What will you miss most about homeschooling after your children graduate?

Right now it may be hard to think about the fact that one day your children will be all grown up! Does the thought shock you? It does us… It is hard to fathom that one day (in the not too distant future) they won’t be there in our home each day needing to be fed, bathed, disciplined, read to, and loved. One day they’ll go off to college or get full-time jobs or get married and maybe have children of their own.

The days are long but the years are short

It’s kind of a bitter-sweet thing thinking about the day when our children grow up, isn’t it? We want them to grow and learn and mature. And we want them to learn well and get good jobs and have happy families of their own. But at the same time, it would be nice sometimes if they just stayed little! Even though the days can be long with little ones in the house, we know that our children truly are a blessing, and we’re thankful to have these years with them at home.

We asked the moms in our Hip Homeschool Moms Facebook Community and on our Facebook page to tell us what they will miss most about homeschooling after their children graduate, and wow, did they have a lot to say! See if you can relate to their thoughts and ideas.

What will you miss most about homeschooling?

Samantha: My kids, as long as I do my job right

Trish:  Just being involved with them on a daily basis and those aha moments!!

Jazmin: Hanging out with my kids and being able to enjoy their interests on a daily basis

Katie: Time spent with my best friends learning new things together!

Michelle: Besides just being with them and watching them grow. Tthat Ah Ha moment when they finally understand something that they have been struggling with =)

Kristina: Seeing her sense of accomplishment when she finally has a breakthrough in something that she’s been struggling with. I love to see the proud grin on her face!

Shelly: Having unique “school days” which include, but are not limited to, taking swim lessons, and going on a “weekend vacation” and starting it on Thursday, after swim lessons are done for the week. 🙂

Julia: We are a team right now. None of us really like book work or daily chores. We knock out chores by splitting them up between us & then we rush to finish book work so we can focus on fun, hands on projects. My kids make my life fun. Homeschooling makes our lives fun. I dread the end of fun.

Salena: I will miss teaching and learning together.

Tracey: Enjoying how introducing a new topic leads to unlimited discussions with my boys! I love when they’re in “that” zone and everything starts coming together!

Colleen: My kids. When they go off to college they have much less time for family.

Jessica: The quality time. I’ll cherish the memories we made doing it.

Brooke: Them!

Rena: Learning with my daughter.

Mitzi: I’ll miss just being with them. I love having them around me all the time!

Jennifer: My kids. I really enjoy being with them and watching them learn. That being said, a close 2nd is the actual teaching. I LOVE teaching and see challenges as a puzzle to work through and then celebrate the victory (for both of us – their learning and my problem solving) together when we have a break-through. I will miss that.

Krystal: I hope I don’t miss anything! I hope they continue to come to me with all the things they are learning. That even after the “homeschooling years” are done we will all still study and share all the random things that interest us.

Stephnie: The one-on-one time with long talks.

Andrea: Being with my kids all the time and doing what we want, when we want

Kelley: Nothing, she still lives here while attending college. 😉

Sherryl: The companionship. I find myself spending a lot of time alone now that our last is in college.

Lexi: Watching them learn and grow, and especially their relationships with each other.

Bonita: The sense of purpose that educating them gives me. I will also miss learning right along side them.

Carlee: The intense time we spend together that has resulted in very close relationships.

Wendy: Spending time with my children really getting to know them. When I look back on my childhood, I realize how little time I actually had to spend with my parents. I don’t take for granted these few short years I have with my children at home.

Donde: I think I will miss most hearing their thoughts and watching them as they form their opinions. I have 2 girls that are juniors this year, and this is getting very close for me. But, now that they are older, parenting is harder in so many ways, but also much more awesome in so many ways! Watching them become adults is amazing!

Katie: Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE homeschooling. But I don’t think I’ll miss it as much as I will just cherish it. Just because my kids graduate doesn’t mean they will stop learning or we will stop being a family. It’ll just be another new adventure I think.

Jana: Been at it 14 years and got 12 to go… all I can think of is my SANITY!  I do love this life, but I’m gonna be nearly 60 by the time my youngest graduates…so, yeah.

Carla: Reading aloud, lesson plans and choosing curriculum are some of my favorite things about homeschooling that I will miss the most. I sometimes wonder if someone else would let me homeschool their kids when mine are grown. I don’t know how to not homeschool after 15 years.

Gweneth: I would miss the discussions about topics of interest to them, but I think those will continue on, even if long distance sometimes. I will miss the daily one-on-one time with them, and, oddly enough, the research and lesson planning, even if sometimes it gets ‘old’.

Sarah: I can’t even contemplate the answer. It’s too far away for my youngest and I’m trying to survive the teenage years with my oldest.

Christy: Learning new things, exploring ideas just because they are interested in them and realizing there is a bigger world of knowledge out there waiting to be discovered!

Courtney: I have a long way to go, but I will miss spending time with them. I love having them home with me. I feel we are closer because they see me struggle right along with them.

Shelley: Sitting at the kitchen table just discussing life. I am in their “business” everyday and I love it!!!

Crystal: All the whining about not wanting to do school…

Megan: Watching them work together on something, brother and sister side by side while she helps him with something

Christina: It’s a tie, I’ll miss spending so much quality time with my kids and I’ll miss the learning (or relearning).

Janet:I will miss watching the excitement when they are learning and a light bulb goes on and when they develop an interest in something and research it.

Michelle: Planning and choosing curriculum, and just being with my daughter. She’s our only.

Syrah: Time

Regina: It makes me a little sad to think about it! I know I’ll miss having her with me every day and being the one who helps her to discover new things.

April: I think I’ll miss being with them the most. Going to co ops and girls trips and being with them when a hard lesson finally clicks. Ill miss this season of life. I know I’ll enjoy each season as it comes but right now it just makes me sad to think about it.

Deborah: I will miss all the time together. The laying around reading out loud all night because no one wants me to stop, not even their Dad! Though I am already transitioning into the next adventure- actually one phase will blend with another as we are one of the sandwich generation with our parents living with us. We’ve graduated 4 so far and won’t be done with homeschooling until 2025!

Annette: Everything! It’s been my whole life for 20 years and I have 9 more left. I will miss the every day life I have with the children, the schooling, the struggle and the successes. I can’t even imagine! I have 3 who have graduated already and I miss them terribly. After graduation it’s never the same even if you get to see them regularly.

Krystal: teaching my kids in my home and just snuggles from my babies when they first wake up. Yep even thought I have teens they still come and give me hugs and snuggles in the morning before school. Boys are awesome ( I am sure girls are too, I am one I should know but I have boys and they are pretty awesome)

Misty: Having been there, I miss the time with them. Even the hard moments are learning times for the whole family and when they grow up you don’t get them back. Enjoy it all. As the country song says, You’re Gonna Miss This

Estrella: I will miss using my daughter’s education as an excuse to do things that I’m secretly excited about. I feel like enjoying childhood with her has been a fountain of youth for me.

Kara: The first has graduated and the youngest is 11 so this is becoming very real. I will miss being together each night and the silliness. I love laughing with my kids!

Becci: I think I will miss the ‘ah-ha’ moments the most. You know that exact moment when their eyes light up and fill with joy and pride and you know for absolute certain they have gotten it.

Sonja: We graduated our last child this past June. The thing I miss most is the time my children and I spent together learning, growing, and becoming a stronger family unit.

Annie-Len: Growing and learning with them. Seeing them struggle, push through, and conquer on different subjects. In the long run this will set them up right for life.

Lisa: Spending time teaching my kids and watching them learn! I’ll miss it, I’ve already told them I’ll Homeschool my grandkids! ☺️

Kristina: I am not sure I will miss anything. I think I will enjoy our new chapter. I have actually enjoyed my sons the older they get. Each chapter is more exciting.

Truby: Seeing their eyes light up when it clicks. In those moments you witness them understanding something that they’ll never forget. Those moments? I’ll never forget them.

Nicole: Probably just field trips and time with the kids. Homeschooling four kids and working is hard. I will probably be ready for a break.

Lynette: Every milestone, every “gotcha” moments where everything clicked, the long discussions, watching them grow and change.

Dawn: My son graduated last year and this is my daughter’s last year. I mostly miss the time spent with my son and I’m already not looking forward to the same thing with my daughter!

Brandy: The time in general. All the snuggles, love, and hugs, and knowing they are safe right here with me.

Lizz: The “look” …you know, the one they get when it finally clicks.

Amanda: Watching the look in their eyes when they finally get a concept they had a hard time with.

Judy: The closeness. Always knowing he’s safe.

Kylie: I’ll miss getting to see those “ah-ha!” moments.

Mary Ann: All the hours together, sharing life: reading aloud together. learning together, watching the light bulb moments.

Vivie: I can’t even think about it without crying. Just being with them…that is what I will miss the most.

Amber:I will miss having my kids around so much. But I plan to be one very smart grandma. ?

Angela: I will miss the time with my son more than anything else.

Marci: I will miss the quality time we’ve spent together learning about new things & watching his interests grow.

Rachel: Having them near, hearing their voices, hearing them laugh together, seeing them together.

Angela: Spending my days with my children.

Jackie: The laughter and one on one time spent together….

Sandra: Their everyday presence. I love my girls.

Angela: I will miss learning along with them. I won’t miss hearing about Minecraft.

Lisa: Knowing what they are thinking and pursuing, just being close. ?

Lacey: I will miss all the one on one time at the kitchen table and the times he needs to stop just to give mom a hug.

Vada: My son is 22, still lives with me, he still talks & shares when he learns something new. My daughter is 17 & the same way. They both still research any topic that is “new” to them. Personally, part of homeschooling, it never ends.

Ginger: I’ll miss my time with my boys.

Tina: Cuddles. Even with the teens. 🙂

Elaine: My children. ?

Jessica: The time with them.

Kelli: Learning with them.

Jennifer: My kids

Sherri Time with them

We want to hear from you!

Which comments really hit home with you? What will you miss most about homeschooling after your children graduate? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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3 Comments

  1. I adore this! We are so blessed to be able to have this time with our children. I have a much older child, so I have walked this road before, having adult children (and grandkids!!) is pretty amazing too!
    Shared on Facebook and Twitter.

  2. So many things… this seems like a looming reality for me, since my son is in 10th grade this year. I can’t even imagine not homeschooling anymore. It’s been such a huge part of our lives for years now. I want to slow down time somehow! I love that this post is a reminder to take time to appreciate all those little moments.

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