Homeschooling is as much of a privilege as it is a calling! I recognize this and truly try to not take it for granted. If women in third world countries are staying home to care for their children and even homeschool them at times, surely there's got to be a way to do so here in America! Here are a few things our family has done to make my presence at home a priority in our budget, along with some links to other wise women that have come up with extremely creative ways to make it work!
Our Best "Yes"
When we were deciding to purchase a home, the thought of having me go to work for a time so that we could afford a more suitable home for our family was very tempting. However, we knew that we didn't want to be strapped, so we decided to trust that God would provide a home for us in our budget and we left it at that. This has been a common theme in our marriage since all we've ever known is being in full-time ministry. (Click here to see our journey of homes that we've walked with God through--from basements to 4,000 square foot houses). We didn't know if the 'home' that God would provide would be a house, townhouse, condo, or apartment. We just knew that our best 'yes' was having mom at home. Have I worked part time jobs here and there to help with our financial needs? Yes! I even taught piano for a decade. The biggest decision however was that first home-buying decision--we did not want to be strapped to a two household income so we were committed to buying a home with whatever one income could afford. I can tell you that this has paid off in so many ways! Once you purchase a home the payments will always be going up, just like the cost of living. Are you willing to sacrifice your living arrangements in order to homeschool? For some, this may be an overwhelming request, as you are comfortable, or can't even imagine downsizing. For us, it was a little easier since we started out that way. Regardless, if God is calling you to do this homeschool thing I encourage you to trust Him with your finances--He will make a way! It might be really hard, but being where the Lord wants you to be is always worth it.
Women Are Making It Happen In Order to Afford to Stay Home and Homeschool
Moms AMAZE me. I meet with women every week who work in all kinds of creative ways to help their family financially be able to homeschool. Some women are working nights and then coming home to sleep for a few hours before getting up to homeschool a few times a week. They are my heroes! Some moms are working part time and opposite days from their friend so they can swap childcare. (Check out this episode on The Super Simple Homeschool Podcast to hear a panel of moms talk about their practical routines for being able to work and homeschool!) In order to work, some homeschool moms do have to hire a nanny or sitter for a season--this might defeat the whole purpose of getting away to work for some financial needs but you do what you gotta do and if you can hire a nanny, do it! For me, I really tried to work my schedule around my husband's work schedule since he has a flexible job. I would teach piano during hours he was home or when he could take a break to do his 'super dad thing.' Maybe your husband doesn't have a flexible job so you feel discouraged with how to make it possible? Check out Steph Crynes on instagram @homeschoolinghomemakermom as she has truly figured out how to work minimally through digital marketing to be able to financially support her family. Working wisely has given her more freedom and she now spends her days mentoring moms who want to do the same. Check out my interview with her on The Only Love Today Podcast to hear her full story. The bottom line is, if God has placed it on your heart to be at home with your children then you can be sure He will provide a way to make it happen. There will be sacrifices for sure, but nothing compares to gaining thousands of hours back with our kids through homeschool.
CONCLUSION
I'll close with a brief list of things our family does and doesn't do because of our values and priority to homeschool. Honestly, if you're reading a blog post like this you're probably already doing many of these things but I figured they would be worth sharing anyhow.
Things We Do/Don't Do
WE DO:
Use the EveryDollar App from Dave Ramsey-it holds us accountable for every penny and we can plan our monthly budget intentionally, and with accountability
Meal plan literally everything (otherwise we waste food and overbuy/overspend)
Make lots of things from sourdough--It's time consuming sometimes, but it gives our family whole food nutrition for a reasonable price--pizza, bagels, bread, and even waffles!
Buy used cars (debt free when we can)
Use free curriculum as much as possible, and take care of it
Live in town so we aren't spending much on gas to get to fun places
Workout at home/outside
Swap childcare with friends
Fix things that are broken and take care of our 'stuff', this is simple stewardship of what God's given us--whether it's a free chair or a new-to-us couch, we care for it and teach our kids to do the same
Charge my kids for going outside in their socks --It's funny but it's true! We don't have endless money to be running around the neighborhood and ruining socks every two seconds. It sounds harsh but my kids have learned to be more mindful of either going barefoot or wearing shoes! I even got in trouble with my kids for going out back in my socks the other day lol!
Cut out all unnecessary subscriptions and extras (There was a time in our lives when we really only had what we needed for food and housing and we made it through by God's grace! We got creative doing fun FREE things as a family and we focused on what we DID have instead of complaining about what we DIDN'T have) I love the quote, "gratitude turns what we have into enough"
WE DON'T
Eat out much
Purchase fancy drinks--I dare you to look at what you spend on flavored water, juice, etc each month. Occasionally I'll spend a couple bucks on a large pack at Sam's Club, but we live for water :)
Buy lots of snacks, we eat full meals and avoid buying lots of prepackaged snacks which means my kids eat either fruit or homemade snacks as much as possible
Buy things we can't afford to pay for in full cash (we recently needed our truck to have another seat, so my husband went to the junk yard and found a matching bench for $40 to install which turned our truck from a five seater into a six seater!)
Say 'yes' to invitations to places/events we didn't plan for financially (you're going to miss out on some things in life and it's okay!)
Go "shopping" just for fun, we go when we need something or have gift money to spend
My Prayer For You, Mama
Lord, you know the mom reading this blog and her heart's desire to be at home with her children, but also the fear that comes with this sacrifice. I pray that all fear would be cast out in Your name, Jesus, and that this mama would be overwhelmed with your peace and faithfulness. Remind her of what's truly important and how you've brought her through hard struggles in the past. Help her to sacrifice all that is needed in order to serve you this way. May this blog post encourage her to take that next step forward in order to homeschool bravely, while trusting your provisions. Thank you for paying the ultimate cost on the cross for us, Lord. We trust You and we desire to do all these things in order to honor you and point our children towards your heart and arms. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.
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