Firsts!

Seriously, we have experienced a lot of firsts lately. I'm not quite sure if this is usual life stuff or just because there are many new things in our world lately. However it may be, i'm just aware of how we are venturing into new territory many times over. I like it! As I've grown older, I've discovered how I have an adventurous spirit. I like to try new foods and recipes, take on new challenges, and explore new paths. On the flip side, I've also discovered the battle that wages in me when I encounter new opportunities. Maybe you can relate. For example, I when I want to try a new thing, I have this tendency to only want to try it if I can do it right. It's like the all-or-none principle. If I can't be perfect, it is too easy to avoid doing it at all. Yes, I confess, I fight the fear of failure constantly.

But I was writing about firsts, first. The last 6 months...yeah, lots of those. First move as a family. Abby's first birthday. First time owning chickens. First time living in the country with more than just a town lot of property to maintain. First time being a stay-at-home-mom-with-no-expectation-to-go-back-to-work-in-the-foreseeable-future. And the list goes on.

The most recent and significant first was Allana's first day of Kindergarten yesterday. I've worked with her at home for preschool, and so this was a first for Mommy, too...dropping her off with someone else to guide her education. This was a process to get here. Throughout the course of the last year, I had decided at least not to send her to the public elementary schools in town. But I wasn't sure where to go from there. Homeschooling? I was prepared to take that on (but, once again, encountered the above mentioned fear.) So, when we moved out of town, (to make a long story short), we decided to send her to a small, community-supported charter school, just a few miles down the road. A nice compromise.

Believe me, Allana was so excited. All in all, I was so impressed and PROUD of her. She was nonplussed and confident. Both when I dropped her off and picked her up. She is so ready to participate in a class...and I guess I'm ready to let her fly...



Here, Allana is unloading her school supplies into her cubby at her classroom (with Alex watching).


I had to get a pic of the first moments with her sweet new teacher. A first for both of them!

Hope you are enjoying encounters with firsts in your world...they will surely keep coming! I'll keep you posted on our firsts, too.

New Seasons

I'm writing again! You may notice the time lapse between this note and the last...I suppose this may be symbolizing my coming full circle to the blogging season in life. I enjoy writing. I enjoy sharing my thoughts. And I'm becoming more disillusioned with Facebook. So, here I am again.

Can I just mention here that I love my life? I have been so incredibly blessed. We are in the midst of a season of abundance, richness and blessing. And I am aware that seasons change--can change instantly--so, for now, I am going to rejoice in this blessed season. There are challenges, yes. And there will be challenges, yes. But I don't want to lose perspective on recognizing that it is only through God's provision that we are where we are.

The breeze is blowing through the window on me. It's a good reminder that things do not stay the same. The winds of change are a-blowin'. But God does not change. Even in suffering. Even in blessing.