Confessions of a homeschool dad

Sitting at supper after church on Christmas Eve, my husband announces, "I have an idea for a blog.  I'm going to call it 'Confessions of a homeschool dad' and my first post is going to be about how embarrassing it can be to take your family out in public because they think that they are supposed to be learning or teaching something every where they go."


The comment came as a result of something that had happened during the church service.  Our pastor was explaining the importance of the Council of Nicaea just before the congregation participated in a communal recitation of the Nicene Creed.  As soon as the pastor mentioned Nicaea, the kids and I looked at each other and whispered "Council of Nicaea, Augustine of Hippo", two points on our history timeline from Classical Conversations.  During the actual recitation a minute later, I found myself wondering what the difference was between the Nicene Creed and the Apostle's Creed.  As we finished reciting, I looked toward my husband, but before I could open my mouth, he put up his finger and said, "shhh."

To be honest, this is not the first time I've found myself whispering with the kids during a church service or movie.  I guess it's because we're always together, so I think of every thing as a learning opportunity.  Also, I know that kids learn best when they can make connections between concepts and real life.  And it's become so commonplace, that I don't even think about it anymore.  So I was taken aback when my husband said it was a little embarrassing.  I would never want to be an embarrassment to someone or a stumbling block or distraction to someone else.

So all this has me wondering, when is it appropriate to have those conversations and when isn't it?  It's important to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak.  So how do you do that without being disruptive or embarrassing?  I'd love to know what other homeschooling moms do.  Or is this a problem only I have?

Because really, it was very important for me to know the difference between those two creeds at that exact moment.  :-)