Meet Sheri

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Hi! I’m Sheri, wife to Nelson for 20+ years. We live in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. We have ten children and have been homeschooling for fourteen years.

Here on the blog, I love to share homeschooling encouragement for everyday moms.

Drawing on 14 years of homeschooling experience, you can find help for getting started, tried and true homeschooling advice, life skills learning, simple ideas, large family life, and interviews with everyday homeschool moms just like you!

Our Story

The only way to make sure you don’t miss any posts or videos is by joining my email list.

I started this blog to encourage current and prospective homeschool moms by sharing the stories of homeschooling families.

I’ve spent quite a bit of time interviewing moms. I’ve asked them questions such as…

What led you to homeschooling?

How do you teach multiple ages?

What does a typical day look like for you?

Have you made mistakes and what have you learned from them?

How do you teach multiple ages?

…and more! Head on over to my gallery of Mom Interviews to hear from homeschool moms like you!

Here is our homeschooling story.

Our Story

Our Story

Making Decisions

When I first entertained the thought that maybe I would like to homeschool, I knew almost no one in my circle to ask. Almost no one. Our oldest child was three years old and school was just around the corner! 

Befpre staying home with my children, I was a public school teacher. After deciding to stay home full-time with our first child, my priorities in life changed.

I adored our son and wanted to show him the world! I began to think to myself, “Maybe I want to do what I have been doing in school…just with my own kids.”

Although I had enjoyed teaching, I had felt so limited by administrative work, state standards, professional requirements, paperwork, etc. I wanted to explore the world with my students! I hoped to develop in them a hunger to learn about everything around them, but THAT is not easy to do in a classroom! 

Our Story

Finding a Support Group

As my ideals were evolving, I read every book I could find on homeschooling. My interest was piqued! The freedom to

  • learn by interest
  • explore the natural world
  • not be cooped up in one space
  • spend more time reading good books together

These possibilities were calling to me!

Although I looked for other homeschoolers to ask for help, there just weren’t many in my circle at that time. I found a few brave souls who were ahead of me, and they were my lifeline. I questioned them about everything.

There were also a few other local friends who were of the same bent as I was. Our oldest children were all entering preschool. We met up, five of us, and plunged in together.

We ended up meeting in each other’s homes every week with our kids. Our excitement grew each week as we exchanged ideas and talked life learning. This small group eventually grew exponentially and became a homeschool co-op which we still attend today!

Our Story
I have always loved reading with my kids!
Our Story
Piano duet with mom.
Our Story
Making homemade pretzels with Dad.
Our Story
Legomania

14 Years of Homeschooling

After 14 years of homeschooling our kids, I have experienced several different stages, many highs and lows. And I am still learning new things.

Together we have visited many places-literally in field trips and figuratively, in books. Our times on the couch every afternoon reading together will always hold a special place in my heart.

We have learned and lived through so many important moments. So far, with five of our kids I’ve cried through long division…and survived!!! 
 

It isn’t easy homeschooling multiple kids on multiple levels. It especially wasn’t easy giving up a career and the prestige that comes with a title.

On occasion my kids fight, and, yes, it drives me crazy!! I have even threatened to put the kids on the next school bus that drives by! Without a doubt, I would have quit – and almost did more than once! – without the encouragement of family and friends. 

Through the highs and lows, I am SO THANKFUL to have had this experience with our kids. The time with them has been WORTH it. It is not easy, but I can honestly say that I absolutely LOVE what I do!

Our Story

MORE FROM SHERI

Head over to Our Interview to get a closer peek into our homeschooling experience!

About

Why We Homeschool

Why We Homeschool Part 2

Our Interview

Why I Started This Blog

Was our homeschooling story an encouragement to you? I’d love to hear from you! Please leave a comment below and tell me about your homeschooling journey! I love hearing other homeschool moms tell about their experiences with their kids!

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6 Comments

  1. Thanks for the encouragement, Bob!! Yes!! Tami is already at the top of my list!! I plan to reach out to her soon. I hope she will be willing to do it! She is a BIG reason that I am homeschooling. She was one of the moms that was a lifeline to me at the beginning when I was really hesitant about stepping out. And she helped answer so many questions for me along the way.

  2. Hi Mrs. Sullivan!!
    I remember you as a Sunday School teacher! Thank you for all your years of faithfully serving the Lord. So nice to hear from you and to hear how you are doing. I told my dad about your message on here. My parents say hello. Ironically, dad just came back from a trip to TN. He knows your pastor and was telling me about him. Thank you for the update and the encouraging words!

  3. Darlene Sandowich says:

    Hi Great article and great family. I can remember talking with you way back when you were first homeschooling and from an old home school Mom from many years ago you have and are doing a fantastic job Sheri! Keep it up! Love Darlene

  4. I’ve been googling a lot of sites for managing a large family that includes homeschooling. Still waiting on the l-o-n-g court battle but we are anticipating our son and his five kiddos moving in with us. I want to be prepared if/when this happens as hubby and I will be the primary teachers when their dad is at work. (We both have a little Chr. sch. experience.). Most things that I’ve already thought about and formulated in my mind were confirmed by your thoughts so I feel much more confident now. I haven’t seen all of your videos yet but wondering if you have any on your meal planning routine, how much food you buy on each haul, etc. I think that is where I’m lacking the most. It really overwhelms me to have that responsibility 24/7. *And thx for your suggestion of one helper at a time. I was thinking that, whoever has the kitchen zone would be my helper that week
    Blessings!

    1. Hi there! Nice to meet you! I haven’t done any videos on our meal planning routine, but I’ll definitely keep it in mind for the future! It is a big job feeding so many kiddos, so I can see how having that responsibility all at once could be daunting. We do a lot of gardening and canning/freezing, plus we raise all of our meat here on our property, so having that available cuts down on a lot for us. One thing that always helps me is to have plenty of meat out to thaw ahead of time. As long as there is meat, I am able to throw a meal together. I hope things turn out well for you in this new life change. I’ll jot this down for a future video! Thanks for the feedback!