guest blogger – Embracing Motherhood

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Reflections on a Homeschool Journey from 1987

Education, Guest Blogs, Mom Stories, Teaching

By Guest Blogger: Diane Napierkowski

Written December 1987

Homeschooling Pros

No peer pressure (parent pressure instead)
Able to get along with all ages
**More of our values
Already I feel ostracized at Bushnell
*Very much a family
Enjoying these years instead of enduring these years
*New nicer friends, friends who respect religious conviction
Easier vacations
More respect from kids
*Kids get to be kids
No Christmas compromise
*No Rock ‘n Roll on the bus
Less busy work
Less sickness
*Sickness won’t interfere with school
*Twins won’t miss the big kids
Won’t feel that someone else has control of our children
Less $ spent on clothes
Lots of fun!
*Field trips
**More excitement about parenting
Next kids esp.

Cons of Homeschooling

**Can I do it
**Can I do it well
*Less kids to play with
Ostracized by teachers if they return
Expensive
*No free time
*Hassles with family and friends
*Maybe new friends won’t like our religion
*Lunch-time and $
*Learning well already
Court case
Brethren reject
Less stylish clothes
Dad added: ***Is it the best use of our time, that is using the government (?) for the good it does and then adding our own good
May fear telling world about our religion
Homeschooling Pros and Cons Original List

The Decision to Homeschool

When I was in the middle of 2nd grade and Jarrod was in the middle of 1st, they pulled us out of public school to homeschool us. I ended up going back to public school in the 8th grade, my brother Jarrod went back in the 11th grade, and my three younger siblings, Andrea, Lisa, and David were homeschooled K-12.

More than anything, being homeschooled allowed us to follow our own passions. Sure we did our workbooks and mastered the necessary skills, but the majority of our days were spent engaged in creative and imaginative play, exploring nature, and pursuing our own interests.

Family Photo 1988: Stacey, Rich, Jarrod, Andrea, Lisa, Diane, and David

First Day of Homeschool: Jan 4, 1988

Wow! Was it scary! “Is the school going to call? What will the neighbors say? Russ? Mom? Can I do it? Do I want to?” I needed encouragement today. But Barb Welch is in California for the refresher. Rich calmed me down markedly yesterday afternoon. “Remember why we decided on this, Di? It was for good, sound reasons, well thought out. We have legal protection, etc.” I needed to be reminded of all of that. We worked hard and long. Flash cards, work books, 2 pages each book minimum. School zone book 1 pg. Jarrod. Stacey and Jarrod spelling words.

First Day of Homeschool

First Year of Homeschool: June, 1989

What about the cons? Yes, I can do it and do it very well! There are fewer children to play with, but it’s really special when they do come over. No problem with being ostracized if they return. The money is well spent and fun to spend! I have plenty of free time – they help out with the baby, twins, etc. Good kids. No hassles from family and friends. Very minor occasionally, but it doesn’t bother me. Money and time spent on lunch is no big deal. TV is no problem. Just hard, fast rules with few exceptions on TV and Atari. They are learning well now. Brethren don’t reject much. The kids do wear less stylish clothes. It is definitely the best use of our time. Our short comings surpass their strong points. Our religion just is. It’s not like we’re so different anymore.

What about the pros? 75% peer pressure gone. Definitely can blend in with all ages well. More of our values. No tug of war with school over whose kids they are (values, etc.) It is fun! We are very much a family. We are definitely enjoying these years. Jennifer Metskar – new good friend. Not many more. Kids are more respectful, polite. They are socializing and want to be cool still. Holidays don’t phase us at all. No bus ride. No busy work. Still get sick. Twins love them. No fear AT ALL that someone’s taking my kids away. LESS $ spent on clothes. Lots of fun. We need more field trips – Lansing, etc. Parenting is natural, what it was meant to be.

Family Photo 1989: Rich, Diane, David, Stacey, Jarrod, Andrea, and Lisa

Homeschooling Goals for 1989-1991

Play the piano
Speak Spanish
Know all the countries, US States, capitals
Know the presidents
Do real well in math and enjoy it
Read avidly
Be into Church literature – studies, etc.
Be able to write stories (interesting), reports, letters
Get exercise, ride unicycle, water ski, snow ski
Be interested and self-motivated in science
Be very comfortable on computers
Type

Family Photo 1990: Diane, Rich, Stacey, Jarrod, David, Andrea, and Lisa

Family Photo 1991: Rich, Diane, Stacey, Jarrod, David, Lisa, and Andrea

Stacey Wants to Go Back to Public School (8th Grade): July 31, 1993

Pros of Going Back to Public School:

She wants to
More variety of involvement and education (pottery, woodshop, reports, sports, etc.)
Makes high school easier
More people
Easier to learn
Have a change to excel

Cons of Going Back to Public School:

Fear that she’ll go over the deep end (common sense, though, says she won’t)
Less free time
Mandatory learning
Not home until after 3
No sleeping in or up late
No after school sports
There are gangs
Lots of hallway kissing
Age in which most girls have sex

Family Photo 1992: Diane, Rich, Stacey, Andrea, Lisa, David, and Jarrod

Family Photo 1993: Jarrod, Stacey, Andrea, Rich, Diane, Lisa, and David

Family Photo 1994: Jarrod, Stacey, David, Rich, Diane, Lisa, and Andrea

Update: Jan 25, 1995

Stacey’s in school – She has gotten into a “cool” attitude – disrespectful.

Family Photo 1995: Stacey, Jarrod, David, Rich, Diane, Lisa, and Andrea

Family Photo 1996: David, Lisa, Rich, Jarrod, Diane, Stacey, and Andrea

Family Photo 1997

Family Photo 1998

Family Photo 1999

Family Photo 2000

Family Photo 2001

Family Photo 2002

Family Photo 2003

Family Photo 2004

Family Photo 2005: Stacey and Scott’s Wedding

Update: Jan. 20, 2015

Stacey is considering homeschooling! I’m typing this up for her!! She’s a precious friend who uplifts me.

In Conclusion

So many of my young friends are asking me about my homeschool journey. It is so wonderful to see another generation of homeschool parents who are asking the same questions that I did. As time goes by, I feel even more happy about our decision to homeschool. A few doubts such as my inability to teach footnotes used to make me feel like a loser. Now I see that the greatest gift I could give my kids was to remove obstacles from them finding their own true norths. I think they each have.

Author Bio: Diane is a mother of five who home schooled her children and is passionate about learning, teaching, seeking the truth, living a healthy lifestyle, and spending time with her family. When not working as a Quality Engineer, she can be found supporting her husband in their family run fundraising business at Great Lakes Promotions.

August 16, 2017/by Stacey Maaser

Buying a New Computer Shouldn’t Cost a Fortune

General, Teaching, Technology

By Guest Blogger: Scott Maaser

If you’re in the market for a new laptop or home computer, check out these recommendations from our resident School is back in session, and that means back to school shopping. Pens, notebooks, backpacks – everyone knows how to shop for those items, but when it comes to computers, sometimes the amount of options and features can be overwhelming. Where do people go to get recommendations for computers? Most people I know go into a big-box store like Best Buy, but stores like that have to cover a lot of overhead and aren’t really looking out for your best interests.

Who Am I?

I’d like to take a quick break here and talk a little about myself and my experience. I’ve worked at Best Buy in the past, and I’m currently working as a Client Technology Technician, which is just a fancy way of saying I just fix computers at a large company. I’m fixing laptops day in and day out – both in the workplace and with my co-worker’s computers. I’ve been doing work like this on and off for the last 20 years.

What They’re Really Selling You

My wife just sent me a link to this website which advertises discounted laptops for homeschoolers. I looked through what they offered, and I noticed a couple of things. First of all, I saw a few models of the laptops they offered as ones I had worked on 4-5 years ago. Looking at their pricing, I didn’t really see how their price points offered any kind of noticeable discount. I know they do include a 4 year warranty, laptop bag, and 8GB flash drive, but not everyone wants to purchase all those add-ons. They also offer a slight discount on Microsoft Office at $118 (more on this later).

If you take a look at their Lenovo T400 at $250, for example, I noticed that it came out in 2010 and really does not have the specs to compete with modern processors and memory technology. In fact, Amazon currently has T400s selling for less than that.

So look, all this aside, I know there are some really good laptops (and desktop computers) out these days that come with a manufacturer’s 1-year warranty, have modern technology, and cost significantly less than the computers you can get from big-box stores and most online retailers.

My Laptop Recommendation

Lenovo 100s with Windows 10 – I have been using Lenovo laptops and ThinkPad laptops for over a decade. They hold up the best over time and have had the least number of issues during normal wear and tear. This version of the 100s has double the standard storage space with 64GB of solid-state storage. This model also comes with a full version of Windows 10 which means it’s ready to handle pretty much any kind of educational software and web browsing you can find to supplement education.

My Desktop Recommendation

Azulle Mini Desktop PC with Windows 10 (or bundled with keyboard and camera) – With 2GB RAM, 32GB storage, and a modern Intel Atom processor, it will handle any basic task you throw at it. You will be able to hook this up to your TV and watch Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, or anything else. It also has VGA video output, so you can connect it to most computer monitors.

If you are looking for a monitor, this ViewSonic 22 inch monitor can really bring your computing experience into vivid existence. ViewSonic has been in the monitor business for decades, and this display really showcases some of their best efforts. It comes with DVI and VGA ports, which allows it to not only connect to most computers, but also can scale up to Full HD 1080p resolution. It even has built in speakers so you can experience stereo sound right on your desktop without purchasing additional speakers.

The Azul Mini Desktop Computer can stand alone as it’s own system and will allow you to install Microsoft Office or any other variant of free Office alternatives. As a teacher or student (yes, even homeschool), you can get Microsoft Office for FREE (along with 1 TB of online storage). If you don’t want to go that route, here are your other purchasing options: purchase it for a one time fee of $149 (1 installation), pay $9.99/mo. (or $99/yr.) for up to 5 installations or $6.99/mo. (or $69.99/yr.) for 1 installation.

It also has 3 USB ports, which means it will not only handle a standard set of USB keyboard and mouse, but it also has one more port in case you want to hook up a USB external Hard Drive for extra storage.

Other Extras

Flash Drive: This device holds 32 GB, which is enough to move anything you need to move from one device to another. Speaking of devices, this has connections for both full sized USB, like on your computers, as well as micro USB, to connect to Android and Windows smartphones. This allows you to copy things to and from your phone or tablet to your computer – super handy.

Keyboard/Mouse: This wireless keyboard and mouse combo is a great buy. It’s made by Logitech, which is the industry leader in keyboards and mice. Plus, it’s wireless so installation is simple. Wireless peripherals have come a long way in terms of battery life. I use a wireless Logitech keyboard and mouse at work, and I usually need to change out the single AA battery in the mouse and the 2 AA batteries in the keyboard about once a year. Plus, the wireless feature means less wires coming in and out of your computer.

Printer: We have gone through many many printers, and finally settled on the Epson WorkForce Pro because it was reviewed to be the best quality and most cost effective printer for a small business, and with the amount of printing that we do, this has provided both quality and quantity, but not without hassles. It can’t handle thick card stock, we have dealt with many paper jams, and the ink is pricy, but overall, we have been quite happy. If we had to purchase a new printer today, however, we might take a look at some of these models.

In Conclusion

All in all, getting a new computer that can help you move your home computing experience into some newer, faster technology shouldn’t break the bank. Feel free to leave a comment (or send an email) if you have any questions about anything, and I will be happy to answer them!

Scott “The Computer Guy”

Bio: Not only does my husband fix computers for a living by day, but he writes code for desktop apps in a few different programming languages by night. He is also the resident computer guy in both of our families and circle of friends. He pretty much lives, eats, and breathes computers, and so when I saw this website recommending “great deals on computers for homeschool families”, I naturally showed him wondering if it really was a good deal. He laughed, and explained how buying a new computer these days shouldn’t be an expensive ordeal, and how “deals” like these aren’t really deals at all . I asked him to write me a post explaining his answer in more more detail, and here it is, from our resident computer guy!

September 9, 2016/by Stacey Maaser

The Metamorphosis of Motherhood

Guest Blogs, Mom Stories

By Guest Blogger: Lisa Hogan

Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a mother. It’s what I wanted to be when I “grew up”. Then I graduated college, got married, and my husband informed me that we were broke and had to work a few years until we could have children. That was hard, but I threw myself into my work and learned to enjoy the flow of it. It took longer than I wanted, but finally my husband said we could start trying for a baby. One month went by, then another, then another. Every month was a let down. I eventually thought we were infertile and became a bit depressed. But I just decided to focus on work, fashion, recipes, and travel, and time passed by. I liked my life.

After one year it finally happened. I was pregnant! I could hardly believe it. It was what I had always dreamed of. I was ecstatic! Everything was wonderful.

Then reality hit. I couldn’t exercise like before. I had to cut down on caffeine and sugar. I couldn’t eat all sorts of other things that were dangerous during pregnancy. Harumph! Besides that, I started to “show”. Everyone was telling me how my face looked different. They wanted to touch my growing bump. Then I started getting forgetful, gassy, bloated, and my acne got worse. Call it hormones, but it was a big reality check. As I approached the due date this baby made it hard to sleep, caused cramps in my legs, and I couldn’t even walk very long before I started to ache all over. I retired from work the last month and a half and tried to read all I could for the future that awaited me.

Then the day arrived. Labor! It was everything I expected and more! After trying for a home birth, I ended up in the hospital, and after 36 hours we finally got to meet Tristan. I was now a real MOTHER! It was amazing. I felt all those mama hormones start to surge through me. I loved this boy. He had been a part of me, and now on the outside he felt like he was still part of me. It’s like the umbilical cord was and is still there.

Again, reality soon set in. I didn’t get my body back as fast as I thought. I could no longer leave this little boy without leaking milk, feeling anxious about him, or missing him terribly. Going out to eat was no longer fun and relaxing. While at a restaurant, he would start to cry, we would get embarrassed, I would try to nurse him, the nursing cover would fall off, no one really got to eat their meal, and we realized that it just wasn’t working anymore. Don’t even get me started about sleep! That didn’t happen much with a small baby. Also, talking to other adults would typically end in some sort of small catastrophe with a crying baby at the end.

Anyways, this is where I think new mothers can learn a thing or two from the butterfly. A caterpillar might be happy and carefree, eating away, focused on herself and the needs of the moment for awhile, then at some point the desire for something more switches and she encases herself and becomes a pupa. In this stage the caterpillar sacrifices EVERYTHING from it’s past life. To move to the next stage, the caterpillar, and a new mother, has to sacrifice everything. There might be a bit of sadness and nostalgia as you realize you can never really go back to those carefree days of just eating leaves. A mother really does transform too. She becomes something totally different. Those first few months are crucial as she becomes forever bonded to this new little person. When the butterfly emerges after it’s encasement there’s a lot to learn and do. A butterfly now can dart around on the wind, pollinating flowers, finding a mate and producing more caterpillars. It’s an exciting new stage.

Metamorphosis_of_a_Butterfly_Merrian_1705

Metamorphosis of a Butterfly (Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons, by Merian Maria Sybilla, 1705)

Being a mother I feel like I have changed in so many ways. As my baby started to be content to stay on the blanket for while, and as he slept more, I could start to gain some of my “old” life back, but all of it with a different focus and appreciation. There is a different goal in life, and a lot of it revolves around this new little baby. There is so much to learn and do as a mother. It is difficult, and you do have to change the way you do just about EVERYTHING. But after this transformation, there is a new sense of duty and excitement to life. There’s so much fulfillment in wearing an outfit that suits crawling around on the floor above any expression of fashion.

Bottom line, once a baby is on the way, your life is beginning to change, and it’s a wonderful journey. Don’t yearn for the caterpillar stage once you’ve become a butterfly. Embracing motherhood means SO MUCH when you let it really change you. When you embrace these changes, you love your new wardrobe. You love dancing with your baby. Rocking them to sleep. Delighting them with a peekaboo or a tickle. When they are peacefully asleep after a day of adventures you feel so accomplished. I never thought I would find someone I would be so HAPPY to share my raspberries with (and I love raspberries by the way).

I am a mother, and I absolutely love that it defines me now.

The Metamorphosis of Motherhood

Bio: Little sister of Stacey Maaser. Mother of a tender-hearted 2-year-old boy. Resting somewhere between an all natural hippy, and a modern, super clean city girl.

February 9, 2016/by Stacey Maaser