Greetings from the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Colorado!  We're the Dellingers - Matt, Wendy and eight-year-old Laurie and we have homeschooled from the beginning.  What a privilege to be a part of this wonderful movement!

            When our daughter was small and we began to consider our educational options for her, I was fairly certain of one thing: I wasn't going to homeschool.  A dear friend of mine who was homeschooling her two children brought it up regularly, challenging me to consider it with Laurie.  But it just didn't seem fair to her as an only child - just me, all day, every day.  I was dealing with socialization issues already.  How could homeschooling improve that?  Then I heard about support groups and realized this could provide the balance I was seeking.

            My next issue was curriculum - wow, what an issue!  I hardly knew where to begin.  As a passionate lover of good books, I knew that great literature needed to be an important part of our schooling.  Also, having had some missions experience in my background, I wanted Laurie to gain a Christian worldview that would prepare her for whatever God might call her to.  And not being a teacher, I knew I needed a curriculum that would guide me and give me a sense of confidence and accountability.

                        We've just finished up our third homeschooling year and we love it.  This year we completed the second year of World History, something I managed to miss my entire public school education.  I can't believe all I've learned!

                        Early on, I struggled with what I imagine most parents of "onlies" do; that is, outside involvement and social issues.  We had Laurie regularly doing group activities, field trips, Awana, gymnastics, swim lessons, etc.  But I began to see that the "group" activities rarely provided the one-on-one experiences she really needed.  With no siblings to help her learn relational skills, what she really benefited from were the play days with just one or two friends.  Behavioral and character issues became much more apparent - things we could deal with because we could see them.

            So we backed off a bit and began to follow Clay and Sally Clarkson's great suggestion from Educating the Wholehearted Child .  "This one thing I do" - one church ministry, one lesson, one sport, etc.  It's been a relief to be on the go less and trust the Lord to provide the social and spiritual experiences Laurie needs for her development.  I've learned she doesn't have to have it all right now; her childhood should provide plenty of space to play and dream and think.

            Our support group has been a wonderful blessing.  We have gym day twice a month, field trips, parties, oral reports, science, biography and geography fairs twice a year, support meetings for the moms, field day at year's end, talent night, etc.  The best part is the great friendships with which God has blessed us.

            For two years we pretty much followed the traditional school year, but last summer Laurie was bored and wanted me to do things with her all the time.  On the other hand, I was trying to catch up with all my stuff that had fallen by the wayside during school months.  It was frustrating for both of us.  So when a friend of mine mentioned schooling year-round, my ears perked up. We decided to try it this year, and so far it's been great.  We do school three weeks on and one week off, with two weeks off at Christmas and each of the summer months.  I do all my catch-up projects on that week off, and Laurie is more than happy to keep herself busy with her own things.  I'm not getting so tired and overwhelmed with what I'm not getting done!

            I've also found that we really need a schedule. We try to begin our day with devotions at 8:30 and end by early afternoon. We do our academics Monday through Thursday, leaving Fridays for gym day, piano, baking or sewing, art, science experiments, etc.

            The most important thing I've learned so far on this challenging and exciting journey is that I dare not do it without the Lord's help.  The days I don't begin it with Him are the days that fall apart.  I've learned that when I ask His advice about something - He'll give it!