Ponderings

Over the past weekend my daughter spent some time with her little girlfriend, she's 2 1/2 and her cousin who is 1 1/2. Her friend is in daycare all day and her cousin stays home with his dad.

I think a lot about my daughter being home all day with me and her little brother and my nephew home all day with his dad, I wonder if that is stifling their development in any way and then I spend some time with a little girl who is in daycare and I don't wonder so much anymore. My daughter and my nephew are both void of any bad attitudes and bullying mannerisms; I don't know if this is a product of being with SAH Parents or just the fact of not having reached the "terrible twos" yet, but it is refreshing to know that being home all day with them has some benefits.

However, I do still worry about the socialization issue. It crosses my mind too in the homeschool arena as well. Even though I would rather not have my kids in daycare or school learning all of the bad behavior, horrible attitudes and the disrespect from other children, I do have to ponder the effects of being around adults almost exclusively day in and day out. I do get my kids out a couple of times a week to be around other kids, but is that enough? Am I in some way jeopardizing some of their normal development. I have to hope that I am not....

My hope is that my kids will be well-rounded, respectful little people that enjoy learning. My decision to homeschool and be a SAHM will give them and me rewards many times over and that missing out on getting teased because you dress nice, that your hair is always "fixed", you don't curse and don't generally disrespect your elders and missing out on school functions or the prom will seem trivial to them.

I want to give my children the world and have them experience life outside of the box.