Happenings

  I wanted to post a little update on what we have been up to lately! Life has been full to say the least! My husband and daughter just returned from a trip to Jamaica where they were visiting friends. Their trip was life giving and meaningful. They loved every minute of the experience. This was my oldest's first time leaving our country. It was an incredible feeling for me to know that they were having such a great time and that they were having a great time together. The children and I at home also did well. There were ups and downs which were to be expected. My husband is a landlord and I don't usually consider myself part of that equation. However when he was gone a furnace stopped working at one of his houses. I had to step up and find a technician. The issue was not straightforward at first and I think the tech had to come at least three times and I went to the house at least four times. In the end the furnace was fixed and it was a good learning experience for me. My husband also scheduled for our roof to be redone when he was gone. Once again, a new and good experience for me as I was responsible for things I would not usually have been. It was nice to have time to appreciate him and all he does for our family!

  We got our Christmas tree early this year because the rain and grey weather had come and I wanted our house to feel cozy and festive. We don't have many decorations other than the tree. It has been wonderful to have it there and remind me of many happy things.

  I have been doing Christmas shopping much earlier this year than ever before. I have my reasons but it is December 2nd today and I am almost done! However each weekend for the last little while and some evenings have been filled with shopping and that is draining. I also have almost all my Christmas cards written and having this done feels amazing. I often write eighty cards but this year I tried to pair it down and have about 50 to write. I am not including a family picture this year so that makes it even easier. I have to say it feels encouraging to be this organized, but this year I feel like I have to. I shop for quite a few people and I love buying and giving gifts. It takes a lot of my time and energy! As the year comes to a close I want to be able to have time to take in all the beauty and specialness surrounding this time.

  The children have been helping around the house a lot ~ more so than they ever have. This has taken a long time in coming. When my husband and oldest were gone my next in line child, who tends to not ever want to try new things (fear of failure etc), was suddenly up for the job. He was amazing. He made breakfasts, did laundry, helped with the bed time routine and warmed my heart with his empathy and caring attitude. I can't express how much good this did my heart. I don't know if you are mother of special needs children but I am. Often many days are like going up a very big hill. It is exhausting and so much rests on your shoulders. To have my son who has struggled so much in his life, feel capable and calm, was like a miracle to me.

  We have not been working to intensely on homeschooling lately as there has been a lot of other things going on. We did home school during the Summer months and are ahead in most areas so it has been nice to not worry about this. When my oldest came home she hosted a ladies Christmas tea. It was supposed to be at our home but my three youngest came down with colds. She ended up having the tea at her Nana's house. This involved making invitations, planning out the itinerary, baking and cooking, making gifts for each lady, finding Bible verses for each lady and writing out a speech to give. This covered various aspects of school for her for this term. She has some amazing capabilities for someone her age and she pulled the tea off incredibly. I could not attend but I know that if I was in those ladie's shoes I would have felt so respected and blessed. This is the beautiful part of homeschooling. We have time to plan and do these sorts of special things for others.

 My sister who lives with us just turned twenty six and so we had a little celebration for her and my oldest turns fourteen very soon. So we are in the midst of birthday parties as well as all the other things we do. It is a busy time for me!

  I hope you are doing well as the end of the year approaches. This time tends to be very busy but there is so much opportunity as it is the time of Advent to slow down, take time, and enjoy ~

xo
Tansy