Chapter 4 - Purchase

You have looked into all the curriculums and have a plan for what to purchase for your next homeschool year.  It is such a relief when you get to this point and can clearly see how the homeschool year is going to look.  I want to encourage you to do just a couple more things before you purchase.  
First, consult with your husband to make sure he agrees with the decisions you have made.  My husband, Ben, on more than one occasion has seen my high and lofty ideas for curriculum and had to bring me back to reality (thank the Lord for a husband who is willing to speak this kind of truth to me - glory knows I need it!)  
Second, take time to pray.  Both you and your husband need to take this decision to the Lord in prayer before you invest a year of your time and finances into this choice.  Ask the Lord to bring you peace if the choice you are making in curriculum is right and ask Him not to bring you peace if something is off.  More than one time I have changed plans in curriculum simply due to a lack of peace from the Lord. In looking back, fixing my plan until I had peace made all the difference.  When the homeschool year gets tough, and it will, you want to have complete confidence that the decision you made was the right one.  Taking this extra time to seek the Lord can make all the difference.  
Third, consult with other homeschool moms.  The Raising Arrows facebook page is a great place to ask other moms their opinion of the curriculum you are considering.  Having the resource of other experienced homeschool moms who can share their likes, dislikes, and wisdom on using the curriculum can be priceless information.  Use the wisdom of others who have been on this journey. Be humble enough to accept their advice and then prayerfully consider the wisdom that you have been given before making a final decision.  
Forth and finally, see if any homeschool families you know have the curriculum and would let you borrow it to take a good look. Better yet, they may even let you borrow it for the homeschool year.  There are also many used curriculum facebook pages where you can find the curriculum you are looking for.  Ebay is another place I have found the exact curriculum I was looking for at a fraction of the price.  Being able to save your family money on the purchase of these curriculums can be such a blessing. This money saved can be used for other things like field trips instead.
At this point you should be ready to purchase curriculum with confidence knowing the plan you have made has not been rash, has been prayerfully considered, and is the best decision for your family.  
Congratulations and what a relief! I tend to think the decision making process on curriculum is one of the most time consuming and stressful parts of the year.  Next comes the easy part - join me in the next chapter for thoughts on scheduling your year