A picture of the Chaos

People will often ask me how you homeschool with multiple children. Yesterday I wrote on my Facebook page that I HAD NO IDEA! I think it was trying to come back from being out of town and jump back into things that left me simply drowning. (The mantra "just keep swimming" wasn't working yesterday.)

I sometimes believe that people have a nostalgic picture of my life in their minds -- simply because I keep such a public blog. I know that I have the same magical picture of other families in my mind. But let me tell you all now, IT IS NOT TRUE!

I took this video earlier today. We were in the middle of the boys trying to say their memory verses. Abigail had just woken up and was crabby. Hannah wanted attention. And the dog was even needy. You can see during this video what homeschooling actually looks like sometimes:



Don't get me wrong. There are peaceful moments sometimes too. It's like anything with parenthood. Sometimes everything comes together just right and you think, "I got this Mommy thing down." And then, well, all HECK breaks loose and you think "Am I out of my ever living mind?!"

Here is the truth of our life.

• There is yelling. JB rarely yells. But I do. I am working on it, but I'd be lying if I tell you I am always as peaceful as I sound on this video. And usually it isn't the yelling I don't like but the frustrated sound to my voice when I am just so tired and no one seems to be listening!
• There is fighting. My kids fight. I don't know what a "normal" amount of fighting is, but I would say we are in the spectrum of normal.
• There is arguing. JB and I don't always see eye-to-eye. We are always on the same team, but sometimes we have to remind ourselves of that.
• There are tears. I don't know how people can say that raising boys is the same as raising girls. While my boys cry now and then, these girls cry a lot! And sometimes, the grown up girl (aka -- me!) is crying as well.
• There is mess. While I consider myself an organized person, at any given moment that you might walk into my house, you will find piles of laundry, dishes in the sink, or toys strewn about.
• There is confusion. Where are my keys? Please go get some socks! No you can't wear your pajama shirt to the church! Bumps. Glitches. Drama. 
• There is overwhelm-adom. I often feel like I am crazy for trying to homeschool with four kids kindergarten and younger. I often wonder if I am capable. I often think I am not.
• There is fatigue. Lately, I have felt as if I am in a perpetual state of tired. 
• There is love. There are lots of hugs. Lots of kisses. Lots of love. We truly all love each other, and I am reminded, constantly, how much I prayed for this dream to come true!
• There is Christ. God is at the center of our family. We talk about him just as we might the weather or the days' agenda. We try to live for Him constantly, but we are constantly falling short!

We are not perfect. We are simply a normal family trying to live our life in a normal way. I hope this post reminded you that you too are normal!