Lost

Where did all the time go?  One minute I was writing a blog, and then, poof! it disappeared!  I feel guilty for leaving anyone who follows my blog perhaps wondering where I may have gone.

So much has happened in the past six months in my life, and my blog fell away under the craziness.  

I decided to go back to college this past September so that perhaps I could graduate with a degree at the same time as my daughter.  I qualified for financial aid so I took two courses (online) and managed to receive an A for both, but boy, did it take a lot of my time.  Especially when I am also trying to run my Etsy.com vintage shop simultaneously!

Then came Christmas...a very small Christmas due to our financial difficulties.  So much thanks to our oldest son who bought a Wii U for his brothers and sisters for Christmas.  Everything else came from Savers or the Salvation Army!

Then I had to decide if I was willing to continue with school, seeing how much time it took last semester.  And crazily, I decided to take two more classes which started in January.

And for the biggest change of all....

Our first grandchild was born January 25.  A beautiful girl named Madeline Grace who has so blessed our family.

So you can see how I let my blog slip.  

And now, I am contemplating whether God is calling me to continue this blog, or whether he has other plans in mind.  I have missed writing and communicating with the people who read my blog and I am leaning toward trying to maintain it.

For now, I shall pray about it, and I would ask if you could spare a prayer for me and for my family and our finances, and especially for newborn Madeline.

May God bless you and yours!

He is 16 Going on 17

My younger son is 16, going on 17.  A very hard age to mother, I must say.  There are so many things a boy must learn as he grows up in order to be a man of integrity, honor and one who values a job well done.  Yet many of the things he must learn are dangerous, at least to me.  You see, he is my child and so it makes it hard to let him begin his journey to manhood.

He has begged to use the riding mower, and after countless hours of begging, I told him he could begin to learn from his father.  Of course, our mower is old and decrepit and so has to be coddled in order to use it.  For instance, every time my husband wants to mow, he has to drag out the compressor to blow up the tires.  See, our budget is tight, and tires are expensive.  So that meant that our son would also have to learn how to use the compressor without blowing the tire or himself to smithereens. 

So finally, after learning all the ins and outs of lawn mowing, he took his first spin.  I was happy to see that he didn't speed around--he took his time and was relatively cautious.  I was worried about my gardens and the above-ground pool, but he took a wide berth which was easily seen where the grass was not mowed!

Another manly thing I have let him begin doing is lighting our charcoal grill.  He now knows how to put the paper in the chimney thing and get that going.  He knows not to leave it unattended.  I do watch from the window though.  Next, he will be learning how to actually cook on the grill.

I have to confess it also took me a long time to let him cross our busy street to check the mail. 

We have also given him permission to look for a part-time job, and then, once he saves up for driving lessons, he will begin that adventure, one I am really dreading.

These are just some of the many transitional things we have allowed him to do this past summer.  This is hard for me, as I worry so much about my children.  But I am determined that he be trained so that he can feel prepared as he inches towards manhood. 

I pray that God will give me the wisdom to help my son be cautious and make good choices, especially when it comes to his safety, and that He will hear my fervent prayers for my son as he grows up.

Girl!

Well, people, the verdict is in!  The sonogram showed...a healthy little girl!  So happy for my daughter and son-in-law.  Our family has a lot of experience with girls.  I have four sisters and I have three daughters, so this will be fun! 

There hasn't been a baby in our family for quite some time.  My youngest girl, now 13, was the last baby in our extended family.  So it should be interesting to see how all the teens (mostly boys) in our families react with a new baby.  They are in for some fun, that's for sure!  I am really looking forward to how they respond.

I am so thankful to God for the good report of the sonogram, as well as for all your prayers.  Thank you all!

I will keep you updated as the pregnancy progresses!