Kathy Hoster lives in Flower Mound with her husband of 25 years, Jeff. When she’s not working on the women’s
ministry team at church, she home-schools five of her seven children: Elizabeth, 17; Philip, 15; James, 14; David, 12; and Luke, 10. Her oldest sons Andrew, 20, and Michael, 19, attend Liberty University in Virginia.
5:50AM Jeff wakes for his Bible study session on Skype. I’m able to sleep a little longer.
8:45AM Kids are stirring from a late night. We stayed up watching old family videos way too late.
9:15AM It’s a slow start today. Morning coffee and quiet time while kids get dressed and have breakfast.
9:35AM I step outside for fresh air. My oldest child, Andrew, has a big philosophy test today so I text to let him know that I am praying for him.
9:45AM Kids take their laundry baskets to their rooms. The younger two, David and Luke, keep singing out loud as they put away their laundry. I try to keep them quiet
since Elizabeth and Philip are reading and Jeff is on the phone. The kids move on to work on independent lessons while I float around helping with various subjects.
10:20AM Jeff comes upstairs between calls to talk as I sit at the table working with the boys.
11:06AM I enjoy a warm cup of green tea with honey while James reads The Sign of the Beaver aloud. I love to hear his inflection as he reads the different character voices. Luke and David are on the floor with Legos, taking a break between subjects. Philip works on driver’s education while Elizabeth works on geometry. As I observe my kids, I’m distracted for a moment by all that
needs to be done around the house since we moved here just three months ago.
11:48AM We move on to our audio history class, and I listen about freedom in South America in the early 1800s.
12:23PM Leftovers for lunch: pizza, deer chili, or chicken and vegetable bone broth soup. I’m thankful for easy choices today. I take a moment to listen to Philip playing the piano.
1:15PM I help Luke and David make copies for a small neighborhood business they started together. It’s a full-on craft session as the other kids work on decorating cards. I
clean up lunch and respond to a few emails.
2:35PM I walk away from all the glitter to do science with my youngest two. David reads aloud about the Kuiper Belt before Luke reads about Pluto. Physics, chemistry and pre-algebra studies are going on in other spots. I help the boys set up a science experiment to make clouds. They like it so much that they repeat it several times.
3:00PM We all gather in the living room to watch a history DVD about personal stories in World War I—a great depiction to experience beyond a textbook.
3:50PM I call to schedule seven dentist appointments. I don’t know why making appointments hangs over my head like a dark cloud. The logistics of getting all nine of us scheduled is never easy. Elizabeth leaves with the younger boys to run errands, and I leave shortly after to do the same. Jeff, working from home, stays with the rest of the kids. I check with my mom to see if my parents will
come for dinner tomorrow.
5:11PM I’m back home looking around the kitchen—still full of dishes from lunch, strawberries drying in order to be dipped in chocolate, muffins to bake for tomorrow’s
breakfast and 20 bags of pretzels and saltines needing to be transformed into special snacks for the choir mission trip bake sale.
5:54PM I find taco meat in the freezer and decide to make soft tacos for dinner tonight. Elizabeth and David are making the muffins. I dip the strawberries and Philip finishes off the chocolate-covered pretzels.
6:30PM The younger boys play basketball in the driveway, Elizabeth plays the piano and I talk with Andrew on the phone while I clean dishes in the kitchen. He got the package I mailed him.
7:00PM We all eat dinner together, and then relax together and watch the Olympics.
8:13PM I visit with Elizabeth in her room, and then text my second oldest child, Michael, to see if he’s feeling better.
8:40PM I walk on the treadmill. I wanted to walk outside today with the kids but school and life kept me inside.
9:00PM I plan our dinner for tomorrow, which will be a larger-than-normal meal. In addition to my parents, we are having a family of six over for dinner. A friend of mine lost her battle with cancer, leaving behind five children, so we want to love on them as much as possible.
9:18PM I rinse the dishes while the rest of the family pitches in to pick up around the house for our friends tomorrow.
9:45PM Kids take showers and get ready for bed, which takes some coordination. It takes time with all of us sharing bathrooms.
10:30PM We hold an impromptu family meeting then pray together.
10:48PM I clean up around the house while Jeff cleans toilets. I am thankful for his help.
11:00PM I shower and get ready for bed while Jeff checks to make sure kids’ electronics are in the kitchen for curfew.
12:15AM I turn off the lights, lay my head on my pillow and thank God for another day.
