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I am so excited to share that our oldest finished up her high school studies yesterday! She used HOD from Bigger Hearts with Extensions for 5th grade through the US History 1 Guide this year for her senior year. We feel HOD provided an outstanding, fulfilling, satisfying, rich, enjoyable, interesting, and Bible-based education that truly cannot be beat! She is fully equipped for whatever and wherever God leads her next in life.

There is nothing like the feeling of seeing it through to the finish line. We have something called Senior Sunday at our church where the seniors and their parents go up front and the parents say a few words about their senior and then the student just says briefly what they are going to do next. There were six seniors last week and our daughter was the only one who had been homeschooled through high school. When it came time for us to talk, she totally surprised us and took the mic first - and proceeded to read us a letter she had written thanking and honoring my husband and myself for what we had done for her. It was so eloquent and beautiful. She addressed homeschooling and the ways it had benefitted her life. By the end, the whole church was in tears. And this from our our daughter, who absolutely hates speaking in public. And our high school years were not easy ones, with much questioning and seeking the Lord. She ended up by saying that the biggest blessing of all is the relationship that she enjoys with her dad and me as a result of being at home. She really gave homeschooling a good name!! What an amazing blessing it was to hear her publicly bring glory to God at the end of this journey! We are so thankful and so blessed. (She was the only senior who thanked her parents at all.)

THANK YOU CARRIE, MIKE, AND JULIE! May God continue to bless your family and your business as you minister to the homeschooling community.

Tiffini,
What a great post to read!! What a testimony to all the time, effort and prayer you have put into your daughter's schooling. Homeschooling for high school can be such a challenge at times, although HOD makes is 100 times easier than when I tried to do it eclectic with my daughter, but I know I wouldn't trade it for anything. Congratulations to you and your daughter for reaching that finish line!

What a wonderful testimony!!! As my son just started my first year of Kindergarten a we are looking forward to many years to come, this is what I needed to hear to bring motivation, encouragement, and the peace of the Lord! Blessings to you!
Michelle
Mom of four boys, oldest in Little Hearts

Oh, Tiffini! I'm in tears. What a precious unexpected surprise from your daughter! I am rejoicing with you today, and I can't wait to see what God has in mind next for your sweet daughter! She has managed to graduate high school with love and respect for her parents and her family, with faith in our heavenly Father, and with a passion for life and learning that is still burning bright. No small task. This is due to you and your husband's commitment to your family and to the Lord as well. Thank YOU for being such a supporter of HOD and for being an encouraging friend to Carrie, to Mike, and to me all of these many years. We are blessed to have you in the HOD family. The Lord has blessed us with you, Tiffini. Please do give your dd a hug from all of us and tell her "Job well done!!!

Love in Christ,
Julie

This absolutely made me smile and brought tears to my eyes. Congratulations to your family on your strong finish. Thank you for sharing this experience to be an encouragement to other families. I know it has encouraged me tremendously. May God continue to bless you.

Letha

That is so wonderful! Did they record her? It would be great to listen to or watch later on. She was really the only one who thanked her parents, even with the parents on stage with their children? I bet there were some parents in the audience seriously considering homeschooling because of her testimony. Surely the testimony was a stark contrast...

What a great testimony! It certainly isn't always easy, but if we keep the goal in mind and look at the end result it is worth the effort.

Awww... Thanks for sharing this!

Thank you so much for the encouragement to stay the homeschool course through Highschool. I have been questioning our homeschool call this spring, and your post is wonderful and warm encouragement. Your testimony really touched my heart. Great job mom!

Thank you all for your kind words! I am so thankful for a like-minded community that can support and encourage one another.

I want to share a little more personally about our journey in the hopes that it will encourage someone else who may be in the same place that we were in. My dd's high school years were not easy ones for many reasons. I wish I could say that my mind was made up and never wavered during those years, but I can't. As most of our friends sent their kids off to school for high school, it became very difficult for my dd. She often felt that she was missing out and would often ask us to look into other schooling options. Many times, we questioned whether it was best to keep her at home. We did check out other options - several times. But as we continually prayed for wisdom and direction - knowing that God could see the big picture and knew what was best for our dd even we did not - God kept closing other doors and gently reminding us that He had a different plan for our dd than what those around us were doing. (I am not putting down others' decisions to choose other schooling options. It was just that God had shown us earlier that this was His plan for our family). There were lots of hard discussions. Lots of tears. Lots of prayers. Lots of times when it felt impossible to go on.

But I can tell you today that our dd has been thanking us continually for staying the course and for listening for God's voice more than we listened to hers - or even our own. She now sees things more clearly than she could in the midst of things. And like I said earlier, she says the greatest benefit is the relationships she enjoys with her family today that she feels would have suffered if we had chosen another route.

Yes, I do think that she missed out on some experiences - both good and bad - by not being in a school setting. But as we would always remind ourselves - if it's important for her life then God will make sure that she experiences it in one way or another. He is able to provide EVERYTHING that she needs.

Here is an excerpt of the letter she read to us in front of the church that I hope will give you encouragement and inspiration! I can't believe how brave she was!

"Thank you both so much. I know there may have been some things I didn't get to
experience not being at another school. Some people might say I haven't been
“socialized” enough or exposed enough. At one time I agreed with them. But now I
see differently. I see that I have done more living and experiencing than many
other kids will ever get the chance to do. I learned to live real life. I learned to be
independent. I've gotten to pursue the things that I'm interested in. I've learned to
get things done on my own. I have such a huge array of knowledge in unique areas
of learning that will benefit me for the rest of my life. I've gotten to work unique
and fun jobs that have introduced me to a lot of different people and challenges. I
also have developed a strong relationship with God and learned how to defend my
faith, which I know is due in huge part to the teaching and guidance you two have
given me. But one thing that I will never regret that I got out of this journey is the
strong and lasting relationships I have built with you two that will last a lifetime.
Nothing could ever replace that."

Tiffini,

What a precious letter and a moment to treasure in your heart! It is so true that homeschooling is far from easy and that there are tough days filled with uncertainty. But the Lord promises to walk with us through the midst of it all, making the finish line all the sweeter as our students cross it. I know that my husband and I felt much more assured of our decision to homeschool through high school after we graduated our oldest son. It gave us a much-needed moment of reaping what we had been sowing for so many, many years. Thank you for taking time to share your daughter's story with us. What a wonderful testament to the faithfulness of the Lord in her life (and yours).

Blessings,
Carrie

God bless your family . Thank you so much for sharing her letter. What a joy. My heart is full of happiness for you and your husband and daughter.