More comings & goings

What were you doing the first Friday in March 2020?

March 6, 2020

I drove carpool to the private special ed school 70 miles away, drove back to our nearest city midday for an appointment for LM, drove back to school to pick up carpool, and, after the children were in bed (& had a sitter), went to the city in the opposite direction to visit Jim in the ER, where he ended up staying 48 hours and was allowed to have multiple visitors.  

March 5, 2026

I drove one child to Children's Hospital for an appointment. We did drive-through breakfast & picked up a Walmart order on the way home. I dropped the child (& the groceries) off with Jim, and I kept driving to the city in the opposite direction, where I was 10 minutes late for my mammogram. I hurried home afterward, because Jim needed to go to a city an hour south for a part.  He arrived home at 4.30, in time for me to leave one child with him, while I took the other to an appointment in the same city where I had my mammogram mere hours earlier.  

308 miles in 2020 (+ 30 miles when Jim drove himself to the hospital)

148 miles in 2026 (+ Jim's 120 mile roundtrip)

The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Christmas cards

Each of our first three years of marriage, we handled Christmas cards differently.  One year we sent a photo, one year a card, and one year a letter.  I'm not sure what happened after that.   

Every year we had good intentions.  And most years we purchased photo cards. (And some years we did send photo cards, with or without the letter I wrote, I am not sure - ha!)  And every year that we didn't get cards sent, I would think, "Oh, we'll send New Year's cards!" or "We'll send Valentine's cards this year!" or "This year we'll send Easter cards!" or "This year we'll be early and send Thanksgiving cards!" 

In December 2025, I went through the box of all those photo cards we ordered & did not send over the past decade.  I saved a few from each year of our collection of photo cards (& threw away the rest).  

In 2025, we sent both a photo card and a letter ... before Christmas!

In 2025 ... the photo cards arrived November 25, and I had the bulk of them addressed before Thanksgiving! 

But it wasn't until December 8 that we bought paper. On that day I did a massive assembly line and mailed most of the cards.  The rest were for friends & family whose address had changed since the last time we sent cards.  But, by 4 PM on December 10 they were in the mail ... along with 20 Christmas cards from my mom (sent by me) to various friends & relatives. :) 

We LOVE receiving Christmas cards! Hopefully we are on a new trajectory. And hopefully we won't keep losing addresses of people we hold dear!  If you would like a (belated) 2025 Christmas card & letter from us, & we somehow missed you (or had lost your address), just let me know.

T minus 10 minutes for ... homeschooling (!)

Yes, I have an alarm set, and (as I write this on Thursday morning) in 10 minutes LM and I are to begin "homeschool." 

'Tis the season for germs, and this is her second day home from school.  She spent Wednesday horizontal on the couch watching the Gettys' playlist for children (mostly their Family Hymnsings from quarantine days) and also sleeping. 

But today she has energy, so I announced, "We're doing school!" 

But first Mom needs a minute (and to be honest, I need her ADHD meds to take effect). 

She is to get fully dressed and do her hair, and Mom is to do the same. :) 

She asked if we can do math in the morning and reading in the afternoon (because that's what she does at school). Sure! 

This isn't our norm, so we'll be winging it. But I know enough about both of us that we should start with a clean kitchen table (all dishes are already done, so that chore won't be pulling me away), and clear expectations, including when we're taking breaks. :) 

Multiplication facts, here we come! 

...

Update:

Well, we went for game schooling. :)  (We'll work on multiplication facts another day.)

• Time Bingo
• Money Bags game
• Zingo (word builder edition)

LM read "I Can Read Narnia: Lucy's Journey" and I read the next chapter in our Read-Aloud (Abigail & The Big Start Over).

My theory is anything is more than zero, so I'm considering it a success! 

How our children learned to swim

How did you learn to swim?  I took lessons at summer camp one week. End of story. Then I played in the water every opportunity I had.  In high school, we had to take 3 weeks of swimming, but I placed in the advanced group, and don't remember learning anything new.  (Of course, neither do I remember knowing any of the strokes.) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In March 2018, BK took a series of weekly swim lessons at a local indoor pool.  He wasn't ready to put his head under water, so we didn't sign up for the next session. 

In October & November of 2019 he took two sessions of Nervous Beginner Lessons (2-3 lessons per weekend times two) at a swim school in the city, and was approved to start in a Level 1 weekly class. 

(I have vivid memories of his teachers at the school for children with hearing loss telling me never to let him stop because it was such good sensory input for him.)

Of course, in March the pandemic put an end to that...

Until the end of August 2020, when they resumed with protocols in place.  He continued weekly lessons until May 2023. (I think we took summers off, excerpt for one year.)  Thank you to my friend R for carpooling!!

He was FINISHED with lessons, so I suggested that he do swim team in the summer of 2023.  And that was the ticket!! He FLOURISHED!  He loves the water, has built muscles, and is proud of how much he has accomplished that he didn't know he could do!

In the summers of 2021 & 2022 LM took lessons (3-6 each summer) in someone's backyard pool. It was nerve-wracking, because she just wanted to play, not listen. And the high school instructors, although great swimmers & teachers, had no training in special needs.  

In the summer of 2023, she took 2 weeks (eight 30 minute lessons) at a nearby town's pool. She passed Level 2.  Then she took 2 weeks of Level 3.  Didn't pass. We waited 2 weeks, and then she took another 2 weeks of Level 3.  Didn't pass. She would swim 2-3 strokes, and then stand up, whether she was in 3 feet of water or 10 feet of water.  

But learning to swim was ESSENTIAL for her safety.  In January 2024, she began weekly lessons at the swim school where BK took.  Jim and I made it very clear to the director that we would try it for a few weeks, but we were not going to waste our money or their time, if it were obvious she wasn't ready.  

She FLOURISHED!! Last week she swam the length of the pool.  She is strong, has good form, and is determined!

Stay tuned to find out if she qualifies for summer swim team in 2024! (That's her goal. :) )

1000 Gifts, Vol. 6, #99

971.  sleep!  Friday night I got 9 hours, BK got 12, and LM got 13.  Woo-hoo!

972.  a child's clean bedroom (one down, one to go!)

973.  appointments on the calendar ... making progress

974.  spring is coming!

975.  March Madness fun :) 

976.  praying friends

977.  my rheumatologist working me in to her schedule

978.  more sunlight

979.  online ordering ... when it's hard to go shopping

980.  growth (for both BK & me) in my 4-year journey of cutting his hair

The day before Christmas vacation

School gets out at 2.30 Wednesday. 

Tuesday started with a flurry of activity.  I took LM to school, came home, turned the computer on, and logged in for BK's 8.00 AM virtual provider appointment (thank the Lord we didn't have to drive 70 miles the day before Christmas vacation!). 

The screen said, "If your provider doesn't join the video call by 8.15, call the office."

At 8.14, we had a changing of the guard, and Jim came to the computer to be the parent at the appointment, while I ran upstairs to log in for my 8.30 AM virtual appointment with my specialist in Chicago (thank the Lord I didn't have to drive 3 hours!). 

As I was running upstairs, I heard BK's provider's voice, as she joined the call. As I arrived upstairs, my phone rang, and it was my provider.  She had called early, which was fine.  I will be on (higher than normal dose of) prednisone for Christmas.  (Insert all the emojis.)  

After finishing my very brief (but good) call with her, I came downstairs in time to hear Jim and BK and his provider saying "good-bye."  So I took BK to school. Whew!!  (But, as Jim reminded me, that is a blessing of the pandemic, that telehealth is a solid option!)

I spent the morning (in between a few phone calls & emails that came up) making simple nativity ornaments to include in the teachers' gifts.  Crafty is not my middle name, so the fact that I could accomplish this is a bit remarkable.  The fact I had a morning without appointments (er, with just two early appointments) is even more remarkable. :)

Tuesday also was the day the Christian radio station began playing Christmas music 24/7.  I love it!  But it also made me realize that Christmas is a LOT sooner than I was thinking ... Ai-yai-yai.  Another year of not getting cards sent ... at least before the 25th. Sigh.

The children brought home the gifts they had made at school for their parents.  I was most impressed by this yarn hat ornament that BK made!

The afternoon flew by with a trip to Casey's to redeem a slushie that BK had earned, visiting the grandparents, and a trip to the pharmacy. 

Leftovers for supper, lots of rousing games of basketball in the living room, play-doh, a game of Sum Swamp, time on Math Shark for everyone (I actually don't recommend the game because both of our children have difficulty viewing the numbers on the screen), bedtime, and searching through the hand-me-downs in the basement (thank you, friends!) to come up with modest pajamas for LM to wear to school Wednesday for Pajama Day.

So teach us to number our days

    that we may get a heart of wisdom.

A year ago

My FB memories show this photo.  A year ago today I commemorated the death of Queen Elizabeth by drinking English breakfast tea out of my England mug (found for 25 cents at a rural Illinois thrift store!), knowing that my own father was in his last hours on this earth. 

This morning I ate breakfast on the bench on our front porch, and just so happened to drink my tea out of my England mug.

A year ago today (& the days leading up to it) I spent a lot of time sitting on this bench on our porch.  Both children had Covid and I was masking indoors and praying I would not get it (Praise God for protecting me despite low immunity!).  

I was on the phone a lot with my sisters in Tennessee.  Part of my reason for sitting outside was to protect our children from the heaviness of our conversations, as my dad was in his final days.  Part of my reason for sitting outside was to have a mask break and also so my sisters could hear me better (without a mask).  

I sat on this bench and told my unresponsive dad goodbye (while someone held the phone to his ear) and that I would see him in heaven. 

And I sat on the same bench this morning, 365 days later, remembering.  Our bodies remember.  (book by similar title here) I spent most of yesterday in bed.  And I slept more than 8 hours last night.  And although it is a GORGEOUS fall day, I am glad none of our friends could take me up on my invitation to go hiking today.  My body just wants to crash.  

Tying it all together on a humorous note ... a lady came through the visitation line at the funeral home last year and said she had told her son, "Did you hear that Charles [my dad's name] died?" And he replied, "No, mom! It was Queen Elizabeth!" :) 

to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

1000 Gifts, Vol. 7, #86

Things I'm Loving

851.  such informative, encouraging, stimulating podcasts during my 2 hours of solo drive time all summer ;)

852. outdoor toys

853. the biggest smile I've ever seen on BK's face (taken by his friend's mom at the bouldering gym)

854. a super nice pool (pool, staff, and families) where LM has taken swim lessons

855. our van (it can get crazy dirty inside, but it serves us so well)

856. our church (commitment to God's Word, prayer, reaching the nations, reaching our own youth)

857. sloppy joes recipe (link: here)

858. the summer sun (we lose 60 minutes/day of daylight this month, so I'm soaking it in)

859. the book, "Downsizing the Family Home" (All of us who are drowning in stuff need to read it & live lighter now. Stay tuned to see if I follow it...)

860. the airplane in our backyard that has been played hard on for four summers straight

Remembering emerging in 2020

This is such a great memory!  After more than two months at home, we drove north!  And we did a pre-pandemic routine!  (And we returned almost every other weekend through that summer. It's not as if we had anything else on our schedule.)

::repost from May 26, 2020:: 

1000 Gifts, Vol. 6, #16

The Out-of-Town Edition,

aka The Caged Birds Set Free Edition,

aka Thank the Grandparents for Keeping this House Over the Years Edition

aka Taste of Normalcy Edition

151.  bubbles & tossing a ball on the deck

152.  running in the backyard

153.  inventing a new game (Soap Attack!) in the bathtub

154.  enjoying the bag of carpool toys spread out on the living room floor

155.  beach - Enough said! :)

156.  hiking on the shorepath

157.  simple meals around the table

158.  fun at the table - read alouds, making slime, and coloring during our homemade Sunday School lesson

159.  golf for Jim

160.  mornings alone for me with my favorite tea & oatmeal bake ~ just not *in* my favorite coffee shop

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2022 version

Places where I spent one (or more) nights in 2022:

 

*Kingsport, TN

Richmond, KY

in our van along I-75

Madeira Beach, FL

a motel somewhere in south Georgia

* Chicago

* Williams Bay, WI 

* Georgetown, KY

Erlanger, KY 

Lake Geneva, WI

Elkhart, IL 

Harrison, OH

Lexington, KY

and home

(italics - stayed there more than one night)  
(* stayed there on more than one occasion) 

   
2022 travel ...

The first week of January we made the trek home from Tennessee, breaking up the trip with a motel stop.  

In February, we took a 9-day trip to Florida (post here).  

We spent a few days of spring break in Chicago (post here).

Our traditional Memorial Day weekend in Wisconsin turned into a <36 hour trip.  While it was good to get away and be with my people in a different place and at a different pace, it was also exhausting, truth be told.  We marked the start of summer by enjoying a road trip, hiking, healthy meals in restaurants, the beach, the church, "my" coffee shop, and simple fun activities around the kitchen table.  

We broke up our June trip to Tennessee with motel stops both going and coming. There are pros & cons to that plan.  In order to maximize time, we left here Sunday after church, so only made it part way.  On the way home, we left my parents' Saturday morning, spent the afternoon at the Ark Encounter, found a motel (although it was harder than we expected, and the children were afraid we were going to sleep in our van again ...), found a great church Sunday morning in Cincinnati, had a sit-down restaurant meal after church (in Harrison, OH) and then finally made it home Sunday late afternoon. 

Back to WI for a long weekend June 30 - July 3 ... packed with family time, beach time, walking the shore path, riding an electric trolley, eating in the park at a pancake breakfast, eating hot dogs at the beach, enjoying the lovely children's room at the local library for the first time in 3 years, and my morning tea time by the lake (thanks to Jim!).

And back to WI again July 8-10 for family reunion.  Whew!  And again July 21-23.  And again August 11-14 and September 3-5.  That's a lot of packing & unpacking. ;)

Our anniversary getaway was the best yet. (I say that every year!)  Jim found a vacation rental in the middle of nowhere!  So restful!  I made breakfasts (as good as any B&B I think), and we went out for the other meals.  We both read a lot. We talked.  We gazed at the space and pastoral scenes.  We basked in the quiet.  We explored history.  We reviewed the past and dreamed about the future and thanked God for His grace these 12 years of marriage.  

The road trip part of our August trip to Tennessee was the best in years, thanks to two headphones and a stack of Playaways (& Hidden in My Heart Scripture lullabies at the end of the trip when everyone had reached their limit!).  Going, we drove straight through, for the first time in awhile.  Our 4 1/2 days there were filled with doctor appointments, time with cousins, and a special anointing service.  

Our September trip to Tennessee was somber, as we set out less than 24 hours after receiving the news that my dad was in heaven.  We drove straight through both going & coming.  Our five days there were packed with emotion & relatives, and we were sustained by the prayers of the Lord's people. 

No fall family getaway this year, but Jim & I made a quick trip to Chicago for two doctor's appointments while the children had a fun overnight with their grandparents. 

Jim's side was together on Christmas Day 2021, so we spent New Year's 2022 in Tennessee.  So 2022 was our year to spend Christmas Day in Tennessee with my side, bringing our Tennessee trip tally to 5 - five - for 2022 (12/29/2021- 12/29/2022). Whew!

And that wraps up our 2022 travels.  Here's to even more exploring in 2023! 

Where did you go in 2022?  Anywhere new? Any place we should put on our list?


Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2009 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2010 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2011 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2012 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2013 version  
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2014 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2015 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2016 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2017 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2018 version   

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2019 version  

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2020 version

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2021 version

Slowing Down

School started ... with all my goals now that LM is in all-day kindergarten.  

Then we took a trip for Labor Day.  

Then our children had Covid.  

And I spent a week with my heart and mind in Tennessee, as my dad neared the end of his life.  

Then we spent a week in Tennessee.  

Then I was recovering. 

And spending extra time making up missed appointments. 

And we also had multiple Mondays off school. 

I spent one school day making a photo book for my mom of my dad's last months. 

I spent another school day working on funeral food thank you notes. 

And then one of our extra-curriculars changed from Monday afternoons to Thursday afternoons.

But, finally, I think I'm slowing down and figuring out my rhythm. 

I'm scheduling grocery pickup either on Monday evenings or Thursday noon.  I've given up on the idea of browsing in grocery stores.  (I enjoyed it for a few weeks, but we'll leave that for another year when I'm more rested.)  

I'm trying to keep Tuesdays open.  I'm trying not to schedule anything on Early Release Wednesdays. 

I've noticed that Wednesday 5.45 - Thursday 6.30 is a MARATHON! 

I try to get my rest on Friday, so I can go, GO, GOOO!!! on the weekend in our efforts to use up a certain 8 & 5 year olds' energy. ;)

One thing is certain ~ our schedule will continue to change, and I still have 3 appointments monthly plus a slew of less frequent appointments.  But, it's good to be getting into a rhythm and having more of a feel for what this year looks like for our family.

Refreshment

We are slowly getting back to a routine in our household ... after a very full summer, lots of travel, constant packing & unpacking, lots of concern about & phone calls regarding my dad, the start of school (& all day kindergarten!), a quick trip to WI over Labor Day, sickness, and then my dad's death, our trip, his funeral, etc. Whew! We are all tired in every way.  

After some really unsettling experiences with library books (both in our public library & school library) lately, my heart was truly refreshed by reading these two BEAUTIFUL picture books to Little Miss today. :) :) :)

 

Seriously! The photography in this book is AMAZING!

 

This book is so sweet, following a sibling pair through the seasons, as they enjoy activities that are unique to each season.

To say we are out of our routine is an understatement, and dealing with the fallout of that has created a lot more stress & exhaustion.  One of my favorite IG pages (Catfish with Ketchup) shared this genius tip!  I downloaded her graphics, laminated them, and cut them out, and purchased a (large) pill box.  The goal is to put a skittle or M&M in each space.  As the child completes each task, there is an immediate reward.  Another idea is to use a pom-pom to fill our pom-pom (aka marble) jar.  I'm hopeful this will work.  Unfortunately Walmart only had one large pill box in stock, but my goal is to make an evening "pill box" also. 

This week when all I wanted to do was sleep ... 

On Sunday Jim and I started team-teaching Sunday School every other month.  Our class roll came with notes on 4 or 5 (of the 11) students who have special needs.  Thankful for a teen helper each week!  And that these children are growing up familiar with special needs and accepting it as normal. Melts my heart!

Monday I spent four hours hooked to an IV at my immunolgist's office BUT with a friend!  I asked if she would come and be with me, and she did, and it was such a blessing!  I arrived home (via the grocery store) in time to pick up the children & take them straight back to town for LG's swim lessons. 

LG's hearing test 70 miles away on Wednesday thankfully got rescheduled!  Tuesday & Wednesday I spent seemingly hours on the phone rescheduling things we missed.  

Thursday I got to go to Bible study (week 3, but hey!) after years of missing it.  Jen Wilkin's Sermon on the Mount.  Do you remember ever reading about the covenant of salt?!  (That wasn't the main point...)

An e-mail from the audiologist promises a glimmer of hope to provide better hearing during LG's swim lessons ... progress on the development of waterproof pediatric hearing aids &/or learning more about swim headphones like members of swim teams use. (Also this is just an example of the hours I spend weekly communicating with professionals who are helping our children.)

Routine? Did I say "routine"?  There's no school Monday.  The following week is an "Early Out" Wednesday, with noon dismissal.  The following week there's no school on Monday again.  We still have extra-curriculars on Monday afternoon & evening.  

But this Monday we have planned a play date earlier in the day at my children's all-time favorite nature preserve ... hills, woods, & trails ... with another mom who has two children the same age who also love the woods & have unlimited energy. ;)  Hopefully it will be a win-win-win!

A friend is bringing supper tonight.  And I promised the children we could get a DVD from the library after school and watch it together before bed. <3  And maybe we'll visit a pumpkin patch tomorrow. :)

The externals of our life are returning to normal.  And we will get rested eventually.  The cards displayed on the mantle remind me of loving friends & family who care and who pray and who have reminded us of their love & God's strength.

Great is Thy Faithfulness

Jim's grandparents (in heaven for over a quarter of a century already) are larger than life in family lore.  I wish I could have met them.  

After they died, the family started having reunions every four years, with each sibling responsible for planning a reunion.  Once every sibling had had their turn, it went to committee. :) 

The committee planned the 2020 2021 2022 reunion.  This introvert (who was not on the committee) is still recovering from the 2-night 3-day reunion with 41 people at a conference center / Bible camp about three hours away.  

The younger set LOVED being together!  We hardly saw our own children, as they were with their cousins (1st, 2nd, or once removed).  :)

The lodge was comfortable, the food seemed better than 10 years ago, and the activities (many activities including boating, archery, beach, & tree swing) were available for us to enjoy.  Others golfed, and some walked the shore path.  The weather was absolutely perfect!

The 80-92 year old brothers' quartet (singing "Face to Face" and "Blessed Assurance") was very meaningful and definitely a highlight! It's possible that some of them may indeed be face to face with Christ their Savior before the next reunion. 

One cousin did a very nice genealogical presentation, including old German Bibles and other realia.  She also did a presentation of her 95-year-old mother's paintings. Different ones brought paintings of hers that are hanging in their home.  And she showed a Shutterfly book of all of her mother's paintings. 

Another cousin had taken a photo of the aunt's painting of the grandparents' farm and someone had made it into a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle, so that was on a table in the meeting room, and people worked on it as they chatted, until it was completed!

At the talent show, two cousins played some piano duets.  A 7 year old sang some songs in Chinese, and a 12 year old played and sang a hymn she has written.  No doubt there were other entries, but I'm not remembering them right now.  Two other farm wives and I didn't get our act together in time to do the requested updated skit of our Farm Wives' Support Club meeting.

On Saturday night, one couple hosted a really fun Newlywed Game.  The wife wore the dress that Jim's Grandma wore to the wedding of her last son to get married!  It was a really fun game, and Jim and I tied for first, amazingly enough!  What do you wish your husband spent more money on?  Were you first attracted to your wife by her appearance, conversation, or desperation?! :)

In the Sunday service, we sang 3 hymns (including O God our Help in Ages Past and Great is Thy Faithfulness), the younger generation read Scripture passages regarding telling the next generation, the cousins' choir sang, "All the Way My Savior Leads Me," and three people each gave a 5-10 minute testimony, with one of Jim's uncles concluding by singing, "Jesus Led Me All the Way."

Someday life's journey will be o'er
And I shall reach that distant shore
I'll sing while ent'ring Heaven's door
Jesus led me all the way

Chorus:
Jesus led me all the way
Led me step by step each day
I will tell the saints and angels
As I lay my burdens down
Jesus led me all the way

Verse 2
If God should let me there review
The winding paths of earth I knew
It would be proven clear and true
Jesus led me all the way (Chorus)

Verse 3
And hither to my Lord has led
Today He guides each step I tread
And soon in Heav'n it will be said
Jesus led me all the way (Chorus)

The Lake

Our summertime trips to the lake have changed over the years. 

10 or 11 years ago we would go as often as we could. No rain in the forecast for a few days?  Let's pack a bag and go!  

Other family members already there in the one bedroom one bath house?  No problem! The more the merrier! That meant there were others to golf with, others to walk the shorepath with, others to go to restaurants with, and others with whom we could play games together until late at night. 

Fast forward 10 or 11 years.  We still try to go multiple times each summer.   But it's different, and sometimes hard to remember those carefree days when I spent hours and hours reading by the picture window. 

We have done the pack & play, the stroller to the ice cream shop or park, the high chairs in restaurants, the staying home with a napping baby, the return to the church office on Monday morning to pick up a toy left behind in the nursery, the bubbles on the back deck with Uncle M, the walks in the neighborhood holding Grandma's hand (& the precious photo to remember it!).

We have adjusted ... 

There were the early mornings with seven of us in the 1-bedroom house when I put LG in the carseat and drove around to give everyone peace.  

Since Jim often golfs in the afternoon while we are there, he takes the breakfast shift while I go to a fabulous coffee shop (where I was introduced to one of my favorite teas - Rishi China Breakfast - & which serves a delicious oatmeal bake).  Some things are better since Covid, and my Wisconsin mornings are better because, instead of secluding myself in a wonderfully decorated coffee shop, I take my tea and oatmeal to the lake and sit on a bench for a few hours reading & writing, thinking & being recharged. 

Our cellular service doesn't work there (except sometimes from 10 pm - 6 am & sometimes at the beach), which is a blessing. 

Pre-pandemic we spent time almost daily in one of two libraries.  (Jim & I even visited one with lakeside views on our second date. :) )

But as the children get older, we now spend hours every afternoon at the beach.  

Simple play is the name of the game - imagination at the house as the sand toys double as restaurant equipment and a broken tennis racket is the tray for delivering food.  Frisbee. Sidewalk chalk. Uno. Coloring. Just being together. 

We might go out to Subway. But more often than not, we have simple meals of sandwiches, veggie sticks, fruit and chips.  Perhaps with a special treat of watermelon eaten outside. 

No air-conditioning means open windows with fans strategically placed in front of the sliding glass doors.  

The time there is still restful, just in a different way.  We are away from home & daily life.  We are together! We are making memories!

Summer Camp

My parents met at summer Bible camp (as 30-somethings).  My mom's uncle for decades directed a ministry which included a summer camp.  My dad was a camper there as a child.  My mom tells stories of attending Bible camp near her home in New York State.  My dad's brother-in-law started a Christian camp in Georgia which he directed for many decades.  My dad's other brother-in-law led summer camps on the mission field.  My older cousins who spent school breaks with us often spent their summers working at camps.  And one of them has now directed a camp for native American children for decades.

"Summer camp, particularly Bible camp, is just what you do" is the message I picked up on as a child. :)

I don't remember the first time I went to camp. 5 or 6 or 7 years old? I think I was allowed to go when I was younger than the minimum age since I had two older sisters with me.  I spent at least one week of each childhood summer at Bible camp.  

Oh, the memories!  Circling around the flag pole in the morning, lining up in front of the dining hall for every meal, cleaning our cabin until it was meticulous in hopes of winning cabin cleanup for that day, camp store & the coupon books we used for store & offering, quiz time before chapel every evening, water games & relay races, craft time, missions hour on the pavilion, vespers after dusk, Friday night campfire, etc!

As I got older, I also worked (multiple weeks each summer) as junior staff, sweeping floors, setting tables, drying dishes, cleaning bathrooms, and having more fun than you can imagine!  Eventually I worked as a junior counselor, and even as a counselor, though that was too exhausting for me!  

In college I counseled one week at a youth camp in Colorado one summer and spent another summer in the kitchen (+ one week of counseling during teen week) at my uncle's camp in Georgia, where I made homemade bread for 100 people each day (!).  

And so I was thrilled for LG to attend his first week of spend-the-night camp!  In 2021 he was registered for a 2-night Discovery Camp, but due to state health department Covid guidelines for camps, the camp chose to only do week long camps, in order to maximize the numbers they could serve.  And so he did several day camps at a nature center & a university, and one 1-day only camp at a Christian camp.  He LOVED it!!  

In February 2022, we asked him if he wanted to go to camp, signed him up, and only later realized he did not know that it was a spend-the-night camp.  When Jim said "goodbye" after dropping him off, he had a lost look on his face.  And we spent the next few days second-guessing our decision to send him to camp as an 8 year old.  Not only was I nervous as the mom of a first-time camper, but I was worried about his hearing aids getting wet or lost.

Nothing to worry about! He had a FABULOUS week!  When I picked him up, we were not even off the camp property before he asked when he can go back and if he can go back next week!

He only lost his hearing aids once for about a day . But he used his spare hearing aids so he had access to sound. And he gave himself preferential seating and sat on the front row during chapel time everyday. I’m so proud of him!!

We are so thankful that he is also getting the message, "Summer camp, particularly Bible camp, is just what you do." :)

Mom friends

I'm in an older moms' Facebook group, and the other day someone posted:

 

Do you have a best friend? You know. One that you see often with and without your family. One that you could call/text at any time? One that would help you out no matter what? This age is hard, especially with young kids.

 

• I've never been a young mom, so I don't know if it's the same.  
• I've never been a mom living in a city, so it might be different.  
• I've never been a mom living near people from our church, so that could make a difference.  
• I've never been a mom whose kids have young grandparents, so that could make a difference.  
• I've never been a mom whose husband wasn't 11 years older than I am, so that could make a difference.  
• I've never been a mom whose children's cousins weren't all significantly older, so that could make a difference.  
• I've never been a mom whose oldest didn't commute 65 miles one way to school from 3.5 - 6.25 years old, so that might make a difference.  
• I've never been a mom whose oldest didn't enter our neighborhood school during Covid (when parents weren't allowed in the building), so that might make a difference.  

Or not.  I'm not sure.  

And no one knows how much of the isolation of the past few years have affected this. 

And there has been a trend in our society of making friends online not in real person (specimen A: how Jim & I met). ;)

How do you make mom friends?  

In reality, I become friends with the moms (or caregiver grandmas) of my children's friends.  Parenting similar age children trumps our being peers in age. 

And then I have lots of friendships with older women at church (10 years older than I).  

I don't have any answers, but am just sitting here pondering how to be a better friend and praying for all of us to find the relationships like those God intends humans (especially believers) to have.

 

Usborne Love

No, I don't sell Usborne books ;)  (but don't think I haven't been tempted, if only to get a discount when purchasing for our own use).  If you're looking for someone who does sell Usborne, I can give you my friend's name. :)

It's hard to imagine I haven't mentioned Usborne books except in passing (see these posts). 

Yes, Usborne books are pricey, but they are QUALITY (construction & stories) and they last.  

One of LG's baby gifts that is still used to this day is the Usborne Farmyard Tales book.  It came with a CD of the stories, which he promptly memorized (& which I grew tired of, so LM has never heard it - ha!).  Each page has one line at the top and two or three at the bottom.  The parent can read all, or the child can read the top and the parent read the bottom, or a beginning reader can just read the top line and the story will still make sense.  Brilliant!

On both children's daily summer docket is a line, "Work a puzzle." These Usborne puzzles are perfect for LM right now!  I think I bought this box of 3 (which comes with a book) right after the world shutdown in 3/2020.  In advance of her daily puzzle this summer, I purchased two more (for a total of 6 puzzles).  Working on them daily (even for less than a week), her skills are really improving!!  We have a few other hands-on Usborne books ... math fact wind-ups to use while waiting in a restaurant or doctor's office, small booklets that you write on with a dry erase pen for the same places, and a Laundry Helper book with felt clothing that you hang out to dry, put in the drawers or closet, and then dress the children in the book.

I love the story collection books on the right in the photo above.  Most of these type (and at least half our Usborne collection) came from the kids' consignment store when LG was commuting.  We had one with us this weekend in WI and it kept LG occupied.  To the left of those are the Hey Jack series.  I found the entire series at Goodwill one day when he was commuting.  They were 99 cents/book.  They were a favorite for a long time and introduced ways to handle difficulties that children face in playing with friends.  For early readers, they are great because no words are hyphenated at the end of a line, font is larger, and there's plenty of white space.

This section of our shelf has some really fun ones.  Look Inside books are a great winner here!  All Better has removable bandaids that the child can place on the right animal as you read.  Lifesize & Dinosaurs came from the thrift store.  "How Big is a Million" and "How Big was a Dinosaur" have pull-out posters, in addition to illustrations that help a child grasp big concepts.

The small books on the right are mostly Goodwill finds, several of them sold via Scholastic.  We love non-fiction!  The red and blue early readers sets were a very generous prize when I was mystery hostess at an Usborne book party once!  Both children love them!

The music books (Four Seasons & Quiet Time) are very well done.  The phonics collections are amazing and fun, too!  We have used them when working on certain speech sounds. :)

Little Helpers is the laundry book mentioned above.  What are germs? is memorized by almost all of us! Aesop's Stories for Little Children is a perfect adaptation to introduce Aesop to little ones.

This shelf is all Usborne also... some reference books and social-emotional ones.  At the Garage is one of the shine-a-light books.  One page is dark, but when you shine a flashlight on the back of the page, you can see the picture come to life. 

Are you an Usborne family? Do you have a favorite from Usborne?

Summer at the lake

We are fortunate to be able to return to the same spot each summer, even multiple times each summer.  True, it is a lake, although I'm not a lake person.  I'm happy to walk along the edge of the lake, but I'm not an in-the-lake person.   

Our memories are more focused on together time, the house (with no internet or cell service) on a quiet tree-lined street, the backyard, simple play, the general area - i.e., the ice cream shop, the library, the church, a few people we know, and my coffee shop. 

Two years ago, as we were all home alone, I was counting down the days until we could go there.  And the relief was palpable once we arrived.  Just to be somewhere different was such joy!  Each year, as summer draws near, and especially as this becomes more and more ingrained in me as our custom, I start looking forward to Memorial Day weekend and our first trip to the lake (or the general area, as the case may be). :)

This year, we have other things on our plate, and we aren't sure when our inaugural summer trip to the lake will be.  It will be okay.  We will survive. And more than survive.  The children are in a different season, and so our early summer days will be filled with baseball and swim lessons, VBS, and preparing for summer camp, etc. 

But I follow "my" coffee shop at the lake on Facebook, and this morning as I was measuring the loose tea for my morning cuppa, I missed my coffee shop and the delicious tea I first had there ... and the cozy atmosphere of the shop itself, and the hours I have spent reading and writing and meeting with the Lord there. 

It must mean that it's almost summer!

Oh, the places you will go!

 

Places where I spent one (or more) nights in 2021:

Ste. Genevieve, MO

*Kingsport, TN

Children's Hospital

*Williams Bay, WI

Florence, KY

Alton, IL

Lexington, KY

Richmond, KY

and home

(italics - stayed there more than one night)  
(* stayed there on more than one occasion) 

   
 2021 travel ...

 

Our much-anticipated pre-planting getaway turned into a mid-winter getaway. Jim picked an amazing location & an even more amazing Airbnb.  (I wrote about it here.) I think it was one of the most peaceful, restful getaways we have had!

In March we took our postponed-due-to-high-COVID-numbers Christmas visit to my parents' & family in Tennessee.  We hadn't been there in spring since 2010, and it was a magical time with warmer temperatures and green leaves starting to peek out.  I saw redbud and dogwood on the hills!  We hiked!  

In May, Little Miss and I spent almost 24 hours in Children's Hospital for her broken arm (& surgery).  We were well taken care of and well-prayed for, but it was super stressful! Not my recommendation for a getaway!

Several times this summer (though I didn't keep track, and it certainly wasn't as many times as we went in 2020), we were able to go to Wisconsin and make special memories ... sometimes just us 4, sometimes with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and even second cousins.   

In August we went back to see my parents, and due to the timing, ended up driving partway home on Sunday afternoon, and stopping at a motel (thus the KY stop at a random motel).  I will note that the hotel breakfast was a real thing at that point. 

We took our annual family fall getaway the end of October.  As in, one day we realized we could get away for the next two, and so it was pretty sudden, even though we'd been hoping for the chance for two months. ;) LG, LM, and Daddy were very excited about the hotel breakfast ... which was decidedly not a thing. :(  The huge hotel atrium was almost empty ... all the chairs, the tables, the long breakfast buffet lines... empty.  Instead we received Grab & Go breakfast bags ... a Red Delicious apple, a chilled yogurt cup, a chilled orange "juice" bottle (which was mostly high fructose corn syrup), a heated pre-wrapped breakfast sandwich, and a packaged muffin.  Not the Fruit-Loops the children were salivating for!  And not the gluten-free breakfast I was hoping for!  Signs of the times.  

But it was an absolutely wonderful 30-hour family getaway with hiking, museums (plural! our first with the children & very successful!), good restaurants, a great motel with a pool!, and a fun (& not too long) road trip.  

This was the year that Jim's siblings spent Christmas together and thus the year that we spent time after Christmas with my family, so a few days after Christmas we made the trek to Tennessee, breaking up the trip with a motel stop both going & coming.  

And that wraps up our 2021 travels.  May there be more in 2022 is our fervent wish! 

 Where did you go in 2021?  Anywhere new? Any place we should put on our list?


Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2009 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2010 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2011 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2012 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2013 version  
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2014 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2015 version 
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2016 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2017 version
Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2018 version   

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2019 version  

Oh, the places you will go! ~ 2020 version

1000 Gifts, Vol. 6, #49

481.  we all tested positive for Covid on the same day

482.  ... so the children only had to quarantine 10 days instead of 20

483.  Jim & the children had no symptoms to speak of

484.  friends brought food & drink that sounded good to me, when I didn't feel like eating or drinking

485.  I qualified for the monoclonal antibodies *and* the hospital had just received a shipment, after having been out a few days previously

486.  my fever broke the night I got the antibodies

487.  about two days later, I felt like getting out of bed

488.  I have more and more energy everyday

489.  people prayed for us & the Lord was merciful

490.  my immunologist is already thinking of how to help protect me in the future (Evusheld for one thing)