Nice To Meet You

We are a God-fearing, Jesus-loving, blessed family of four that consists of me (The Accidental Teacher), my husband (The Principal), and our two kids, A380 and Little Toughie (I am also blessed with three adult step-daughters with families of their own).  We praise God, love Jesus, eat Paleo and stay active.  Eat, lift (prayers and weights), read and repeat; my day pretty much summed up with some household chores thrown in the mix throughout the day!

A380 is our son, born with Williams Syndrome.  He loves airplanes and can pretty much spot one in the air and tell you not only the airline but also the make of the airplane.  He's also obsessed with the weather.  I don't even have to watch the news to find out what the weather will be.  I just ask him!  He is very friendly and has a forgiving heart.

Little Toughie is our daughter.  She gave herself that nickname after both kids started Kids CrossFit (I began eating Paleo mid-2011 and then began CrossFit in 2012.)  She definitely lives up to her nickname.  She was born with Cauda Equina Syndrome with Neurogenic Bladder.  (Say that 5 times fast...go!)  She has a wonderful imagination and shares it with everyone.  Her kindness extends to others in many ways.  She has a small but might voice with goals to be on Broadway.  Watch out New York!

The Principal is a loving, hard-working and patient man.  We are very thankful that God has blessed him with a set of skills that allows me to stay home and care for our kids, given both their special but different needs.

As for me, The Accidental Teacher...I became an on-the-go mom when my son was born.  I thought I would rejoin the workforce once my son was three months old; being a "stay-at-home mom" wasn't in my plan.  God had something else in mind.  When my daughter was born, my plans once again turned into God's plan.  The decision to homeschool my daughter came after much prayer and contemplation.  You see, due to her condition, there are medical issues that need to be addressed on a daily basis.  We did not feel comfortable sending her to public school this way.  We were also up in the air about our son and the right Middle School for him given his syndrome.

After praying about it God answered us by opening doors for both of our kids.  Our son got into a school we applied for (after being wait listed for two other schools) thus, allowing him to get the services/therapies he still needed.  My eyes were opened to a Classical Conversations class that I was able to enroll my daughter in halfway through the year and experience the joy of homeschooling.  It all came together before me, in God's time and God's way.

I began homeschooling both kids during the summer of 2013.  My A380 got to join in, (I made his work age appropriate) though he would be starting his first year of Middle School.  His first year of Middle School became his last year of public schooling.  God used this year to open our eyes to areas that would do more harm than good to our son.  The decision to homeschool him from here on out came easy.

I am no expert.  This is a learning process for all of us.  It will not always be easy.  It may even become downright frustrating sometimes.  My job as a Christian parent is to "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it." -Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)  To me this means to instill a love for Jesus in their hearts, compassion for others and a desire to always learn.  Only with God's grace am I even able to approach any of this. 

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." -Philippians 4:13