Fall

Oh, what a beautiful fall it has been so far.  I'm sorry for the loooooong hiatus I seemed to take from blogging.  We've just been enjoying the outside so immensely.  That's always a good excuse, right?  Oh, and then that I'm just too darn tired at the end of the day. . . 

We enjoyed a day at Jenny's Market with my mom (always a favorite).  I still have not tasted anything like their pumpkin donuts or their hot and sweet pickles!

We've enjoyed leaves (lots!) and pumpkins (so have the squirrels) and time at home with not all three. 

We enjoyed a relaxing visit from Mark's mom (all the way from South America!).

And as of late, we've especially enjoyed an 8-year-old and the celebrations of her life (more on that later, I promise).

Bug adjusts

Now that Mark's officially licensed (!) we can share this video.  Sometimes he gets much more into it, but this at least shows that Bug likes to give adjustments. For awhile, he was demanding that each of us get on the floor so he could "uk" (check) us.  He also frequently asks both Mark and I to "uk" (check) him.  He loves being on both giving and receiving ends of an adjustment!

G-bear's wisdom (again)

Mama, I feel like all the great-great-grandmas and all the old women in my heart are so much wiser than us.  And the wiser you get, the longer you live.

Blessed

The pastor read these words as a prayer to the young ones among us, starting anew in the newness of fall.

The Summer Day

by Mary Oliver

Who made the world?

Who made the swan, and the black bear?

Who made the grasshopper?

This grasshopper, I mean-

the one who has flung herself out of the grass,

the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,

who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-

who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.

Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.

Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.

I don't know exactly what a prayer is.

I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down

into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,

how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,

which is what I have been doing all day.

Tell me, what else should I have done?

Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?

Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and precious life?

I am feeling particularly blessed lately.  I have been filled with the fullness of life, even amidst the trials that come with a family of five, with five differing, strong outlooks on every situation.

Recently we were offered a friend's farm share from a wonderful CSA.  We were blessed with the abundance of amazing food and generosity.  This season emphasizes the richness of life!

Most days, there is at least a moment when I come upon all three of my children enjoying each other sincerely, and the peace of it fills me up.  These things alone are enough, but there seems to be more and more abundance, more blessings that keep coming our way.

Lately, I keep hearing the girls say "I want this day to start all over again!"  You might think this means it's not going well, and they want a fresh start.  Actually, what they mean is that the day has been so great, they want it all to happen again!

These are good days.

This is a good life.

Georgia

Besides graduation, we enjoyed out quick trip to Georgia.  It was different driving through the beautiful mountains, and not fretting over how long the drive is, and how tired we are of making it.  We stayed in a beautiful spot in the Tennessee mountains on the way back.  Also, one thing we will miss is the opportunity to stop and see my 2nd cousin and her lovely family in Kentucky!  We'll just have to meet up on the northern end.

While in Georgia, we stayed with our sister-in-law's lovely parents who made wonderful hosts.  We also visited a few friends, but had little time to see everyone.  Actually, most of our friends there have moved on, but it was good to reconnect with some.

Here are a few shots of the couple of days we spent in hot Georgia.

Watershed

Watershed: an important point of division or transition between two phases, conditions, etc.


Yes, that describes succinctly where we are right now.  There are parts of the before that will always be with us (of course).  There are parts of what is to come that will be familiar (of course). But, most of the right now is filled with the feeling of a shift.  One phase of life complete.  Another phase of life emerging.  It's a good place to be: there's excitement, relief, anticipation, nervousness, pride, joy.  


Mark has officially graduated (with honors, I might add)!  At the ceremony, the faculty member who gave the introduction said that for the DC program alone, just the in-class time consisted of well over 4200 hours.  That doesn't include the Master's in Sports Health Science that Mark added, the certification for the International Chiropractic Pediatrics Association, or the many many hours studying outside the classroom.  I was juggling three kids who needed to stay relatively quiet for about an hour during the ceremony, so I didn't catch much of what was said.  But that number caught my attention.  


We are very proud of Mark, which may be cliche to say, but it's the simple truth.  He has worked so hard, and yes, we all have.  He has been through many challenging trials, including balancing family life with student life, and dealing with the guilt that it was quite unbalanced most of the time.  We all sacrificed, and we all deserve recognition (as many have already pointed out to me) but this is his day, and I'm proud of him for that.  He has worked hard, kept his head up when it was looking grim, and plowed ahead.  He did it all with his usual grace and fortitude.  He takes life on with joy, and this was evident through this trying phase of life as well.


And yes, to those of you who are wondering, it was worth it.  Already.  Being worth it really has nothing to do with how much money he will make.  It is a wonderful feeling to see Mark, who spent many years working a vast array of jobs and being mildly happy with it, find a profession that really fits with who he is.  He is lit up by it.  Letting the body do it's job and heal without drugs has been a conviction of his for longer than he knew about chiropractic.  Promoting the wellness lifestyle has as well.  Inspiring people to be the best they can physically and mentally is something that comes naturally to him, because he is easily inspired by others in this way.  These are all ways that the "fit" is a good one.


So now, we have a chiropractor in the family, who is eager to start helping people feel better, and improve their life.  He is optimistic and confident and yes, a tad bit nervous.  These next couple of months, (no years!) will be trying as well, as he gets his own practice up and running.  We're ready for it, though.  The time is now.


Now. is. the. time.

School

Some things that made this transition easier:

The principal contacted another parent in Moo's class, and asked him to reach out to us, since we were new.  He called and asked if we had any questions or wanted to get together for a play date.

Moo had a friend in her class before she got there.  That friend's mom told me they were having a wonderful time on the playground when she left.

Walking to school this morning, we were surrounded by neighborhood kids and parents (in GA, we were one of 2 families in a school of 900 who walked).  Literally, the sidewalk was crowded!

G-bear's positive attitude.  "I have a feeling this school is going to be really great!"

We got to go meet the teachers and see the classrooms last week.

Parents were invited to a coffee and donuts hang-out time for the first hour of the first day (although Bug did not allow for that).

The school has a picnic the first night for all the families, so we get a chance to meet new friends, and reconnect with old friends.

Moo's teacher had written this on her board:

You are amazing!

You are perfect just the way you are.

You have a gift to share with the world.

Let it free!

At the end of the day, the girls were both very happy, loved their teachers, loved their school, and wanted to go back.  What more could we ask for?

The pictures are: before our walk to school; each of the girls at school; and after school.

Oh, yes.  We could ask for one more thing: that Grandma and Grandpa stop by on their way home from the cabin to hear all about the first day, and let the puppies romp.

First Day

The first day of school. . . . ahhh, it feels like a significant milestone.  It's like this beginning marks our family's return, like we're settled now.  The girls have been anticipating it for some time now.  I guess we all have.  There have been many ups and downs as far as anxiety and excitement.  There have been many unknowns.  I asked the girls what they wanted to eat for breakfast, and insisted that it include a good dose of protein.  I made what they wanted (corned beef hash and yogurt).  I also made them each a felted flower to attach to their backpacks to remind them of love from home, and gave them a little notebook.  I got the table all set up with their goodies, candles, and warm apple cider.  It was a delightful way to start the year.  One thing that was symbolic was the use of Moo's "Linda candle."  Shortly before we left this town for Mark to go to school, Moo finished up at a very special daycare with Linda.  Linda gave her a beautiful beeswax candle as a sending off gift.  Moo has been saving it, keeping it on her special shelf all these years, which is appropriate, because, well, Linda is really something special.  Using it on our first day breakfast for the first time felt like we were saying, "OK, now we're back.  New chapter. . . begun!"

Another G-bear quote

The other day, Moo told me that she discovered something about G-bear.  That is, she is really good at telling scary stories.  "But, you wouldn't like them, Mama, because they have mean things in them, " said G-bear.  Apparently these stories have to do with a woman called the Thunder Lady.  Neither of the girls wanted to tell me details, and I'm okay with letting it be their secret, but G-bear did tell me how it came to be.  According to her, these stories have been percolating in her imagination for her whole existence.  She explained to us, "Before I was in Mama's tummy, I looked down from the clouds.  I could smell the Thunder Lady.  I couldn't see her or hear her, but I could smell her and I could feel it when she was there (I know, creepy already!).  That's how I learned about her.  Then, the wind came and carried me off into life."

Hmmmm.  A part of me believes her.

Ahhhhhh, Summer.

We don't often get family photos taken, but my extended family does every couple of years.  This year, we took the opportunity to have a couple shots of our little family. These were taken by Elizabeth Fels.  To me, this symbolizes the end of summer.  We spend a lot of time in this glorious place in the summer.  We have enjoyed it so much, and I would even go so far as to call it one of my places of spiritual wholeness.

Now school has started, the heat has subsided, and schedules are developing.  It's time to move on into the cooler temps and colorful surroundings.

Dancing in the Streets

Apparently, it's a Labor Day tradition here.  I'm happy to have discovered it, because it was great!  There were several blocks of Main street blocked off for various traditional dancing stages.  One thing I loved about it was that all but one of the dance stages were accompanied by live music.  So, not only were we watching traditional dances from around the world, but we got to listen to traditional music as well!  The kids participated in the maypole dance, which took impressive coordination skills on the part of the adults leading it.  We also watched the swing dance stage, where Boo seemed a little stunned by the live band.  There were lots of opportunities for participation, but the girls seemed to prefer watching and dancing on their own outside the circle.  It was also a treat to meet friends there and spend some sweet time with them.  As we were leaving, a wedding party walked through it all, and they all (bride, groom, bridesmaids, groomsmen, flower girls, ring bearers) participated in the maypole dance.  That was impressive, too.  Even the bride's hair (which was purple, to match the bridesmaids dresses) got our attention!

A New Favorite

This one is for my sweet Moo.

G-bear's dream

I just really wanted to remember this one, because it has made me laugh over and over again.

Mama, I dreamed that Oma was babysitting us.  She took us to the park, and these huge lollipops came walking up to us, and they were singing and dancing.  They were singing, "Lollipops are the best. . . "  Then the lollipops made Oma, Moo, Bug, and I dance a waltz!