• Home
  • Blog
  • Start Here
  • About
    • Meet Kristy
    • FAQ
    • Private Policy
  • Community
  • Contact

Kristy's Cottage

  • Living Well
    • Christianity & Culture
    • Family Finances
    • More Productive You
    • Practical Solutions
    • Time Management
  • Health, Home & Fitness
    • Beautiful Healthy You
    • Fitness and Fashion
    • Healthy Home
    • Healthy Kids
    • Women’s Health Solutions
  • Learning Well
    • Blogs I Read
    • Book Reviews
    • Home Education
      • Challenges
      • Curriculum Reviews
      • Preschool & Kindergarten
      • Elementary & Jr. High
      • Homeschooling Highschool
    • Personal Growth
    • Reading Lists
  • Eating Well
    • Canning & Preserving
    • Meals & Planning
    • Pantry & Food Storage
    • Where to Buy Whole Foods
    • Whole Foods & Recipes
  • Pastor’s Wives
    • Loneliness
    • Mentoring
    • Ministry Life
    • Pastoral Self-Care
    • Raising Preacher’s Kids
  • Loving Well
    • At the Table
    • Building My Marriage
    • Family and Faith
    • Grace for Moms
    • Real Life Parenting
      • Raising Daughters
      • Raising Sons
  • Life @the Cottage
    • Gratitude & Attitude
    • Inside My Cottage
    • Just Writing
    • Seasons & Holidays
      • Spring
      • Summer
      • Autumn
      • Thanksgiving
      • Winter
      • Christmas
    • Working From Home

Balancing Ministry and Homeschooling (for the pastor’s family)

Pastor's Wives

7 Oct
Pin
Tweet
Share
27 Shares

So you can’t do it all. 

But some days it sure feels like you need to, especially when you’re a homeschooling mom and a pastor’s wife!

In case you’re new here, let me throw a quick introduction at you:

I’m Kristy, a thirty-three year old wife and mom.  I’ve been married to my preacher boy for twelve years; ten of those years Jeremy has served as a full time pastor.

I homeschool our five children, who range in ages from ten years down to eighteen months old.

We still have a whole lot to learn, but over the years Jeremy and I have found a few ways to balance ministry and homeschooling.

Here are a few things that work for us:

 

I’m intentional about being at home during the week.

I wouldn’t really call myself a “home body”, but you might get that impression if you took a peek at my weekly routines right now. 

I’m at home pretty much every weekday, except for the drive to church for Wednesday night service.  (Weekends are busier, of course, because that’s when I grocery shop, enjoy a date night with Jeremy, take the kids to the library, or, occasionally go shopping with my sister and girls just for fun.)

Why stay at home so much?  Well, it’s kind of hard to homeschool when you’re not at home.  Right?

I know moms who homeschool on the go because they travel a lot (like missionaries or evangelists), but I’m a girl with roots.  So I stay put.

I’m not saying every mom needs to do this.  We all have different personalities and preferences, and whatever works for you is what you should do.

I’m not saying I will always do this.  I have a feeling that homeschooling five teenagers will look a whole lot different than homeschooling five kids ages ten and under.

But, at this season of my life, I make it a point to be at home with my kids during the week so we can stay on track with homeschooling.   

 

I don’t mind saying “no”.

This is sort of fundamental to preserving my sanity as a homeschooling-mom-in-ministry.

 Just because I’m home nearly every day of the week doesn’t mean I’m available to attend every meeting, organize every project, or host a Bible study on a regular basis.

Right now, my young children are my first ministry.  They are my “Sunday School class”, my mission field, and my biggest project.

Homeschooling, consistent character training, and establishing a healthy family culture with young children takes loads of time and emotional energy.

I also need to fit “sleep” into my daily schedule somewhere.  😉

Whatever keeps me from being a hands-on, full time, mostly sane mother is on my “no” list.  That includes occasional ministry-related activities , lots of my personal projects and blogging goals, and whatever else threatens to gobble up my time and energy.

Balancing Ministry and Homeschooling (for the pastor's family) | by Kristy @ Little Natural Cottage

I try to make the most of the flexibility home education provides.

Thankfully, my kids can sleep in on Monday morning if we’re up late on Sunday night.

We can take a week off from school during revival, church camp, or camp meeting.

If we need to, my kids can double up on their lessons in order to free up a day for a trip to the nursing home, a monthly ladies meeting, or a trip with Jeremy to visit a church member.

We can do just fine with a four-day school week, which gives us a little wiggle room over the weekend for family time, cleaning my house, and getting ready for Sunday.

Homeschooling is super flexible.

My goal is to keep our year-round homeschooling on track with monthly goals and lessons plans, but the overall spirit of home education is to serve our family’s needs.  As a pastor’s family, flexibility is a pretty large need!

*****************************

These are just a few ideas that Jeremy and I implement to keep our lives from dissolving into chaos. 🙂 It has taken us a few years to find a comfortable balance, and I’m sure we’ll continue tweaking things as the seasons of our lives change.

Mom to mom tip: I try to keep a close pulse on my what husbands needs of me regarding ministry activities and support.  I’m thankful that he’s careful to protect my time and energy as a homeschooling mom.  Like I said, it’s been a growing experience for us both!

What would  you add to this list?

Drop me a comment!
Share this post!

More Ideas Like This One:

4 Grace-full Duties of a Pastor's Wife
Q&A: What to do When You're a Mama and a Pastor's Wife
How Should a Pastor's Wife Dress? {Part 2: the case for beauty}
3 Ways Every Pastor's Wife Can Get Real

Leave a Comment

« To the Young Pastor’s Wife Who Can’t Do It All
When You Don’t Always Feel Like a Saint on Sunday »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Or
Login with Facebook

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Or, you can subscribe without commenting.

Hi there, I'm Kristy... daughter of the King, wife to a pastor, mom to five creative kids. Avid reader. Home educator. Writer-at-heart. Tea-drinker. Welcome!

Get to Know Me
Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest
Follow

Browse the Cottage

What I Write About

  • Eating Well
  • Health, Home & Fitness
  • Learning Well
  • Life @the Cottage
  • Living Well
  • Loving Well
  • Pastor's Wives
Weekend Reads | Mentoring Emails from Kristy Howard @ Kristy's Cottage blog

Would like you to opt in for Kristy's weekly mentoring emails? Click the image for more details!

Trending Posts

  • How Many Christmas Gifts Per Child? Here’s Our Family’s Tradition!
  • Tummy Massage for Baby {help for colic, gas, and constipation)
  • 10 Things Every Young Pastors Wife Should Know {Revisted}
  • DIY Wood Floor Cleaner and Polish
  • My Story On Overcoming Candida Naturally While Pregnant
  • Kristy’s Top 5 Herbs During Pregnancy
  • How Should a Pastor’s Wife Dress? {Part 1: the case for modesty}
  • Salted Caramel Popcorn Balls Without Corn Syrup
  • Homeschooling Day by Day
  • How I saved $18 on Better Homes & Gardens Canisters for my Pantry
  • Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims’ Five Kernels of Corn
  • Treating Varicose Veins Naturally
  • How Should a Pastor’s Wife Dress? {Part 2: the case for beauty}
  • 4 Grace-full Duties of a Pastor’s Wife
  • 7 Reasons I Switched to “My Father’s World” Curriculum

Browse the Cottage

Let’s Get Social

Follow on Instagram
Mr. Rebates

Copyright © 2019 · Kristy Howard · All Rights Reserved