you are comfortable.  Growing means even longer days and shorter nights.  It means less time for things that we enjoy off farm.  It means bare bones when it comes to traditional schoolwork.  It means short tempers and sharp tongues, for which we must beg for forgiveness often.  

2024 brought new equipment mostly installed and operating.  It has lessened the time we spend in the creamery and allowed us more time to eat meals with our children and sleep.  We haven't found the perfect balance yet...and let's be honest we probably never will.  But we are farmers...and we will keep chugging along because that is what we do...we face challenges, we pray, we figure things out and make do with what we have.  

Mentioning school...yes we still homeschool...somehow...somedays...we get by.  That is how I feel our home education has gone the past 2 years.  We made it through, but it wasn't pretty.  It wasn't what I planned or dreamed it would be.  Our oldest finished his first 2 years of high school.  His desire for knowledge isn't on topics found in textbooks and lesson plans.  He dreads the idea of traditional book work and well honestly any mention of school in general.  Our younger 3 still find joy in learning all the things.  Their spark of interest and self education still remains.  I pray that this year we will be able to rekindle that spark in our oldest as well.  

This year I am praying we accomplish 2 things on the homeschool front... 

1. More consistent family discipleship and improve family relations; which will lead our children to the foot of the cross...whether they decide to accept Jesus is between them and the Saviour, but we have to lead them to him.

2. Develop a desire for knowledge and self education...by tossing some traditional textbooks out the window and using more real books and digging deeper into their interest I am hoping to increase their desire for knowledge in all areas, expand their sphere of interest and help them be motivated to self-educate on some topics and areas of study.  

That might be asking too much but those are the goals I have for the upcoming school year.  

We have goals for the farm and creamery as well.  We are still putting those thoughts together as we navigate growing our business and our babies.  

Homeschool Overwhelm

Home educating our children has been one of my greatest blessing and challenges.  I struggle with selecting the “perfect” curriculum for our kids.  I compound that struggle by picking apart every little thing I like and dislike about each one I pick, and I have picked plenty! 

Let’s just say right this very moment in my house we have not 1, not 2 but 9 learning to read options!  We have 6 math options, 7 history/social science options, 5 science options, at least 5 language arts options, 4 preschool options plus 2 foreign languages.

You think I’m indecisive don’t you…you might be right…you might not be.  You see I am educated in the ways of modern education.  I went through public school, 4 years of college, taught in public school… shoot I even went back to school to get my M.Ed in CURRICULUM, Instruction and Assessment.  You would think all that dang education (and debt) makes me well equipped to pick curriculum for my students.  It doesn’t mean a hill of beans!  You see my kids (or yours) don’t fit a box or a standard.  God designed each of them uniquely.  Their talents, their learning styles, their strengths, and their weaknesses are all designed by God.  I will never pick the “perfect” curriculum because it doesn’t exist. 

“We do the best with the options we have, and God will do the rest.”  Oh, how easy that statement is to say and how difficult it is to live.  I still am swimming in a sea of curriculum options.  I must change my mindset…my husband on the other hand lives this mindset daily.  Needless to say, he doesn’t understand my conundrum. 

Our school year starts in less than 2 weeks, YIKES!  Have I finalized my choices?  NO!!!  A sweet friend asked me last week at dinner what I had decided…because said friend already had nailed hers down…I just stared blankly at her for a moment.  My deer-in-headlight answer…something we already own.  My husband rolled his eyes…more books arrived this week. 

Another dear friend and I were discussing options and she mentioned she hadn’t even started looking for next year…my anxiety began to twitch…she rattles off a few things she is interested in looking at more closely…I offer her my copies to explore, because yes, I owned them all. 

We live in a unique time to home educate our children.  We probably live in the most accommodating time of the last 100 years to chose home education.  We have a plethora of options, support, and community to rely on.  We aren’t bound to just a few publishers who tweak classroom packages for the homeschool.  We have whole million-dollar companies dedicated to us!!  And there is the problem…they are all vying for our attention, our money, and our loyalty. 

So how do you decide?  Pray!  Once you have finished praying…you might have to do it again and again especially if you are like me pouring out your heart in prayer but not yielding to listen.  Once I slowed down and yielded to what HE was trying to guide me to…I realized a few things…

1.     It is more important that my home be Christ-centered, than a school centered. 

2.    Children for centuries have learned in multi-age groups.  Mommas you know that your tag-a-along picks up on things long before your bigs because they have heard the lessons…sometimes repeatedly.  

3.    Learning isn’t always neat and tidy, nor does it always look like textbooks and worksheets

4.    Our children must be able to communicate well in written and oral language.  They need to be well read and able to express themselves, defend their faith and move people with their passion. 

5.     We have to prioritize relationships over test scores.

Does this mean we are not going to have structured learning?  NO!!! I am NOT an unschooler by any means.  It means that I have a few days before I have to nail things down.  I am going to sit back and enjoy some time exploring and perusing rabbit trails.  I am going to pray.  I am going to discuss it further with my husband and together we will decide on a plan to fit our family, our life and most of all focus on our faith in Christ Jesus. 

Until we meet again may God bless you real good,

Caci

 Hey y’all!  It’s been a while!  Our life has changed so much in he last 3 years!  Honestly it’s hard to believe it’s been over 3 years since I typed a blog post.  It's even harder to believe that I walked out of my office job 4 years ago this week to start maternity leave with our youngest never to go back.  That was one of the scariest financial moves we have ever made, but it was the best move we've ever made for our family.

As you can tell the focus of this blog has changed a little as well.  I still plan to share about our family farm, but also I want this to be a place that all moms can find encouragement in their day.  I don't have all the answers.  Heck, ask my sister and best friend, they will tell you I often look to others for advice and guidance.  I'm still learning to walk with God, but I stumble and fall just like a toddler.  I'm still learning how to raise my children up to love God with all their heart, mind and soul.  I am still learning to how teach my children academically.  I'm still learning how to serve my husband the way God intended.  I'm still learning new ways of doing things around the farm, the house and creamery.  Just like you I'm still learning...

Please consider joining me on this journey...

Until next time may God bless you real good,

Caci