The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast: “The Freedom to Change Plans Is a Superpower”

Episode: 1KHO 578
Host: Ginny Yurich
Guest: Amber O’Neal Johnston, author/editor of Homegrown
Date: September 21, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode centers on embracing flexibility, self-discovery, and resilience as essential ingredients in a meaningful homeschooling journey. Host Ginny Yurich sits down with Amber O’Neal Johnston to discuss her new anthology Homegrown, which gathers 30 diverse homeschooling voices, each offering a unique perspective on the evolving, deeply personal adventure of home education. The conversation touches on parental confidence, the courage to pivot, the importance of a supportive community, and how giving yourself grace sustains both parents and children through the inevitable ups and downs.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin and Purpose of Homegrown

• Amber describes how Homegrown came from a desire to offer “coffee conversation” to parents frequently seeking advice. She wanted to showcase varied family experiences and educational philosophies to encourage others that “it could be the right thing for you too.” (02:29)
• Homegrown is unique as an anthology of 30 contributors, with Amber editing and writing a chapter herself. She candidly shares the “herding cats” nature of collecting essays from dynamic (and often quirky and busy) parents — an unexpectedly challenging process, but ultimately a result she cherishes. (03:46)

“It's just like, you know, collecting. It's like herding cats. And you have all these, like, dynamic people that you know… we're all kind of quirky… But then, hello. It's all these dynamic people!”
— Amber, 03:46

2. Challenging Traditional Notions of Homeschooling

• Amber shares that homeschooling was her husband Scott’s idea, and she was originally “dead set against it,” picturing only “old school memory drills, dull textbooks, and hours of worksheets.” (06:24)
• Her initial resistance was rooted not in career aspirations, but in a concern about inflicting the boredom she associated with traditional education on her children.
• The realization: her family was already living a lifestyle aligned with their educational values (adventure, travel, play), and homeschooling offered even more freedom to pursue these interests.

“I envisioned old school memory drills washed down with dull textbooks and hours of worksheets… I wanted them to have an excellent education. But your view of education was so different from what it actually turned out to be with homeschooling.”
— Ginny, 06:55

3. The Superpower of Changing Plans

• The biggest gift of homeschooling, Amber says, is “freedom”—the ability to change plans instantly, in response to the changing needs of the family or child.
• This planning flexibility reduces fear of “lost time” and encourages trying new things (“If I felt like I didn’t have the freedom to pivot, it would be harder to try new things.”) (11:55)
• Both Ginny and Amber point out this freedom builds adaptability in children—a skill valuable for future success.

“Changing plans is a superpower… Knowing that we don’t have to live forever with every decision we make helps prevent analysis paralysis. The freedom to change my mind is a gift, and I treasure it.”
— Amber, 16:15

4. Embracing Slow Childhood and Atypical Trajectories

• Through exposure to educators like Charlotte Mason, Maria Montessori, and Richard Louv, Amber realized “all these people… agree on a few core concepts—that is, leave the little kids alone and let them grow, let them be, let them play.” (13:39)
• She recounts letting her daughter repeat kindergarten (“Kindergarten B”) as they slowed down, reframing it as a reward rather than a failure. (15:47)

“We celebrated slowing down without traumatizing her… Speed wasn’t important to us anymore.”
— Amber, 13:39

5. Together Schooling: Power of Community and Outsourcing

• Discussed a chapter by contributor Erin Loechner, which introduces “together schooling”—the idea that learning is sourced from a broad community, not just the parent as teacher. (21:46)
• Amber shares how seeking out others’ expertise (e.g., finding a local woman with a kiln) enriches experience and is an act of humility and courage for parents.
• Emphasizes the reciprocal nature of community—both giving and receiving educational enrichment.

“People are enthusiastic about sharing their passions, but we have to be just as enthusiastic about asking.”
— Amber, 24:24

6. Homeschooling Through Hard Seasons

• The anthology includes essays from parents who have faced divorce, financial crisis, illness, or bereavement.
• Erica Alicea writes: “Seasons take time to change,” and that having grace is key—“they are not missing out… they are gaining a profound education in persevering through affliction, finding joy in sorrow…” (32:31; 41:52)
• Homeschooling allows children to be present for and learn from life’s real crises and healing journeys, rather than being separated from hardship.

“Homeschooling gives the kids a front row seat to some of life’s hardest moments. And that’s an education in and of itself.”
— Amber, 37:15

7. Addressing Self-Doubt and Growing with Your Kids

• Brenea Fairchild’s chapter speaks to the feeling of “I don’t have what it takes”—a near-universal sentiment among homeschooling parents. (42:43)
• Encouragement: You are “uniquely equipped to homeschool your children,” and “your brain is designed to work with you…you're going to grow and rise to the occasion.” (44:08)

“We routinely put our children in new situations and encourage them to take risks… but as adults, we tend to stick with what we know… But you don’t have to have something special… you are enough.”
— Ginny, 45:23

8. Redefining Success and the Conveyor Belt Mentality

• Amber, a product of academic “success,” reflects on feeling “empty” after conventional school/grad school and corporate success.
• Counters the myth that there is a single, definitive list of “facts children must know”—true flourishing relies more on autonomy, character, and discovery.
• John Taylor Gatto’s quote: “What’s gotten in the way of education is a theory of social engineering that says there is one right way to proceed with growing up.” (53:03)

9. Wisdom and Comfort from Lifelong Learners

• The book’s contributors are avid readers, and the anthology is a convergence of rich, field-tested ideas. Community and reading underlie almost all thriving homeschool families featured.

“You pulled a group of readers together and you wrote a book written by a bunch of readers.”
— Ginny, 56:46

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Editing an Anthology:
  “I've never these. I was like, no one's ever heard of a deadline, and no one cares… it was humbling for me.” — Amber (03:46)
• On Fear and Confidence:
  “Once I actually believed I could do this and do it well… I've been unstoppable, never looked back.” — Amber (09:57)
• On Embracing Change:
  “If I didn’t have the freedom to pivot or change plans, it would be harder for me to try new things.” — Amber (11:55)
• On Slow Childhood:
  “All these people… agree on a few core concepts… leave the little kids alone and let them grow, let them be, let them play.” — Amber (13:39)
• On Holistic Education:
  “She’s talking about a whole life… trying to help them launch with all of them intact, you know, with the whole part of them intact.” — Amber (28:21)
• On Surviving Crisis:
  “Give yourself grace without feeling guilty about what you're unable to provide for your children during this season… they are gaining a profound education.” — Erica Alicea (41:52)
• On Redefining Success:
  “I got straight A’s… and I was miserable. I was never going to just be nothing… but I never got a choice to see what I wanted to learn.” — Amber (49:12)
• On Unlearning the 'One Right Way':
  “There is a theory of social engineering that says there is one right way to proceed with growing up.” — John Taylor Gatto via Greta (53:04)
• On Shared Experience:
  “Look how different everyone is… but in that difference, look how similar they all are… the level of intention, the importance of home.” — Amber (54:09)
• Encapsulating Thrive:
  “Our homeschooling journey is equal parts sitting around the dining room table, eating snacks, reading good books together, and hiking miles of trails…It’s exhausting and exhilarating and mundane and magnificent and painful and precious, often all in the same day.” — Read by Amber, from Greta’s chapter (60:09)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Intro and Anthology Backstory: 02:07–05:52
• Amber’s Unique Homeschool Beginning: 06:24–09:57
• Freedom to Change and Its Impact: 10:41–16:15
• Together Schooling / Outsourcing & Community: 21:46–24:57
• Resilience Through Hardship: 31:35–37:15
• Parent Confidence, Capability, and Growth: 42:43–46:22
• Unlearning the “One Right Way”: 47:17–54:09
• Reading and Collective Wisdom: 56:02–58:39
• Capstone Farewell Quote (Greta): 59:59–61:22

Final Reflections

This episode overflows with encouragement, practical insights, and honest reflections on modern homeschooling’s many faces. Amber and Ginny remind us: homeschooling is not about flawless execution, but about courage, grace, adaptability, and the relentless pursuit of connection and meaning. With Homegrown, Amber offers a collective “you’re not alone”—a resource to be returned to in any season for comfort and inspiration.

Recommended For:

• Homeschooling families in any season (beginner to veteran)
• Parents facing doubts or major life shifts
• Educators interested in child-led and holistic alternatives
• Anyone curious about how freedom and community fuel flourishing childhoods

Resource Mentioned:

• Homegrown: Guidance and Inspiration for Navigating Your Homeschooling Journey (Anthology, edited by Amber O’Neal Johnston)

(Episode summary compiled by an expert podcast summarizer. Skip ads and non-content as requested. All quotes remain in the speakers’ original voice and context.)