Staying Home

A friend of mine and I were talking recently and she said something that made me think. She said that there is nothing magical about staying home with ones children. Magical? No, that is not the word I would use. There is nothing magical in my children arguing about who gets to use the phone first, or who gets to sit in which chair. Nothing magical in the whines and complaints about having to read “a whole chapter” of their reader. And certainly nothing magical in the mess that ensues from 5 people being home all day.
The word I would use is - nice. I like the relationship my children have with each other. Aside from the bickering and arguing they have become friends in a way that they wouldn’t if they didn’t see each other all day. My relationship with them is also better, but there will come a day (a long time from now, God willing) when there father and I will be gone and all they will have will be each other. So I want to make sure they have a firm relationship before that time comes. I once asked my oldest daughter (who was about 10 at the time) if she ever wanted to go to school. She thought about it for a moment and said, ”It would be nice to go to school, because then I would have more friends. But I would really miss seeing my little sisters all day.” That really warmed my heart.
Now, I am not saying that I have this mothering thing down pat, or that my children are perfect little rays of sunshine sent down from heaven to brighten my life. I am a realist. I know that there are days that I blow it, and my children wish they could go to school anywhere else. When my children do not feel like little blessings, and days that I wish I could take a nice long walk with my children, right up to the school steps and drop them off. Being a mom is hard work and being a homeschooling mom is even tougher. But when all is said and done, I love having my children home with me.