Am I Doing Enough For My Kids? – Homeschool Mom

To the Homeschool Mom who wonders – Am I Doing Enough For My Kids?

One of the most common concerns amongst homeschool moms is, “Am I doing enough for my kids?”

“Am I teaching my child enough? Are we covering enough subjects? Is my child up-to-snuff with her peers? Does my child know enough to succeed? Am I doing enough for my kids?“

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I am here to tell you Yes! A resounding Yes!

It’s not just homeschooling mothers who wonder, “Am I doing enough?” All mothers do. But I think we as homeschool mothers feel an extra burden to be good enough. Because you see, we don’t have the option of blaming somebody else if our kids don’t turn out all right. As homeschooling mothers, we are not only in charge of raising our children. We are also in charge of educating our children. There is no outside school system to blame for their lack of success.

Wow. What a burden.

I spend a lot of time in various homeschool groups on social media and reading other homeschool mom blogs. Surrounding myself with other homeschooling moms makes me feel not-so-alone in this journey I have chosen. And it makes my heart so sad to read about all these mothers who wonder if they are doing enough for their kids.

Am I Doing Enough? I Have This Worry Often.

Especially after hanging out with my sister in law. She has a 7-year-old who is an overachiever. This little girl gets fantastic grades and seems to be great at everything she does. After spending some time with her, I always come home and worry because my kids who are older than her cannot do all of the same things academically that she can.

Sometimes I get a lot of anxiety about whether or not my kids are up to snuff compared to other public school kids. When I hear my daughter stumble over words that I was reading at her age, I worry. When I see my son’s horrible handwriting, I worry. I envision all the other parents judging me and thinking I’m a horrible teacher who is failing my kids.

Maybe those things aren’t important

When I get wrapped up in that anxiety, my husband reminds me of this: our goal with homeschooling (in particular, the WAY we homeschool) is not to raise good test takers or good parrots of information. I don’t want our whole goal to be getting into college so they can become fabulous employees. (I’m not anti-college FYI – that’s just not our main goal)

Why WE Homeschool

Our goal is to raise children who, when they enter society, will be successful. We focus on life skills more than book work because I’d rather them know how to cook a delicious meal on a budget than memorize the periodic table. I’d rather my kids have the skills and the know-how to start a successful business of their own as opposed to becoming robots stuck working for little money for a slave-driving boss.

When I think of our overall goals, I know that comparing my kids to other kids is like comparing apple fritters to a gourmet meal. They are not even close to the same so of course they perform differently. But my children, even as young as they are, have so many life skills that a lot of adults don’t have. And then I feel like I’m on the right track for MY family and OUR needs and I feel ok again.

Remember your WHY

The next time you feel inadequate as a homeschool mother, I want you to remember why you chose to homeschool. What are your goals as a homeschooling family? Is your goal to teach life skills? Maybe to protect your kids from bullying? To allow your kids to guide their own education? Perhaps to allow religious discussions to be a part of their regular curriculum? Are you accomplishing that ‘why’? If you are succeeding in your ‘why’, your main goal as a homeschooling family, then you are succeeding.

Remember – God doesn’t want us to compare ourselves to anybody other than ourselves. As long as you guys are learning and growing and progressing each and every day, you’re doing great.

Mom, You Are Enough!

I think it’s natural for us as mothers to doubt ourselves. We love our kids so much and we only want to do what’s best for them. But we were given these children for a reason. We love them. And they love us. We try our hardest each and every day. Always making sure they are fed and clothed and loved. Most importantly loved. If you go to bed each night with the desire to do a little bit better the next day, then You Are Enough!

If you care enough about your child to wake up when you don’t want to wake up; to share your body, your mind, your heart, even though you’re tired and worn thin and stressed – you are enough. You Are Enough!

So next time you find yourself asking, “Am I doing enough for my kids?” Yes, Mom, yes. You are doing enough.

You. Are. Enough.

Related Post: Why Did We Start A Homeschool Blog?