The April 2012 blog post is still not finished. It's waiting for pictures to be added and a few last lines.
I have monthly Post-It notes all over my desk so I can write about each month I missed in 2012.
LOTS happened!
But I'm here in 2013. If I don't start writing something, I won't write anything. So, when I have spare time (Ha!), I'll catch y'all up on 2012 details.
A few catch up details you're gonna need for this free flowing ramble today:
Caleb graduated from high school May 2012 (WOO-HOO!)
In August all the kids went back to school -
Caleb as a freshmen at the University of Kansas (Rock Chalk Jayhawk!)
majoring in Chinese and Computer Science
Miranda at the high school as a Junior
Josiah 8th grade at the middle school
Our littlest trio all at a very small private school together -
Elijah 6th grade
Keziah 3rd grade
Peiwu 1st grade
Okay...up to speed?
Fast forward to Christmas break-ish/now time...
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(Christmas Day 2012 attempt at a Kid Pic)
Caleb came home for what we thought would be a 5-week break.
** (SIDE NOTE - Now we love all our kids, but leaving the nest has always been part of the plan. We were happy to kick Caleb out, pack him up, and move him into the dorm. Love the boy, but wanted him to spread his wings...praying all the time that he would soar high!) **
While at KU, Josiah had turned Caleb's room into his own bedroom annex. Now we never really planned for this, but it did lead to fewer fights between Josiah and Elijah and less holes in the walls and fewer broken things. They are great boys! But they are boys and brothers who love each other and love to irritate one another. So when Caleb came home, Josiah reluctantly moved back out, praying for a speedy 5-week intermission.
SURPRISE!
Our fledgling decided before we even made it to New Year's Day to change the direction of his life and his address! WELCOME BACK HOME, SON!!! Mom and Dad miraculously had gotten smarter. Life here was pretty good before. Rules, boundaries, and the limits of home life plus free homecooked food were more appealing than the filth of a boys' dorm room and suitemates who love Thirsty Thursdays.
January 2nd we hit the panic button as Caleb had to navigate how to withdraw from KU and enroll at the local community college. His dorm room was still FULL of all his junk. Josiah lost his beloved annex. The whole family now faced the challenge of readjusting to life as a family of 8. NOT EASY!!!
Oh! Don't get comfortable just yet! As the other five kiddos headed back to school, more changes were on the horizon...
So Elijah, my 6th grader, has spent his academic career at a SMALL private school...really small...like usually only about 25 kids in the entire school. As our older kids have reached their middle school years, our neighborhood, public, middle school has allowed our kids to be dual-enrolled to help them transition to this new environment. It's great for our kids! They spend part of their school day in the comfort of the familiar as they prepare to say good-bye to a huge part of their childhood. Then they also get to spend two-three class periods each day learning how to navigate crowded hallways, open a locker, and make new friends to ease their transition to full day attendance.
Great for our kids...but challenging for the Mom Taxi Service! Now we not only have to get Elijah to school in the morning, but I also get to drive 20-30 minutes to pick him up mid-day. He eats his lunch during the 20-30 minute car ride to the middle school. Mom must be on time, plan for unforeseen traffic or weather challenges, and give up an entire hour of her day. All appointments - doctors, dentists, haircuts - and all shopping, cleaning, cooking, laundry, and even personal time for lunches with friends must be squeezed in around the set school schedule. (I'm getting another headache just typing this insanity.)
Did you think I was done yet?
Nope!
But I've now decided to break this up into two blog postings! So hold on for part 2!!
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