Prize:

One lucky winner will receive a FREE one-year digital subscription to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine.

And our winner is…..

Lin K.!!

Lin shared the following Christmas memory with us. It sounds like her children really enjoy the season and understand the meaning behind the greatest gift we received…. love for others. Thanks for sharing, Lin! We’ll be in touch with you about your wonderful prize. I hope that you enjoy it.

Thanks to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine for another wonderful prize for our readers. And, thanks to all of you for your support throughout the year! You’re the best!

Thank you so much for everyone who participated in our August 2011 “Raising Real Men” Homeschool Giveaway. Your comments were funny, touching, inspiring, and even a few made us giggle and blush! Thank you for sharing the memories of the special boys in your life. It made for a fun read!

And, now for the good stuff…  Our winner this month is #28, Cindy!

Cindy shared this memory of her son:

We have 4 boys and have plenty of great memories. Along with the rocks and worms in the dryer, there is never a dull moment. Our story is about our 3rd son when he was 4. We were talking to Grandma and Auntie on the phone, when our son took the keys to the van and strolled out to it and unlocked the door and climbed in. At this point, his brothers told us he was in the van. We open the door, and see the van rolling down the driveway. We run to try and stop it. Fortunately, we had our car sitting on the side of the road and the van vears into the front bumper of the car. This child had put the keys into the ignition and pulled the lever into drive. When we got to him and asked where he was going, he said ” I was going to go get some ice cream.” Luckily he hasn’t driven the car since, but he is 14 and wants his drivers license in a couple of years.

August 5th, 2011 at 10:02 am

Congratulations, Cindy! Thank you to Hal and Melanie Young of Raising Real Men for your generous donation of the Mom & Dad Special!

Check out my husband’s latest video creation, “The Cure for Homeschool CRS.“   As my older son says “ALWP” (Actual Laughter Was Produced!)

I never expected to get so many lovely stories when we asked you to tell us about your sweetie!  From the inspirational to the cute and the funny, our Giveaway: A Summer Read for Busy Homeschool Moms brought out the most amazing stories! I encourage you to read through the comments.

It pleases me to announce the winner! So, let’s all give a round of applause to….

Number #51, Tera!

This sounds like a really fun book to read! I’ve been married to my sweetie for 21 years as of June 26th!
July 1st, 2011 at 8:38 am

Congratulations, Tera, and many wonderful wishes for another 21 with your sweetie! Happy belated anniversary… You’ve won one copy of The Busy Homeschool Mom’s Guide to Romance: Nurturing Your Marriage Through the Homeschool Years by Heidi St. John!

Thanks to everyone who took the time to enter. Be sure to visit Heidi’s website for encouragement and inspiration.

Watch our August edition of The HomeScholar Helper for another fun giveaway!

And now for the fun part…. drum roll please……

Winner #1 is #43, Jane!

Jane says:

“Wow. I’ve got 4 kids ages 9-15 and this would be great to supplement our homeschooling. Have already benefited so much from Lee’s books and advice. What a “city on a hill” she is.”

Another drumroll please…..

Winner #2 is #126, Mary!

Mary says:

I watched your free webinar and taking your free class on the five biggest mistakes! They have been very helpful! I am just glad I am good at keeping records.

Congratulations to Jane and Mary! You’ll both receive a free ONE-YEAR subscription to My Audio School!

The winner of the free Old Schoolhouse Expo ticket from our blog contest is…..drumroll please…..

Audrey!!

Wow! High School? Home schooling high school? From the beginning, people would ask, “How long are you going to do this?” Each September I would face the onslaught of (negative)comments/questions about when I was going to  “put them in school”. Then we approached high school. Oh my! While I have always been an eclectic homeschooler (a little of this, a little of that, a little of their curriculum, a little of curriculum I wrote, and all the tweaking to make it work), high school presented the challenges of now meeting guidelines for graduating an “educated” young person.

The greatest curriculum in the world won’t help you on your worst days. On those days, I must know in my heart that God has lead us and will continue to lead us.

That’s where Lee, The HomeScholar fits in. The blog, the mini-course (5 biggest mistakes),the special report, monthly newsletter, articles, dig deeper links  (Preparing Homeschoolers for College), and free consulting have been the encouragement that lets me know that home schooling high school is not only possible, but a reality for someone else, and for us!

I especially love how the blog is in my mailbox at night. Sometimes I take a peek and read it before bed, the dose of encouragement I need to end a day. The testimonials of those who know you and those who don’t, stand as a witness to what you are doing to provide a path for those of us that are following the road to home school through high school, right to the end. Like the “Hare and the Tortoise”, I may be tempted to stop and rest.(The Hare) (Send them to “out school”, as my children call it.) Or be the tortoise who  perseveres to the end, despite all the naysayers (including my own thoughts and words).

The HomeScholar provides the right dose of what I need to guide me to my Lord and Savior, who ultimately called us to home school. Lee lets us know it can be done, with suggestions to guide us. The Lord directs our family’s steps.

~ Audrey

I really appreciated the kind thoughts from everyone who participated.  We will be holding additional contests for tickets to this Expo in the future so please make sure to keep reading.

Do you Twitter? Follow me here!

I’m going to be speaking at the Schoolhouse Expo this year, and I have a free ticket to give away! If you would like to win this ticket, please leave a comment on this blog post answering the following question:

How has The HomeScholar ministry helped you?

We will chose a contest winner on Sunday April 4th.  I’d love to hear your encouraging comments!

This ticket includes a wonderful free gift package valued at over $300.  Check it out!!

Congratulations Aubrey for your winning entry in our contest.  Our contest was to tell us your favorite part of homeschooling in the Spring.  Aubrey responded:

Homeschooling in the spring means we can think about our garden, now buried in over 2 feet of snow. We can consider what vegetables we will plant, that once summer comes, we will enjoy the fruits of our labors. It is wonderful to have the children plan, shop, plant, tend, and harvest from our small city garden. My 10 year old will share the fruits of our labors(fresh picked vegetables) with the children on our block, who are fascinated with the garden (plants and critters) each year. Knowing that winter is followed by spring brings great joy! Homeschooling THIS spring will mean my high school junior will be one year closer to graduating! How can this be? I recall the times (spring season?) when I would watch him as a toddler feeding the ants outside next to our garden. This year, I will be so mindful of the fact that he is on his way to beginning a new phase of his life, college! I am so grateful to God and my husband for the opportunity to have homeschooled him from the beginning. The years still remain for his sisters, grades 9 and 4.

My husband read me all the entries on the way home from church today (without revealing any names).  I liked this comment because it made me remember all the great times we had homeschooling in the Spring as well.

Thank you everyone for participating.  Aubrey, I’ll send you your conference tickets by email.

Do you enjoy these daily doses of high school homeschool wisdom?  Sign up to get them delivered via email or reader!

Are your feet dragging? Do you need a little pick-me-up? Winter is wrapping up and we are anxious for spring — for green, for sunshine, for life, for a little oomph in our homeschool day. It’s easy to get bogged down and for things to turn hum-drum.

A Woman Inspired and Heart of the Matter Online are excited to bring you a Homeschool Refresher conference that is sure to give you a boost. This conference will feature some speakers chosen specifically for their ability to revive, rejuvenate, and renew the hearts and minds of their audience. You are sure to walk away motivated and inspired to achieve great things! To be entered to win the tickets, just comment on this blog post and tell me your favorite part about homeschooling in the Spring.  We will choose a winner on Sunday!.  Good luck!

You can sign up for our free monthly newsletter here

Julie said, “Thank you so much!  I appreciate your generous give away.  After reading the description of your audio course, I knew I wanted to hear it, so I’m thrilled that I’m the winner!”

Julie has been homeschooling 9 years, and she has two boys in grades 6 and 9.  Her favorite advice to younger homeschoolers is: “It’s hard to fix something that isn’t broken.” She confessed that deciding to continue homeschooling high school was a big decision last spring. She add, “However, with help and wisdom from “completed” homeschoolers like you, who have not only finished, but finished well, I’m encouraged about our journey too.”

Audrey in Pennsylvania won my newsletter forwarding contest this month!

Audrey said, “Yippee!!  Every day is a blessing, but this is a special day. God bless you and your efforts. Thank you.” Audrey is homeschooling a 10th grade son, 8th grade daughter, and 3rd grade daughter.  Her husband says their cat LOVES homeschooling, and probably has a Master’s Degree!  Her suggestion is “Birthdays are a holiday for the children and I. That is our way to let home school rule our school calender.”

That sounds like a GREAT way to stay sane while homeschooling.  I did that too, in our homeschool!

Here’s a nice photo with me and my SHS Loopies.  Kathy and Cindy have been my friends for years!  Thank you for all of you who have voted for my blog today.  We are in a very tight contest and really need your support.  Thanks!!

If you would like to read more about “High School Testing” on audio CD, or buy it for yourself, check my description on the website.