Monday Musings: Stop the World...I Want to Get Off

When I was a teen, my mom would take my sisters and me to visit my grandmother (mom's mom) in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where she lived. We'd go for 3 or 4 days, and one of the evenings would be spent on the boardwalk, eating ice cream, saltwater taffy, and French fries, buying t-shirts, and riding the rides in the arcade/amusement area. 

I remember one year we all climbed on to a spinning ride that went really fast forward and sideways and then stopped to go the same way backwards. I rode in the same car as my mom, and, to my mortification, she made the controller stop the ride so she could get off...which meant I got off, too. I was totally ungracious to her and remained embarrassed and a bit miffed that she couldn't stay on for a few more minutes for most of the rest of the evening.

It wasn't until years later that I rode on a ride (one I'd ridden many many times before) and suddenly understood the feeling of sheer panic that can run through you without any warning. It's nonsensical to those who don't understand. There's no rhyme or reason for it, but it takes over and consumes your reasoning until you have to change where you are or what you're doing to even get a tiny handle on sanity again. 

I blame it on hormones.

Funny, right? Not really. Not even slightly. It can be internally terrifying until you ground yourself again.

Fast forward to my own motherhood. I have often complained lamented mentioned in other posts on here that I feel like I'm barely hanging on to this ride called "Life" that sweeps the kids away into adulthood. I often occasionally wish that it would slow down (or even pause) to let me catch my breath. It's an odd sensation, not unlike my poor mom wanting to get off the ride that was terrifying her, making her feel dizzy.

I am dizzy.

I don't know if it's because the beginning of a child's life seems painfully slow that the race to the adulthood seems to speed up exponentially.

There's a saying many older parents use: The days are long, but the years are short.

So how is it that we are a less than three weeks away from graduating our youngest child...and our last homeschool student? How have we managed to finish this chapter so fast? Was it fast? Or is my perspective just skewed by living nearly 55 years of life? I don't remember the years flying by when I was a teenager. In fact, most of the time, they seemed to drag by with all of us anticipating the next phase with the common impatience of youth.

Stuart asked me the other day: "What's next for you?"

It was a hard question to answer...and one that was met with a lot of emotions.

What IS next? 

It's not something I really considered. I've been a stay-at-home mom for so long now, I don't really know how to redefine myself yet.

I guess I wish the wasn't "the end" of our homeschool journey, not because I want to hold back our son...but because I have so much more I want to learn with him.

The days are long, but not long enough, and the years are most certainly too short.

Sigh.

New Year, Old Reflections -- 2017

My favorite thing to buy at the beginning of each year was the Life magazine "Year in Pictures." My parents had a few from over the years, and I loved looking through them at the moments in time that were captured through the photojournalist's lens.

Here's to looking back at 2017 through our pictures. So many photos (whittled down from 1,000s to a mere 400 or so)...and so many smiles -- many, many more than the last few years.

God is good to us! He has carried us through quite a lot in the past few years, especially. And being able to recap the year through photos is always a joy. Seeing memories forgotten already...truly priceless.

In an age of constantly changing technology, what are your favorite ways to keep memories alive year to year?

View on Flipagram

Should old acquaintance be forgot,

and never brought to mind?

Should old acquaintance be forgot,

and old lang syne?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my dear,

for auld lang syne,

we'll take a cup of kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

And surely you'll buy your pint cup!

and surely I'll buy mine!

And we'll take a cup o' kindness yet,

for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have run about the slopes,

and picked the daisies fine;

But we've wandered many a weary foot,

since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have paddled in the stream,

from morning sun till dine^†;

But seas between us broad have roared

since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there's a hand my trusty friend!

And give me a hand o' thine!

And we'll take a right good-will draught,

for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

Friday Funnies

This was us yesterday.... 

But we're officially finished with the Fall semester! Yay!! Phew! Wow! Boo-hoo!! Lots of emotions today.

It's the end of the first semester of Edward's high school years...and the end of the last Fall semester for Emily's high school years. 

Lots of emotions today......

Silly Ol' Pooh Bear

Last year, Ethan and I read A. A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh for school. We fell in love with all the characters and Milne's fantastic sense of humor.

More than that, we loved the imagination and charm that filled the book. We loved it so much that we had to immediately find the sequel The House at Pooh Corner and devour it as soon as it arrived.

I love sharing good books with our kids. I love reading the words, letting the rhythm and song fall on our ears. I especially love when the older kids listen surreptitiously from another room. This time they just came and joined us. Everyone was very excited every time I announced it was time to read again.

Ethan turned six last September. Can you guess the favorite book he got for his birthday?

Now We Are Six. 

And it's a definite favorite, judging by the number of times we've read and reread it.

Wordless Wednesday

Come Fly Away with Me!

Ethan's special birthday adventure was to the National Air & Space Museum "Annex" (which, ironically, was the same place Edward went for his 6th birthday adventure). He wanted to see a Blackbird and a space shuttle. We saw both -- and more!

It was an awesome day!

Here's the link to the whole photo album.

Our favorite quote of the day:

The wisdom of a 5-nearly-6-year-old... Heard from Ethan in the car yesterday while we drove through D.C.: "I think the Secret Service is really dumb. Who ever heard of writing 'Secret Service' on a car. They're supposed to be SECRET, aren't they? I don't think that's very secret."

Substance of LIfe

Wanna come school with us? *wink-grin*

Whoosh!

So life is speeding by at an incredible rate! (Not like I haven't said that before...)

We've only just started school, but we're already hitting the ground with our sprinting shoes on. We're immersed in the middle of the high school soccer season and drama club just started and Emi is getting the school newspaper up and running again...and...and...and...

Remind me again: I am a STAY-AT-HOME mom, right?

Thankfully, we gave Ethan time off from school this week. He is between first and second grade, and since he schools year 'round, we thought a much-needed break was in order. He'll start again the day after his 6th birthday.

Sigh.................

SIXTH birthday!! Wasn't this kid just born? How on earth did we get here so fast?

From this:

To this:

See what I mean about hanging on tight during this awesome and crazy ride called parenthood?

Here are some photos from this week:

Edward at a home JV soccer game.

Still smiling even though they lost. "I think we played really well," he said. 

So proud of him!

We've hit the two-sandwich stage of Edward's life.

Emi helped out as an assistant coach at tonight's U8 soccer practice.

Think someone liked his U8 soccer practice? 

Guess who his coaches are?

Another writer joined Voices last Saturday!!

Proud sister with her "little" brother before their first Voices meeting of the year.

I sure do love these kids!! 

The best thing about being in the blog world is seeing all the fantastic moms and dads out there who love their kids with their whole hearts, too. It gives one reason to hope!

Saturday Sweethearts

From the First Day of School on Tuesday:

Love these sweeties with my whole heart!

Introducing...

...our second-grader, Ethan Samuel, Class of 2025:

 

 

Time's a'flying!

Introducing...

...our freshman, Edward Stuart, Class of 2018:

 

 

 Sigh.

Introducing....

...our senior, Emily Susanne, Class of 2015:

How did we get here already???

Thoughts on the Eve of Another School Year

 Top row taken of each one in kindergarten; Bottom row taken in June 2014

It's very early on the day my kids start a new school year. And I can't sleep. Not because I'm worried. Not because I'm too busy. Just because I can't believe we've reached this point in life.

We have a senior, a freshman, and a 2nd-grader.......

Sigh.

During the first week of Emily's life, I remember looking at her and thinking that we'd only have her at home for 18 years. University seemed such a long time away. Then there were times during those long early-morning feedings that I wondered if I'd survive having her at home for 18 more years. It seemed like such a long time away.

"Blink and you'll miss it!" I remember people warning me. I knew they were right, but a big part of me thought, "It's such a long time away yet."

And here I sit, typing out my thoughts on the eve of our daughter becoming a senior. She'll be 17 in October. She's been looking at universities and learning to drive. It really isn't such a long time away anymore.

It's here. It's now. It's amazing!

People are right: Blink, and you will miss it.

Or just hang on and enjoy the ride. The view from the "parental window" is exciting, daunting, terrifying, and joyful all at the same time.

*   *   *

A Prayer for Our Kids on the First Day of a New School Year:

Lord, help our children as they embark on a new year of learning.

May they know the joy of discovering new ideas and learning new concepts.

May they be excited when they get things right and humble when they get things wrong.

May they feel gratitude for the privilege it is to be able to learn.

May they be thankful for good health and strong bodies and bright minds.

May they share their joy of learning with others in such a way as to excite those people to want to learn.

May they continually weigh what they learn against the core of their moral being.

May they be kind to one another and share their learning space with respect and love.

May they always do their best.

May they never forget where they've come from or where they are headed.

May they also never forget to enjoy the moment, to find peace with where they are and patience for what's to come.

May they always be awe of all You have created.

May they have wisdom to manage their time properly so they can do their best on assignments.

May You give them wisdom in their journey through school and later into the workforce.

May they never stop thanking You for the lifetime gift of learning.
And may they always remember how much we love them, no matter what!

Thank You for loving them more than even we can!

Amen

Back to School...But Not for Us

So everyone is going back to school today. But not us. (Cue: Nah-nah-na-nah-nah.)

No, actually it always feels a little strange...like we're missing out somehow or like we're supposed to start. We start next Tuesday.

And, for one of our brood, that will be the last first day of schooling at home.

Kinda bittersweet, huh?

It's hard to think that we began all of this with Emily over 12 years ago. She stood in front of our rented house for a first-day-of-school photo and smiled her biggest grin. She wore a cute dress with a white knit top and pink-and-red gingham bottom -- a pink-and-red gingham strawberry appliqued in the center of the top. She had straight brown hair, neat bangs, and tanned skin. And she was so excited! (I'm still amazed the photo wasn't blurry.)

If I close my eyes I can still feel the warmth of that late-summer day, smell the hot macadam of the street, and hear the sounds of the city around us.

"Smile!" I say.

And she does, really really big.

Then hand-in-hand we head back into the house to start our journey of learning together.

Has it been easy? No way. As with most things in life it  has been filled to the brim with ups and downs, moments when we wanted to strangle each other, or hop on the nearest schoolbus (and that was me!).

Has it been worth it? Absolutely. Without a shadow of a doubt. I would do it again. Over and over. I learned so much with her, both educationally and personally.  

...

Sometimes this wing-spreading-letting-them-grow-and-go thing is harder than it looks.

How was your first day of school?

Tempus Fugit...Or In Which Time Flies Over the Summer

I suppose it was my own doing, since I was the one who wished for a summer of boredom. Instead, we got a summer of chaos, in which we felt we were only just keeping our heads above water.

I'm not sure exactly what happened.

I remember the feeling of freedom as the school year came to a close. I remember thinking of the possibilities of what we could do...and what we didn't need to do. The whole summer sprawled before us. We talked of joining the pool. I dreamt of leisurely moments of sitting outside and reading or coloring or simply watching the clouds drift by.

Snort.

Today, I returned a bag of summer toys I'd bought at the beginning of the summer. Jump ropes and bubbles and jacks and marbles... I'd had a brainwave in the beginning of our summer break to do stuff -- like play outside -- with the kids. I'd been excited to finally have the time to play again with them. The customer service clerk at Toys 'R' Us asked me why I was returning everything. I told her it was because we didn't have time to use it, didn't really have time to play. She asked me why, and I told her. She assumed it was because "teens don't play," but I told her my teens do...we just didn't have the time due to other activities crowding in.

I felt very sad as I walked to my car. Sure, it felt better to return things we weren't going to use and get the money put back in our bank account. But I felt -- afresh -- the speed at which time is passing. When did I stop having enough time to play with my kids?

That said, the activities we did were fun. Here's some of what happened:

Emi and I did the "Official College Tour 2014" together,  even buying t-shirts from each of the universities. She did some job shadowing for her senior project and held the WWCS birthday picnic and WWCS Open Forum. Edward grew 6 inches and took some more one-on-one soccer lessons and started playing on the high school soccer team. Ethan finished first grade and read lots of chapter books. And I was able to write a ton of stories for the newspaper. We did manage to attend/host some picnics; light some fire pits; and make some s'mores. Stuart completely redid our main bathroom. High-five, Honey!

So all was not lost.

But I won't be lying when I say that I'm almost (almost) excited for school to begin so as to get back some of our routine.

*wink-grin*

How about you? Are you getting excited for the upcoming school year? Do you find that time is flying faster as you get older? Share your comments below! I'd love to know I'm not alone.

Meager Monday Musings

Once upon a time, a long time ago, I started this blog.

The idea came to me after I read several other friends' blogs...and I realized that I missed writing.

When I'm able to do this, it's lots of fun. But it takes time and dedication -- two things that are not always readily available when you have three kids learning at home.

Still.

Here I am. And it's Monday. And, since, I'm the only one awake at the moment, I'll type up a quick update to our lives and all some a few of the things I've been musing on.

The kids.

Emily is 16 now. 16. I have to pause a minute to breathe. She's in 11th grade and doing three, count 'em, three AP courses and Honors Chemistry and Latin. You might say she loves a challenge, though I think she's a bit overwhelmed at times this year. (We did try to warn her. *wink-grin*) She's learning to drive now...and it will be a slow process since we don't have the extra money necessary to add her to our insurance. Yet.

Edward is 12.  He enters the "teen world" in February. Egads. That doesn't seem possible. He was bumped up a grade this school year, skipping 7th grade, and going into all 8th grade...though his math and reading are 9th-grade courses. (Go figure.) We asked for him to be bumped up because it would make it easier. He spent his entire school career bridging two grades, due to how he tested into the school and where we decided to place him. It got to be a bit confusing at times...and we thought this would be easier. He's been taking some one-on-one lessons for soccer. He'll be on the high school soccer team next year so we thought this would boost his confidence/skills. And it has.

Ethan is our 5-year-old. He changed numbers in mid-September. And he's our super genius. No. Only kidding. What parent doesn't think his or her kid is a wunderkind? *wink-grin* He and I are doing first grade together, using K12 Independent again this year, and he's doing very well. His reading skills have exploded, and he's reading everything and anything, including books in bed. He's always been our little joker, but now he's very serious about his knowledge....a good and bad thing, I guess.

Speaking of school. Our youngest student reminded us that we never did his kindergarten "graduation" last summer as we promised we would once he completed everything. Since we pay for online access to K12 for 12 months, we continued schooling through the summer. It makes it a much more relaxed school year but also makes it easy to forget to finish school. We managed to complete the curriculum, but then life got in the way of ceremony. So I guess we'll do a winter graduation for him?

Well, the morning got away from me, and everyone is awake. I'm going to end this so that a.) I can actually post it...and b.) it isn't too long...and c.) I don't bore you.

Enjoy your Monday!

*  *  * 

What are your kids doing in school this year?

Friday Funnies

I found a free app for my iPad -- called "Toontastic" -- that I thought might prove handy for school. It allows kids to create a cartoon -- using the different parts of a story. We've had such fun creating our own cartoons with it.

Here's the latest funny attempt that I created for the kids (don't laugh too hard at its dumbness):

Monday Musings and More

Happy Monday! Happy new week! Happy nearly-the-middle-of-August!

I've erased and rewritten my weekly calendar as we begin a new week. I always like the "clean slate" effect that has.

Tomorrow is Edward's "half-birthday." I'm not sure he's even thinking about it yet...or if he is, he's being very quiet about it. It's always a fun way to break up the year, while waiting for the next celebration.

We're edging ever-closer to school. I think the kids are beginning to feel ready for it. Everything -- and I mean everything -- around us is focused on it. I think they started bringing out "back-to-school" signs and supplies at the beginning of July. It's kind of a shame because it ruins the fun of summer break by reminding us that it will soon be over...or should be over...and it had only just started a few weeks before that. (Yet another example of the media breaking up families. Get the kids back to school so that Mom and Dad can have their space/lives back. Sigh. Okay. Okay. Getting off my soapbox... I think I need to move us to a farm way out in the country with no television and limited news. I'm reaching a point of saturation....

Ahem.

Getting back on track....

Stuart got back from Kansas, a day late due to some heavy thunderstorms the night he was due to leave. Because of that, though, he didn't have to go in to work when he got home, and we got to enjoy him for an extra half-day. Win-win, right?

Speaking of half-birthdays reminds me of whole-birthdays. Less than a month until Stuart's birthday...and a month from tomorrow will be Ethan's birthday. Wow!! While another year isn't (too) big (a) deal for us "old folks," it doesn't even seem remotely possible that our "baby" is going to be 4! Where did the time go? No. Really?!? Can it stop for a teensy bit of time? Just so I can enjoy some of the everyday moments a bit more instead of feeling rushed through them?  I'm amazed at how time speeds up as we all get older. It seemed so slow when the kids were smaller, like life would never really get going. There were still so many milestones to look forward to and reach....then suddenly those are reached and passed and everything begins to flash by.

Sigh. I sound like a broken record.

We introduced the kids to "Mystery Science Theater 3000" last week and watched another one on Friday night. What a hoot! It was a spy "thriller," filled with cliches and bad acting...perfect for the commentary of three stars of MST3000. We showed them a part of "Plan 9 from Outer Space" on Saturday night and all of us agreed that it was ripe for a MST3000 show. Apparently, according to IMdB, they did try to make it a show, but it was too long. "Plan 9" has some classic lines, though. One of my favorites is: "future events such as these will affect you in the future."

I'll end with a funny anecdote from Grammarly.com:

I love the power of the written word.

Fleeting Summer Monday Musings

Emily and Stuart on a facetime chat

Happy Monday!

I cannot believe that a little less than a month from now we'll be starting school. Yikes!

Our daughter starts 10th grade, our older son starts 6th (with 7th-grade math and language arts), and the "baby" starts kindergarten. How did all this come up so fast?

Didn't the summer drag a bit longer when we were young?  I remember having times when I felt extremely bored...almost (though I'm not sure I would have readily admitted to it) eager for school to start again. That said, I did like school, so maybe?  Still, I remember summer feeling like one long relaxing hot day.....

Now?  I feel like it's pretty much the same scramble as the school year. 

Ah, well. The play is over and now we can settle down for a few weeks and get some of the necessary tidying done in the house. I'd been hoping to get the dining room and kitchen sorted out before the new school year. I'd love to have more space (and less stuff!) for our lessons...especially with another student joining us.

Speaking of Ethan...  He's loving his Summer Bridge book and keeping right up with it. He's even trying to spell words for himself. It's amazing to watch him go. He was drawing a get-well card today and spelled "ritiin" on it for "written." Not bad for a nearly-4-year-old.

Speaking of Emily... (Okay. So no one actually mentioned her, but...) She's glad the play is over (practice-wise), but I think she's missing the acting part.  We had a great idea of starting our own little skit group to take some fun entertainment to elderly-care homes in the area.  Watch this space. 

My real dream would be to do a Christmas pantomime, complete with a humorous "baddie" and audience participation. Such fun!  Oh, that and open a tea shop. But time will tell.

No one mentioned Edward... But we finally sorted out last year's curriculum to send back and opened up this year's stuff...and he's well-chuffed by all the fun stuff he has this year. So well-chuffed that he was ready to start school today. Hmm... Hang on to that feeling, Budboy. Only a few weeks to go.

Stuart's off in Kansas for the week. We "facetimed" him after he left. I love so much that we have this technology now. It's such fun to be able to keep in touch face-to-face.

How's your week starting? Hope your Monday is a great one!

Mondays and Musings: Perfect Together

Happy Monday! The final Monday in July! Jeepers.

FINAL Monday in July?

That means we have only ONE month left of summer vacation. Considering how fast the first month and a half went, that isn't long.

Still, we'll enjoy it and the hazy/lazy days of the rest of summer...if we can.

I'm attempting to do some reading this summer. I finished The Janson Command last week and started The Cry of the Halidon by Robert Ludlum. So far so good.  I have a stack of other books to read, and I'm hoping this greases the wheel for me.

So, Emily continues practicing for the "Twelfth Night" play. It will be performed this coming Friday and Sunday -- pending no rain. I think she's getting excited. We sure are...though we've been missing her, too.

The boys are enjoying our recent walks to the park. We've been trying to get outside more...to run off the endless energy Ethan seems to have and build up Edward's endurance -- getting some steps for Mommy and Daddy in the process. We've been trying to hit 10,000 steps every day. I haven't done too well with it yet. I can usually get between 6,000 and 8,000, but the extra 2,000-4,000 have eluded me. I'm not giving up, though. There's a "dancing guy" that appears on my pedometer when I hit 10,000 steps, and I want to see him.

Speaking of school starting, we're getting pumped up for it. Edward's curriculum should arrive tomorrow and Wednesday. It's always so much fun to see what schoolwork he'll have for the year. (A bit like opening a birthday or Christmas prezzie.)

And speaking of Christmas...

ONLY 148 shopping days left....147 if you don't shop on Christmas Day.  And so endeth the Christmas Shopping public service announcement. Still plenty of time. Pleennnnnnnty of time.

I'm here for you.