Today was the day. Our boys woke up before the crack of dawn, beds were made, brekky was gone, they were dressed and ready to go. Yet it wasnt even 7.30 in the morning! They were smiling from ear to ear, and they even had their teeth brushed.
I guess you could say they were super keen and super excited. They have been asking to go to school since I can’t remember when….its been weeks of “When Are We Going To Enrol In School” nearly every day since we got to the Mackay area.
What I Did
I was making every excuse under the sun, and then some more to see if they would forget about wanting to go to school. Yet they didn’t. What I Did was what they wanted.
I enrolled them into the Local School yesterday. Then walked away with the thoughts “What Have I Done” ??? It so does not feel right, nor do I like what I Did. But they are so happy….and that is all I have ever wanted.
Kyle ready for Grade 2 ~
First Day at School!
I never listened to my Older Son, asking us to let him to stay in High School. I thought that he would get used to travelling and homeschooling on the road, but he never did. So I am trying to listen to my other sons…..but gee it doesn’t feel good.
I am so scared.
We are putting down so many roots in Mackay…..will we ever be able to now leave?
Years ago we lived in Mackay. And we once got told by the locals “Oh you will never escape from Mackay – it gets into your blood and you will come back”. That was over 13 years ago and I laughed at how stupid that sounded.
Yet time and time again I have heard the same thing from many more locals! (since we have arrived back here!) We have only be here for a short time, yet it feels like forever, (I do love exploring here but I dont want to be here as long as we were on the Sunshine Coast!).
It seems that I am the only one in our family with itchy feet….double damn it!
Cameron in Grade 5 ~
His first day back at school and he has the Naplan Test!
He was super happy as he got his second Breakfast at school…and it was free!
I am also so scared that our boys will want to ask to stay at School – yet I reckon that they are in for a big shock. They are not used to sitting down for long periods, they are not used to being told what to do, and when to do it, they are not used to writing with pencils in a book for long periods of time. They are not used the school yard behaviour anymore.
I want to grab them and make a run for it….I loved the idea of Unschooling/Homeschooling/Free Schooling. They have learnt about “Life” rather than feed information that they do not need in the real world.
I am so scared about Kyle – he has the most craziest, sweetest, funniest, kindest nature. Will that be taken from him?
What about Cameron? Will the kids tease him about his different ways? Will they laugh at him, and make fun of him because of the way he speaks? Will he be able to keep up and make friends?
They are still so young, and soak up so much. Please let them take on the Good things and forget about learning the things they don’t need! Will I get a call to say they are not coping?
Will we ever leave Mackay?
Oh Please Universe….tell Me What Have I Done?
This is not what I image our new life on the road to be like, but I guess sometimes things in life happen for a reason…I guess I just need to find that reason?? There has to be something/anything that will be good for us from this time sitting here!
Here Are A Few Answers To The Questions We Are Getting:-
* No our younger two are not going back to school because I want them to, nor do I have to work.
* It’s not something that I wanted To Do, its something our boys have wanted for a very long time.
* No I will not be going back to Nursing – I walked away from that career with the knowledge that it broke my heart into two and I would never ever be able to do it again.
* We will be going be getting away from it all with a few camping weekends! So can’t wait, as we are going to be heading to places where there is no power 🙂
* I know my boys will be fine – they have wanted this for so long….its more about how we are now getting too settled for my itchy feet!
* If I could have my time over again, I so would have travelled since our boys were babies!
I Have Done What I Think Is Best At The Time…..
but gee it sure suxs.
Cheers
Lisa
New Life on the Road.
Hi Lisa
It’s good that you are listening to the boys wishes – only time will tell if it’s been the best thing for them. Children cope a lot better than we give them credit for mostly, so hold them loosely and give them the scope to experience life in all it holds in store!
Cheers JJ
Jenny Johnson recently posted..WAUCHOPE
Hi Jenny,
Thanking you for your kind words and support
Children do seem to be able to cope better with lots of things 🙂
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I understand your feeling very well. It’s hard to see that our decisions are not always matching our loved one wishes. However, give them time and see. Kids need kids also of their same age and schools provide this and provide a pretty good entertaining program – I hope you understand my words correctly :)- Also kids like to be like the other kids, they are afraid to miss something if they don’t. At least those are my observations and I know of some exceptions, but not many. I know people who are homeschooling, they did it from the beginning or they managed to get the kids involved in a homeschooling community. I myself understand you very well, I am not homeschooling, above all because my son love school… I don’t love his school at all, but he does love it and he does love to make friends. Good luck and let us know how it goes.
alberta recently posted..Philip Reid and the Statue of Freedom
Hi Alberta,
I so understand! Our boys love playing with kids their own age, that is one of the reasons why we did send them back to school!
Next time we move on we will be homeschooling once again – and I will be looking for groups to join so that our boys dont become lonely!
I reckon that I should have homeschooled them from a yonger age, and then they wouldnt know any different!
Its funny how your son loves his school but you dont – we are in the same boat 🙂
Cheers
Lisa
Understand your worries. Regarding Cameron,I do not know how he speaks, but I can tell you that our son speaks strangely. He does not have a speech impediment as such, but even I have to ask him to repeat himself. He went to the biggest public high school in Queensland, which at the time was in Townsville. As far as I know the kids did not tease him. Some think he is foreign, speaking with an accent! I think kids can overlook some strange things and concentrate on traits that they find appealing.
jan recently posted..Not the Albaicin again!
Hi Jan,
I so love hearing your sons story because it makes me feel more at ease with regards Camerons School.
Kids can sometimes be so kind! I like to think that he wont be teased, but I guess only time will tell.
What does your son do now?
cheers
Lisa
I worry every day about our kids at school, the same things as you…how could they ever love them the way we do. Who will save them from hurt, who will encourage Luca’s unique way of seeing the world…yet each day they head off into the unknown and a little bit of me goes with them.
A little bit of you goes with each of your boys and that’s something special and rare….
As for staying in one place….no way, you’ll be on the road again before you know it. And your David is a wonderful man to be able to express how your words made him feel, life can frustrate our dreams yet we keep moving toward them. sending you all our love xxx
lisa chiodo | renovating italy recently posted..Feeling Nostalgic
Hi Lisa,
Its so amazing how much we can teach them at home, yet we must send them to school! I so know how you are feeling with regards to their unique ways 🙂
I like how you say a Little Bit goes with them 🙂
Yeah we are so keen to get back on the road, so wished the bus was finished already! So grateful that we got to meet, and share your amazing travel journey to Italy.
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Lisa
I’m from England so it works a little differently here but I was wondering if you felt that any kinds of qualification were important for your kids, and if so, how would they have gotten them if they had continued to be homeschooled.
I’m 17 and had been homeschooled for a while but I guess my parents felt a bit out of their depth and now I’m back in mainstream school. I definitely struggle a bit with the rigid routine of school and it’s particularly hard to concentrate when you can’t see any future use for something you are learning!
But I’m sure your boys will do wonderfully at school and it’s great that they can see it as just another new adventure 🙂
Hi Molly,
Thanking you for your kind words. We have a 16 year old boy who is going through Queensland TAFE for his year 10 as he wants to get into the Navy as an officer and he needs his certificate for entry.
He will then be doing year 11 and year 12 through Tafe. He already knows all of the work, but needs the certificate!!!
He is doing really well.
Our older son (who is almost 18) went to year 10 with his high school, is now in the Navy. He wants to go through with more studies and the navy is going to assist him. Our 13 year old is in Year 8 of Highschool. He needs the day to day structure of schooling, as he needs to be kept busy all day long!
We will see how our younger boys go, the only reason we sent them back was because they asked us to, and so they can have kids there own age to play with.
Would you like an email from our son Zachery so that he can share more about his Schooling and how he copes with staying at home? If so let us know 🙂
Hoping you go well with your studies! Sometimes it doesnt make sense to learn about stuff that we dont need, but in the long run it will work out all ok.
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
The positive that I have taken from your post is that you have instilled a sense of wonder…your kids wanted to “see” what school was like for the experience. They did not fear it and THAT is “what you have done”. What you have also done is respected their wishes and “given them the power to choose and shown them that you trust them in their decisions”. How fantastic is that. Even if they decide not to stay at school, you have shown them that they can choose and then change as they need to and want to. You put a smile on my face with this post.
Hi Eileen,
They sure do know what they want to be doing with their life! They are now at the conclusion that school is not all that great! And are wondering why they asked to go back 🙂
But they sure do face challenges head on. We are looking forward to getting on the road and heading to South Australia and Western Australia – where they will learn more about life than what school can teach them
Cheers
Lisa