School On the Move?

We've had a plan in the back of our heads for some time now that in two to four years, we're going to be moving. We know what we want in a new house, approximately where we want it to be, and an approximate price range. We even have a list of things that would be really neat, but we don't necessarily expect to find.

On a whim Friday night, I looked at real estate listings. I was getting tired, and told myself I'd look at just one more page. I clicked, and on that page was the magic listing. It has everything on the list of what we want, and most of the things that would be really neat to have. The location is pretty much exactly where we would want to be. In short, I managed to find what appears to be a perfect house for us.

Being the weekend, we haven't been able to actually get inside the house. We'll try to do that Tuesday or Wednesday. Assuming we still like the house, we're going to cautiously move forward. At every step, if we encounter substantial roadblocks, then we'll stop, and let it go, knowing it wasn't meant to be. There is, however, every possibility that it is supposed to be (though I admit that percentage is small), in which case... we'll be moving, during the school year.

Let me pause here to say that even though I only found this listing less then 48 hours ago, I've poured over the virtual tour, driven past it, learned more about the neighborhood, and discovered I could walk to my good friend's house from it. In short, unless the tour reveals a very grievous flaw, there's a high chance that I'm going to be devastated if/when this doesn't happen.

Right now, though, I want to dwell on the five percent chance of it happening. Even if things proceed relatively slowly, we're potentially looking at a move before Christmas. Let me pause to say this is one advantage of purchasing at least some Christmas presents early; if we move and it takes all of our money, at least I know there's something to put under the tree for all three kids. Let's also accept that from here on out, everything I say should have "potentially" or "maybe" or "if this happens" in front of it. We all know it's conditional, I just don't want to rewrite that fact repeatedly.

I like being done for the year the same week or one week earlier than the public school kids, and consequently, there's no extra time in the spring semester to make up missed days this autumn. I also don't think I'd have a high compliance rate or very good attitudes if we tried to skip our spring break. Ideally, a move would take just a few days of absolutely no access to schoolwork, and with proper packing, some work could undoubtedly be continued almost constantly - each kid does have a backpack, after all.

It's actually more the idea of selling this house that worries me, the idea that we could be settling in for a good morning of learning when the telephone rings and it's an agent, saying someone wants to see the house in an hour or two. Suddenly, then, I'd need to put away dishes and the like, and get everyone out the door. Let's not forget that I have Purple Child on top of my two students. The chances are high that some things would fall further and further behind. Spelling for EG, math perhaps for FB; neither are particularly portable.

My only conclusion is that, if we proceed forward, then starting on September 13, we're going to have to become 7-day-a-week homeschoolers. Finishing subjects that aren't daily, grabbing extra days so we can build up a 'bank' of extra days, all of that. It's not a horrible idea, but it does sound a little bit exhausting, especially since the week of September 13 promised to be a bit stressful on its own.

Yes, this house is awesome enough, though, that it'd be all worth.