A huge boost to morale

As many of my readers know, I am a 'regular' on the Well Trained Mind forums.  It is there I've learned about new curriculum, new tricks, how to better manage my time, energy, and meals, and how to be a better homeschooler.  It's the book of the same name that gave me the confidence I needed to commit to homeschooling, and the forums have provided tremendous support.  The other day I opened up a topic that quickly caught my attention and brought tears to my eyes.  It was just exactly what I needed to hear at that moment in time subhanAllah.  I asked the poster if I could quote her, so here are her words... and she prefaced this all by talking about how 'not-perfect' she is, the normalness of her daily life.  She goes by Valerie.  Here is what she said:

"So now that we've established the "don't think I'm a supermom" context, here's my point: the "grunt work," the mind-numbing repetition of the essential skills, the patient and kind persistence in correcting until a skill is mastered, the effort put forth to ensure that their mental banks are well-stocked with needed facts, dates, and contextual data--all that effort is worth it for the eventual pay-off.

Please, oh please, do whatever you need to do to get through that part and move on with your day.
If you need to, set a timer and agree to book (i.e., run, sprint) through that skill-building work, and then when the timer is done, you're done: JUST DO IT. It will be enough if you do it consistently and with enough of a good attitude to enable learning. Take small steps day after day after day, month by month, year by year, and you'll get the job done.

Make time, too, for joy in your day: 30 minutes of a read aloud, 15 minutes of a tickle fight, making a habit of drawing a quick "I love you" on a small palm, a popsicle together, falling asleep with the toddler's sweaty head in the crook of your arm--find your joy with your children each day. Do that for yourself and for them. You'll be teaching them the essence of love: we're in this together, the good and the bad, the hard and the fun, the work and the play.

When you get to have big kids, even teens, you will reap the reward. Yes, some will have to "go their own way", whether it is related to academics or not, and they'll cause us to develop callouses on our knees.
 
But if you are still homeschooling, you may get the reward of studying George Herbert poetry together and watching your strapping 17 year-old man-cub get a bit misty at the mystery of Christ's righteousness enfolding us. The reward might be watching the lightbulb moment when that same teen studies Clarence Carson on economics and exclaims, "Mom, have guys really been talking about the free market since the 1600s?" He's beginning to understand in a visceral way--not just head knowledge--what it means to join The Great Conversation. And, if you have an early bloomer, you might have three or four years of that kind of mind-to-mind engagement, watching a beautiful, inquisitive young mind unfold and mature into something unique and delightful. Just as young parents can't bear the thought of having someone else be there for their baby's precious firsts, I can't imagine missing out on the joy of this journey with my teens. I'm privileged beyond measure.

Dear moms engaged in the trenches with little ones: I wish you peace and strength for today. I know you will need it. But I'm going to go all Stephen Covey on you: please reserve one ounce of strength for yourself to remember your dreams for your journey with each child. Or do it in your dreams after you've collapsed into bed. : )"