What’s New?!

Get more in 2024!

Be who you’re meant to be in 2023!

Do you in 2022!

Okay, I promise I’m done. lol

With each new year, we all hear these phrases seeking to inspire us to view the upcoming year with fresh eyes and greater determination. You know you’ve heard them right? I know I’m not the only one. 

In all honesty, I hate these things! They’re catchy, but often by February, they’ve lost their shine and you’re back into the trenches of business as usual. 

It’s strange, but for some reason, my 2024 has started off pretty eventful. I am doing more in 2024. Go figure, right? In fact, I’m doing way more than I ever anticipated but nevertheless, here I am.

For one, as of last week, I am officially BACK in school! I hardly saw that one coming. But the funny thing is, I was talking to a friend about this new endeavor and it reminded me how, prior to homeschooling, counseling was my original dream job. 

It’s been so long since I have set foot in anyone’s classroom in the student role…13 years to be exact! 

But going back to school to complete my two remaining educational requirements for my counseling licensure actually has jogged my memory about a few things I’ve gotten away from over the years. 

Prior to homeschooling, all I could envision for my life was owning and operating a thriving counseling practice. But #life, marriage and four kids later, I now find myself pursuing the forgotten thing I previously based my entire life upon.

This past Saturday, I experienced so much refreshment sitting on the other side of the lecture stand. As I soaked in all that wonderful knowledge about how to walk alongside people during their darkness moments with grace and compassion, I was inspired, challenged and reinvigorated. 

However, with all these new and exciting things, please pray for me when you think of ya girl ‘cus a sis is tired! Come March, I might be seeing stars when this class wraps up! 

On the homeschooling front, I’m happy to share that we have had a great start to the second half of our school year. Due to my life being absolutely insane, I’ve had to put a number of homeschool related things on “autopilot” in which the kids (for the most part) are extremely independent. 

But I kind of like this new approach to their education as we have lots of talks about what being intentional looks like and taking responsibility for the quality of the work they do. I can assure you lots of learning (from books and other wise) is definitely going on in this here Dunlap household during Operation: Momma’s Gotta New [Book] Bag!

See what I did there? 😉 I know…enter face palm emoji! lol

And finally, the co-op continues to blow me away! For the first time ever, we went to a waitlist! We had a record number of families register for our winter semester and have been able to put our grant to good use. 

Thanks to the generous grant we recently received from the VELA Education Fund, we have a lovely partnership with a local organization called Vets in Training (VIT)! In case you missed it, you can read all about our grant here. VIT offers a variety of educational classes for schools and other groups in our area. They also have a mobile team that travels to other sites and conducts veterinary science classes. Our children get to enjoy this wonderful benefit. It’s actually really cool! 

Over the course of this semester, our excellent scholars will be exposed to furry and scaly creatures. We will also “discover fun facts about their behaviors, diet and habitat” as per VIT’s course write up. The kids will get to meet ferrets and sugar gliders and learn about other exotic animals. They will learn how vets scrub in for surgery and do so themselves through role playing Vet and Tech. They will also have the chance to use suturing stuffies to practice proper surgical knots to close wounds.

The older kids in our group are busy with their own VIT course and burning tons of energy in gym class. They are currently learning all about Black aviators including the Tuskegee Airmen. Later this semester, they will switch gears and participate in a book club and explore all there is to know about Black composers!

The grant was also able to fund four full tuition scholarships for families this semester! In addition, it allowed our registration fee to be greatly reduced for everyone else. That way, nobody was left out of the opportunity to learn with us. This is something that has been very near and dear to my heart over the years as I know the financial sacrifices it takes to home educate your children. I would never want anyone to be excluded from learning with us based on finances alone. 

And lastly, our grant has allowed us to outsource some much needed help in terms of curriculum writing, specialized instruction with a music teacher and hopefully a few other collaborations coming down the pike this semester!

I’m beyond excited for what God is up to in our group and cannot wait to see what fruit comes from the blessing of educating our children together with this community.

Stay tuned!

Blessings,

Courtney