God's Gifts

As I write this post, Andy and Han are at Lowe's picking through their discards bin for chicken coop lumber.  I'm home with the little one, having cleaned up after she emptied her stomach twice - once in the car and once on me and the downstairs couch.  She's now watching an old movie musical on TBN with a trashcan beside.   The situation lends it to an opportunity to update my blog!

So many changes since the move, and I've felt God's presence throughout.  Things have not always gone as we've hoped or expected, but nonetheless, I've been blessed - by truly feeling His presence throughout everything.  One or several of us was sick for most of February, yet we still managed to make it through work, homeschooling, housekeeping and our new engagements.

The girls took swimming lessons at the far-away (20 miles?) Green Ridge Recreation Center, and I am more than satisfied with their progress.  One girl who wouldn't put her face in the water for me is actually swimming under water for significant distances, and the other quickly shot to the top of her class, demonstrating that she is, in reality, actually a water bug.  They've each "graduated" to the next level, and if we decide to re-enroll them, they'll begin again after a weeks' break.  For Abigail, her goal is to be able to swim well enough to "go down the big indoor slide"; check out their website at the link above to see what she means.

Homeschool Co-op through CHEF (Christian Home Educators of Franklin County) has been an abundantly rich experience for both me and the girls.  While I truly enjoyed the Alleghany Highlands, I often felt they isolated in terms of other homeschoolers.  True, we had a small core group (whom I miss, miss, miss, Margie!), but here we've connected with even more.  They go weekly for five week sessions ~ Hannah is studying Alaska and the Iditerod race, Royal Rangers Together, and last session she was in well-organized and presented poetry class.  Abigail is in a preschool class and a gym class.  We've gone on a couple field trips and I've been to - sadly - only one Mom's Night, but the friendships and support I've built through CHEF are priceless.

This is an example of God's timing and grace for our family.  I have a hard time making friends.  I do!  And as far as co-op, I wasn't sure if I'd want to relinqish any of my teaching time or schooling to someone else.  I wasn't sure if it fit into my overall plan for their education.  But my heart has changed at the same time the I saw how much they (especially Hannah) would benefit from it.  And its not even that socialization thing.  But it ends up being that.  And while our children are engaged in their activities, I'm making developing relationships with other moms who have many of the same interests, goals and desires for their kids - all as sisters in the body of Christ.  Its something wonderful, really.

And along the lines of making friends, God has blessed me in other ways, too.  I mentioned our neighbors, right?  I'm so thankful for ours ~ we've been out to dinner a couple times and have enjoyed ourselves together as families - laughing and yukking it up in the yard and in the snow.  I know, I know, PICTURES, right?  They'll come.

But I've also met friends out at random:  Andy sold his truck to buy a 20+ year old Dodge so he wouldn't have a payment.  Chatting with the folks who bought it, they homeschool and have kids the same ages as ours.  We've cahtted by e-mail and have promised one another 'playdates' once the weather stabilizes some.

And of course there's more ~ even at the doctor's office for a physical today, I met a nurse who - um, "coincidentally" (yeah, right)  is also raising chickens, hoping for goats soon and working toward a more self-sufficient lifestyle.  So we exchanged particulars and here I am writing about her.

God is so good!  He takes care of needs I didn't even know I had, overly and more abundantly than I could ever ask for hope for.