Sleep

We are a homeschooling family. We are a pretty relaxed homeschooling family.  We aren't relaxed in the academics that we pursue, but we are relaxed in our daily schedule. 

I have always been a night owl, coming from a strong night owl lineage. :-)

While Viper has always been a good sleeper, he was also one to wake up easily and relatively early to get going on his day. 

Charger, on the other hand, is my SLEEPER.  Granted, the boy can wake up automatically every Saturday morning by 7:30 to be sure not to miss his favorite cartoon. But, he has mastered the art of waking early, realizing it's a school day and then sleeping as loooonnnnggg as no one else wakes him up.

I have vacillated between making him wake up early (early being around 8:00am) to get started with work and letting him wake when he was ready. Ready for Charger could come anywhere between 9 and NOON!  I would feel guilty for allowing this, then justify it with the theory that if a kid sleeps like that, they probably need the sleep!  Plus, the boys both know that they must complete all of their daily schoolwork before being allowed to go out and play.  If you wanted to start at noon, you dealt with the consequence of not being done until dinnertime or later.

But still, the guilt at admitting to my public school friends that my kids slept in 'til after their kids were already plugging away at school gnawed at me.  Sure, I loved to sleep in right alongside them at times. Or better yet, reveling in the quiet time I got in the mornings while they snored in their beds. But, the "shame", "you're a bad mom", "lazy" feelings just kept coming my way...

Until, this week. 

Charger decided this week that he would set his own alarm clock for 8:00am everyday so that he could get up and complete his schoolwork in plenty of time to be able to play with his public school friends who get home around 3:30.

HE decided.

HE told me this morning, "It's just easier to set an alarm, wake up and get going. I like getting my school work finished and knowing I'm going to be able to play at the end of the schoolday."

HE figured this out on his own. I have not been waking him up every morning, forcing him to get ready, getting food into him and making him either go to school or get out his books for homeschooling.  HE realized that there was a better way - a way that made him feel more in control and on top of things. HE realized HE needed to make the decision to be responsible and not just lay in bed putting off the inevitable work waiting to be completed.

I think this is a big deal. The fact that he realized this was important and resulted in a less stressed day makes me feel that he will be able to handle life outside of this house.  Sometimes, I worried that by allowing him to follow his own sleep schedule, I was doing him a disservice. But now, I think something great has come from it.

HE will be able to get up and get to work on time because HE knows inside it's the better option.  Plus, he'll never miss his favorite cartoon.

:-)