Sports, Trips, and Challenges

Another two weeks have flown by! September is coming to a close, and we’ve had our first few feelings of “fall” temperatures. By fall temperatures, I mean that the humidity has dropped some, and we don’t feel the sweat dripping down our backs at the soccer games! 

Life is full- very full. I ponder sometimes whether or not it’s “too” full, but I haven’t come to any real decisions on that at the moment. I want to be present for our children and the events in their lives, but I find balance to be hard. So while I ponder and pray, I press on (ooh…look at all those “p”s. Ponder, pray, press-on!)  We are in the middle of the first quarter of school, so we are  in the thick of things so to speak. School is getting harder, and as teachers we’ve discovered which children shouldn’t sit next together, which ones might have a harder home life, which ones have academic struggles, which ones need some extra encouragement, and we pray that we don’t miss anything that we need to catch! I’ve enjoyed teaching art (so far). It’s fun to see the kids experiment with line art, color wheels, and work on projects for the upcoming county fair. We decided to make all the art entries “patriotic” this year. I’m amazed that not everyone thinks that they are blessed to be an American and that we live in a great nation! Oh yes, there are things that grieve my heart and soul also, but we are still so very blessed. So we had some of the students paint fireworks, some drew and colored the Statue of Liberty, and some drew the American flag. It was fun to see the art work in the various stages, and it was such a relief to finally get it all dropped off at the fair this week! It was a craaaaazzzzzyyyy week as we wrapped up the projects and delivered them to the fair this year. I want the students to do well as it’s a good representation of the school, but more than anything I want them to use their talents for God’s Glory. We are created for His glory, and we don’t magically reach an age where we need to start living that way. We need to live that way every day no matter what our age! I teach in Christian education because I value the opportunity to point kids to Jesus. I teach not just because I enjoy it, but because it’s a discipleship opportunity. If these kids don’t remember anything else from art or library classes I want them to know that I love my God, my family, my country and I love them. Oh, I want them to learn, but I want to point them to Jesus. As our college president used to say, “Life touching Life”. 

Last week, Jen went to Washington D.C. with Chandler’s tenth grade trip, while Roger and I left on Wednesday for the trip to Williamsburg with 8th graders. I don’t think Wyatt was exactly thrilled that his parents came along, but he handled it well, for the most part. We got to see him interact with his classmates outside of the school walls, and that was good for us as parents too. I had never been to Jamestown before or Colonial Williamsburg, so I was happy to have the opportunity. Jamestown history feels a little old for me to relate to, but I really enjoyed walking at Colonial Williamsburg. Hearing the interpretative speaker talk about the Continental Congress and the sacrifices that those brave men made for our baby nation was enough to bring me to tears. Meanwhile, much of the class looked bored, unfortunately! To think that we got to visit the house that Thomas Jefferson and George Washington both visited and shared meals at was really neat. I would’ve enjoyed spending more time at Colonial Williamsburg, and I think I’d like to take our kids back there as a family sometime. Roger and I were thankful that we had the opportunity to go, and hopefully we were a blessing to some along the way. It was nice to come home and sleep in our own beds though! I think I’m getting old!

In the past week, we’ve had cross-country meets and soccer games to add to the fun. Wyatt continues to thrive in the middle school races, and he generally places in the top 4 in the races. His friend, Kaden, is usually not far behind. It’s been a little discouraging for them as the points are based on the top three finishers per team, and there’s not been a third runner that has been close to Wyatt or Kaden. Chandler struggled after returning from Washington DC. As it’s hard to get back into running if you haven’t run in about 2 weeks! He struggled a lot in his race this week as he finished ninth, but perhaps it will be a good motivator too. This time of year always brings back my own memories of cross-country season and all the seasons that I loved my experiences. I’m a little bit bummed that I don’t think either boy will run next year, but we will see what next year brings.  I have a number of reasons on why I think this is the case, none of which need mentioning here. For now, we encourage the boys and press on. 

To be completely honest, it’s been a hard school year. Literally Satan has thrown darts at every turn and worked to discourage us. Travis is struggling in school, and we are trying to figure out what is BEST for Travis. Our best friends are moving away. I struggle to find the balance between school, family, and life. The boys have experienced some personal disappointments this year, and I’m constantly reminded that we need to put our rest in Jesus. Roger’s had some struggles at work too, and while I’m not trying to sound like Debbie Downer, it has been rough…that’s putting it mildly. However, God is unchanging, faithful and true. I was reminded this week of the faithfulness of God as I had a moment to drink some coffee and talk with Roger. It’s not that God is unfaithful, but rather that I am faithless. He’s constant, trustworthy and kind, while I struggle to respond Christlike. 

Yesterday, the soccer/volleyball games were canceled due to the rain storm. It was kinda nice to have some extra time to work on a few other projects. Roger came into the school to do some scrimmage practice with any boys that wanted to stay and play in the rain. We were invited to the Everett’s for supper, and we are going to miss them when they move.  I don’t know why God is moving them away, but I have to trust in His plan. As Laura and I sat in the driveway in the van and shared our concerns and burdens, I was reminded that deep friendships are a gift. I wasn’t looking for a like-minded “mama” bear, but God brought one into my life. I wasn’t planning on losing my best friend in North Carolina so soon after we arrived, but God knows. This is the first time that we’ve been on the other end of the moving side. Generally, we are the ones that are doing the moving, but in this instance, we’re staying and they’re moving. I’m not even going to pretend that I know what God is doing, and I’ve really, really struggled with this. But we trust. We wait. We pray. We surrender and we press on. He is faithful. 

I like this song. I’m so thankful that we serve a Good, good, Father. 

 

Birthdays, Anniversary, “Hurricane” Day, and Life!

Too much has happened in the past few weeks to possibly give an accurate update! However, we’ve celebrated Travis’s 13th birthday, celebrated Garett’s 17th birthday, had a “hurricane” day at school, celebrated our 18th anniversary, multiple soccer games, our first cross-country meet, and a host of other things! 

                                                            Photo credit: Michelle Dawson 

First of all, a school update for those that have been following along. As far as Travis is concerned, it’s not moving along as smoothly as we’d like but it could be worse. My sister helped me write out his 504 plan and now we are trying to figure out a meeting time with all of his teachers. We cannot continue another 33 weeks of frustration and tears over school that is for sure! We are thankful for those that have reached out to us to tell us that they are praying for Travis or to assure us that we aren’t the first parents to have faced these struggles. God is still good and He’s still in control. I rest in that. 

Travis’s 13th birthday was just a few days ago, and he had a soccer game on his birthday. He doesn’t always get a lot of playing time, but he is the only 7th grader on the team and he’s still kinda small. He did get to play in that soccer game on his birthday, and even though the team lost the game, it was good to watch the team play. Ever.single.day. That we’ve had a soccer game there’s been a heat index of over 100 degrees! It’s been hot to play and hot to watch them play! Garett got a cleat to his ankle during that game, and he’s been struggling with some pain ever since. He actually didn’t play in yesterday’s game because his ankle has been bothering him. We went out to dinner with the Everett’s after the game, and Travis was greatly embarrassed when Aunt Jen announced to the waitress that it was his birthday and the wait staff came out to sing to him! It was a memory for sure! One of his very best friends, Abel, from Maine, sent Travis a Dude Perfect hat for his birthday, and that totally made Travis’s day! I’m so thankful for this young boy. School has never come easily for him, and it often seems like he gets stuck in a rough class, but he’s sweet and kind.  He sees the world in very “black and white” and we’ve learned that he takes things very literally. Please pray that we can help him learn to enjoy school a little bit and that his teachers will help him with that also. 

So many memories!! 

For five days the boys were 13, 14, 15, and 16, then Garett had a birthday! His birthday was on a Wednesday, which is a hard day to have a birthday with having church at night. But he got to go out to eat at his favorite restaurant, which is either Mexican food or Zaxby’s. Since it was a church night, we went to Zaxby’s. It’s still hard for me to believe that our oldest son is 17!! Where has time gone?! He’s come such a long ways in his academic studies, and while school doesn’t come easily for him, he’s figured out how to adapt. He’s a confident young man who works hard, enjoys working in teen church, loves the game of hockey, gets along with almost everyone (except siblings :) )  and generally displays a good attitude and servant’s heart. Garett is a junior in high school now, and I can honestly say, I’m not ready for this! I was in tears on the first day of school and Garett was like, “Mom, what is the matter?!” I told him that time was flying by and Garett practically replied, “Mom, this is like the first day of my Junior year. You can probably save those tears for next year!” We’ve yet to actually celebrate either Travis’s or Garett’s birthdays, but we will do it soon, Lord willing! We’ve been busy with school, soccer, cross-country, church and adjusting to new routines. 

Also last week we had a “Hurricane” day! This was a total surprise to us Northern people, but a day off of school is a day off! It was weird to have a day off of school when you’re only about ten days into the school year, but we didn’t complain! School was called off on account of flash flooding, rain torrents, etc. but really nothing exciting happened at all. We slept in, played outside, worked around the yard, and such. It did rain some, but it wasn’t hard or long. The hurricane helped cool down the temperature for a few days, so that was nice! Saturday and Sunday were in the 80s, and it was great to be outside and not feel sweat pouring off. Roger, Garett and Chandler went to play golf with a friend from school. Emma went over to a friends house to play for a bit, while Jen and I spent some time checking out a few thrift stores. 

On Saturday evening, Roger and I went out to celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary. Like everything else related to time, the years have flown by. Oh, we’ve had our share of struggles, disagreements, miscommunication, and all the other things in marriages, but God has been faithful. Roger has put up with many of my crazy, crazy ideas and has helped prevent me from doing some really dumb things. He’s quiet but faithful. He’s dependable, trustworthy, hard working, patient, and I am so blessed. We went out to eat at a Japanese cuisine restaurant, and our kids stayed home. Wow! It’s hard to believe that we’ve reached the place where the kids are independent and self sufficient for several hours! I didn’t even tell them what to make for supper, but they all found food to eat. They’ve been on their own here and there for several years, but this was the first anniversary that we officially left them at home while we went to celebrate. While at the restaurant, we had a pleasant surprise. We saw a couple that we know (barely) from church. They greeted us, and we exchanged pleasantries. When we got up to leave the restaurant, our waitress told us that the other couple had paid for our meal! What a blessing! I don’t think that has every happened to us before, so it was a special memory for our 18th anniversary. 

Monday was Labor Day and an official school holiday. We spent the day puttering around our house, and then Roger and I went to find a piano. With two kids taking music lessons, it was time to replace our piano. The piano in our house has been moved from Wisconsin, to Maine to North Carolina…and those are the moves that we’ve made with it. We had a piano tuner access the piano, and it was going to be several thousand dollars to get the piano back up to speed. My parents recently gifted us with some money, so we decided that we would put that money towards a piano. Roger and I visited a small, local piano store and after much discussion, we invested in a digital piano. It is way smarter than I am, but the most important feature is that there is a headphone jack or it can be connected to Bluetooth headphones! (I don’t always want to listen to everyone practicing piano!) We are so thanfkul to have an “in tune” piano again, and I’ve even squeezed in a few minutes to practice here and there. Wyatt told me, “Mom, I didn’t know that you were that good. It never sounded like that before.” Well son, having an in-tune piano does help!! (I’m not that good.) 

We’ve been enjoying having Aunt Jen at school, and she’s been a lifesaver in helping with homework sometimes! She will be moving into her new house on Saturday, and we are going to be helping with that this weekend. She’s excited about moving in to her house, and my kids are excited about Aunt Jen having a house! It’s not been the best or smoothest transition in the world, but God knows exactly what He is doing. He is molding and shaping us continually. 

Thank you for your prayers. We need them. I’ve been feeling overwhelmed with all that is on my plate this year and spreading out my time between school responsibilities, our family, school activities, laundry, feeding people, and trying to do my very best to point those around me to Jesus. My brain really starts to come alive around 11:00pm, when I need to be sleeping! However, God gives grace for every moment and I’m learning to lean more on Him for every bit of His strength. God is good.