I wanted to to speak to this.

I felt overwhelmed to begin with. I'm a classic S.H.E. I do not do well facing beaucoup decisions. It seemed like, when I first looked into homeschooling, I'd never be able to decide from all the certainly wonderful, but endless, options out there. I felt paralyzed with indecision. (There's also the money factor; you hate to waste it on something that might not work.)

The only answer I can give is that you have to feel your way through it. You just have to step out of the boat and trust. ***I'm experiencing deja vu right now because I know I just wrote this on another thread. I can't remember which.*** I strongly recommend bathing the whole process in prayer. (I know I can recommend this to you personally, Debbie, so I don't think I'm violating the site's policy on this.) I felt like I was flying blind at first, because even when I asked others, "What are you using? What do you like? What method do you recommend?" I felt I was getting *their* answers, not mine. Does that make sense? Not that it was completely unhelpful asking others. In a way, it did help, because it gave me a close-up look at different materials and how they might possibly work for me.

Looking back on the first three or four years, I realize that commitment (a.k.a. faithfulness) is more important than "what you use." If you are committed to loving, training, learning with your children, you'll do fine no matter what methods or materials you use.

This is not without its challenges. Some days I think God is using the homeschooling more to train me than the children. (I'm not joking here.) I'm still feeling my way through this, but this is the first year I have been satisfied with the "stuff" we've used. I realize it's just a vehicle for getting across what I need to, and I've found a vehicle that works well for me and my limitations and strengths.

Just be aware that you are going to doubt yourself, you are going to run up against challenges, and ultimately, you are going to do well.