What do you want to be when you grow up?

Me: What do you want to be when you grow up Maryann?

Fo: A cooker. (A chef)

Jason: That’s an awesome thing to be! To be a chef you have to learn about all different kinds of food. What kind of food do you want to learn how to cook?

Fo: I wanna learn all of mama and papa’s recipes.

Me: That’s so sweet. Thank you, but we don’t know how to cook a lot of different cuisines. What else would you like to learn to cook?

Fo: Chinese food. And Margie’s recipes!

Me: That’s awesome! I bet Margie would love to teach you some of her Mexican recipes.

Jason: If you are going to work in a restaurant, you have to work really hard. You start out washing dishes and work your way up. Where would you like to work?

Fo: Frostie Freeze.

Me: That’s an awesome place to start learning about restaurants.

Fo: I’m gonna have my own restaurant and I’m gonna call it Frostie Breeeeze.

Jason: What are you gonna make?

Fo: Ice cream of course.

Me: Are you gonna have seats inside or outside?

Fo: Only outside. With 100’s of picnic tables!!

Me: What do you want to be when you grow up Lilly?

Bear: A baby nurse.

Fo: Lilly, when we grow up, you can be a baby nurse. We could live next door to each other and visit everyday. And you could come to my store everyday and have ice cream. That would be SO AWESOME!!

This story of Fofo telling me what she wanted to be when she grows up really warmed my heart. The enthusiasm and passion she showed for her dreams of opening an ice cream shop was, in Fofo’s words, SO AWESOME! Our main goal in homeschooling was to help our kids find, pursue, and cultivate their passion in life. We don’t want them to just have a job when they grow up, we want them to love what they do. Feel they have a purpose in what they do.

I was talking with a fellow homeschool mom last week about our reasons for homeschooling. She had a great take on why former teachers (or education major like myself) would lean towards homeschooling. We want to cultivate their learning and education. We want to take what we have learned and see our kids grow-up. Not put it in the hands of others. We have the tools to teach our kids. Our purpose, time, and energy is best served teaching them.

What are your reasons for homeschooling? What do your kids want to be when they grow up?