I have been homeschooling for three years and I am about to embark on year four, which for us is seventh grade. It all started with a decision. We had to do what was best for our child. That, for us, meant taking him out of the traditional situation.
I felt totally unequipped, but I knew that with the right guidance and a lot of coffee and internet research I could succeed. I met with all kinds of resistance; my mom was worried about socialization, the school told me that I could not educate him without all the degrees and training. I was scared, but I knew that the system was not the place for him. It was not right for our family.
My husband and I did our research, gave our son a placement test. We took a leap of faith and placed our order. Suddenly I was not only mom, I was a teacher. That one decision had a side effect that I had not thought about. With me being mom and teacher suddenly I am not available to go back to work.
We were suddenly and permanently a single income family. My husband makes decent money but we always had the option of sending me back if we needed to. I started to look for ways to save money for our household. Some things worked, others……. Well, not so much.
We use cloth napkins, dish towels, and real plates. Now, I go through maybe a roll of paper towels a month and buy paper plates about once a year. This was easy. I am home, I can do laundry (even if I hate it). Next up was making my own laundry detergent. I am a true convert. I love it: Borax, Washing Soda, and Kirks Castle Soap. Other things I am currently looking at are wool dryer balls ( again can be used for years); no more dryer sheets or softener.
Yet another money saving idea is getting rid of cable. We are just starting to move on this one. Most of what we watch is on the computer anyway so I really don’t mind letting it go. I think this will also cut out time that is currently wasted on TV.
The big one…. We only have one car. After years of living in CA having one car is a foreign concept. At first I was sure I was going to go crazy. Now, after so long, I have learned to deal with it. When we have doctor appointments or play dates, I take my husband to work. Most of the time I just work around it.
One by one you can make small changes that end up saving a lot money. With that obstacle gone you can cross one more barrier to homeschooling off your list.
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