A Day in the Life

There are a lot of misconceptions about homeschooling families. Some people believe that we never leave our home. Some people believe that we spend all day in front of the TV. Some people believe that we spend our days hunched over a Bible praying that the world will soon end. Some people believe that our children run feral throughout the land and bathe with the animals. Some people believe that we spend all day, every day quizzing each other on random historical facts. Some people believe that we just pretend to educate our children in an effort to circumvent the oversight of the government schools. 

None of these are completely true, and yet there are portions of each of these ideas that are true. We do prefer the ability to choose our curriculum and learning style without interference from the state system. We do test each other's knowledge. We do spend time with our animals and our Bibles. We will watch TV for educational content and occasional enjoyment. If given the opportunity, I love staying home (even if this rarely happens). 

Our days are never the same from day to day and often vary from week to week. Here is a small attempt to give you a glimpse to a "typical" day at home for us. This is how our day on Monday, April 29th unfolded. 

5am: I awake to a dark and quiet house. This is my favorite time of day as it is the calmest. I grab a cup of coffee and utilize this time to complete computer work without interruptions. This includes personal and business financials, correspondence with customers, marketing activities, website updates and homeschool lesson planning. 

6am: The hubby wakes up. He is not one to jump up and go so he needs some time to really "wake up". 

630am: Hubby and I have our morning meeting. We have discovered that having a quick morning meeting allows us to clarify our goals for the day and prevent a lot of issues with miscommunication. This was going to be a day at home working on the farm and school.

~7am: Wake up the kids and have a quick family meeting. This meeting is used to clarify the day's activities as these often vary. We also utilize this time to assign the morning chores. 

There were some odd wildlife noises overnight and although hubby didn't see anything during this time, he took the opportunity at the first light to check on the lambs in the far field. This allowed the kids time to get dressed and ready for chores. All the sheep were accounted for and doing well. 

Monday was a day of moving some animals to new pasture and giving minerals. Due to the physical requirements of moving fences, the gentlemen of the family focused on the outdoor chores while I worked with the ladies to clean the house, take care of the baby, fix breakfast, etc. The chickens, goats and steer were all moved to new pasture and one of our rabbits was moved to an outdoor pen for new scenery and fresh pasture. 

After the normal outdoor chores were completed, the hubby placed landscape fabric under one of my raised beds and onto a section of the garden. This allows me to work on these areas at a later time without having to wait for help with these cumbersome and heavy objects. Then, he went to the far field to work on the electric fence. 

After the normal indoor activities were completed, the girls went outdoors for free time, and I completed some unfinished paperwork and correspondence. They found a toad. After a lengthy discussion, it was decided that the toad MUST live outside and not in their bedroom. 

My son and I washed and packaged eggs for future sale at the Farmers' Markets. 

During the morning activities, I discovered that we needed stamps, milk and that the local strawberry patch was advertising a good picking day in their field. One of these things by themselves wouldn't have made me change our day's plans but they all seemed to point to the fact that we needed to run these errands. We prepared the jars for return to the milkman and gathered buckets for strawberry picking. 

~1030am: We ate breakfast of egg-pancake puff and sausage that one of the girls made. Apparently, the boys were still hungry and fixed a quick batch of oatmeal. 

~11am: The hubby logged into work on the computer and was hidden away in the back office. The oldest kid asked not to attend the strawberry picking due to allergy issues. He stayed home and worked on his schoolwork in the peace and quiet. The rest of the kids and I left to complete our errands. 

~12pm: After a quick stop at the post office, we arrived at the strawberry field (we live rurally so every activity takes some time to arrive to our destination). This field is relatively close to our milkman's farm and is run by another homeschooling family. They have always been so kind to us, and we love going to their farm. 

We picked strawberries, visited and left. 

Next, we exchanged our empty jars for ones filled with fresh milk from our herd share. We are very lucky to have this resource available to us and are grateful that the family offers this service from their farm. 

~Mid-Afternoon: We returned home. Our oldest fixed lunch while we were gone. We unloaded the vehicle and then had a quick lunch. I reviewed the schoolwork completed by the oldest while we were out. Then, he took the baby outside to play (the nap in the car was enough for her and she refused another one). She chased a soccer ball while he practiced his handling skills with another one. 

The other three kids and I worked on schoolwork. 

~Early evening: We put away our schoolwork and everyone dispersed to various activities. We have an abundance of eggs right now so the oldest worked to prepare some freezer meals for us to heat up on busier days. He also made a strawberry pie with our newly acquired abundance. When finished, he went to the workshop to work on some woodcraft projects. 

Our other son helped me to prepare the freeze dryer with fresh cut strawberries. I used some of the tops to make strawberry vinegar that will be used in dressings at a later time. The rest of the strawberry tops were given to the rabbits, chickens and ducks as a treat. 

The hubby took the time during his lunch break to prepare the pork stew for our supper. 

The youngest two played outside on the swing set and trampoline. 

Then, our son and I worked to transplant various seedlings from trays and other garden work. He escaped for some time by himself to research a new project that he is interested in (bees). 

Our daughter took this free time to print out photos that she has been taking with her camera. She is really enjoying the artistic side of photography. Later, she joined her sisters in a game that ensued in multiple giggles. 

~Later evening: We completed our evening chores that included collecting eggs, putting the rabbit back into her cage, moving the brooder chicks inside and closing up the barn. 

~830pm: The hubby logs off of work and it took the two of us to convince the baby that it was time to go indoors. She loves playing outside! 

We washed up and prepared plates for dinner. We don't eat around the table like other families, but instead use this time to watch one TV show together. This allows the introverted members of the family to have a break and forces the more extroverted members to stop talking for a bit. 

After dinner, the hubby does bathtime with the baby and prepares her for bed. The kids and I clean up from supper and prepare for bed. I tend to go to bed before the kids, but they don't mind. They enjoy the free time to read, play a video game or watch TV. They are usually asleep by 1030pm. Getting the baby to sleep is not always so easy! 

The rest of the week will not look like this Monday. The kids have various other activities scheduled that include (but are not limited to) Livestock Judging class, Co-op classes, 4H, horse lessons, hair appointments, soccer practice and Farmers' Market. With cooperative weather, we plan to complete electric fencing, plant more items in the garden and integrate our younger chickens and ducks into our larger flock. We will continue to work on our schoolwork. We will continue to complete the chores required to maintain the farm. We will continue to address issues as they arise.

We cannot live this lifestyle in isolation from each other. The only way that this works is that we cooperate for a common purpose. We all have different skills and interests but living on the farm and homeschooling allow each of us to pursue those endeavors in a fun and engaging way.