Teacher Appreciation Week

It's teacher appreciation week, and I doubt I've appreciated my kids' teachers more than I do now. Oh my word, do I love those teachers.

Please let my kid come back to school.

Before this whole virus wreck happened, I had casually kicked around the idea of homeschooling. Oh no. Not any more.

Distance learning has taken care of that notion forever.

My kindergartener, Levi, was doing fairly well learning from me for the first two weeks. I baited him with lines like, "Your teacher gave me this game for you!" and "We can make it about dinosaurs."

Now he has caught on. He is pretty firm about not liking games where math or rhyming are involved. Not that I blame him.

Last week Levi told me he just wanted to play toys with me instead of doing school work, and I agreed. I slyly asked him to sort his dinosaurs by herbivores and carnivores and count each set so we could make our playing fair. He was cool with this. But then I asked him to sort them by size and count. Turns out that was too obvious. He grabbed two large dinos before turning green and huge.

"Mom! I SAID NO MATH!"

Too late.

But yeah, Levi's pretty much done being taught by me. He sighs and huffs through each assignment. It doesn't help that my other two boys are a major distraction.

And honestly - I'm not a real trooper either.

My patience is nowhere to be found. Too often I find myself starting my sentences in a sharp tone, but as I'm speaking and I hear my wicked witch voice, I try to correct it halfway through. This doesn't work, and instead I come out sounding like a terrible, crazed auto-tune version of myself.

So, yes. Let's just say that this week - this Teacher's Appreciation Week - this mom is missing her boys' teachers.

It's true, my children are young, but they have still been blessed to learn from multiple caring people:

• Pre-K and Kindergarten Teachers

• Teaching Assistants

• Special Education Professionals

• Speech Therapists (absolutely I'm counting you!)

• Preschool Ministry Leaders

• Children's Ministry Leaders

• Nursery, Preschool, and Children's Church Volunteers

YOU GUYS ARE ALL AMAZING!!!

It's really hitting home with me since I've been reflecting on all the progress my child has made in just a few short years.

Levi has been in a speech program since he was 2, and it largely drove our decision when picking out a school. Looking back at videos of when he was a tot, and hearing him try to communicate with us... It's a hard thing to even write. Levi is my first born and it was difficult knowing what a 3-year-old was supposed to sound like, but we could tell he was frustrated. And now that I've been around more children of various ages, the blessing of his growth is even more apparent.

Levi went from very poor communication to the most talkative child I know. Hands down. Seriously.

The positive impact his teachers have had on him in regards to this change is SIGNIFICANT. They have provided countless resources, praises, and encouragement. And they have all dealt with me. This alone deserves a shout out. I question, I push, I beg for more information -- I'm THAT Mom. Oh, yes. And still these teachers were here for my boy.

Just know there are some wonderful teachers out there doing more than "just a job".

AND CHURCH! Oh my kids miss church! All the wonderful volunteers and leaders in my church make a huge difference in my boys' spiritual growth.

Don't get me wrong, we have been so grateful to have access to multiple worship resources, including streaming services, online bible tools, and more. However! It's still missing that fellowship aspect. It's still missing the sweet moment when I pick my kids up and they tell me all they learned and show me their projects.

AND truthfully, spiritual growth is the most important growth for our family. If Levi still couldn't talk, we would work through it. But if he didn't have an understanding of who the Lord is, my heart would break. Our church teachers have been instrumental in helping all our boys learn more about God's grace.

Church leaders, associates, teachers, volunteers -- you are appreciated and loved!!

And for those of you moms who are dedicated homeschoolers through-and-through: WOOH! Let's get a special shout to you guys because this takes a unique type of patience, understanding and creativity to do this for your children. You all rock!

For the rest of us, we are almost there! Just a week or two left and then we can run into a field (or front yard in my case) and throw a Breakfast Club fist pump into the air of sweet victory.

I'm going to make a day of it and get some ice cream and cookies with the kiddos to celebrate. Look out carbs, I'm coming for you.

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