Did you know homeschoolers can go to prom!?

(and participate in most school sports/activities/clubs etc.)

There is even a prom specifically for homeschoolers in the city we live (Pittsburgh PA). It is going to be on a riverboat and include a full meal and dancing and the works! More on this later…

I wanted to write an email highlighting the benefits and surprising things about homeschooling that I have learned over the past few years. It has been very eye opening for me and I would love to share that with you.

Surprising findings:

•In homeschool it is not important what grade your child is in as long as they are making progress.

•In PA your child has to turn 6 before September 1st to be registered for homeschool which is a whole year later than when they register for traditional school.

•Unschooling is a type of homeschooling where kids learn from experiencing life instead of formal lessons.

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3 main benefits of homeschooling….

1. You can customize each child’s learning path. Your child can be on a kindergarten reading level and third grade math level if that is what works best for them. They don’t have to be bored in math class and lost in reading they can advance at their own pace. Life is not a race! Kids, contrary to popular belief, do not have to read by any certain age. If you are unschooling you can literally just follow their interests. Spend a whole month learning about worms if you want!
2. Kids can get more sleep and more outside time. I think a huge benefit of homeschool is that kids don’t have to wake up really early every single day of the week to get ready for traditional school. As kids go through growth spurts etc they need more sleep and are way happier when they get it! Going outside often is huge for me and my kids moods. This world can get crazy loud and the solace of nature is so grounding and soothing.
3. Theres a wider variety of ways to learn. In cyber school or traditional school there is one curriculum for everyone, and everyone has the same schedule. In homeschool there are so many (maybe too many haha, this mamas brain gets overwhelmed by all the options) different ways to learn and different groups to join. You can make your own schedule and change your mind 100 times if you want as you respond to your child’s changing needs.

​I wanted to also address a common worry parents can have about switching to homeschool- Will my kids be able to be social? The answer is yes- however- it is not the same as traditional school where you will see the same group of kids every single day. There are tons of opportunities to be social while homeschooling but something that we have run into is that while we do see friends often it is not always the same friends. This has actually helped my kids become flexible and more brave socially because they are always having to include new kids or go up to a new kid to say hi.

So, yes, homeschoolers CAN make new friends, go to prom, participate in school district sports and activities AND even attend up to 1/3 of a day of school at their local district if they want! It really can be the best of both worlds. If you are local to pittsburgh pa this is where you can find info on the dances and proms:

​https://www.facebook.com/groups/740719376664488/​

I also want to address another common concern – that kids won’t learn if they don’t go to school.

I want to preface this part of the email by acknowledging that teachers are freaking awesome. I have soooo much more respect for teachers than ever before. If you know a teacher give them a high five!!

So my kids have been in cyber school for about 6 weeks now after being homeschooled for the previous 2 and a half years. We did a version of homeschooling called unschooling where you have little or no formal lessons but learn from life experiences. I am very excited to report that the kids caught on so incredibly quickly to the curriculum of their grade levels in the cyber school. Even after “skipping” a few grades with unschooling they were able to jump right back in. Also my 6 year old is breezing through math. I literally never taught him math but he loves numbers and has learned on his own the past couple years. He could skip a few grades in math for sure. Reading he needs more help with because for some reason he is not as interested in letters as numbers. My third grader had not been to traditional school since kindergarten and she is doing just fine. I had a parent teacher conference last week and I am proud to report that she is thriving in third grade. 

Apparently kids learn without formal lessons and I just absolutely love the freedom of knowing this. I am telling you this not to brag about my kids but to empower you to make the best available choices for you and your kids. Maybe you feel like you and your kids need a break from the daily grind of school. I hope my experience can be of value to you.

What do you notice with sibling relationships? Our three are always shifting and changing. The gap between Izzy and Ava seems very big right now because not only are there 4 years between them but Izzy is full on into the teen zone and has always been a mature soul to start with. Ava on the other hand is young at heart and is very much still in her childhood.

This post however is about Ava and Zack. My 9 year old and 6 year old. They are quite a team. When they are getting along its gold. When they aren’t its rough! i started noticing a bond getting stronger between them when Izzy and Ava came home from school in March of 2020. Gosh what a time that was! Zack had been still napping during the day while the girls were at school and then when they came home he was like Nope! Too exciting to nap with his sisters home.

So we started taking long drives during the afternoon so Zack could nap and I could zone out for awhile. I love driving for that. Anyways Ava and Zack seem to come together during a crisis or when something is causing upheaval in our lives. Recently we started cyber school and it has been a huge adjustment for the kids. They have spurts of handling it really well and having tantrums. Ava and Zack have bonded even more deeply under the stress. They have been engaging in a lot of imaginative play, going outside and watching shows together.

They run to each others laptops to see what the other is learning and they have a “we’re in this together” attitude. When they start laughing together they have a hard time stopping and it’s very contagious (and loud) . I love their bond and how much it has grown the last three years of doing homeschool. They bicker like an old married couple but they truly have each other’s back.

PS…… while we are still doing cyber school and there are some great things about it we are looking into what to do next year as far as school! We are literally checking into every option! What we would love is a hybrid type of school that meets a few days a week (without a hefty tuition). 

We are looking into several different charter schools in the Pittsburgh area as well as a new school opening up in Bethel Park called Dogwood. It follows a homeschool type of curiculum called Charlotte Mason. Today we had Ava tested for Dyslexia and there is actually a special charter school just for kids with Dyslexia! Who knew?! If you know of any alternative school options in the Pittsburgh area let me know!

I am loving taking photos in my carnegie studio! it has such gorgeous natural light. It is so convenient to all Pittsburgh areas because it is only a couple turns off the highway. These kids were so much fun to photograph.

I love not only taking the traditional portrait style photos but taking some fun photos that really let the children’s personalities shine through.

The way their eyes light up when we do the fun photos is amazing.

These kids all have gorgeous eyes just like their Mama. We have a few open spots in March for newborn photos, headshots, baby milestone photos, or if you are in need of any type of updated photos. 

Once upon a time i was living in a very small house with my husband, three kids, a dog, and a partridge in a pear tree. 🎶

It was close quarters. We had sooo much stuff and I am way more “messy/creative” than organized. Life in general was a bit crazy town at the time on top of everything. I didn’t have my ducks in a row I had wild horses running around. there were many things about the house that needed updated but the budget wouldn’t allow for it at the time. I felt completely trapped. I wanted to move away, I wanted to run away, I wanted to do anything but sit in my house with my kids.

my therapist said to me one day “pick up your camera and start taking photos of your house, inside and out” 📷

That statement changed my life. I did what she said and I saw everything differently. My house looked beautiful through my camera lens. There was good light to be found! All the “imperfections” faded into the background because I found something far more valuable than a well appointed updated house. I found love. I found giggling kids and the man I love being the best Dad I could have ever hoped for. I found beauty! I found soft window light spilling on the floor. I found antique door knobs and adorable hand prints and dog nose prints on the porch door. I found that at a certain time of day rainbows would dance around the living room from the afternoon light coming through the top window on the front door. I found my gift. I can see things differently. I can notice the love. I can find all of the beauty. It was always there waiting for me to notice it. ❤️

More to come from this adorable newborn baby session!