Mid- Life Crisis?!

 

Spring is coming! When? I have no idea! We’ve had a few days of chilly weather, but I keep hoping that by wearing spring clothes the weather will turn warmer. Instead, I’ve just been cold at recess all week! 

Roger asked me this week if we were having a mid-life crisis! To be honest, some days as of late have felt that way! Roger’s been working about three jobs between his job, the school board, and our family. Things haven’t been exactly easy at any of those three jobs, so lately we’ve been feeling like we are treading water and trying to keep from drowning. We are so thankful that God continues to wrap us in His arms of protection, the power of His love, and His steadfastness. Roger received several phone calls from a job in Alaska over spring break. We spent A LOT of time praying and waiting to see what God would do. The job was offered to Roger and then we had to make a decision about whether or not he should take the job. In the end, Roger said “no”. One, it was a seasonal job from May through September, and then Roger would need another job. Two, we wouldn’t all be going to this town in Alaska for the summer, so then it’d be like paying for two households. Three, Garett is graduating from eighth grade this year, and while it’s not a ginormous milestone, it won’t come around again. Four, Roger just didn’t have peace about leaving our family or his commitment to the school board for the summer. So at the end of the day, Roger said no to the job. So, we continue to wait...not my strong suit, but I’m learning to lean more and more on Jesus.

We had a teen activity for just boys at our house last Saturday night. While we didn’t have very many boys come out for the activity, we had a good time with those who came. Roger planned a Bible scavenger hunt for them, and the boys had fun tromping around in the yard and woods in search of various items from Bible references. The weather was beautiful, and the opportunity to interact with our own boys as well as a few others is always time well spent.  

Last week, I played the piano for a local area church, and I’m going to have the opportunity again on Sunday. Last week we faced several unexpected situations on Sunday morning, so I ended up going to church, and the kids stayed home. It wasn’t the ideal situation, and I’m glad it’s not that way very often, but it is comforting to know that the boys can manage on their own for a bit. We didn’t have teen group at our church in the evening due to the teen activity the night before, but there was a kids fun night planned for kids ages 6-12. Normally, we’d send our kids and participate in helping with the night, but Roger ended up home a little early due to weather, so we spent the evening at home. It was an evening of great family time and early bedtimes as we geared up to enter this week of school. 

It was a fast, crazy week! We have 28 days left of school, and we are all in count down mode! However, I keep reminding my kindergartners that we are not done learning yet! We are talking about prayer in our Bible lesson unit, and I mentioned to my class that I often pray when I’m out on my morning runs. One of my students raised his hand and asked, “Do you run into a lot of stuff every morning?” Haha! It was a good opportunity to tell my class that while we can bow our heads and close our eyes, God can also hear us when our eyes are open! I sure have enjoyed teaching this year, and I’m so thankful that God gave me the opportunity to do so. Travis has had a rough year at school. A very rough year. We’ve prayed a lot, cried, and struggled through, but he’s come home in tears several times. A few weeks ago, I was correcting him for something at home, and I asked him, “Why are you acting this way?” He responded, “I used up all my goodness at school!”. This past week he had another rough day. There are several classroom dynamics that make the school year rough, and we just keep reminding him that God knows exactly where Travis is at. God will give Travis the strength to make right choices and to be a leader in his classroom, etc. Anyways, Travis announced to me, “School was awful today. I’d rather sit on the toilet all day than go to school!” Okay, I might have had a very difficult time not laughing as he said this in his most serious voice! I can think of several other word pictures that I would’ve used, but anyways, I’m not Travis. I really sat and listened to his heart, asked questions, and tried to help him resolve some things. We’re not perfect by any means, and I’m learning more every day about parenting. I only write this here because I do want to remember these moments with my children. I want to them recognize that God is in their lives every day, and He is working. It’s not always as fast or as smoothly as we’d like, but God is working. 

Last Saturday Roger was able to take the boys golfing. All the boys were really excited to go, and it was fun to see them excited to do this together. There’s a golf course in our area that is allowing children under 16 to golf for free! Woot!! So for $20.00 the boys and Roger were able to play nine holes of golf. They had a great time, and I know that these memories are special for all of them. 

Today Roger spent the entire day, his day off from his primary job, at the school. I’m thankful for Roger’s support and involvement in our little Christian school. Since our administrator is due to have a baby any day, we are kinda trying to just get through the school year as smoothly as possible. Roger has been a positive mentor for several students in our school, and while he’s not loud or threatening in any way, his presence can lend a calming presence to many situations. I couldn’t have asked for a better life mate. I can’t think of very many men at all that would be willing to give of their day off to make someone else’s life easier! That’s a man of sacrifice, strength of character, and faithfulness. I’m so very thankful for him. He’s had a lot of rough days lately, but he keeps showing up, getting the job done, and loving even the difficult people. 

We signed up to send our boys to camp this summer, but in Wisconsin! I want our boys to have the opportunity to go to a good solid Bible camp, and God has provided them the opportunity to go out to Wisconsin for a few weeks this summer. Since our state is on their 14th State of Emergency...yes, the 14th, and many camps don’t know if they’ll be able to open this summer, we decided to send the boys to camp in Wisconsin. They are very much looking forward to the opportunity, and I’m excited for them! Roger and I both grew up in and around Bible camp, and camp can provide an excellent opportunity for the Holy Spirit to work in lives.  

Thank you for praying with us as we wait on the Lord. 

  

                                  Altamonte-family.com - photo credit. 

Awards, Spring Break, Birthdays- Life!

 

Spring Break!

Last Friday we had awards chapel for the third quarter, and this Friday we are trying to gear up for returning to school on Monday! Every quarter the teachers have the opportunity to choose a student from their class for the Knight Award. This award is given based on Christian character, testimony, being a role model, hard work, etc. We have plenty (did I mention PLENTY?) of parenting struggles, but I had tears in my eyes as the four boys each earned the Knight Award for the third quarter. They aren’t perfect by any means, but the Knight Award is a reflection on some of their choices. It’s been a very challenging year for three of our five children, and yet the four boys did receive the Knight award. I’m so thankful for their hard work, diligence, and character to make the right choices- most of the time! I told my friend, Hannah, that Chandler received the award based on his character and choices, but it certainly wasn’t based on his wardrobe choices! Garett shows up for chapel with his shirt neatly tucked in, fairly clean pants, and his hair combed. By the time Chandler arrives in chapel, his pants are dirt stained, his hair a mess, and his shirt almost as dirty as his pants! I asked him how on earth he managed to get that dirty before 8:30 am, and he replied that he was just playing kick ball outside before school and just “forgot what I was wearing”. In some ways, our two older boys are polar opposites!

Last Saturday evening, I had the opportunity to go out to dinner with five other ladies. It’s been a very, very long time since I’ve had dinner out with friends...as in so long, I can’t remember! It was a relaxing evening spent talking about our families, good food, hobbies we enjoy, and celebrating one of the ladies who’s about to have a baby. I was thankful for the invitation. Without going into any details, I’ve had a rough couple of weeks -or maybe months- and it was nice to have a low key evening becoming better friends with these ladies. 

And then- SPRING BREAK! We’ve enjoyed almost every moment of our spring break week. The weather has been mostly beautiful except for Thursday when it was snowing! On Monday, we took a bunch of stuff to Goodwill, worked on laundry, and spent the day puttering around our house. 

Tuesday was Wyatt’s 12th birthday! I can’t even believe how fast the years are flying by! Wyatt is smart, sensitive, and eager to please child. He’s been diligent at school this year, and he’s a good friend. We are so thankful that God placed him in our family. Wyatt was given a bike for his birthday, and he’s already spent some time this week breaking it in. The boys have built bike trails all over the yard, and now that they all have bikes, the trails are well used. We celebrated Wyatts birthday with a trip to the park, lunch at a food truck, and tostadas and ice cream cake for supper. The weather was beautiful, and it was fun to be outside for a good chunk of the day. 

Wednesday was a fun day for both the kids and myself. The boys all went over to a friends house, and this friend has a house with a pond. My friend, Mandi, said that the boys spent almost the entire time outside playing in and around the pond. It was supposed to rain on Wednesday, but thankfully it didn’t start raining until later in the afternoon. Meanwhile, Emma and I took a trip to Augusta. We spent some time walking around at a few stores, enjoying the company around us, and it was good to get away as “just girls” as Emma says. 

Thursday- Roger had an unexpected day off of work- Hooray! I had bought tickets for a trampoline park in Bangor for Wyatt’s birthday. Wyatt invited a school friend, Levi, and the boys and Emma soaked up every minute of their two hour jumping pass. Also, everyone was starving when they were done jumping! Roger and I enjoyed the time watching the kids, discussing many things, and having some time with just the two of us which is a rare thing these days.

 Roger’s been faced with some challenging decisions as of late, and it was good to sit and discuss those things. Recently we’ve been faced with several people we know dissolving their marriages and wondering how on earth that happened! Divorce is not something either of us take lightly, and it happens far too often. It is also a reminder that we need to spend time together working on our marriage, and resolving things before they become an overwhelming problem and struggle. Marriage isn’t easy, and to have a good marriage it’s even harder! Roger and I have definitely had our share of struggles over the years, but God has been faithful.  Hard days are a part of everything in life from parenting, to jobs, to marriages, to relationships, etc., and sometimes it’s good to take a step back and spend some time reflecting and focusing on what’s really important. In the crazy world we live in, it’s easy to get swamped with situations or circumstances that are being “loud”, and sometimes it’s hard to focus on getting alone with God or just spending time mediating with God and His Word. Yet, when I do, I find myself refreshed and encouraged and ready to press on. This week has been a good week for refreshing myself in God and His Word. I’ve even been able to spend some time reading some books that have been on my “to-do” reading list for a while! 

Tomorrow we are hosting a teen boys activity at our house. That translates to lots of food, loudness, and fun! We are planning on having a Bible Scavenger Hunt, and I’m planning on having lots of food! We treasure these moments to be a part of our sons lives as well as to invest in the lives of those around us. As adults we often think the world is crazy and out of control. Yet, how important it is to cling fast to God’s unchanging world and to endeavor to encourage the next generation to do the same! Stay the course, fight the good fight! 

Ocean Walks, 5k Races, and April Blessings

 Almost half-way through April! Some weeks I look back over the week,  and I can’t remember exactly what we did. Other weeks I look back over the week, and I think “How did we fit all that in?!” 

Easter Sunday looked much different for our family this year. It wasn’t bad, it was just different. Normally we either go to someone’s house or we have people over to our house, but neither was the case this year. We decided to just order Chinese takeout, and we just hung out at home for the afternoon. It was a quiet (well, it’s not quiet with seven people!) and informal dinner, but our kids didn’t seem to mind. I think I minded more than the rest of my family  about not having company over or spending dinner somewhere, but it was fine. I haven’t really had the time or energy to put a lot of effort into making a dinner with all the fixings, and since no one else minded, I wasn’t going to complain! Roger has had a more than full plate lately, and I’ve been busy with lots of activities and preparations for either church or school. We are in the last quarter of school! God has been so gracious in protecting our families and allowing us to go to school in person! I’ll never forget this school year, and all that God has done for us and through us. 

Emma got a bike this week, and she’s been flying up and down the driveway. The weather is getting nicer which means more mud, but lots of fun! Last Saturday afternoon, we went down to the beach as a family. The beach is one of the favorite places for everyone in our family. Some like to skip rocks, some like to collect sea glass, some like to see how wet they can get, some like to walk in solitude, and it’s a wonderful time. One of the highlights of living in Maine has definitely been the ocean...what a majestic God we serve! 

Garett and Chandler have been running with two men from our church/school twice a week. It’s been a good opportunity for the boys, and they’ve been improving. Our school hosted a 5k last Saturday, and it was a wonderful community event! We haven’t had any thing like that since before Covid, and it was wonderful to see the positive reports we got back on that event. The four boys and I ran in the 5k. We had about 125 people participate in the run/walk. Chandler place third overall with a time of 21:25, Garett was sixth overall, I was 13th, Wyatt was 16th, and Travis was 19th! Two years ago, it took Garett a big chunk of time to finish the race, but this year, he must’ve had a fire under him! One of the men who runs with Garett made the comment, “I can beat Garett all day long every time we run during the week, but today, there was no way I was going to catch him!” Haha! That’s Garett! He’s laid back and relaxed until suddenly he’s not! I would not  have said Garett had it in him to be much of a runner, but he totally proved me wrong! He ran his race in a little over 22 minutes, and he did great! The boys (all four of them) are in the same age bracket (Males ages 10-14) so they were all competing against each other! Chandler and I both placed first in our age divisions, and I was reminded again of how quickly life is flying by! 

I decided to cut my hair on Saturday evening. I haven’t cut it since pre-Covid. Time is pretty precious for me right now, so I decided to see if I could cut my own hair. I watched a few people do it, and I wanted to try it earlier, but of course I couldn’t find any scissors! Finally, I found a pair of scissors on Saturday evening. I cut about three inches off my hair, and I like it so much better. It’s amazing what you can do with a hair tie, scissors and a mirror! It’s not perfect, but it’s much, much better...and it was cheap! 

Our children are growing up right before our eyes and faster than I can blink! I am greatly concerned for the country that they’re going to grow up in, but I’m reminded that God has prepared and orchestrated their lives for this time in history. We will do our part to raise them up to love and serve Jesus with all  their hearts. It’s easy to become discouraged by the world around us, and I’m thankful that I don’t keep up with the news regularly. God has been faithful for eternity past, and He’s certainly not going to fail us now. 

This afternoon we had a parent group meeting. While we might be small in number, I’m so thankful for each parent that willingly serves with a cheerful heart to encourage our teachers and students. It’s been a challenging year in many ways, and I’m looking forward to honoring our teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week next month. We are so blessed to have teachers that lovingly educate our children and point them to Jesus. We are so thankful for each of our children’s teachers. 

Would you pray with us on a few things? 

1) Garett is graduating from 8th grade. We need a plan for him for his high school education. 

2) Roger and I are facing some decisions in the next few weeks/months. We need wisdom and discernment to know what it is that God wants us to do.  

April! New Month and New Moments to Think On!

 

I love this view! The sounds of the ocean are so calming to me. 

                                                                    Happy 40th to the love of my life! 

Last year in March, we were still in the middle of our “two weeks to flatten the curve”, and while this year is different but still with some similarities, I’m happy to see April on the horizon! I’m coordinating a baby shower for a dear friend, happy that we get to celebrate Resurrection Sunday this week, preparing for a school wide Patriotic program, and enjoying the days of longer sunlight! 

I told my friend, Allison, last week that I didn’t feel like I had much to write on the blog about as I feel that my life has been a little bit in depression mode as of late. She replied, “Well, we out to coffee and you didn’t have enough money and neither did I! That’s a fun memory!” Haha! So there’s that story! Allison and I went on a walk last week and then out to coffee. We went for a walk leaving from the school parking lot so I didn’t have my purse with me when I came back. However, I usually use my coffee app to purchase coffee so I didn’t think much about it. But then we got to the coffee place,  the app wouldn’t allow me to refresh my app to see how much money was left on my gift card. But, in my defense, it told me that there was enough money (I just didn’t realize that the app wasn’t working entirely!) So I ordered my coffee, scan my app, and the girl says, “there’s not enough money on there. You owe $1.38.” I turn to Allison to ask if I can borrow her app to scan for the rest of my coffee. Turns out that she only had about .82 on her gift card app! I kinda stand there for a second, thinking about my next move, and the girl behind the counter takes money out of her pocket to pay for the remainder of the cost! That was so kind of her, and I’m thankful that the coffee shop wasn’t full of people as I awkwardly tried figured out what to do next! Anyways, I had a great time visiting with Allison, and I was thankful for the opportunity to visit and laugh with her. 

It’s been a long, long, week for Roger and I! We could certainly appreciate your prayers, as we wait and see what plan God unfolds for us. Roger told me this week that he was “just done”. He said that everywhere he turned he felt the opposition from the devil, overwhelmed by responsibilities, and just defeated,...hmm, I have felt much the same way. Roger celebrated his 40th birthday last Monday, but we didn’t even get to see him! I saw him briefly in the morning before he went to work, then he had work, an important meeting, and he got home around 9:00pm! I am very thankful that we had taken the time on Saturday to go up to Bangor as a family! Sometimes life seems full of lemons, and making lemonade seems to be more challenging than it’s worth! However, we know that we serve a God who is faithful, and kind, and He gives us peace and joy in spite chaos around us. 

Earlier this week, I was reading in my devotions and in the Bible, and I read about how we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to love and serve Him. I can only pause and reflect on the last week and prepared for God to do great and mighty things! When the opposition seems so strong and the devil wants us to feel defeated, I can rest in the fact that we serve a mighty God who has never relinquished His authority! So...I’m waiting! (Waiting is not my favorite thing to do-I get that from my father!) but here we are in the waiting! 

Work projects on our house have slowed down drastically as we’ve been busy with other life things. I’m not done painting, trim still needs to be added, finishing touches added in several rooms before we move on to another project. We are hoping to do some yard work and landscaping, but our yard has to dry out some first!    

Yesterday we had a baby shower for our school administrator who is also a very dear friend of mine! While it’s been a crazy week full of burdens and tears, this was a good opportunity to get my eyes off of “noisy” things and spend some time loving on someone else. I told my kindergarten class that I was having a baby shower in the afternoon. One of my kindergartners thought for a moment with a very puzzled expression in her face. Then she asked, “Why does she need help washing?” I am never, ever bored with this class! When I stopped chuckling, I explained that it was a shower of gifts, to which she replied “So, if she doesn’t catch the presents, she’ll get hit with the gifts?!” Earlier this week we made butter and ice cream in class as we focused on farm animals in our studies. One of my students asked, “Mrs. Robertson, do we get Oreos from those cows that look like Oreos?” I LOVE the way their minds work and the wonder of new experiences and questions! 

Hannah is a dear friend of mine, so while the shower was simply and sweet (and I forgot to take any pictures) it was a lovely little party. I pulled Wyatt out of school around two pm, because I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get everything done without some help...and he was more than happy to help! It was a longer day than usual for a Thursday but we are all excited to have Good Friday off of school tomorrow! 

I love Christmas and celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, but Resurrection (Easter) Sunday is really the greatest celebration for me. I’m so thankful that God always keeps His promises, but I’m so thankful that our 2000 years ago when He died on that cross, it was for me! The older I get the more precious and dear his death and resurrection becomes to me. I pray that you’ll take some time to reflect on the power of the cross this week. This is one of my favorite songs: 

We are so thankful for the Power of the Cross, the Resurrection, and our Hope in Jesus! I pray that you will reflect on these things over the weekend too. 

Heartlight. org.  Photo credit