Meet the Travelers

"The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination." ~ Don Williams, Jr.

We believe very strongly in allowing our children to be educated in the environment that best suits their individual needs, and that will best help them reach their own level of Excellence. That is why we currently have two children in public school and two children who are homeschooled. These situations are always subject to change based on circumstances.

Journey to Excellence was intended to be a chronicle of our homeschooling experience. But, like the above quote states, we all have different paths to take. Because of that, I will include all schooling experiences of our children on this site.

So I'd like to formally introduce you to the Travelers on this Journey to Excellence.

Kyndal

Kyndal is a junior at our local high school. She is just a "public school kid". She loves the social aspect of school and thrives in that kind of environment. Her future goal has always been to be a cosmetologist. She has the unique opportunity to attend Vo-Tech her junior and senior year, part-time, and earn all of the credits necessary to sit for the Cosmetology Board when she completes it. It will be at no cost to her, other than her yearly uniform requirements. She is thrilled to have this opportunity.

The other half of the time she will be taking her required courses at the high school to graduate in 2013. Kyndal works part-time and spends every waking minute at the baseball field. She loves baseball and loves to watch our nationally ranked team play.

Kyndal loves her friends and loves to be around people, which is why we hardly ever see her.

Dawson

Dawson is a 9th grader this year. We began homeschooling him last year. You can read about our reasons to start that journey, here. Dawson is a great kid with a heart for people, especially those with special needs. He is not overly outgoing, more introverted, a real homebody.

He is addicted to his Xbox 360, and plays it at every opportunity. He is involved in his youth group at church and is beginning guitar lessons this fall. In a short period of time he will be learning to drive.

Dawson doesn't have a huge group of friends. Instead, he has a few friends and is extremely loyal to them. He is also so good to his family. His best friend is his dog, Crusoe, who you will see on this blog about as often as you see people.

Eli

Eli is a 2nd grader and attends public school. He is a special boy. Although he has never been officially diagnosed, he has all of the symptoms of Asperger's Syndrome. He is a thriving student and probably one of the sweetest people you will ever meet!

He is a total homebody and would never get out of his pj's or leave the house if he had the choice. Recently, though, he has gotten really excited about a Boy's Club he has joined. He loves to play video games and is a total whiz. He is really good in science and math. And he loves to bowl.

We look forward to the day when we can bring him home for his schooling. But right now he is progressing so much at his elementary school that we feel we shouldn't mess with something that is working. He is safe and loved and cherished by the teachers and students.

Brynne

Brynne is also a 2nd grader, but she is homeschooled. She started kindergarten in public school last year. But after about 6 weeks we made the decision to bring her home and school her as a 1st grader. You can read about that decision, here.

Brynne just turned 6 years old, but is extremely bright and advanced academically for her age. She is an avid reader and loves all things school! She is my little clone and is by my side at every opportunity.

She loves running the house with her mommy, playing with her brothers, going for some girl-time with her sister, and snuggling with her daddy. And she loves her doggies. She can't wait to be a mommy. She is large and in charge, a real spit-fire. She keeps me boogying.

We hope that you will visit us often on this Journey we are taking to Excellence. Stop by often, comment and share. We welcome you here and are here to encourage you. I hope that what you read does that.

We are linking up to Heart of the Matter's "Not" So Back to School Blog Hop.