Family Time, January Birthdays, & Life

 The entire month of January has been long- except for the five days that Roger was here! We’ve been in survival mode and not thriving mode, but the grace of God gets us through one day at a time. 

On Sunday, January 16th, my friend, Jess, helped me coordinate moving our vehicle to the car shop. The van was still running, but it was needing a tune-up. I have people that are willing to help me, it’s just hard sometimes to ask for help as I feel like I am inconveniencing someone. However, I’m thankful for Jess. She met me at the car shop, we took Emma and her daughter to a birthday party, and then Jess drove me out to the airport so that I could pick up a vehicle we were going to borrow. I am thankful for friends that allow us to use their vehicles- and their very nice vehicles! Roger contacted some of his dear island friends, and they agreed to let us borrow their nice truck. We were expecting to have our van back in a few days, but we ended up driving their vehicle for about a week. I am so thankful! God is good! 

I left school a little early on Friday with Travis and Emma. Garett and Chandler wanted to stay at school as they really enjoy having gym class on Fridays. Wyatt was going with a friend after school to go bowling. But Emma and Travis were happy to come along! It worked out well that the other boys stayed behind as we wouldn’t all fit in the vehicle. It was so good to see Roger, and we soaked up every minute! We attended a church dinner and bowling activity on Friday night, and it was good for Roger to reconnected with some of the people in our church family. 

On Saturday Roger took the boys to their soccer game, while Emma and I stayed at home to watch Hannah and Josh’s kids. Emma was so excited about gymnastics last Saturday, and we had paid for a month of lessons for her Christmas present. Emma enjoyed the class and she was looking forward to going  again this Saturday. However, we got an email this week stating that the gymnastics class would be moved to Sunday for the next seven weeks due to a coach conflict. Well, that certainly wouldn’t work for us. Emma was pretty disappointed, but she was happy to play with the little children on Saturday. We watched the kids for several hours so that Hannah and Josh could get away for a date. 

Sunday was a full day with church and teen group and spending time together. The days really did seem to fly by! Roger and I spent Monday together doing all kinds of fun stuff like laundry, banking, errands, etc. But it was good to spend time together, and I so appreciate having Roger available to pick up kids and participate in our family life. Roger and I went on a date with another couple on Monday evening. Allison and Jason invited us out to supper, so that was a nice treat. I can’t remember the last time we had a supper date with them! We enjoyed the food and fellowship, and it was especially nice as the restaurant is literally just a minute walk out the door. 

Dinner and sweet fellowship 

Roger took the day on Tuesday to spend with the boys. We had a delayed start on Tuesday, which was kinda nice as that gave us a little extra time together. Roger took the boys to Portland to look for a hockey stick for Chandler’s birthday. Wyatt decided not to go because his class was going to be doing a science experiment. We don’t let the boys miss school for every whim, but having Roger around is a big deal. It provided an opportunity for uninterrupted conversations with the boys, and a chance for them to talk to Roger about some of their challenges and struggles. The boys will talk to me, but the older two boys frequently tell me “Mom, you think like a girl!” Um- well! 

Roger had to leave on Wednesday morning. He spent some time with the boys and Emma in the morning, and then Emma and I took him to the airport around 10:00am. It was kind of a  rough morning for all of us. Having Roger leave is kinda like the let down after camp is over. Everyone feels a little out of sorts and grumpy. It takes us a few days to adjust to life without Roger for a few weeks, but we will get through. We’ve made it through the longest parts, I think. Roger plans to come back in February, March, April, May and then in June, we will begin the process of moving nineteen hours across the United States. 

God has been so faithful during these months. He’s provided friends to encourage me. He has allowed me to have deep conversations with our boys. He’s provided the boys with the opportunity to play soccer through the winter months. He’s given grace when I was sure I couldn’t conjure up another moment of patience. He’s given rest when we’ve been falling apart. He’s provided housing in a market where there isn’t any. He’s given Wyatt and Travis a teacher who really cares about them and wants to build a relationship with them. He’s given Chandler a teacher that loves him and prays for him regularly. He’s given Garett a depth of discernment that I haven’t seen prior to this year. He’s allowed Emma to grow and mature through challenges (although the boys would say she has a long ways to go!) 

The second quarter of school has closed and it’s on to the last two quarters. I just counted up the days today and we only have 76 school days left- and so much still to teach! Please continue to pray for me both as a teacher and a mom. I want to invest in the lives of my students, but I still need to have energy and patience with my own tribe. 

Chandler’s 14th birthday was on Wednesday. Fourteen years have flown by! He has matured so much in the last year, and I am so thankful for his work ethic,  entrepreneur spirit, his laughter, his determination, and his resilience. It’s been a hard, long year for him but in spite of tears of frustration and discouragement, he still plods along. Chandler sees the world in only two colors- black or white. He’s been this way since he was very, very young. He thrives on relationships and people taking the time to get to know him.  His love language is quality time. He can be head-strong, impatient, and outspoken, but he can also be sensitive, sweet and kind. I am so thankful for this boy of ours, and I pray for him daily that he will grow up to love Jesus and serve Him with his whole heart. His teacher at school brought him cupcakes for his birthday, and one of my teacher friends gave him an air-soft vest and in invitation to come over and play air-soft sometime- right up his alley! Despite the fact that Roger had to leave on his birthday, Chandler handled the day with maturity and a sweet spirit. He was thankful that Roger was there in the morning.  Happy Birthday, Chandler!

Roger made it back safely to Michigan, and we are thankful for that. It was so nice to have the opportunity to discuss many things in person rather than over the phone or FaceTime. There really is no substitute for actual real in-person conversations. I treasured our time and memories together. This morning one of my teacher friends, Shaina, gifted me with a sweet note and a gift card to Dunkin Donuts. She wrote that she can’t solve the problem of distance, but coffee could possibly help?! Oh, yes!!! I was so thankful for the note and gift to dunkin. I’ll definitely be putting that to use! 

I was so thankful for Friday to roll around! It was an emotionally draining week, and since we didn’t have all our regularly scheduled specials, the week seemed a little longer than others. I kinda was feeling like a broken record by Friday afternoon, but we made it through! I have a student teacher working with me for a couple of weeks, and I’ve savored the extra learning that we can get done by having an extra set of hands and ears. Kindergarten is a lot of sounding out letters/words, and most have not mastered the concept of silent reading! I love them dearly, and it’s going to be a change to not be teaching kindergarten next year. Kindergarten is one of my favorite ages, and I’ve enjoyed this class even when I’m exhausted. God is good. 

Thank you for your continued prayers. We don’t know what the future looks like, but I’m thankful that God sees the bigger picture!

Saturday was a snow day! It was windy and snowy all day long, and it was nice to have the day to catch up on lesson plans, schedules, reading and playing some games with the kids. We made chili and brownies and watched the snow fall. The kids went outside several times, but the cold wind drove them back inside before too long. I’m thankful for snow and seasons. I also wouldn’t mind if God moved us to a warm, sunny state sometime in our future! 

Snow day! 

                                          Emma loves to “teach” school! 

Bowling on Friday night 

 Our boys and the pastors son 

Welcome to January- the month of 31 Mondays! (Kidding!)

 We returned to school last Monday after two weeks of Christmas break. I think every day last week at school felt like a MONDAY! :) It was a long week for all of us, but by the grace of God, we made it through. I know our kids were feeling the effects of lots of driving, missing their daddy, too much sugar and junk food, and the challenges of starting school again. Like I said, by the grace of God, we made it through! 

My friend, Allison and I did get away from school for a bit on Monday, (1/3) to have lunch together. Our time always flies by, but she’s a gem of a friend and one I will miss deeply when we leave Maine. Garett and Wyatt both had healthy child visits last week. They are both healthy and strong, but Garett does have a fatty tumor growing on his arm that needs to be removed. He had an ultrasound done last year, and we decided to leave it alone. But a year later, he’s starting to hit the lump on objects, and we should probably get it removed. Garett is in the 95% for weight for kids his age and the 92% for height. Wyatt is in the 50% for weight and in the 37% for height. We are thankful for healthy and strong children. 

Roger has his ticket bought for the month of January! We are excited to see him next weekend actually! He will be coming home from January 21-26, so we are all looking forward to that. Chandler’s 14th birthday is on January 26th, so it’s nice that Roger will at least be here on the morning of his birthday. Roger has spent some time driving by some homes in Michigan, but that’s all we’ve done so far. There are not very many properties on the market, and per usual, Zillow can make all the properties look amazing! We are just trying to be patient and wait for God to provide us with the perfect property for our family. 

We had a snow day on Friday (our first one this year). We were all happy to have a snow day, and I was so happy with the opportunity to try to catch up on some things around our house. It felt like we came back from our trip and jumped right back into life/school/church/ so it was nice to be able to work on some home projects. The kids and I went over to my friend, Hannah’s house for a bit. My children love her kids dearly, and it was fun to see them all tromp around in the snow. Since we are living in an apartment, our outside space is minimal. The kids were happy to shovel off the yard and put the snow into one big pile to build a snow fort. I was happy to sit and talk with Hannah, hold her baby, and drink coffee. And…all that fresh air helps everyone sleep better at night! 

Last Saturday afternoon, we were able to go over to a friends house for a while. I teach at our school with Jess and Stef. We needed to have a curriculum planning meeting, but since we all have kids, it seemed easier to try to plan to do something not at school. We spend a LOT of time there already. Jess invited us all to come over to her house on Saturday, and the kids were excited about that. Since we had a snow day on Friday (YAY!) there was plenty of snow to play in. The kids (I think we had 12 of them all together) played outside and inside and all over while the three of us sat at the table and talked. It was an opportunity to talk and pray about many things. It’s an easy time of year to feel a little discouraged and sometimes a lot discouraged. We did talk about curriculum, but also about some of the challenges and joys of the school year. We wrapped up our time by praying about many things. If we really think that God can change things (and He can), it’s imperative that we ask Him to help us. I’m thankful for both Stef and Jess, and I count it a privilege to work alongside of them. This year has been different than any other. We’ve had multiple challenges, and it does feel like the Devil is fighting hard. I know that I will probably look back on this year as being a blur at moments and a complete drag at others. But through it all, God is faithful, kind and strong. I’m so thankful that we can always run to Jesus. 

Sunday is always a full day for us, and a day that I especially miss Roger. Going to church has always been a priority in our family, and it’s hard when we aren’t doing it as a family. I’m finding that Garett and Chandler are really struggling to enjoy going to Sunday school, and it’s a challenging age for young people. I think I’m going to have them start going to the adult class with me. It seems like no matter where you go to church some of the challenges are the same. The challenge for people to be committed is a hard one whether it’s church related, job related and sometimes even family related. Or the challenge is finding people that are really fitted for the job. If every person in the body of Christ was exercising their gifts and talents would the challenge still exist?I tend to think not. I’ve just finished reading a book called “Hearts on Fire” and it was the story of eight women who have lived through extreme persecution and difficulty yet are on fire for Jesus. It was such a convicting read for me, as well as a hard one. I don’t like pain or persecution and the thought of someone harming our children makes my stomach feel sick. I’m thankful that God promises to go beside us and before us, and I don’t need to dwell on what my response might be. God will provide strength as it’s needed. I do know that I want to be faithful. I want to be faithful to love God with all of my heart, to be faithful to my spouse, to strive to raise our children to love Jesus passionately, and to serve Him fervently. I don’t know what any of the future holds, but I know that I want God to use me in a mighty way. (Preferably without pain- if I’m going to die, I’d prefer it to be quick) I know that sounds morbid, but I know what eternity holds for me- do you!? 

Yesterday I had to step out of my classroom for a bit to take Travis home. He had come up to my classroom shortly before lunch to tell me that he had a bad headache. Per usual, I told him to drink some more water first. About 1:30 in the afternoon, he came up to my classroom again. He was white-faced and told me that his headache was so bad that he had thrown up in the bathroom. I knew he was having a migraine, and generally what helps a migraine is rest! Thankfully, our administrator and the secretary were able to cover my classroom for about ten minutes as I took Travis home. It’s miserable when you don’t feel good, and it’s always hard when it’s one of your kids. Travis slept the entire afternoon, but by the evening hours, he was feeling better. He doesn’t get headaches real often, but when he does, they are usually pretty bad. One of the highlights from this month so far has been the flowers that Roger ordered for me. He ordered some flowers and after school on Tuesday, Garett walked over to the flower shop to pick them up. It definitely brightened my day, and I was thankful for both Roger’s thoughtfulness and Garett’s willingness to serve me by walking over to pick up the flowers. 

Overall, we are surviving the month of January. It’s been more challenging than I would like, but God already knew what we would face this month. I’ve been reading through Lamentations and one of my favorite verses in that book is “His mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.”