Homeschool Memoirs #5: My Favorite Things

(Yes, I changed the spelling in my post title. I can't help it; I'm not British or Canadian.) Anyway, this week's Homeschool Memoirs asks for a few of our favorite homeschooling-related things—anything from magazines to memes. And so here are a few of my favorites:

1. Definitely in the #1 spot: my friends. I have an amazing group of homeschooling friends. I shouldn't just say "I"; I should emphasize that each person in my family has incredible homeschooling friends. These people are essential to both our homeschooling journey and our journey in general. They are, indeed, our village.

2. My support group. We have around 220 families in our support group, and it is an awesome thing. Although there is vast diversity in our approaches to homeschooling, socio-economic status, education, political views, spiritual views, etc., we all have one very big commonality: we have chosen to homeschool our children. And that in itself is huge. If you are a homeschooler, you know this: you can walk into a room and find 10 people who are dressed just like you, talk just like you, and have kids the same age as your kids. But if there is one person there who homeschools, she'll be the one you strike up a conversation with, even if you appear to have nothing in common on the outside. And to have 220 families who understand....that's just bliss.

3. Sonlight. I love Sonlight curriculum. I love excellent literature. I love reading aloud to my kids. I am so thankful to Laurie B., the woman who first said the magical word "Sonlight" to me nine years ago.

4. Our library. How difficult homeschooling would be without a good public library! (Or even a bad public library.)

5. Homeschoolblogger.com. I'm not part of that community anymore, but I am thankful for it as it introduced me to the homeschool blogging community.

6. The Carnival of Homeschooling. This is a great place to find a wide variety of posts about homeschooling, from snippets of daily life to philosophy to methods.

7. The Homeschool Lounge and Heart of the Matter. I don't visit these as much as I did when they first began, but I think they are fantastic resources. The Lounge is a great community, and folks there are just waiting to answer questions!

8. CurrClick. I download the freebie every week. OK, I haven't actually used any of them, but I know I will one of these days!

9. Lapbooking at Squidoo. Simply the most amazing lapbooking resource I've found.

10. Enchanted Learning. I haven't used it yet this fall, but normally this is a site I use heavily.

11. Bookshelves. And, my newly designated schoolroom that has enough open space for a solid wall of shelves.

12. The Great Smoky Mountains. It is amazingly peaceful to live in such a beautiful place. Even on the most hectic days when we have to run out a zillion times to go here and there, I can always see them. Just knowing there is a place 20 minutes away where we can shut out the bustle of the world has an instant calming effect on me.

Of course, homeschooling wouldn't be homeschooling with my three favorite things and their daddy.

(Do you have a list of favorites? You can join in at Homeschool Memoirs anytime!)

See Memoir #4 here: Something New
See Memoir #3 here: Routines
See Memoir #2 here: Agendas
See Memoir #1 here: All About Me