It has truly been a long time. As a family we have changed and evolved so much over the last few years. Today I sit here wondering how I’ve let so much time slip by, but sometimes life just gets so far ahead of you that you find yourself running to catch it only to realize that all you truly want is for things to slow down a bit.
This year my husband and I have turned 50. I don’t want to admit it, but whether I like it or not, we have slowed down.
The kids are all older, and I sit here realizing that so much that I hoped for has not happened. Many of our adventures were put on a shelf as life has unfolded. Our mini farm has now become a few chickens, a cat a dog, and an occasional garden. We are still homeschooling, but it hits different when everyone is in the older ages. Watching everyone grow up has been a bit difficult for me, but it has to happen and I’m adjusting.
Update on the last couple of years: The kids are now almost 22, 17, 15, 12, and 9.
Our oldest son has moved out tried college and decided it wasn’t for him. He is currently working in a job building factory conveyor systems. It is a hands on “hard work job”. Sometimes he travels to do on sight, building in the factories in surrounding states.
Our 17 year old is in transition right now to adulthood. He is currently working on and almost finished with his Eagle Scout project. For the past few year he and the 15 year old and I have run a part time lawn business that has taught them about life and business and sometimes even service. He recently began working for the university in their landscaping department and has enjoyed it very much. He is in the process of taking his GED so that he can enroll in the local community college while working in landscaping. He was also recently in an accident at work that left him with a broken pelvis. He is recovering right now; he’s in good spirits and not letting it get him down. He has strength and determination. We will update this as we know more about his healing.
The 15 year old is trying to find his place in life right now. It’s a difficult time when you don’t know what direction you want to go in life. All of our kids are artists and we struggle with the idea of only being an artist without a job to sustain the artistic habits. I’m sure he will figure out a direction eventually. He is also a scout and should be starting his Eagle Requirements soon.
Our 12 year old and only girl is quite a bit like her mom and into a bit of everything. She likes to bake, sew, craft, loves animals, also a scout. She keeps busy, sometimes to the point of distraction of important life stuff.
Our 9 year old seems to just be happy to be around. He loves spending time outside climbing stuff, riding his bike, drawing, building, learning how things are put together and how they work. He will soon be 10 and it is so hard to see him as a “big boy”.
I had been working as a part-time care giver for the last 4+ years. That job ended recently, interestingly right before my son’s accident. I truly believe that God puts you where you need to be and I needed to be home.
During Covid we also embarked on a kitchen renovation because it was time and we found termite damage. It has been a long slow process and we are about 80% finished. We have done most of the work ourselves and called in experts when needed.
Because of technical difficulties I was only posting our progress on a Facebook page, I am hoping to restart blogging again as we go forward and begin doing more of what we used to do.
Sometimes the breaks need to be put on life to understand what you truly need to focus on in life.
