Homeschooling...You've come a loooong way baby 3. Co-op

I just found this post that I wrote back in November and thought I had published but hadn't.  Guess that's what happens when you are homeschooling with six little ones...haha.

When I was a child and homeschooling, there were not many options for local support groups.  My family was in a homeschool 4H group and the parents really stepped up to form an active co-op.  I remember taking tons of classes taught by parents who were willing to share their talents and knowledge with the group.  There were classes from calligraphy, woodworking, quilting, canning and preserving, to more academic classes like higher level math.  My friends from those years hold a special place in my heart.  There was and still is a special bond from the comradery.

Now, twenty five years later, I am homeschooling my own kids and found a really great and active homeschool co-op to join.  Our local homeschool support group has several family events throughout the year and we all really enjoy the chance for fellowship and group learning.  Some of our favorite events are the Ol' Fashioned Fall Festival, Backyard Ballistics, and Ice Cream Social.

In October, we went to the Ol Fashioned Fall Festival.  This is one of the events that my kids love the most and look forward to all year long.  It is truly an Ol' Fashioned Fall Festival with pony rides, face painting, petting zoo area, games, chili cook off, hayride, etc.  Here are a few pictures of my kids at EVCHE's Fall Festival this past fall.

I actually didn't manage to get any shots of the older kids as things were really busy and I was working pretty hard just keeping track of everyone:)

If you are a homeschooling family in the east valley of Phoenix, check out our homeschool support group evche.org.

If you are homeschooling somewhere else, I would strongly urge you to find a local support group and form relationships with those walking on the path beside you.