Things I Love About Homeschool

Freedom.

I love that I don't have to call in to report Sean absent when he is sick. We just carry on with our day and keep it low key, or he can stay in bed if needed. I don't have to worry that he is going to have extra homework, or makeup work.

It's such a blessing that we don't have to jump through a lot of hoops in order to go on a family vacation.

We decided about a month ago that we wanted to take the kids to Orlando, Florida to visit Disney World. It was so nice to make that decision for our family on our own without any hesitation.

Neither of the kids had ever been. They are both getting older and Chuck and I figured this was the year to do it. They're old enough to remember it, old enough to walk long distances, but not too old to enjoy it the park and all it has to offer.

Our summers are a balmy 75-80 degrees with about 50 percent humidity, and a cool breeze off the water. Visions of standing in long lines for rides in humid, 90-degree weather in Florida got us thinking we should do a visit in the off season.

No special paperwork to fill out for being absent from school, no asking for permission, we just decided to go. We planned our trip, and we had a great time. Upon our return I didn't have to worry about makeup homework, or some sort of special report in return for the permission granted to us to be gone for a week.

And the trip was full of practical life lessons.
For instance:
How to pack what you need for a fun-filled week of vacation in a different climate.
How to navigate an airport.
How to plan for activities.
There were also some social interaction lessons. Sean met new people at the hotel pool. He had to exercise patience as we waited in long lines to enter and exit Disney World.

On top of that, he learned how to voice his feelings about certain amusement park rides, and how to ask the people who work there what to expect if he decided to ride. He also got to use his own judgement about which rides he believed he would enjoy, and which ones he knew he could not handle.

And he stretched himself a bit on a couple of rides. He talked it through with me, and on a couple of occasions decided the ride could be a bit scary, but he wanted to go ahead and try it anyway.

I love that we have the freedom to take a family vacation whenever we want to, and whenever it is best for our family. Having that freedom made it a truly enjoyable vacation for me, because I wasn't stressed out about him being absent from school.
It was so much fun, and it turned out to be a trip filled with teaching moments.