Good Lessons, 2022

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This year, 2022, has been very difficult and stressful for me. Learning how to parent a teenager pushed me to the limit. It revealed things in my character which are not flattering. Starting high school as a homeschool parent – that was another difficult task. Last but not least, we started a new routine of driving to co-op, orchestra rehearsals, violin and harp lessons. That is a lot of time away from home and traditional academics.

Sunsphere in Knoxville, TN

The Tennessean Hotel and the Sunsphere in Knoxville, TN – we spend a lot of time in this city now.

In a way, I feel like saying, “Good riddance, 2022,” but that would miss the point. Instead, I should say, “Good lessons, 2022.” Homeschooling is not only for our children. We, the parents, learn plenty in the process, and not just about history, science, grammar, or math. Continue reading »


Feeding The Mouth That Bites You

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With 30 years of experience as a clinical psychologist, Dr. Ken Wilgus specializes in adolescent therapy. In 2015, Wilgus published a book which he titled “Feeding The Mouth That Bites You.”

Feeding The Mouth That Bites You

Planned emancipation

Wilgus describes a “Planned Emancipation” – a plan on how to prepare teens to become full adults. Continue reading »


Age of Opportunity

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If you have reached the age of parenting teens, you know it is a whole new level of existence. Reading books about it seemed like the way to go, but I didn’t. Why? Probably because I was busy doing what homeschooling moms do: teach, cook, supervise house chores, parent, chauffeur them plus, oh yeah, the pandemic.

Age of Opportunity

Age of Opportunity

In 2021, I did buy a book called “Age of Opportunty” by David Tripp, at the recommendation of a friend. It sat on my night stand in a stack of about eight books and five magazines for months. Continue reading »


Homeschooling Is Parenting

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I know, I know. Blanket statements do not stand the test of real life. Let me explain my title. “Homeschooling is parenting” means one cannot homeschool without being really good at parenting. You don’t have to be a certified teacher to teach your own children at home, but you do need to be a good parent to homeschool. Academics, believe it or not, are not as important in homeschooling as parenting skills.

Girl with lion statue in Gatlinburg

My daughter in The Village, downtown Gatlinburg

That does not mean your child will suffer academically if they are homeschooled. On the contrary, most homeschoolers score higher on standardized tests than their peers who attend public or private schools. But it does mean that unless you have some parenting skills, you will never even get to the table to teach junior how to read.  Continue reading »


Mom Monday Week 50 – The A-Bear

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Recently, I came across a great blog on gentle parenting or, as the blogger herself puts it, on how to yell less and love more: The Orange Rhino. Many of you may already be familiar with her work. I had never heard of her experiment to live yell-free for a whole year.

Her blog provides lots of tools for calming down. Her book, which I am in the process of reading, will walk you through 30 days of learning why we yell and how to replace yelling with successful parenting techniques.

As parents, we should all take the responsibility of calming our own nerves and temper down. Only we can do that for ourselves. The world around us will never be peaceful enough, quiet enough, or perfect enough to soothe our psyche.

mom monday wk50

I applaud anybody who takes the time to share what has worked for her in that department. Showing some vulnerability in the parenting blogosphere helps, too. How many of us have read a blog and felt completely intimidated by the perfection exemplified there?  Continue reading »