Parenting Journey: New Step

My son turns 18 today. I am officially the parent of an adult.

I guess we are never ready for this. It feels like there is much more to do.

This is another beginning. A new path. 

I have to keep reminded myself that this is a legal designation and he's not planning to run off an leave me. He's still in high school, for pete's sake!

Still, it brings some changes. And, emotionally, this is new territory.


How's things at your house?

Have a blessed day!

(and if you see my son, wish him a happy birthday!)

More Beginnings

Well, today is the beginning of Fall. A new season - my favorite actually because of the colors and temperatures. For me that is all it is. A turn of the calendar, a change of season. But each new beginning, each change of season, makes me consider time and how precious it is.


I also took a step on what may be a new journey today. I sent in my resume for a job. A temporary, part-time ministry job. I don't know if I will be offered the position, but I felt God encouraging me to knock on the door. I am seeing it as part of the discernment process for my future work. With the homeschooling journey ending, I'll be starting something new this time next year. Hoping to figure out what it is. So I begin and try to trust God for the journey.

So, what's new with you?

Bittersweet Beginning

Today was another beginning for our family.

A bittersweet one, because it is also the beginning of the end.

Today is the first day of my son's senior year of high school. So it is the beginning of the end of his school years. The last first day of school he will ever have as a student.

It is also the beginning of the end of our homeschooling journey as we have no younger children.

And the beginning of the end of our parenting journey, as when this boy leaves for college or wherever he might go, we will encounter the beginning of the college years and the start of empty nesting all at once. This is how it is for parents of singletons. We have moved through the other stages and now need to move toward becoming consultants to our child.

I want to be conscious of savoring this year, of enjoying this final year of our learning adventure and the transition of my son to adulthood.  We will have senior pictures and final fairs and, ultimately, a graduation ceremony. The rituals that mark endings that are also beginnings. Today has been both joyous and sad and I am sure that other events will be also. There are also the routine endings. It struck me this morning that I will never again assign summer reading to Jordan. I'd forgotten that at the start of the summer.

Letting go can be sad and that is what this season is for. I hope that it doesn't become to overshadowed by college applications and FAFSA forms. Or my need to complete what I see as unfinished.

I pray that this final year cements us as a family and allows for the final forming of both roots and wings.

God bless your journey my boy, both this year and after. I love you and am proud of who you are becoming.

Labor Day Hike

I have always felt that forest trails have an elvish quality. Perhaps, because I have a Tolkeinian view of elves.

The leaf patterns dancing in beautiful patches of light, the wind murmuring in the branches overhead. It all makes for a lovely feel to things in the woods.

Today, my family tried a new hiking spot in a nearby town. Another beginning. It was fun to be explore somewhere we hadn't been before.  It was good exercise and a good time together.

I encourage you to get out in the woods. Who knows, you might even catch a glimpse of an elf.



Have a blessed day!

Song for Sunday: Movin' Out

Today's Song for Sunday is just for fun. I am posting it because it's Billy Joel.

The other day, Billy Joel was local and I didn't get to go. A friend had two extra tickets for sale, but I didn't bite at his post -- figured it would be too expensive and I wouldn't have anyone to go with me. Maybe I should have gone for it anyway. I've never been to a live Billy Joel concert. 

Also -- and this has only to do with the title. My goddaughter started college (more beginnings) and moved out of her house yesterday. My son's turn will be coming soon. *sigh*

But, still. Billy Joel. Awesome music. Enjoy!

Beginnings

As far as calendars go, I am most attuned to the academic one. I suppose because I was a student for 17 years and then a teacher for more than 18.  So September always feels like a time of beginnings to me.

Perhaps even more so because my family of origin had it's beginning then. My parents were married on September 1, 1962. Today would have been their 55th wedding anniversary. Sadly, they both died young. My father of ALS in 1995, my mother of a virulent form of cancer in 2011. They were a blessing and I miss them. And I am grateful to them as will. So there is no celebration today. Just a quiet acknowledgement.

Still beginnings resonate.

So today feels like a good day for a beginning.

I am beginning anew with this blog.


I will be posting about youth ministry, escape rooms, family stuff. The sort of thing I posted about before. Just trying to restart.


Hope you'll come along with me!

Have a blessed day!

Clean Sheets for the New Year

I follow this tradition and I know several others who do.

We strip our beds on New Year's Eve and then put on clean sheets to wake up in on New Year's morning.

I suppose it is symbolic of a new start, a fresh beginning. New year is traditionally the time to reflect on what has gone well and what needs to change. It's a bit out of sync in some ways as nothing new seems to start in January.

For Christians, the liturgical new year is the first Sunday in advent, at the end of November or the beginning of December. That year begins with anticipating the birth of Christ and works its way through His life and on to the life of the Church.

Most academic and church program years begin in September in my area, August in other parts of the U.S.

Still, we tend to see this night as an emotional and spiritual turning point. We make resolutions, set goals or simply reflect on our lives. At my house, one thing we will do is open our gratitude jar and read about the good things that have happened to us. We'll play games, listen to music and toast the New Year at midnight. Hopefully, we'll remember to take a moment to thank God for his blessings and seek his guidance.

And, we'll change our sheets. Because that's what we do.


How about you? What are your traditions?



Blessings for 2014.......and

!!Happy New Year!! 

New Year's 2012 Resolutions.

I made three New Year's Resolutions back on January 1, 2012 (New Year's Resolutions, etc.) I decided to look back and see how I have done.

Learn to use the breadmaker:

Accomplished!! I make bread with this machine all the time now and plan to learn more recipes. Got any good ones?

Learn to make candy:

Accomplished!! I make toffee and know how to tell the difference between the hard ball and the soft ball stage

Publish my game:

*sigh* I have gotten nowhere. I am really stuck on the dragons.

Scratch that. I just had the idea of googling public domain images of dragons and I found a few workable ones. maybe I'll get somewhere toward getting this done after all. I seem to get stuck at every step though. If these dragons work, I'll need to figure out how to make the paths really well, find miniture pictures of castle gates, finalize the design of the board and then figure out how to publish.

Well, at least the rules are ready and the game has been play tested, tweaked and retested and seems ready on that end. It really just is the artwork and publishing. Shpuld I self-publish? Try a small publisher? Go to a game convention?

I don't think I will accomplish this by December 31, but maybe I will get it done eventually....



How are your New Year Resolution's coming along?
What resolutions are you considering for next year?

Seeking Wisdom and Knowledge

S.W.A.K.

When I was a kid, we used to put that on the back of envelopes. Then it meant "sealed with a kiss." Perhaps young girls still do that. My son emphatically does not.

Be that as it may, S.W.A.K can also stand for "Seeking Wisdom and Knowledge." That is something worth putting time into. Studying, reflecting, discussing.

I found a few quotes about it:

The doors of wisdom are never shut. ~Benjamin Franklin

 

Science investigates religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge which is power religion gives man wisdom which is control. ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
 

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom. ~Thomas Jefferson

 

The doors of wisdom are never shut. ~Benjamin Franklin

 

Wisdom I know is social. She seeks her fellows. ~Thomas Jefferson

 

This last one says something to me. I think we find wisdom as we study together, pointing out new views to each other, struggling with ideas, thinking our thoughts aloud. That's why I love study and discussion groups, especially ones that go deep into profitable topics.

 

The Bible has a few things to say about wisdom and knowledge:

 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

                                                                                                 ~ Proverbs 1:7

 

 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ~ 1 Corinthians 13:2

 

My friend Dan Ledwith tweeted about that verse yesterday: 

If the knowledge we amass be it ever so great, if it does not result in a life of love, as Paul says, you have nothing, you gain nothing.

 

So we begin by knowing God and we strive to use our wisdom and knowledge to live a life of life. That is what Christ calls us, too.

 

Have a blessed day!

 

Thanks to Brainy Quote for the quotes.

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/wisdom.html#MUFfFgREmflSFVXw.99

 

 

 

Calling Dig Safe

It's one of those things that appeared to be much harder than it actually was.

When I was planning my garden and landscaping project, my husband suggested that we dig out the beds instead of doing raised beds, then use that loam to grade by the house.  I explained that that would involve calling Dig Safe, which is required whenever you disturb the soil.

I got into the project more, though and found that going up as high as I wanted to wasn't going to be practical. So I bit the bullet and made the call.

I was expecting a bureaucratic nightmare and a hefty fee. I got something altogether different.

I dialed 811, spoke to someone in under a minute, got good information. I marked the dig spot as directed, called back and had my ticket in less than 5 minutes. Then I just had to wait 72 hours so the utilities could mark where there lines and pipes were. Easy -peasy.

Guess what? It was free. Absolutely free.

So ... if you are digging, call Dig Safe.

And when you are facing something that seems complicated and difficult, remember: it might not actually be so hard.

Have a blessed day!!

New Year's Resolutions, etc

I made three New Year's resolutions, this year.

The first was to learn to use the breadmaker I bought three years ago so that it ceases to be worthless clutter and becomes a useful addition to my kitchen. Success!! There was no instruction booklet and all the recipes included with it called for exotic ingredients.  I called a friend for a simpler recipe though and my 12 year old son figured out how the buttons worked, so we made our first loaf on Friday and my second today!! I'm happy.

The second was to learn to make candy. This is something that has always intimidated me, so I decided to conquer it. I have picked out a recipe -- toffee-- and have my tools. Next time I shop, I will buy the ingredients and go for it.

So far so good, right?

My third resolution is a bit more complicated. I developed a game a few years ago. Friends have tested it and evaluated it. I have tweaked it and the rules have been finalized for a couple of years. My resolution is to get it published this year. I had that as a resolution last year, too, and failed at it. The sticking point is the artwork. I need to find someone who can draw dragons -- good dragons. This could be difficult, but I am determined.


Well, that's the current state of my New Year's resolutions and I think I am doing pretty well in that area. But, of course, these aren't earthshattering or important things.


Our church held it's New Year's Prayer Meeting today. In a song we prayed that this would be "another year of training for holier work above." I would like it to be so. I want God to work in me to improve my heart, mind and soul and teach me to serve Him better. That's the important stuff. May God grant this prayer.


Have a blessed day!

Beginnings

It's July 1st.

I have already mentioned that I am participating in both the CYC Prayer Blast and the Ultimate Blog Challenge this month. They begin today.

I am finding that beginnings can be hard. How do you start? Where do you begin? It almost feels artificial, even though I already both pray and blog. In a few days, I will be underway and get into the flow of them. Right now motivation is at a low ebb.

What are you at the beginning of right now? Are you excited or reluctant? How will you get going?







What is this that I am praying for? CYC is an amazing two week Conference for high schoolers. Christian teahing, spiritual development, leadership training -- we offer all that and more. We'd love to have you join us!




I am participating in the Ultimate Blog Challenge in July. Check out the link and maybe give it a try!
http://www.ultimateblogchallenge.com