Welcome to the Wild and Free podcast, episode 58. I'm Ainsley-Arment, and this week, Jennifer Pepito talks with L. Celaya of Woveon Childhood about having the courage to homeschool after a career as an elementary school teacher.

I mean, for me, like, I have a different perspective, having been homeschooled and being in the public school system. From day one, I've just felt so confident because I've seen the other side. But I think for people that haven't seen the other side, I mean, all they have to know is like the love you have for your child and like the way that you stand up and protect your child. Like you're just your natural ability to do that, it's going to

create you to be a good teacher, like just like you are created to be a good mom.

Plus, we just announced our new content bundle for the month of March called Mighty.

We'll talk about what's inside in just a minute.

So grab a cup of coffee and join us on the front porch.

Let's get started.

I don't know anyone starting out in homeschooling who thinks they know what they're doing.

For that matter, I don't know anyone who is homeschooled an entire house full of children who thinks they got it all right. Anyone who takes on this all-important endeavor of educating their own

children does so holding their breath, crossing their fingers, and praying for a miracle.

It takes bravery to do what we do. There are moments when the pain of it is greater than our passion for it.

At some point, we all ask ourselves, why the heck am I doing this?

The times when strangers quiz our children in grocery stores, the times when parents or grandparents remind us that it's never too late to put them in school.

The times when we threaten our kids with putting them on the bus when they drive us crazy or won't stop bickering.

Or those times when we feel like we're failing them because of our own inadequacies.

But there is a reason we do this that defies explanation.

There is a quiet whisper calling out to us,

beckoning us to give our children a different way,

inviting us to preserve their childhood,

to give them and us the gift of more time together.

Many of you may not be homeschooling in five years,

or even one year from now.

...