I Did That!

Every homeschooling parent needs a hobby.

Oh, everyone can enjoy hobbies, but it's my firm belief that homeschooling parents, especially, need a hobby that produces something tangible.

We work hard daily, and there are intermediate steps along the way - a child completing a math book, lesson plans organized for a new unit, another year finished. The end result, though, is years away, and in some ways, there is no true end. Any stay-at-home parent may bemoan how everything they do is undone within days or even hours, a feeling aptly described in the old saying, "A man may work from sun to sun, but woman's work is never done."

I think the human mind needs to see evidence of accomplishment. There's an impulse to point and say "Look! I did that!" Homeschooling will afford us that opportunity... by the time we hit age 50 or 60.

So, then, a hobby. For me personally, I've finally come back to knitting. If I knew someone who did a lot of woodworking, I might've gone that direction, but both knitting and woodworking were things I enjoyed even as a child. Knitting won in the end because of portability issues and also the fact I found someone who knew enough about knitting that if I got into a tough spot, I wouldn't have to frog the whole thing. I could get help!

Knowing that you have a source of help available empowers you to take chances that you might otherwise take, too. I've attempted to pick up knitting as an adult previously, but reached a point where I was stymied and afraid of putting in the effort only to run into roadblocks. For me personally, knowing Smrt Mama could help me pick up a dropped stitch made me confident enough to try new things.

I've had a small, relatively steady trickle of items off my needles in the last six to twelve months. A hat for each kid, thumbless mittens for PC, thumbed mittens for FB (this was significant!), a hippie head-kerchief for EG, a scarf for FB, and I've just cast on for (gulp!) a sweater for PC. It's calming when I sit and knit in the mornings, keeps my hands busy when I watch TV, and helps me feel like waiting in the car at Master's Academy or vision therapy or piano lessons or band isn't quite such a waste of time.

It doesn't have to be knitting, of course; anything that produces a tangible product will suffice. Because some days, it's good to look at something finished and complete and go, "Hey! I made that!"