I believe that parenting is a two-way street, either you're in... or you're out! If you plan to start having kids or maybe deciding to teaching your kids at home, ideally it needs to be agreed upon by both partners. If one partner is not keen and doesn't support your choice then it has a big chance of failure because you have no backup, no encouragement, and no emotional help or support.

I can't stress enough the importance of both partners agreeing to this serious task you're going to undertake because it's going to make or break you as a family. After having 5 kids and homeschooling them all from scratch for 20+ years I see a lot of newbie mums trying to do the impossible in my opinion. You need a mighty lot of hard dedication to run your household, teach the kids, cook dinner and please your partner at the same time... and you shouldn't have to do it alone if you have a partner! 

In this post I will refer to your partner as your husband; just for my ease of writing. There are a lot of very devoted hubbies out there and they truly deserve our accolades because without them we would have a daily uphill battle. So to those... well done and thank you from the bottom of my heart. I had such a hubby who helped after he came home from work. He was truly amazing for a number of years however he became a **Daddy Do-Little** as I call them these days. They like lazing about like a herd of cattle instead of doing their job.

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Now *Daddy Do-Littles* most likely don't understand, or refuse to understand, or have unfortunately forgotten the pressures you are under as a mum, or as a homeschool mum, and they do very little to help out. No doubt you feel that you need to perform in order for your kids to be able to perform and in a sense this is true. If you don't pull your finger out... what example do you set to your kids? 

Not only is your family watching (and perhaps judging your abilities) but your neighbours, friends, and strangers in the local shopping centre too! If you're a homeschool family and you go on holidays people tend to stare at you and your kids because after all... *why are those kids not in school!*  

The pressure is on!

Some of us mums like to portray a good family image... preferably a perfect image which is near impossible to do. If it's just mum wielding the discipline and carrying the burden of everyday living it will soon become very apparent to the outside world. There's dad with a stubby in one hand hanging across the bar while the kids are running amok. Mum has sadly lost control and dad couldn't give a hoot!

So I'm dedicating this post to all those Daddy Do-Littles in the hope to encourage them to start helping out. Motherhood is grossly under-estimated... so is fatherhood by the way. If babies were born with instruction manuals that would be awesome. For some people their faith in God becomes their instruction manual but sometimes even those instructions become muddled... unclear really, due to contradicting information from other well-meaning people who shouldn't meddle in your affairs.

So here's to you dads... start helping with the washing, hanging it out or taking it down. Fold it and put it away, don't just leave it in a heap in the basket somewhere. Don't say... *"Oh look! It's going to rain soon, you better get your washing in darle!"* Get off your butt Daddy Do-Little and do the job yourself!

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Bring a bunch of flowers when you come home or perhaps surprise your lovely by cleaning out the fridge and while you have that fridge door open prepare dinner. Don't come home and ask... *"What's for dinner?"* You can take the kids for a walk or spend time with them so your partner can have a break. Read the kids some stories or ask them to show you what they've been reading, writing or making today. I'm sure there are loads of other things *Daddy Do-Littles* can do in order to become **Super Dads.**

From personal experience, and in my opinion, children ideally need two people to teach them skills if you're homeschooling. Be it skills in reading, writing, cooking, repairs, computer, mechanical etc. No one person knows and can teach everything and even two people do a limited job. Some homeschool families share their skills between other families. That's a great idea if you can but be aware that it should never replace dad's responsibility. Don't help your hubby become a *Daddy Do-Little* but insist and encourage him to do bits and pieces with the kids that he's good at, those things he enjoys doing and where he can involve the kids. And that doesn't include watching television or playing games on the computer. It means spending quality time... communicating and sharing thoughts, ideas, dreams and hopes.

My husband and I taught our kids until they were old enough to attend Tafe in Australia and then some of them went on to University. It's great to see what each one has achieved, truly amazing! However, I do believe that it took incredible effort and dedication from both of us. That's why I aplore all dads to get involved. If my begging doesn't touch your conscience then look and listen to your partner or you might find yourself on the edge of a  precipitous cliff one day and it will be too late. Get involved *Daddy Do-Littles* and prove you are a worthy, loving, and caring husband, a great dad!... No... *a Super Dad!*

Now to come back on my previous statement where I mentioned that my hubby became a **Daddy Do-Little** I guess it was my fault in a way. I became super mum! I convinced myself that I could do it... I cleaned, cooked, homeschooled, and more. Of course hubby was happy to oblige and do his own thing while I struggled to keep up appearances so to speak, that was totally irresponsible of me... foolish! So to all of you super mums... hand over some chores and watch the end results. Hopefully these will be good ones. My hubby became lazy and shirked his responsibility. Don't let that happen to you!

You can not have one partner dodge their responsibility when you both decided that homeschooling was a good idea. Check in with each other regularly to make sure you are both still happy with what you're doing. Take stock of your achievements, the kids achievements, and the overall outcome of your homeschooling and parenting situation. Are the circumstances still favorable? Is everyone coping, are the kids progressing in their learning, can mum cope with the workload, can dad cope with his workload? Check and double check even to the point where you need to check your pet... *How's the dog doing?*


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Integrity won the battle in the end when my husband's honesty and strong moral principles finally kicked in again after these being absent for a couple of years. Life as a homeschool family changed for the better and the overall outcome was breathtaking. The AWOL dad, our **Daddy Do-Little** was no more!

My note to all you single mums doing homeschool with your kids... You are extraordinary! Absolutely mind-blowing that you have taken on this mission. Keep up the good work and never be disheartened! Your kids are precious and what you do is your choice and a personal conviction. Seek help from the outside if you feel you can't cope on certain days. Don't be ashamed to call upon friends who support you or other homeschool families. 

Don't forget to still ask your kids what they prefer but in the end you as a mum has to make that final decision. A big responsibility none-the-less. 

Thank you for reading my post and don't forget... wake up and smell the roses, don't be a supermum because your well-meaning attitude has the risk of creating Daddy Do-Littles.

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