Mary Beth and Sarah: Our Journeys with Education

Hear from Mary Beth & Sarah about their own educational backgrounds - they were not a straight line! How did that inform their families' decisions for their children's education so far? Tune in to hear about how they're navigating school and education and finding community for themselves and their children. 

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18.916625 21.676625 - Well, good morning, Mary Beth.
 21.676625 22.996625 - Good morning, Sarah.
 22.996625 24.676625 Happy New Year.
 24.676625 26.576625 - Happy New Year to you.
 26.576625 30.916625 I am excited to see that when you came to my,
 30.916625 35.916625 how our professional podcast recording studio,
 35.916625 41.156625 that you were tired in a somewhat festive red plaid shirt.
 41.156625 46.516625 And of course, you noticed right away
 46.516625 50.996625 that I greeted you in a pair of cute and cozy Buffalo check
 50.996625 51.836625 pajamas.
 51.836625 53.996625 - Right, we're not letting go of Christmas yet.
 53.996625 56.196625 - Well, I am on my vacation.
 56.196625 57.036625 - That's true.
 57.036625 58.516625 - Now, by the time listeners you hear this,
 58.516625 60.596625 I will no longer be on vacation.
 60.596625 62.996625 But right now, I'm on vacation,
 62.996625 64.436625 and I'm enjoying that very much.
 64.436625 66.716625 - And hopefully by the time people hear this,
 66.716625 69.836625 some of the Christmas things in my house will be packed away.
 69.836625 73.836625 But we're recording this on Epiphany.
 73.836625 75.516625 And as I was telling Sarah,
 75.516625 78.716625 we don't pack anything up until after we celebrate
 78.716625 81.316625 the wise men meeting Jesus.
 81.316625 82.836625 Yes, neither do I.
 82.836625 85.756625 In fact, I wait a couple more days to Elvis’s birthday.
 85.756625 91.756625 That great church historical holiday.
 91.756625 93.156625 Elvis Presley’s birthday.
 93.156625 93.996625 - That's right.
 93.996625 95.996625 Hey, he sang some good gospel songs.
 95.996625 97.276625 - All right, okay.
 97.276625 98.596625 But what are we really here to talk about?
 100.476625 104.796625 We're here to talk about something that affects
 104.796625 108.116625 our lives almost 180 days a year.
 108.116625 108.956625 - At least.
 108.956625 109.796625 - Yeah.
 109.796625 113.116625 - And that's the decision on how to educate our children.
 113.116625 116.236625 So we are in a series of podcast episodes
 116.236625 117.916625 about educational choices.
 117.916625 123.796625 Mary Beth and I have so far in our parenting lives
 123.796625 128.556625 arrived at the same decision on how to educate our children.
 128.556625 130.716625 But there are definitely different paths
 130.716625 131.956625 to that decision making.
 131.956625 134.316625 And also our children are different ages.
 134.316625 137.476625 My son is in his first year of high school.
 137.476625 141.156625 And Mary Beth's children are both still in elementary school.
 141.156625 142.956625 - First and third grade.
 142.956625 146.076625 Well, I know for myself, as my son got older,
 146.076625 148.076625 different factors came into the decision making.
 148.076625 151.996625 So yeah, but we do both send our kids to public school here.
 151.996625 155.116625 And in fact, in the same exact school district,
 155.116625 156.116625 which is helpful.
 156.116625 159.636625 Well, it is for a lot of reasons.
 160.636625 165.156625 One of which is my boys like to see your son
 165.156625 168.036625 at community events around the high school,
 168.036625 169.516625 'cause they think it's really cool that they know
 169.516625 170.356625 one of the older kids.
 170.356625 171.236625 - Oh, yeah.
 171.236625 172.396625 I think we've talked about this before.
 172.396625 173.316625 - We have football games.
 173.316625 174.396625 - Yeah.
 174.396625 178.836625 - But we thought today after having a good conversation
 178.836625 181.196625 in the previous episode with Tina Hammer
 181.196625 183.716625 about her experience with home schooling,
 183.716625 186.756625 we thought, you know, maybe we should share
 186.756625 189.716625 our own background, what our education experience was
 189.716625 193.116625 because as any parent knows,
 193.116625 196.676625 you're bringing into your decision making your own
 196.676625 197.516625 life experience.
 197.516625 200.356625 That's informing how you're approaching things.
 200.356625 203.356625 And so we thought we'd share a little bit about that.
 203.356625 206.436625 And how that has played into our decisions
 206.436625 210.276625 and our families about what to do with our choices
 210.276625 212.916625 for education, for our own children.
 212.916625 216.676625 Even as I say that, we recognize that
 216.676625 219.516625 it's great to be able to have choices.
 219.516625 220.596625 - It certainly is.
 220.596625 222.436625 Do we begin at the beginning?
 222.436625 223.756625 Or do we begin in the middle?
 223.756625 224.916625 Or do we begin at the end?
 224.916625 226.356625 Well, I guess we already began at the end
 226.356625 228.156625 because we said that all of our boys
 228.156625 229.116625 are in public school.
 229.116625 231.076625 So that's the end of the story.
 231.076625 233.036625 But maybe let's go back to the beginning.
 233.036625 234.116625 - All right.
 234.116625 236.996625 If we're gonna go to the beginning chronologically,
 236.996625 238.916625 you've been some a month older.
 238.916625 241.476625 - We'll start with me.
 241.476625 243.596625 - Thanks for falling on the sword there, Sarah.
 243.596625 244.876625 - Yeah, you're welcome.
 244.876625 246.956625 Would you like me to ask you a question?
 246.956625 247.876625 - Always.
 248.716625 251.276625 - Sarah, where did you go to kindergarten?
 251.276625 253.876625 - Public school in New York State,
 253.876625 255.556625 and I lived in Pennsylvania.
 255.556625 256.476625 - Tell us more about that.
 256.476625 257.956625 - Ooh, yes.
 257.956625 260.396625 My parents chose it because they felt
 260.396625 263.116625 that the educational offerings in New York State
 263.116625 265.556625 were a little stronger than what was available
 265.556625 267.796625 in our local public school in Pennsylvania.
 267.796625 270.196625 Not saying that this is true of all districts
 270.196625 271.996625 across the state, but in this particular case,
 271.996625 273.676625 they liked that choice better.
 273.676625 277.836625 The experience there was really pretty good.
 277.836625 279.636625 I had an amazing kindergarten teacher,
 279.636625 281.476625 she just taught my brother and then my niece,
 281.476625 283.236625 and some family affair.
 283.236625 286.876625 But I was there, kindergarten to third.
 286.876625 288.436625 Then there was a new Christian school
 288.436625 291.156625 that opened up in another nearby town in New York State,
 291.156625 293.476625 and my parents sent me there.
 293.476625 295.756625 Luckily, there was some friends
 295.756625 298.236625 that also went to from our church,
 298.236625 302.676625 and we would kind of carpool a little bit.
 302.676625 306.276625 - Were you part of the first class of students here?
 306.276625 308.156625 I started there the second year that it was,
 308.156625 309.956625 but it was not many kids the first year.
 309.956625 311.316625 It was very small.
 311.316625 314.236625 It did grow, we moved buildings, it was good.
 314.236625 315.756625 I had some great experiences there.
 315.756625 318.516625 It's amazing teachers, made some great friends,
 318.516625 319.756625 so I'm still in contact with.
 319.756625 320.876625 It was a good thing.
 320.876625 323.316625 And then that school went up to eighth grade,
 323.316625 326.476625 and then I went back to the public school from ninth to 12th,
 326.476625 329.356625 which was awesome because I got to play basketball
 329.356625 331.716625 and sing in the chorus and all that sort of thing.
 331.716625 333.716625 - What was the transition like to go from
 333.716625 335.676625 Christian school to public high school?
 335.676625 336.596625 - It was hard.
 336.596625 338.636625 - Yeah, yeah, it was hard.
 338.636625 339.716625 - In what ways?
 339.716625 345.636625 - I wasn't used to having to keep my head down,
 345.636625 348.196625 to not make waves and get picked on.
 348.196625 350.516625 I just didn't said whatever I wanted.
 350.516625 351.596625 I mean, that sounds terrible,
 351.596625 353.916625 but like I had people in high school
 353.916625 355.036625 know what I'm talking about.
 355.036625 360.956625 But then probably after ninth grade, 10th grade,
 360.956625 363.916625 I just kind of didn't care much anymore, you know,
 363.916625 366.276625 and I just did about what people thought of me.
 366.276625 370.876625 - And I think that it's good because it definitely made me
 370.876625 373.716625 the person I am today, made me more resilient.
 373.716625 377.156625 It also made me, it probably needed to be knocked down
 377.156625 380.276625 a couple notches, filter what I said.
 380.276625 382.116625 It was probably good.
 382.116625 383.876625 - The feedback of your peers.
 383.876625 386.156625 - Sometimes there's positive pressure.
 386.156625 387.156625 - Sometimes there's positive things.
 387.156625 389.636625 No, I think my parents made good choices.
 389.636625 392.036625 My brother also went to the Christian school for a while,
 392.036625 394.556625 but he went back to public school before I did.
 394.556625 397.596625 - And then how did you decide what to do after high school?
 397.596625 398.516625 - Oh, yeah.
 398.516625 401.076625 I had been focused on going to a Christian college.
 401.076625 403.236625 So I went to Eastern college,
 403.236625 404.836625 which is not Eastern University,
 404.836625 407.436625 close by here, actually, less than an hour away.
 407.436625 410.396625 And then I was there for the first year,
 410.396625 412.836625 but I transferred to Millersville University,
 412.836625 414.836625 State University, and that was good.
 414.836625 417.116625 And I stayed there for a while full time,
 417.116625 419.436625 then I went to part-time, then I stopped,
 419.436625 423.156625 and then I ended up getting my automotive management degree
 423.156625 424.916625 from Northwood University.
 424.916625 428.916625 - Yeah, so that's my quite a little trail there.
 428.916625 430.796625 Lots of different educational experiences.
 430.796625 431.636625 - Quite a little trail.
 431.636625 432.996625 And I just say, in our family,
 432.996625 434.596625 I'm trying to think if we have anyone
 434.596625 438.516625 that went to college for four years and graduated.
 438.516625 441.516625 I think all of us have transferred,
 441.516625 444.676625 have stopped, have gone back, have gotten the adult degree.
 444.676625 447.156625 Like, I don't know that there's any one of us,
 447.156625 449.676625 unless those of us who've married into our family,
 449.676625 451.076625 they did it.
 451.076625 454.476625 My dad went to three universities, I think,
 454.476625 457.156625 and that's sort of our family hallmark.
 457.156625 457.996625 - Yeah.
 457.996625 459.236625 - So are cute as education.
 459.236625 463.876625 - Well, you're living proof that you can make changes,
 463.876625 464.716625 and it's okay.
 464.716625 466.436625 - Yeah, and that's what Tina was talking to us about.
 466.436625 467.676625 - Yeah.
 467.676625 469.156625 - So how about you, Mary Bath?
 469.156625 472.116625 Tell us your little educational journey.
 472.116625 472.956625 - Yeah.
 472.956625 475.916625 - Well, again, I'm struck by some of the similarities
 475.916625 480.076625 in our lives, 'cause I did not have a straight line trajectory.
 480.076625 482.436625 My mom was my first teacher.
 482.436625 486.596625 She homeschooled me kindergarten through second grade.
 486.596625 488.636625 She had also homeschooled my older siblings
 488.636625 491.116625 when they were in the younger grades as well,
 491.116625 492.076625 and it was great.
 492.076625 493.636625 You know, I don't remember a whole lot from that time,
 493.636625 495.076625 but I remember that I liked it.
 495.076625 497.956625 And third grade, I started in public school,
 497.956625 502.956625 and then we actually moved to a different place in Georgia
 503.676625 507.236625 because my parents wanted us to be in a Christian school
 507.236625 509.676625 that was started by a church that they had attended
 509.676625 511.556625 before they had children,
 511.556625 513.396625 and really wanted that opportunity for us.
 513.396625 515.716625 So from fourth through 12th grade,
 515.716625 517.476625 I was at private Christian school
 517.476625 521.996625 that had been started by my church and was still affiliated.
 521.996625 525.836625 And that was my whole world growing up.
 525.836625 528.236625 So my friends from school,
 528.236625 530.636625 a lot of them were also my friends from church.
 530.636625 534.596625 A lot of them lived close by. I could walk to some of their houses.
 534.596625 538.516625 And it was a great little bubble to grow up in.
 538.516625 542.556625 I felt very prepared academically for life.
 542.556625 547.556625 I also felt that I was getting reinforcement at school
 547.556625 550.396625 with what my parents were teaching me at home
 550.396625 553.076625 about world view at the gospel.
 553.076625 554.916625 Not every teacher at my school was the same
 554.916625 556.436625 denomination as our church,
 556.436625 561.196625 but there was just a lot of reinforcing the same principles
 561.196625 563.316625 and ideas. And so I came out of high school
 563.316625 566.676625 with a very strong sense of my own relationship with the Lord
 566.676625 568.556625 and addition to kind of this academic background.
 568.556625 571.756625 Now some of my closest friends growing up
 571.756625 575.476625 came out of the same school with no relationship with the Lord
 575.476625 581.036625 and have not found that in their lives yet.
 581.036625 583.476625 I still have hope that might happen someday,
 583.476625 587.676625 but so not to say that the Christian school guaranteed
 587.676625 592.036625 anything for me, but for my personal experience, it was positive.
 592.036625 594.556625 And then yeah, after high school, I thought,
 594.556625 597.196625 okay, I'm tired of being in this happy little bubble.
 597.196625 599.236625 I want to go far away and do something different.
 599.236625 603.356625 And so I chose to go to college in Texas at Baylor,
 603.356625 607.796625 which we kind of talked about it as Baptist light.
 607.796625 610.876625 And I felt there that it actually was more of a Baylor bubble
 610.876625 614.396625 than I was anticipating. And then for that reason and some
 614.396625 617.316625 financial reasons, I decided to transfer my junior year
 617.316625 620.236625 to the University of Georgia, a major public university
 620.236625 623.116625 with over 30,000 students and I loved it.
 623.116625 626.316625 That was it. After that, I said, okay, no more school for me.
 626.316625 630.876625 I'm done. So that was my little journey.
 630.876625 632.796625 And again, I think you mentioned this too.
 632.796625 637.156625 It's looking back and hindsight, it's you see the value
 637.156625 640.196625 and how God was working in each of those scenarios.
 640.196625 643.276625 Who knows what would have happened if that had different
 643.276625 646.996625 experiences, but I'm grateful for the ones that I did.
 646.996625 649.916625 So do you know what a sword drill is?
 649.916625 652.396625 Oh, yeah, like where they say a book of the Bible or a verse
 652.396625 654.156625 or something and you have race to find it.
 654.156625 656.796625 We used to do those for fun. That's cool.
 656.796625 659.596625 Oh, yeah. Did you do them for school?
 659.596625 661.636625 I remember doing them in Sunday school at church.
 661.636625 664.116625 I guess I better teach my son the books of the Bible.
 664.116625 668.716625 Like I'm well, that's a good transition point, Sarah.
 668.716625 671.836625 Because as we mentioned at the top of the episode,
 671.836625 673.996625 your family, my family, we've chosen to put our children
 673.996625 676.476625 into public school.
 676.476625 677.916625 I guess there's two questions there.
 677.916625 679.956625 Answer whichever one you want to first.
 679.956625 681.436625 How did you reach that decision?
 681.436625 687.476625 And having some Christian school background in your own life,
 687.476625 691.516625 have you thought about, you know, what is different
 691.516625 694.556625 in your experience versus your sons?
 694.556625 697.916625 Those are both very good questions.
 697.916625 700.636625 One is easier than the other to answer.
 700.636625 702.716625 So I’ll answer the easy one first.
 702.716625 704.396625 How did we arrive at the decision?
 704.396625 708.716625 Well, when he was little, I was a single mom.
 708.716625 712.516625 And I was able to find a preschool program
 712.516625 714.996625 that he could attend that I did not have to pay for,
 714.996625 716.956625 which was super important.
 716.956625 718.636625 That was a full day program.
 718.636625 720.676625 And then when he was getting ready to go to kindergarten,
 720.676625 723.196625 I lived in a district that was a half day program.
 723.196625 725.916625 But I have been counting on the full day program for childcare.
 725.916625 729.676625 Again, you know, single mom, very little income.
 729.676625 733.316625 So I was like, hmm, what can I do?
 733.316625 738.996625 So I actually moved to Lancaster City Public School District
 738.996625 741.676625 because they had a full day kindergarten program.
 741.676625 746.836625 And I chose to live in the area with the best
 746.836625 749.316625 of the city elementary schools.
 749.316625 750.836625 And it was great.
 750.836625 754.716625 The neighborhood was lovely that I lived in.
 754.716625 757.356625 And we had such great neighbors.
 757.356625 759.756625 The school was a block and a half away.
 759.756625 761.796625 I got to walk to school with him.
 761.796625 764.316625 I volunteered in the classroom.
 764.316625 770.196625 Overall, like his experience was not as positive as mine.
 770.196625 771.516625 But that's OK.
 771.516625 773.756625 And I did actually consider even sending him
 773.756625 777.036625 to private Christian school for kindergarten.
 777.036625 782.396625 But at that point, it came down to the money.
 782.396625 786.716625 And I knew that this was a good public school.
 786.716625 788.556625 One of my friends was friends with the principal.
 788.556625 791.156625 Like it was a good environment if you were
 791.156625 792.676625 going to have an environment, right?
 792.676625 795.116625 So not knowing we went in.
 795.116625 797.596625 And he did learn some interesting things there
 797.596625 798.876625 that that first year.
 798.876625 799.876625 But it was good.
 799.876625 806.916625 And I didn't really think that he would be in the public school
 806.916625 809.556625 system his entire educational career.
 809.556625 812.516625 But I knew that for that time, that that was the right choice.
 812.516625 815.996625 If that makes sense, we'll switch to my next school when it's time.
 815.996625 817.836625 So that was my plan.
 817.836625 821.356625 And then when I married my husband and we moved to Chester
 821.356625 825.196625 County, there was a lovely Christian school in this area
 825.196625 827.076625 that had been our plan.
 827.076625 832.036625 And I had just happened to have dinner the summer we moved here
 832.036625 837.396625 and sat next to a woman who went to our church that did speech
 837.396625 842.236625 pathology in the public schools, public schools, in Delaware
 842.236625 842.916625 actually.
 842.916625 847.196625 But she sent her kids to their local elementary school.
 847.196625 853.356625 And she said to me, Sarah, do you need to just look at this school?
 853.356625 855.716625 She said, it's a public private school.
 855.716625 856.516625 It's so good.
 856.516625 858.836625 And I was like, OK, really?
 858.836625 861.196625 And he went over and we visited the school.
 861.196625 864.716625 And I was overwhelmed.
 864.716625 865.796625 Wow.
 865.796625 869.516625 And it turns out that one of the teachers went to our church.
 869.516625 873.356625 It just was one of those things where God was very clear
 873.356625 874.836625 that this was the choice here to make.
 874.836625 877.956625 So luckily, I was able to get most of my deposit back,
 877.956625 881.356625 I think we made the decision right before school started.
 881.356625 883.036625 And he started first grade.
 883.036625 887.556625 And it was definitely the right choice.
 887.556625 890.516625 He had had a really bad experience, like I said,
 890.516625 893.356625 his perspective was not positive.
 893.356625 894.916625 And for kindergarten.
 894.916625 895.836625 Right, exactly.
 895.836625 900.036625 So going into first grade, his teacher was--
 900.036625 901.676625 she was new at the school that year.
 901.676625 903.636625 It was a perfect combination.
 903.636625 906.676625 And she just made the school experience completely different
 906.676625 907.276625 for him.
 907.276625 911.036625 And he still talks about how amazing his time was.
 911.036625 914.196625 Like, I've noticed a lot of the kids in our district
 914.196625 917.436625 that I run into, they love their elementary schools.
 917.436625 919.956625 And they speak with such fondness.
 919.956625 923.316625 So I've seen characteristics of each of our elementary schools
 923.316625 925.436625 now that we've been through the middle school and the high school.
 925.436625 927.676625 And I know the kids on my team, and stuff like that,
 927.676625 929.756625 I've gotten so much positive feedback
 929.756625 932.196625 about all these elementary schools.
 932.196625 934.996625 Well, and so now you mentioned he's in ninth grade.
 934.996625 937.436625 So he's been in the public school system the whole time.
 937.436625 941.716625 Was there ever another thought about switching?
 941.716625 944.316625 What's that looked like for you?
 944.316625 946.556625 When we went through the COVID time
 946.556625 948.716625 and we had to do distance learning
 948.716625 951.996625 that we thought about, what do we do here?
 951.996625 954.676625 But we stuck with it, again, like Tina said,
 954.676625 957.436625 we are going to homeschool for as long as it works for our family.
 957.436625 959.636625 And we've been in the camp that we're
 959.636625 962.716625 going to do the public school for as long as it works for our family.
 962.716625 963.996625 And it's kept working.
 963.996625 968.196625 There have been some times that I wasn't sure, and we weren't sure.
 968.196625 970.796625 And I still don't know for making the right choice.
 970.796625 974.156625 Yeah, I guess my son can sit down some day and say,
 974.156625 976.876625 they made the right choice, or they made the wrong choice.
 976.876625 980.916625 I don't know, that'll be his hindsight conversation.
 980.916625 983.956625 Well, and hopefully, like us with our own hindsight,
 983.956625 986.796625 we can see how God was working wherever we were.
 986.796625 990.716625 But I hear you, it's like so many things in parenting.
 990.716625 993.276625 We're often wondering if we're making the right choice.
 993.276625 994.796625 Yeah, constantly, every day.
 994.796625 997.796625 I mean, but for the grace of God, yeah.
 997.796625 1001.876625 Middle school was really rough.
 1001.876625 1005.236625 But I have heard that about every middle school.
 1005.236625 1009.756625 Middle school is just rough time of life, yeah.
 1009.756625 1014.036625 So to my second question that I had asked on this, looking
 1014.036625 1018.796625 back at your own experience with some of that Christian school background,
 1018.796625 1023.556625 and you intended to do that with your son, but then plans changed.
 1023.556625 1027.076625 What have been your thoughts on his public school experience
 1027.076625 1028.956625 versus a Christian school experience?
 1028.956625 1030.716625 If he had that, yeah.
 1030.716625 1037.756625 So in part of my constant reprocessing and second-guessing and decision-making,
 1037.756625 1042.236625 I've had a lot of conversations with parents that have homeschooled,
 1042.236625 1045.756625 our homeschooling have sent their kids to other schools,
 1045.756625 1049.996625 other Christian schools, maybe the one I was considering or some other ones.
 1049.996625 1055.516625 And some of the issues that we've had in the public school
 1055.516625 1060.356625 are the same issues that they've had, like they're just universal issues.
 1060.356625 1065.476625 So I don't think jumping ship would fix it.
 1065.476625 1068.756625 There are some cons to public school.
 1068.756625 1072.756625 And I feel those, but boy, there's a lot of pros, too.
 1072.756625 1078.756625 And so for us, for him, the pros are still stronger.
 1078.756625 1080.476625 And that's kind of where we are.
 1080.476625 1084.996625 And I think that I have some friends that they send their kids to,
 1084.996625 1086.756625 you know, Unionville Chadds Ford like we do.
 1086.756625 1090.036625 But then they have other children in their family that they send to
 1090.036625 1091.436625 a private school or whatever.
 1091.436625 1094.876625 And it's just because every child is different.
 1094.876625 1097.796625 You can't always make a blanket decision.
 1097.796625 1103.396625 And I think it's useful to say important to say that we are so blessed
 1103.396625 1108.236625 to even be able to make this decision, to have this conversation.
 1108.236625 1112.756625 There are many people in our world that just cry for any education for their child.
 1112.756625 1119.196625 And so being able to dip in and out of tuition, not tuition,
 1119.196625 1123.636625 live in a school district that is as well funded as ours.
 1123.636625 1127.236625 I mean, these are, yeah, you know, privileged problems.
 1127.236625 1129.956625 First world problems, yes, yes.
 1129.956625 1134.396625 Well, our children obviously are younger than your son.
 1134.396625 1140.276625 So we're just, I feel like still very much the beginning of our educational journey with them.
 1140.276625 1145.436625 But my husband and I were very intentional when we moved here.
 1145.436625 1146.876625 Our older son was a baby.
 1146.876625 1150.516625 And so we, we're looking at where to live.
 1150.516625 1154.636625 And what do we want to think about schools and all those things?
 1154.636625 1155.636625 I think I mentioned this before.
 1155.636625 1159.556625 My husband grew up public school all the way through kindergarten, all the way through
 1159.556625 1160.556625 college.
 1160.556625 1163.396625 He had the straight line, true to actually.
 1163.396625 1168.996625 And he was 100% comfortable with, you know, sending whatever children we would have to
 1168.996625 1171.156625 public school.
 1171.156625 1176.116625 And with my background being so different, it was a bit of a mental leap for me.
 1176.116625 1180.476625 I was not, oh, our kids have to go to Christian school.
 1180.476625 1184.196625 It was more of a, what do I really think about this?
 1184.196625 1187.676625 What do we want out of our kids' education?
 1187.676625 1189.316625 What are the criteria we're even looking for?
 1189.316625 1194.636625 And again, as you mentioned, this is amazing to have these choices and these options.
 1194.636625 1198.676625 So for us, that played into where we bought our house.
 1198.676625 1203.036625 We visited churches once we decided to go to Willowdale Chapel?
 1203.036625 1208.756625 We decided, okay, we want to buy a home in this school district, which at the time
 1208.756625 1209.756625 was actually feasible.
 1209.756625 1213.916625 I said that for people listening now, it's not, it's not that easy to just say, no, what
 1213.916625 1214.916625 about a house in this school district?
 1214.916625 1215.916625 It's not.
 1215.916625 1220.596625 So I say that with hopefully some humility that we were able to do that.
 1220.596625 1228.516625 And my whole mentality going into it is my children were born at this time.
 1228.516625 1229.876625 God planned for them to be here.
 1229.876625 1232.236625 He planned for them to be in these schools.
 1232.236625 1235.156625 He planned for them to be in our family.
 1235.156625 1240.236625 And there are a lot of hard things about being in public school coming from a Christian
 1240.236625 1242.236625 family.
 1242.236625 1248.916625 And I just have to keep holding to that promise that God has them there for a reason.
 1248.916625 1252.956625 There are wonderful conversations that I've been able to have with my boys.
 1252.956625 1258.236625 Things that they are facing and questioning and talking through that I'd never had to,
 1258.236625 1263.796625 because I was in such a bubble that was constantly affirming me.
 1263.796625 1268.816625 They are actually thinking it through for themselves at a much younger age than I ever did.
 1268.816625 1270.276625 And I think there are great things about that.
 1270.276625 1273.596625 There's terrifying things about that as a mom.
 1273.596625 1277.916625 You don't want your kids to be exposed to everything under the sun and you don't want them
 1277.916625 1282.476625 to choose to be around people that are negatively influencing them.
 1282.476625 1286.436625 But as you said, some of that's going to happen wherever they are.
 1286.436625 1290.516625 It's just a part of being in the world and being human.
 1290.516625 1295.476625 But our mentality is similar to what you said, unless there's some compelling reason to
 1295.476625 1301.076625 change course, either based on the child or based on something else God shows us.
 1301.076625 1303.556625 Our plan is to stick it through.
 1303.556625 1304.796625 But it's not easy.
 1304.796625 1310.276625 And as we often talk about, you shouldn't be doing it alone.
 1310.276625 1317.916625 So maybe that's what we talk about next is how have we found community, Christian community
 1317.916625 1320.596625 as parents of public school kids?
 1320.596625 1323.436625 One of the first things that come to mind is our prayer group.
 1323.436625 1328.116625 We're part of mothers in prayer and we'll put a link to their page and our show notes.
 1328.116625 1335.956625 But that's been a really wonderful way to connect and to process some of these decisions.
 1335.956625 1339.796625 And this is a group of mothers that meets once a week to pray for the school district and
 1339.796625 1343.596625 for their kids and there's chapters in a lot of school districts and for a lot of schools
 1343.596625 1344.596625 in this area.
 1344.596625 1348.276625 But my mom did it when I was growing up even at a Christian school.
 1348.276625 1353.276625 So it's all moms of students in our school district, but elementary through high school
 1353.276625 1354.276625 all meeting together.
 1354.276625 1355.276625 Yeah.
 1355.276625 1358.876625 And it's been incredibly helpful because not only have I made some amazing friends, but
 1358.876625 1366.276625 I've gotten some really good support, encouragement from women whose children are older than mine.
 1366.276625 1369.116625 I've gotten a lot of good advice.
 1369.116625 1375.756625 I've had encouragement to wrestle through this question, do we keep them in?
 1375.756625 1376.756625 Do we pull them out?
 1376.756625 1377.756625 What do we do?
 1377.756625 1378.756625 You know?
 1378.756625 1383.676625 And I get to see the hand of God in that in sixth grade, I was really, was really considering
 1383.676625 1384.676625 it.
 1384.676625 1385.956625 And then the mountain biking opportunity came out.
 1385.956625 1390.236625 We started the team and that was a clear answer.
 1390.236625 1395.196625 Looking back, a clear answer from God, no, y'all are exactly where you need to be.
 1395.196625 1396.196625 Yeah.
 1396.196625 1402.556625 That was sustaining for both myself and for him and our family.
 1402.556625 1412.636625 And then for other families too, giving kids a chance to be part of a group that is affirming
 1412.636625 1414.396625 and challenging.
 1414.396625 1422.756625 And similar to the small, close knit community I had in my Christian school.
 1422.756625 1427.636625 One of the benefits of being in the public school system, which you mentioned in your own
 1427.636625 1431.676625 high school experiences, there's just a lot more opportunity for students to do things.
 1431.676625 1436.116625 But I think there's also a lot more opportunity as parents to get to know other people in
 1436.116625 1439.196625 the community to help out with things at school.
 1439.196625 1441.156625 I know you and I've done a variety of different things.
 1441.156625 1443.956625 I'm sure you have more than I over the years because you've been there longer.
 1443.956625 1447.996625 But, you know, things like home or mom or help out with PTO.
 1447.996625 1451.276625 You mentioned your mountain biking team that you started.
 1451.276625 1455.236625 You know, there's different ways to connect and plug in.
 1455.236625 1458.316625 And to me, again, it's all about perspective.
 1458.316625 1460.396625 It's how are we being salt and light?
 1460.396625 1466.156625 How are we helping create the culture and the community within our own school district?
 1466.156625 1473.356625 And I've been so encouraged when I look at the list of the parents and the moms who are
 1473.356625 1476.636625 active at our elementary school, which is a different elementary school than where your
 1476.636625 1483.876625 son went, how many believers are in those classrooms are heading things up?
 1483.876625 1486.796625 We're really engaged and we're supporting the school.
 1486.796625 1488.516625 And I think that's a really beautiful thing.
 1488.516625 1495.036625 And that's one of the pros to me of being in the public school system is, I want to say
 1495.036625 1502.916625 this carefully, we are being proactively engaged in the community in that specific way.
 1502.916625 1506.316625 If your kids are at private school or homeschool, you can obviously be engaged in the community
 1506.316625 1507.316625 as well.
 1507.316625 1513.316625 The way that my family primarily is doing it is through the people and the opportunities
 1513.316625 1517.276625 that are connected with our school district.
 1517.276625 1521.596625 And I've been surprised, maybe I shouldn't be surprised.
 1521.596625 1529.276625 But when we first moved here, there were not a lot of families with kids, our kids ages
 1529.276625 1535.036625 who were coming to our church, even though it is very central to our school district.
 1535.036625 1539.716625 And even in the past 12 months, there have been many more families that have been coming.
 1539.716625 1543.436625 And so I really think that God is at work in our school district.
 1543.436625 1551.356625 And as you mentioned, our moms and prayer group has been a great reminder to me and as we
 1551.356625 1555.156625 share stories of what God is doing, that He is at work there.
 1555.156625 1560.796625 And that's been an encouragement to me in the sense of finding Christian community in
 1560.796625 1563.316625 the public school space.
 1563.316625 1571.356625 Because I have come to understand because I'm involved with different folks in different
 1571.356625 1577.756625 departments through my son's experiences, through my experiences as a coach, with the
 1577.756625 1582.556625 team that I helped start, the group effort of starting our team.
 1582.556625 1591.796625 I have been blown away by the compassion and the dedication and just how so many folks
 1591.796625 1601.396625 are laying their lives down for our kids in every department, in every level, in the janitorial
 1601.396625 1606.636625 staff and the bus drivers and the teachers and the administrators and the elementary school
 1606.636625 1613.796625 teachers and the gym teacher, I mean, just music department, I am blown away, truly.
 1613.796625 1621.716625 And when you can get that inside perspective, which I believe I am privileged to do,
 1621.716625 1630.076625 I just tell people, these people love our kids, I'm telling you, they really do.
 1630.076625 1636.516625 And I said that I was concerned or wasn't sure what to do when he was in sixth grade and
 1636.516625 1638.196625 then the mountain biking thing came up.
 1638.196625 1642.796625 And the reason, one of the reasons why I knew it was such a good confirmation is that I was
 1642.796625 1648.156625 able to create deeper relationships with administrators and teachers in personnel at
 1648.156625 1655.956625 the school. And it gave me such an insight into how much they care.
 1655.956625 1656.956625 Yeah.
 1656.956625 1660.116625 We're extremely grateful for the school district.
 1660.116625 1664.836625 You said this earlier, when we moved here, many people said the same thing to us that this
 1664.836625 1671.276625 is basically a private school experience and a public school setting and I too have been
 1671.276625 1677.236625 consistently encouraged by how much the administrators and the teachers really are invested
 1677.236625 1682.156625 in what's happening, which isn't true in every school district of course, in America.
 1682.156625 1683.156625 So.
 1683.156625 1688.476625 And I think it's worthwhile to interject a thought.
 1688.476625 1693.156625 I don't know that I would make the decision for public school if I lived in a different
 1693.156625 1694.156625 district.
 1694.156625 1695.476625 That's a fair thought.
 1695.476625 1702.516625 So I don't want this to be, oh, right, you think this, you think that no, this is not what
 1702.516625 1703.516625 we're saying.
 1703.516625 1710.476625 That espousing anyone choice, right, we're trying to be open about the choices and the thought
 1710.476625 1711.476625 processes.
 1711.476625 1715.516625 We've made again in the hopes that you find it interesting.
 1715.516625 1716.516625 Yeah.
 1716.516625 1724.756625 And that I was thinking of another question as you were discussing these things.
 1724.756625 1729.356625 I mentioned how growing up in a Christian school, I was getting reinforcement of all of these
 1729.356625 1733.676625 ideas and, you know, kind of all areas of life.
 1733.676625 1741.916625 Where have you or how have you been able to help your son find Christian community and find
 1741.916625 1747.276625 that community of, you know, encouragement reinforcement, having been in a public school
 1747.276625 1751.556625 setting where that's not being reinforced in the classroom necessarily.
 1751.556625 1754.756625 I don't think I've done a very good job with that.
 1754.756625 1757.796625 I honestly think that's the hardest challenge.
 1757.796625 1765.596625 One with my boys being as young as they are, that their best friends naturally are the ones
 1765.596625 1771.676625 from school and they're great, they're great kids there like we love their friends, but when
 1771.676625 1776.156625 they come to church on Sunday morning, they're not really seeing many people from school.
 1776.156625 1781.916625 And so they don't have a lot of touch points outside of church of what it means to really
 1781.916625 1786.556625 live in community with believers.
 1786.556625 1791.556625 That, to me, is the biggest challenge for me personally of our boys being in the public
 1791.556625 1792.556625 school setting?
 1792.556625 1797.436625 Well, maybe I'm doing a better job than I think.
 1797.436625 1798.556625 I don't know.
 1798.556625 1805.236625 We are very lucky that, well, I don't think luck is the right word.
 1805.236625 1810.456625 God has orchestrated it so that there are some other Christian families on our mountain
 1810.456625 1812.536625 biking team.
 1812.536625 1820.836625 Also our son had attended FCA, fellowship of Christian athletes and he has a fair number
 1820.836625 1826.316625 of kids that he goes to school with, that do attend our church and that he's involved
 1826.316625 1827.776625 in youth group with.
 1827.776625 1832.956625 In fact, he saw one of the kids when they went back to school and they're planning on going
 1832.956625 1837.496625 to the high school winner youth group retreat, one of those things where he's like, I don't
 1837.496625 1840.976625 know if anybody else is going and then the other kids like, well, I didn't sign up because
 1840.976625 1844.176625 I didn't think anybody was going and they're like, oh, we're both going great.
 1844.176625 1846.816625 And so these conversations are happening in school, which is awesome.
 1846.816625 1847.816625 Yeah.
 1847.816625 1849.936625 There definitely is a lot of crossover.
 1849.936625 1856.816625 And so I guess I would say that as a parent, what could I do to reinforce this, continue
 1856.816625 1862.856625 to make sure he gets to youth group, continue to make sure he connects at church with the kids
 1862.856625 1868.376625 that he's seeing in school and then encourage him like his summer camp that he goes to
 1868.376625 1870.016625 as a Christian camp.
 1870.016625 1871.016625 He loves that.
 1871.016625 1875.776625 So just making sure, paving the way for him to do that sort of thing, I guess.
 1875.776625 1880.256625 And then I am remiss in reading the Bible with him.
 1880.256625 1885.616625 That is something that I'm just going to be totally forthright about.
 1885.616625 1890.856625 We have, we've dipped in and out, we've done it consistently, we've not done it consistently.
 1890.856625 1898.576625 But we do, I do try to have a scripture focused conversation with him.
 1898.576625 1902.136625 I don't know, I try every day, but you know, certainly a few times a week.
 1902.136625 1903.896625 Well, it's hard.
 1903.896625 1909.416625 I mean, I think that is, again, one of the hardest challenges.
 1909.416625 1914.936625 And I tell my boys this all the time that our family life is going to look different from
 1914.936625 1920.576625 some of the families around them, you know, they're trying to sort out.
 1920.576625 1925.336625 Because they're still young, does going to church, is that what counts?
 1925.336625 1929.256625 You know, because these people in my class go to church, but they also, they don't act like
 1929.256625 1933.296625 me, say and do these things or they're allowed to do this or they're allowed to watch this.
 1933.296625 1940.416625 And, you know, not that it's all about performative moral things, but at their age, that's as
 1940.416625 1945.056625 much as they can comprehend, you know, and they're trying to figure that out.
 1945.056625 1949.016625 You know, you keep saying our family is different and we view things this way and we're following
 1949.016625 1953.316625 the Bible, you know, what does that mean?
 1953.316625 1961.016625 And that leads me to a question for you, how are you incorporating these things?
 1961.016625 1966.776625 What are the actual things that you're doing in your home to reinforce these values that
 1966.776625 1972.216625 we're, again, like you said, you and I got in school, right, in a Christian school, right?
 1972.216625 1977.496625 Yeah, I came out of high school knowing every major world religion and what the tenets
 1977.496625 1979.416625 of it were and how it differed from Christianity.
 1979.416625 1984.336625 I mean, I had such an amazing, you know, experience that that's part of the struggle in my mind
 1984.336625 1990.816625 is, is that all on me now, you know, am I supposed to be teaching everything that I learned
 1990.816625 1991.816625 in Christian school?
 1991.816625 1992.816625 Yeah.
 1992.816625 1993.816625 No, not necessarily.
 1993.816625 1997.776625 It's a diff, you know, my children's life is not what my childhood was.
 1997.776625 1999.456625 We're not trying to duplicate.
 1999.456625 2007.256625 We're trying to live into where God has them, but we did try, and this is on try, to start
 2007.256625 2013.976625 doing family Bible study in the spring, I guess it was.
 2013.976625 2018.336625 And then to be perfectly honest, sports got in the way.
 2018.336625 2022.776625 And when certain things are on certain nights, that throws off, you know, the schedule.
 2022.776625 2026.416625 And so we got out of the habit of it in the fall, and we, Stephen and I were just talking
 2026.416625 2032.096625 about how we want to get back into that rhythm of doing that weekly with the boys.
 2032.096625 2034.496625 And I mean, they're six and eight years old.
 2034.496625 2037.736625 They don't pay attention half the time, they're running around and like poking each other.
 2037.736625 2042.176625 But that's one way we're attempting to do it is like do some family study.
 2042.176625 2046.256625 As you know, we host our adult smog group at our house once a week.
 2046.256625 2050.936625 And I think that's the other part of it is just us living out our own faith.
 2050.936625 2057.816625 Them observing how we're living, what we prioritize, they'll be absorbing that too.
 2057.816625 2065.096625 Again, I think there's a lot that they will not learn that I learned, especially in the
 2065.096625 2066.976625 teenage years.
 2066.976625 2070.016625 And I have to trust God with that, right?
 2070.016625 2076.576625 But I think that again, the hardest thing for me is how do I help them see Christian community
 2076.576625 2085.896625 and value it not as an end itself, but as the beautiful way that God has us live here on
 2085.896625 2090.896625 Earth, and we get to know Him better, we can, you know, all the things, something to go
 2090.896625 2091.896625 into it.
 2091.896625 2094.656625 But that was a rambling answer to your question.
 2094.656625 2096.536625 It answered my question.
 2096.536625 2101.096625 I mean, I think we've both done some different, tried some of the same things.
 2101.096625 2102.096625 Yeah.
 2102.096625 2103.856625 And it is hard to be consistent.
 2103.856625 2107.136625 It's a struggle to read my own Bible every day.
 2107.136625 2108.136625 Right.
 2108.136625 2114.216625 And I think too, maybe this is me being too optimistic because as you're admitting, we never
 2114.216625 2115.816625 do this perfectly.
 2115.816625 2124.176625 As my boys get older, and they can understand heavier things, you know, I would hope that we
 2124.176625 2128.376625 can have some more intentional conversations and things going on with them.
 2128.376625 2134.416625 But for now, we're just trying to, you know, there's like memory versus that we've, I'm holding
 2134.416625 2140.456625 up air quotes learned about 10 times because we forget them and we'll do them for a year.
 2140.456625 2143.616625 And then, you know, I'll ask the boys, Hey, do you remember what this verse is and they're
 2143.616625 2144.616625 like, what are you talking about?
 2144.616625 2147.136625 You know, it's kind of, it's okay.
 2147.136625 2148.136625 Yeah.
 2148.136625 2150.056625 But it'll come back out someday.
 2150.056625 2155.656625 I think we've already been covering this, but we were asking some of our friends what were
 2155.656625 2161.216625 the challenges and blessings, like the pros and cons to speak of your choice.
 2161.216625 2168.856625 So in a succinct answer, Mary Beth, where do the challenges and blessings, challenges would
 2168.856625 2174.576625 be, you mean in terms of public school choice for your choice for your family, yep.
 2174.576625 2181.456625 Which is our, I'm always on high alert about curriculum and what is being taught in the schools.
 2181.456625 2186.616625 And so to me, it's a, it's a good challenge that I as a parent need to stay very engaged
 2186.616625 2187.616625 in what's going on.
 2187.616625 2191.296625 I have to be very involved and proactive in all those things.
 2191.296625 2197.936625 Second challenge is what I mentioned before, just that the boys are surrounded by people
 2197.936625 2200.616625 who do not share our family's worldview.
 2200.616625 2204.056625 And so we're just constantly running into that day of today.
 2204.056625 2209.776625 What these things are, they're getting great education with teachers who care about them.
 2209.776625 2215.776625 We have gotten to know so many wonderful families because of their school and there are, a lot
 2215.776625 2219.576625 of their, you know, friends from school will be on the same sports team as them and outside
 2219.576625 2220.576625 of school.
 2220.576625 2223.416625 And we're, you know, we live in a small town.
 2223.416625 2229.136625 So we run into people everywhere we go and that sense of community building and just
 2229.136625 2231.936625 the people that we've gotten to know is been a huge blessing.
 2231.936625 2237.816625 And I think that other blessing is that they like it.
 2237.816625 2244.616625 They're enjoying school, which let's, well, some days, but for the most part, they actually
 2244.616625 2247.856625 enjoy where they are, which I think is a blessing to.
 2247.856625 2248.856625 What about you?
 2248.856625 2249.856625 Same question.
 2249.856625 2250.856625 Same question.
 2250.856625 2251.856625 Yeah.
 2251.856625 2253.496625 The challenges are swimming upstream.
 2253.496625 2254.496625 We're different.
 2254.496625 2260.416625 So we're going to run into that very different worldview from a lot of other families, different
 2260.416625 2262.856625 choices.
 2262.856625 2264.376625 That's a big one.
 2264.376625 2266.896625 The other challenge is technology.
 2266.896625 2267.896625 Yeah.
 2267.896625 2268.896625 My son's experience.
 2268.896625 2272.176625 And I think they may be swinging back the other direction I'm hoping by the time your kids
 2272.176625 2273.616625 are in middle school and high school.
 2273.616625 2280.016625 But my son's experience has been 100% of homework instruction, especially middle school
 2280.016625 2287.136625 was computer-based and how you're supposed to learn math using a computer.
 2287.136625 2292.256625 That has led to, by the way, this is universal because I've talked to other parents.
 2292.256625 2299.456625 The kids, this tool, and I'm using air quotes when I say this word, this tool has also become
 2299.456625 2300.816625 their master.
 2300.816625 2301.816625 Yeah.
 2301.816625 2307.496625 The children are given this tool and leave it.
 2307.496625 2310.976625 And then they crave it and rely on it and rely on it.
 2310.976625 2318.896625 And what they're craving is the content that is available to them that they're not capable
 2318.896625 2321.416625 of filtering.
 2321.416625 2326.016625 And so that is my biggest complaint.
 2326.016625 2330.056625 But I don't know if you homeschool your kid has to be on the computer too.
 2330.056625 2333.776625 So I'm not really sure that that's probably a universal.
 2333.776625 2338.856625 So I think that's more a nostalgia back to the way things were when I was a kid because
 2338.856625 2341.256625 we generally had to be a generational challenge.
 2341.256625 2342.256625 Yeah.
 2342.256625 2344.736625 But I mean, there are differences in how different school's handle it.
 2344.736625 2345.736625 Well, certainly.
 2345.736625 2349.736625 Back to, we live in a very well-funded school district.
 2349.736625 2353.456625 So there's a lot of technology available.
 2353.456625 2354.456625 Yes.
 2354.456625 2357.936625 So I think those are probably the two biggest, biggest cons.
 2357.936625 2364.996625 And the pros, oh my goodness, caring teachers, opportunities like mountain biking team,
 2364.996625 2368.416625 opportunities like he loves to sing.
 2368.416625 2379.376625 So he's in this amazing vocal groups, the way that the school gives so many choices of
 2379.376625 2386.216625 activities and clubs and trips and just everything.
 2386.216625 2390.856625 Our children's fingertips that it's amazing, you just wouldn't get this.
 2390.856625 2395.376625 Our special education department, I know from talking to parents and teachers is one
 2395.376625 2398.456625 of the best, is just so good.
 2398.456625 2406.696625 We have so many on-staff occupational therapists and speech pathologists and just different people
 2406.696625 2409.816625 that work so hard for our kids.
 2409.816625 2415.336625 And I think one of the other things that's a real asset in our school district is the
 2415.336625 2418.556625 deep community ties.
 2418.556625 2423.096625 This is probably true of lots of public schools, especially in small towns.
 2423.096625 2424.096625 In small towns, right?
 2424.096625 2426.016625 There are kind of like where we live.
 2426.016625 2430.496625 Yeah, there are people that they went there, their kids went there, their grandchildren went
 2430.496625 2435.936625 there, teachers that are teaching multiples of the same families.
 2435.936625 2442.496625 And you just get these roots, these community ties, this sense of belonging to a place, shared
 2442.496625 2443.496625 experience.
 2443.496625 2445.016625 We've talked about this a lot in our community.
 2445.016625 2450.496625 So I think that, as you mentioned, seeing people around town, going to church with those people,
 2450.496625 2453.776625 going to school with those people, making those connections.
 2453.776625 2458.656625 One of my friends from our mountain biking team had a party and she was saying to me, it's
 2458.656625 2467.216625 so funny when we started inviting people just to realize how many areas of our lives overlap.
 2467.216625 2468.216625 Yeah.
 2468.216625 2474.976625 Just to say one more challenge because as I'm hearing our own conversation, again,
 2474.976625 2477.336625 this is specific to our experience.
 2477.336625 2481.256625 One other challenge that has stuck out in my mind since we moved here, since we chose
 2481.256625 2486.216625 this specific school district is there is so much abundance here.
 2486.216625 2489.216625 There are so many opportunities which are great.
 2489.216625 2495.456625 The flip side of that coin is my boys expect there to always be abundance and opportunities
 2495.456625 2498.256625 and anything at their fingertips.
 2498.256625 2500.656625 And that can sometimes be not so great.
 2500.656625 2510.376625 So that's a challenge for us as parents to us being me and my husband is getting them,
 2510.376625 2517.816625 how do I say this, making sure they have a healthy relationship with opportunity and making
 2517.816625 2526.536625 sure that they're also connected to ways to serve, ways to see need, ways to meet need,
 2526.536625 2530.536625 ways to restrain from consuming.
 2530.536625 2531.536625 You get where I'm going with this?
 2531.536625 2532.536625 I do.
 2532.536625 2538.616625 I mean, same with stuff and the wealth that we find ourselves smack dab in the middle of
 2538.616625 2540.856625 in Southern Chester County.
 2540.856625 2541.856625 Yeah.
 2541.856625 2546.456625 Well, I enjoyed talking through all this with you Sarah.
 2546.456625 2547.456625 Yeah.
 2547.456625 2550.616625 I've enjoyed talking to you too Mary Beth.
 2550.616625 2557.456625 The main point of this conversation and all these conversations we're having is the child's
 2557.456625 2560.716625 education is your responsibility.
 2560.716625 2566.916625 So make that pie chart or that list or however you are going to do it, of the things that a
 2566.916625 2570.176625 child needs in their education.
 2570.176625 2577.096625 If you're going to a Christian school, some of those slices of pie will be filled in
 2577.096625 2578.176625 and some won't.
 2578.176625 2581.896625 If you're going to a public school, different slices of pie will be filled in and others
 2581.896625 2582.896625 might be blank.
 2582.896625 2583.896625 Yeah.
 2583.896625 2589.116625 It's going the same thing, some of those slices of pie are going to be filled in, I'm getting
 2589.116625 2590.116625 hungry for pie.
 2590.116625 2594.456625 I mean, a lot of pie in the past few weeks or in Christmas time.
 2594.456625 2595.456625 Yeah.
 2595.456625 2596.456625 No pie.
 2596.456625 2600.816625 And then find ways to fill in those empty wedges.
 2600.816625 2602.316625 Yeah.
 2602.316625 2609.456625 And that whatever your decision is for your children, for your family, one, it doesn't have
 2609.456625 2617.496625 to be permanent, and two, especially for those who are married, I think it's really important
 2617.496625 2619.816625 that you're on the same page about it.
 2619.816625 2625.976625 Don't make decisions if you and your spouse are not unified on it because God works through
 2625.976625 2626.976625 that as well.
 2626.976625 2632.056625 So that would be my exhortation is making sure you all have the same point of view about
 2632.056625 2633.056625 it.
 2633.056625 2637.736625 That's a good parenting point as well to be unified with your spouse, even if you're making
 2637.736625 2641.496625 the wrong decision, make the right decisions together, right?
 2641.496625 2646.456625 Because having a consequence is the right exactly because our children need, it's easier
 2646.456625 2652.296625 for them to regulate their emotions and their feelings and just everything when they know
 2652.296625 2654.736625 that their parents are united front.
 2654.736625 2655.736625 Yeah.
 2655.736625 2656.736625 And God's in it.
 2656.736625 2657.616625 God has your children.
 2657.616625 2658.616625 Mm-hmm.
 2658.616625 2663.536625 He has plans for their lives, their lives are not your lives, but you get the privilege of
 2663.536625 2664.816625 being a part of their lives.
 2664.816625 2665.816625 Yeah.
 2665.816625 2669.116625 It actually brings up a point that Tina made in her interview.
 2669.116625 2672.896625 A lot of us want to educate our children in the same way we were educated, but don't fall
 2672.896625 2676.816625 into that trap because your child is a different person than you are.
 2676.816625 2677.816625 Living in a different time.
 2677.816625 2678.816625 Yeah.
 2678.816625 2679.816625 Living in a different place.
 2679.816625 2680.816625 Exactly.
 2680.816625 2681.816625 Yeah.
 2681.816625 2682.816625 Well, thanks for tuning in.
 2682.816625 2687.456625 I'm Sarah, and I'm Mary Beth, and this is Trustworthy.