Diary: Day 2

Today was a bit of a crazy day with skating and shopping in Edinburgh, children to collect from Jedburgh and friends expected. But out of all the chaos came one of those moments Home Educating parents cherish.

All the back and forthing meant that Hannah had a couple of hours at home alone. She was expecting to tidy her room but no exopecting the other 'challenge' thrown at her

Keith arrived. Keith is an ex-colleague of her Daddy, they worked together about 6 years ago. Hannah saw quite a lot of Keith in those days, but since then has probably only seen him a couple of times at parties.He was coming for her Daddy's birthday party and had been expected to arrive early evening rather than at 2pm. She rang to tell me he was at the house as I was leaving Edinburgh; Daddy had already left. It was down to Hannah to entertain our guest.

I'll admit I was a bit worried. The Hannah we see is very shy, always has her head in a book and communicates mainly in grunts. Still, at least the fact that she was home meant Keith could sit inside rather than in the car on his drive I thought.

I arrived home to find both Hannah and Keith sitting at the kitchen working on their respective laptops. Hannah had been the perfect hostess, making tea, supplying biscuits and wifi codes and entertaining Keith by telling him all about our life in Scotland. Far from not speaking, she had never stopped talking. Keith's bags we in the right room, he had been offered facilities to freshen up and was happily working away whilst waiting for us to come home.

There are times, as a parent, that you worry about your children. Wonder how this little person will cope in the big bad world. But sometimes I think we forget that we only see one side of them. We never see them when they aren't with us, never see them being independent. For some reason Home Educating seems to magnify some of the worries. You feel that people are more critical of your children, they are looking for problems, expecting them to be sheltered and unable to cope in social situations.

So knowing that your little girl is actually growing into a very polite hospitable young lady, that she can cope with the unexpected, and cope well, and that she is comfortable in the presence of virtual strangers is a big thing. Tonight sees me tired from shopping, stressed from party cooking, frazzled by mothers but very very pround of my firstborn