Happy New Everything!

     It's been nearly a year since I last posted. As is often said, so much has happened in the past year. Not just in our homeschool, but in many areas of our lives. Updating the blog was very much pushed to the back burner, shut off and left to sit.

     I had hoped to update here more frequently since, as a writer, the more you do it the better you get. That obviously didn't happen. Much of that had to do with the fact that in the fall of 2021 we decided it was time to move and we purchased a new home, still under construction but closer to family. When we looked at the area we got a great view of the dirt lot that was to become the foundation of our new house! It wasn't a decision we made lightly. We prayed over everything: location, timing and finances.

     In the midst of homeschooling there were final doctor/specialist appointments for both kids. Frequent orthodontist appointments so that braces could be removed before we moved. One more musical theater performance which came with rehearsals. Farewell lunches and dinners. Oh, and of course, Covid! We all got sick toward the end of May. I was the last one to get it and dealt with several issues afterwards which required two trips to the ER (looking back now, they were likely severe panic attacks that I didn't have before). Thank God everyone else recovered quickly and thoroughly and I eventually recovered as well.

     Then there was selling our home. We were able to bless a family who had been looking for a home in our area for quite some time but kept getting outbid. Our realtor (who was also their realtor) showed them our home without listing it and they made an offer that lined up with what we needed. God definitely had his hand on that process too!

     When we started packing we had plenty friends and neighbors to help out. I know we would not have gotten it done without them. We had twenty years of stuff to go through, pack, throw out or donate and everyone pitched in. Early on when we were packing up the garage (the most daunting area to me) I had fallen and twisted both of my ankles. When I fell I couldn't get up. My son and a neighbor had the help me to my feet so that I could hobble back inside the house. Since it took nearly six months for my ankles to feel back to normal (I couldn't walk up and down stair properly), the help with packing the garage (and kitchen, and homeschool shelves and dining room) literally took a load off of me. I could only do so much at a time since I was in pain. By the time we were moved and staying in an Airbnb for a few days before our new house closed, my ankles were shot. I couldn't even get in the pool and attempt to swim. It hurt too much!

     Before we moved my husband and I were blessed with the opportunity to share our marriage story with our church's Couples Cafe. It was such a bittersweet moment when our pastor asked everyone to join with him and pray over us as we were close to our move date. Our last Sunday at the church another pastor gathered a few friends and prayed over us again. So. Much. Love.

     So, here I am sitting in our new living room filled with gratitude. None of the wonderful things we experienced last year would have been possible without God's provision, guidance and healing. We're in a new home, new city, new church. We're closer to family and have seen them more in the past four months than in the past four years. My Little Toughie is now in high school (yes, I'm still homeschooling). My son is loving his new Young Adult group. My husband gets to work from home. I'm slowly editing the second novel I wrote during the 2021 NaNoWrimo. We have great neighbors that help each other out (they pitched in to build another neighbors fence)! We're surrounded by countryside hills dotted with horses, sheep and cows. We see plenty of deer frolic in the area. We get to take it all in during daily family walks (when it's not raining).

     There are still little things that need to be done. Stuff like changing the addresses for our registrations or IDs. Getting some art on the walls. Redoing the kids' closets to make better use of the space. Redoing my closet so that my clothes aren't in piles on the floor. Figuring out what to do with all the greeting card making stuff I have since I'm not really using them anymore. Just little things here and there that are on my to-do list. I don't make New Year resolutions but I do try to think about, and maybe write down, where I want to be physically, mentally and spiritually by the end of the year. Last night I asked God to help me complete the things I wanted to get done everyday to reach those goals: read and study my Bible, workout, write/edit and then read for fun. All the usual things like cooking, dishes and laundry I can get done, but the things that are most important to me seem to fall by the wayside when my to-do list never ends. But just this morning, God directed me to his Word as soon as I awoke and upon completing this post I will have done everything I wanted to get done (except for reading for fun...I'll get that done before bedtime this evening). 

     All that to say Happy New Year! May God bless you in more ways than you can count. May He refresh your desire to know Him more fully and give you the quiet time to do that. May He instill a longing in you that seeks to pursue a relationship with Him first and before anyone or anything else. May He reveal His purpose for you and may you fulfill that purpose wholeheartedly. May He use you to share the Gospel and reveal His glory. May He use your testimony to bless others. May He direct your path in all things. May He protect you along the way.

     This, too, is my prayer for myself and my family and our New Everything.

New Year Resolutions

       Do you make resolutions? I think they're great if you're able to make small attainable goals and focus on progress instead of perfection. I stopped doing resolutions years ago. I'm not sure when, but I'm guessing it was probably when I was pregnant with Little Toughie. I knew there was no way I could commit to anything just a few months away from giving birth.

     When I think about resolutions for myself I try to think of something that's a little out of my comfort zone. I've made exercise and eating healthy (as much as I can...see below) part of my lifestyle since I enjoy both. I can't resolve to read more (I read 43 books last year...how much more can I read?) I declutter and clean on a regular basis (I have donation boxes sitting in my hallway).

     So, I try to do something different and creative. In 2020, since Little Toughie missed out on all the baking I used to do, I decided to bake a cake once a month. That became slightly challenging when everyone started stocking up on flour (I hope you're all expert bread bakers now)! Despite the empty shelves I was able to bake twelve cakes that year.

     Last year, I was going to do a Filipino dish every month, but if access to flour was troublesome in 2020, access to Filipino ingredients coupled with a shut down here and a shut down there made it practically impossible. Perhaps this year I'll try to post on the blog every couple of weeks. Or I'll actually edit one of the books I wrote for NaNoWrimo. Maybe I'll take an idea out of my Year of Prompts book once a week and let the creative writing juices flow. 

     I haven't decided on anything like that for this year but I can tell you that we've started 2022 diving into the New Testament as a family. Normally, I would purchase a devotional for each of us to start in the New Year but there was a disconnect that didn't sit well with me. If we're all reading different devotionals it makes it hard to discuss, share and dig deeper. We're starting with the NT because it always seems to fall by the wayside toward the end of the year once the holidays approach. I know mine and my family's weaknesses and our focus starts to slowly dwindle as soon as Thanksgiving dinner has been consumed.

     We're using the Bible Recap as our guide. We love it! Everyone does their reading on their own time, usually in the morning. We then make a point to listen to the corresponding podcast together either during or immediately after dinner. We're all enjoying it and The Principal and I love the commentary from the podcast. Very insightful!

     It's not too late to start. It never is. I once heard someone say that there a lot of Christians who are Biblically illiterate. They've either never read their Bible or they've only read bits and pieces. Or they've relied solely on their pastor, minister or priest to tell them what's in it and what it's about. As followers of Christ we need to understand His word in order to respond properly. We can't do that if we don't even read it! We won't know if what we're being taught is Biblical truth or someone pushing an agenda under the guise of God's word. Everyone wants their way, not God's way. If you read your Bible you'd know that God's ways are much, MUCH better.

So, start reading it. Especially now, when there is so much divisiveness...everywhere and in everything. Strive for progress, not perfection.