For those who may not know, HEAV is THE homeschool site for the state of Virginia. If I have a homeschooling question, that is usually the first place I turn. They also have a great Facebook page; look them up!
This past Thursday-Saturday was the annual HEAV Convention in Richmond. I attended for the first time last year and drove there and back home both Friday and Saturday. This year, a friend and I shared a hotel room within walking distance of the Convention. Neither of us brought children with us, even though that is certainly an option as there are activities for the kids to participate in each day. If you are a Virginia homeschooler and have never attended the HEAV Convention, please consider attending next year. It is so worth it!
Most of the workshops I attended this year dealt with parenting issues even more than homeschooling issues. Honestly, this was exactly what I needed in this season of life. I have been a single mom for a year and have relaxed in some areas but have become a bit more uptight stressed in others.
My first stop was the FlyLady's workshop on Thursday. I have heard about her and her methods, and I was looking forward to learning more about her methods (which I did...in fact, we had a "home blessing" just yesterday!), but more than that I walked away with practical parenting advice. What the FlyLady stressed (to me, anyway) was allowing the kids to help. As homeschooling parents, part of teaching our children at home includes teaching them to maintain a home. As a single parent, it is vitally important to include children in the maintenance of the home. I learned from the FlyLady that I need to examine myself and let go of perfectionist tendencies even more than I already have; otherwise, the kids won't want to help because they don't do it mom's way. I will admit that I have relaxed on how the towels are folded; as long as they are folded and put away in a pretty decent way, it's good. But I can see that I have areas where I need to relax and let go and will truly work on those things.
Friday, two of the sessions I attended dealt with grace, gentleness, and delighting in our children. I received so much encouragement and refreshment for my mommy-heart in those two hours that it truly felt as though I had been on a vacation at the beach. I will share more about those workshops this week.
Saturday, I attended a workshop about being organized in your homeschool. Organization isn't one of my strong suits; in fact, if you follow me on Pinterest you'll see that I have a huge organization category. Believe it or not, I have actually implemented a couple of the ideas! But one of the main things that I walked away from that workshop with was having margin--or white space--on your calendar. The speaker defined that as the distance between where you are and your personal limit (emotional, physical, financial, time, etc.). She gave us the freedom to say no! How much pressure is there on us as homeschoolers to have our children involved in this activity and that activity and to run to this function and that function, and to join this co-op and use that curriculum, and... whew! Learning to say no and learning to leave white space on the calendar will allow me to let go and to really enjoy this season of homeschooling my children instead of waking up looking forward to bedtime because we are going to be so busy that day.
The highlight of the day on Saturday was, by far, the Single Parents' Luncheon. HEAV is so generous and really cares about their homeschooling community across the state, and that includes the single parent homeschoolers. That luncheon was a time to relax and to enjoy a meal with other single homeschoolers, to realize that we aren't alone in our efforts, and to share what has worked and what hasn't and to offer support to each other. This was my second year to attend the luncheon, and it was nice to see a couple of familiar faces and to meet some new people, too.
I plan to share more about the convention this week, so keep an eye on this space! I'll share some of my notes and some of what really encouraged me from the different workshops I attended. I hope that it blesses you, too!
Glad you had such a great time. What an encouragement!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I hope that others are just as blessed by attending their local conventions.
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