I am glad you are here. I am Emily, wife to Rob, homeschooling step mama to one- age 17, and homeschooling mama to four- ages 4, 7, 9 and 11.  We reside in Western MA and still in many ways feel like sojourners here even after 16+ years. New Englanders can take a while to let you into their hearts, but with that said, we have graciously found our people, and for that I am grateful.  My hubby is from New Mexico and I am from Upstate NY.  We met at a bus stop near the University of Massachusetts, and the rest has been a messy, broken road knitted together in beautiful ways by and through the mind blowing grace and beauty of God only.  

In 2012, we embarked upon the journey of homeschooling.  It began when we decided a different path was needed for my step-daughter, who at the time, was struggling with her 3rd grade public school experience. As a previous public school teacher, and then a home-based childcare and preschool provider, teaching and working with children has always been a passion of mine.  I accepted the challenge back then with the gracious support of her mom and my husband, and now my step-daughter, who continues to homeschool, just finished up her junior year of high school!  We have been blessed to be a part of a thriving local Classical Conversations community since our start.  It has given us structure, support and friendship and introduced me to the classical philosophy of education, which I have come to love and continually seek to grow deeper in my understanding of these ancient roads.  I have also hosted a homeschooling co-op in our home for many years that has morphed in focus and participants, but continued to be a highlight of all our weeks (pre Covid-19 quarantine of course!)  I did not travel this road alone, however.  I have gleaned from so many friends and mentors from past and present, and I too continue to grow and learn as not one who has arrived, but as one who continues my own lifelong pursuit of education and sanctification alongside my children.  And being in the midst of my children so frequently does make me  aware of my need for Christ’s mercies and power.  But I hold fast to the hope and promise from Colossians 1:17, that “He is before ALL things, and in Him all things hold together.”  Praise the Lord!

This new endeavor, now called Still Waters Scholé came about rather unexpectedly.  For a few years my husband has been encouraging me to start a website documenting our family and homeschooling journeys and encouraging others who may desire to walk alongside us in similar life spaces.  After dragging my feet for over a year (technology has always been super cumbersome to me), in December 2019 I put together my website Home Sown Home Grown, created my first ever Instagram account and re-emerged on Facebook after a many year sabbatical. Then COVID-19 happened.  People began reaching out to me wanting to learn more about homeschooling- saying they were considering it now, maybe even for the first time, but felt overwhelmed, didn’t know where to start and just desired someone to walk alongside them; and thus, Still Waters Scholé was born.

In case you are wondering what qualifies me for this endeavor, it is nothing more than the love of Christ that has washed and continues to wash over me as one of His daughters of grace, not because of who I am or what I have done, but because of who He is and what He has done.  I am merely a humble learner and a follower who seeks to pursue after Him more and more completely.  But if you want to know more about my experiences and qualifications you can read them HERE. 

Dr. Christopher Perrin stated perfectly what I have felt in my soul these last few years as I to have come to grow deeper into my understanding of His rest, stating: