Balance and good bye holiday _______

I have lost the few extra pounds I gained over the holidays. This week has been great. Somehow with the kids home, my focus is better and there's more of a balance around here.

 It's crazy because I used to be one of those moms who couldn't wait to send her kids back to school over winter break or summer vacation. But here we are learning and growing together and I wouldn't have it any other way. They still have the choice to go back to school, but I'm enjoying this for now. We'll take it a school year at a time.

Our relationships are improving, we're working toghether, their rooms aren't such a disaster. It's not 100% noticeable, but we're all getting more done. It feels great!

The kids used to get home from school and not want to clean or do anything but veg and watch tv, etc.  They were tired and worn out from being at school "all day". Well not anymore. Not as much fighting to clean up. Everyone wakes up nice and happy. No stressing over homework! No more fighting over homework. Oh also, it was a crazy school schedule between the 3 of them. Jeremy would have to be up by 6:00 and out the door by 7:20. Tristan would be up by 7:50 and out the door by 8:55. Jessica would be up around 9:30 and out the door at 12:30. I used to walk her to school, but now that it's cold, I've had to drive her. (chosen to)
Then Jeremy would get home about 3:30 and the girls at 3:50. Since we live out in nowhere land and it's a good 45 minute drive to go anywhere, plus another 45 to get back, I didn't have much time to do anything. If I did leave I was worried that I'd get stuck somewhere and not get home in time. Talk about a stressful situation. If I need to go somewhere now, we just go. It's all a learning experience.

In a way, I wish I had done this a long time ago. It might have been nice to have them home while we were in San Diego. and John was in the Navy. But then again the teachers there were great. (I'll give them that! John and I aren't big fans of living in San Diego. It's a nice place to *visit* but our experiences of living there weren't the best. We did meet some great people there, but there were too many unfriendly people. Could have been the military environment, the crappy area, but that was our experience.)

I'm not 100% against public school! I want to make that clear. There are some great teachers out there and some great schools. However, not all the teachers are great and not all the schools are great. Sometimes I am shocked and surprised to see how a teacher treats her students and how little patience they can have. I'm just happy to know that I am now confident that I can give my kids what they need. I am also getting plenty in return.