Laying a Strong Foundation

... that was the theme for this year's Homeschooling Conference which I had to attend alone because somebody had to stay home with the kids.

It was a wonderful conference, spoiled only by the two-hour wait for the DepEd representative who seemed to have not done enough research on what homeschooling really is. But I guess the Homeschool Association of the Philippine Islands (HAPI) really needed him to be there as a sign of support that the DepEd will help homeschoolers get accredited and accepted in traditional schools, when necessary.

Anyway, I was with N@wie friends during the day and missed hubby the whole time. It would have been wonderful if he was hearing what I was hearing... things I have often reminded him about (spending time with the boys) and things we're still lacking in our marriage (regular dates). It would have been nice for him to personally feel the challenge of investing time in our kids (it's not that he doesn't, it's more that I want him reminded by someone else of why it is essential), which was the meat of Bo Sanchez' message.

And then, it would have also been nice if he heard Debra Bell discuss why homeschooling works because of the culture it creates, which I felt answered the same questions for both homeschooling and Waldorf education, whichever path is really for us (I am all for Waldorf now, but we have yet to decide if we'd go pure, or we'd use it to supplement... we'll know better depending on how St. Michael's plans unfolds).

And then again, there is that enticing surrender to faith by the homeschooling advocates and TMA family... something I really wish for our family, something I'm still not sure if we can find in the Catholic church.

Anyway, since HAPI is pushing for bigger conferences (and even coming up with Homeschooling Solutions), i'll ake sure to bring hubs along next year. Whether we fully homeschool or not, these conferences just really bring home the message of the importance of family. And we need that check and balance.