by Emma Riley Sutton

Created on: May 14, 2008   Last Updated: June 21, 2011

I was nuts to start homeschooling our daughter. I am still nuts for continuing to homeschool her. I will remain nuts and get even nuttier for homeschooling her until she starts college. I need my head examined. I need a heart transplant - mine is too big to allow my daughter to go to school with all the junk going on there. Talk about a love/hate relationship.

I love homeschooling because I know exactly what my daughter is learning and how well she is doing with her studies. I do not have to rely on a stranger (teacher/babysitter?) to tell me how she is doing. I control what she learns. As a Christian, I teach her what our family believes, as well as what the world thinks she should know. She will make up her own mind about her beliefs and faith.

I hate homeschooling because I know exactly what my daughter is learning and how well she is doing with her studies. I have to decide what to teach and what not to teach. If she falls behind or doesn't excel, I am to blame. Her education rests entirely on my shoulders. If she can't read or do algebra, I can't say the school system failed her. I have to say I failed her.

I love homeschooling because I get to spend time with my daughter. I get to watch her mind expand. I get to see the look in her eyes when she learns something new - that look of pride only education can provide. I watch her grasp on to new concepts and apply them to the ones she has already learned.

I hate homeschooling because I get to spend time with my daughter. I have to see her face twist up when she doesn't understand something. I have to see the look in her eyes when she struggles to learn something - that look of disappointment only the thought of failure can cause. I have to see her try over and over to figure something out and apply it.

It is a love/hate relationship that I wouldn't trade for anything. The pros far outweigh the cons. It is hard. It is the biggest responsibility I have ever had. I hold her future in my hands - to hand it to her and let her run with it or to throw it away and watch her not live up to all her potential. I'm not complaining or bragging. I am stating facts. I love homeschooling and I hate homeschooling. I love it far more than I hate it. It is the most rewarding, fascinating and fun thing I have ever done, despite all the hard work and responsibility. I wouldn't change a thing. Yes, I am nuts.

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