Adding to the list

Wednesday is the first day of kindergarten...for Bree's friends.  I've chosen to homeschool Bree, and her program doesn't start until next week.

In the mean time, I'm feeling a little bit like she's missing out on that exciting, nervous, first-day-of-school experience.  And back-to-school shopping?  Nope.  None of that.

I remember when I was little, how I adored my new school supplies.  I would literally sneak out of bed at night, open my closet, and gaze lovingly at my beautiful pink and purple plastic backpack.  Then I would try it on, and wear it as I stealthily visited the bathroom with it on my back.

But Bree is on vacation with my parents today, something that would not be possible without the freedom of homeschooling.  And I don't have to worry about her bringing home all manner of sicknesses from kindergarten (we get enough of that from Mason bringing crud home from his Nursery class on Sundays).  And I get to shelter her from bad words and the mean drama of other little girls for a little while longer.

But sometimes I wonder if I'm crazy for adding one more thing to my list of responsibilities.

• Homeschool Bree and keep up Mason's preschool lessons

Along with the chores every woman has.

• Keep house clean (This counts as extra for me, because I have a seriously dusty house.  No really, it's true.  Something is wrong with our ventilation/air filter or something.)
• Keep kids clean
• Laundry
• Dishes
• Grocery shopping
• Cooking
• Budgeting

And don't forget those things that I've taken on because I'm an overachiever like that.

• Gardening
• Home improvement projects (our new master tub is the latest)
• Blogging
• Sweet Whimsy business and weekly Farmer's Market booth (making jam, baking cupcakes, etc)
• Farmer's Market newsletter writing/editing
• Formatting piano exams for a friend in exchange for family singing lessons.
• Filling occasional Mary Kay orders
• Facilitating monthly book club meetings, and reading said books
• Exercising; P90X is a time-consuming program

Add on the extra things that have sort of fallen upon me.

• Primary Music Chorister
• Daily therapy with Lincoln
• Scheduling and keeping appointments, which have become more frequent lately
• Um, breastfeeding
• Oh, and figuring out how to keep my kids happy all day every day

Thankfully, I have a husband who helps me with my list on a regular basis.  And who, more importantly, supports the half of the list that is, as he puts it, all me.  Don't get the wrong idea; I am constantly behind or neglecting half of the list so I can give attention to the other half.  And I haven't even mentioned other time-wasters like movie-watching, sewing projects, or blog-reading.  Unfortunately, there are just too many things that I enjoy doing.

So, yes, it would be easier to let someone else take Bree off my hands for six hours every day.  But I'm going to give this homeschooling thing a shot, and I'm hoping that it'll be worth it.