Settling In

My summer vacation was good for me.  It was good to see family, it was good to see pine trees, it was good to drive a car - but more than that, it was good to be able to look forward to coming back to Sri Lanka.  That is something I honestly didn't think I would be able to do.  When we landed in the States in June, I immediately began wondering how in the world I was going to be able to leave all that for Colombo in just 8 short weeks.  But like all seasons in life, as the summer progressed and all the traveling ensued I slowly began to long for the steady routine of school days, the ability to cook my own food in my kitchen and how good it feels to sleep in my own bed.  When did Sri Lanka become home? How did I end up sitting on a back porch in North Carolina contemplating which flowers would grow best in my cement planters in Sri Lanka? It took me by surprise, but I slowly began to make my plans for return.  And in making those plans, I realized that in the year we have been overseas, we never truly moved into our home.  Sure, we did some initial setting up, but we still have pictures that haven't been hung, we still have spaces that we just kind of ignore.  I have let all the plants in those cement planters die.  I think it was too much to expect our first year to make a home, homeschool my daughter, learn a completely foreign culture, work out transportation and on and on and on...  But this is year two, and I need to have a home.  It's in me to settle, whether that is for a month or ten years.  These all go toward lessons that I will carry with me to our next post. I can't look back and think I messed up, I will just move forward and make this place a home for the months to come.

January Rewind and February Goals

image credit

January was a complete blur.  I almost dread doing this post because I don't feel like I accomplished anything.  Our family stayed from Christmas through January 2.  As I said earlier - it was a wonderful visit filled with lots of laughter, sight-seeing, and celebrations.

Perspective - when you look at a mess and you can see the memories made.

We also had some dear friends come for a visit over the long MLK weekend.  It's always awesome to spend time with those we love so much!  Then there was #winterstormjonas #blizzard2016 #snowisSTILLontheground #nomorehashtags in blogs, I promise!

 The month ended with an Awana Lock-in for Ella, Awana Grand-Prix car building, and a TDY for Erik. He's learning his way around Bishkek! Now for the fun part:
January Goals:
Blog:
     1. Update the blog - Done! How do you like our new look?
Home:
     1. Get the rest of the Christmas put away! - Done
     2. My pantry and coat closet will be getting a make over this month.  - Ummmm not this month.
     3. We are going to become a "leave your shoes at the door" family. Done and it truly makes such a difference.  I love it. 
Health:
     1. Exercise, Exercise, Exercise...Not even once! Unless you count afternoon strolls with Erik and the baby. 
     2. Practice moderation in all things - tv, social media, food and drink, pretty much everything!
I have really done pretty well with this.  I think food may be my biggest downfall with this, I haven't made the healthiest of choice between company, and Erik's TDY.  I've been convicted that I am giving up Social Media for Lent -  so that should help too!

Home school:
     1. Branch out - Done - not in the way I wanted - however we studied Blizzards for a week straight. So I think it was still successful. 
     2. Review the scope of learning for each of my children's grade levels to be sure we are on track for the end of the year. - Done

Family:
     1. Serve more, participate more, reach out more. The kids dove into several big church activities, and I have tried to take a "people before tasks" approach this month. I've enjoyed several morning coffee dates and impromptu dinners with friends. I think if I let my to do list rule then I miss out on this most important aspect of making our way in our new life!

Now for February's less ambitious list

Blog:
     At least one post per week.
Home:
    I'm Flying again.  Even saying that makes me sound like a goof.  I'm not doing everything the FLY lady recommends, but I am following her one room per week approach I will share more about this later.
     I really do want to do my pantry
Health:
     Drink more water
     Exercise
     Giving up Facebook and Instagram for Lent. (Keeping Pinterest because too many of my bible study ideas, book recommendations, recipes and home school sites are on there).
     Find a Dentist

Home School:
     Anna got glasses in January - After some adjustment, I plan to challenge her reading level. I have some small changes that I plan to make to see just what she is capable of when she can see - Ha!
   
Family:
     We are taking a family vacation the first part of the month.  I truly plan to be ALL there. It's so easy to be fringy...but this mama's all in! I'm excited about it.

As always, I will close with some of my favorite January Pictures - Not already posted :)

Erik introduced the kids to Star Wars, this is my princess Leia

When Daddy's away the girls...and George... play

Took a little time for some homemade Valentine's cards

Our Grand Prix Cars - Anna's is Gymnastics Car and Ella's is an eraser

A December to Remember - And Some January Goals

Well, the holidays are over and we are left with a few remaining Christmas decorations, lots of dirty linens, an empty pantry, and some of the best memories.  It. was. wonderful. We were surrounded by our family and friends who came together to celebrate. We celebrated the birth of our Savior and 3 days later we celebrated George's first birthday.

It was a fun couple of weeks.  The last of our family left January 2 and we were left feeling so blessed that so many made the effort to come visit and celebrate with us. Here are some of the pictures from our December to Remember.

We Celebrated St. Nicholas Day as a part of our Europe Study

George Helping Erik with the Christmas Lights

Our new favorite winter hobby

Someone in our neighborhood put out a wishing tree!
It was so neat to see ornaments hung filled with neighbors wishes.

What do you do when you move your daughter away from friends and family?
You agree to an inflatable.

After 3 hours of grocery shopping!

We enjoyed our cousins visiting.

This little monkey loves the metro.

Showing our family the Museum of Natural History

Sammie couldn't hang at the Museum of American History

Now on to my December goals - let's see if we made any progress...

Blog:
     1.List January Goals before January 8 - It's January 6 - that's better.
     2. "Mini-Tour" of our almost no cost basement set up. Pictures taken, blog coming!


Home:
     1. Really Finish the Basement - I would like to get a little creative with more family pictures, but I'm done - for now...
     2. Finish Decorating for Christmas and prepare for a house full of company! We are pumped that Erik's parents will be here for Christmas and my parents and sister, brother-in-law, and nieces and nephews will be in for George's first birthday! I'll be sharing a blog with my meal plan and some activities as well as my modified check list for company. 

Health:
     1. Outside Everyday - Done - all the prep for our Guests got me out and about daily!
     2. Get up at 5:00 a.m. every day - Maybe not everyday, but I made it a habit and I love this time that's all mine!
     3. Get in bed by 10:00 - Not as consistently as I wanted to, and I paid dearly some days. 
     4. I am going to try to get dressed, including make up everyday. I want to accessorize my outfits, and feel better - Done! I went shopping with a gift card thanks to Erik's mom and got some new clothes. Feeling better already!
Home school:
     1. Find some fun December crafts and centers for the kids to do.  

     2. Finish Ella's Singapore Math part A book - We didn't finish, but we are moving right along in the new year and will be back on track by the end of January.

     3. I've set a sight word goal for Anna. Doing really well on her sight words, and her grammar rules!

    4. Use the timer more.  We are using the timer for math drills and hope to start it for reading for Anna this month.

Now for my January Goals:
Blog:
     1. I'm ready to put my blog out there. I have been blogging since May, 2015 but haven't really publicized it. I think it's for several reasons.  1 - this has been therapy for me, and it's kind of personal. 2. I doubt my writing/blogging skills, and I don't want people to think it's terrible.  But I am ready to share this journey we are on and if it helps someone in the process, that is even better!
     a. In addition to putting the blog out there more, it will be getting a face lift thanks to the hubs and his creativity - so thankful he is supportive of this little venture!

Home:
     1. Get the rest of the Christmas put away!
     2. My pantry and coat closet will be getting a make over this month. They need a purge and some organization.  I am not an organized person, and I am cheap! So I will feature my low/no cost organization because as much as I love the matching bins, and chalkboard tags, I am not going to spend money on stuff to hold my stuff. I wish I could - I wish my pantry looked like this( I truly love her blog!), but it won't but I will still have my cereal and my soup exactly where I need them.
     3. We are going to become a "leave your shoes at the door" family. It's going to take practice and I am definitely the worst because I am never barefoot, but we have light carpet and Christmas showed me just how much is tracked in on the bottom of our shoes, so I will be taking some steps to implement a shoeless or at least an indoor shoe/outdoor shoe home.

Health:
     1. Exercise, Exercise, Exercise...just like everyone else!
     2. Practice moderation in all things - tv, social media, food and drink, pretty much everything!
*I realize this goal gets away from my whole  - keep it real and attainable goal setting approach, but I'm not quantifying the amount of calories, minutes of screen time, etc. I just want to keep moderation in mind in all things. I think that helps it become more attainable.

Home school:
     1. Branch out - I will be writing more on this in another blog, but there are things I find myself longing to learn about. Why can we study them even if they aren't in the geography or science curriculum?  Well, we are going to! I love winter studies - polar bears, the arctic, penguins, snowflakes - we are going to work those in. I am going to try to not be bound by the curriculum.
     2. Review the scope of learning for each of my children's grade levels to be sure we are on track for the end of the year.

Family:
     1. Serve more, participate more, reach out more. This sounds lofty, but really the goal is tied to this.  We are going to just jump in and really LIVE in NOVA. Enjoy what the town has to offer, participate in the events of the church and give back! I'm the most excited about this goal!

Well,  that's all for now - got some goals to achieve!

Word of the year

A new year is a time for new beginnings. It's a time to make a change - for many- it's a time for new year's resolutions. I am  a fan of resolutions, but I'm not really great at follow through. So far,  I am doing better by establishing my monthly goals. A couple of years ago, Erik and I started picking a word that we wanted to be the theme of our new year. It serves as a priority or a goal for the year. In 2013 that word was peace, in 2014 it was contentment, in 2015 it was adventure... We joined the foreign service, after all! This year, I feel like adventure will continue, but I'm looking at other words. Here are some I've  come up with and why I'm considering them. Of course, this isn't just me... I'll share them with the family and we will decide what our 2016 "word" will be.

1. Grow- growth is important in every aspect of our life. We need to grow spiritually, we need to grow as a family, we need to grow more into our individual roles that we will play as a part of this foreign service family. 

2. Serve-this word is fresh on my mind after hosting various family for the past ten days. I would love to grow in the spiritual gift of hospitality and teach that to my family as well. And as Christians, we are called to serve.  This word is so all-encompassing, that it may just be the word needed for every year!

3. Intentionality- I've mentioned this before but one of the gifts of this life in the foreign service is this time constraint. You are only where you are for a short time then you move on. It puts my whole life in perspective and I want to be intentional! I already think I'm better than I was a few months ago, but I could be so much better.

4. Trust- this just ties right in with adventure. This word is in the forefront of my mind as we begin to explore this world of bidding. There is one part of me that feels that the choice of which posts you bid on are so important, it will affect every aspect of your life, but another part of me feels like just screaming "just pray over it, give it to God and move forward- don't look back, don't second guess, don't hesitate... Do your job and let God do his!" 

5. Learn- this year we are homeschooling. I am learning so much! I hope my kids are too! And as I have mentioned before, we live in DC! So much information at your finger tips! Between the learning we are doing through our excellent home school curriculum, and the learning we are doing while researching posts...not to mention the learning we are doing about this adventure we are on -  I feel this word fits our family.

Like I said earlier, we will think on these, discuss them as a family, and decide which word will best be our word for 2016.  It will be the word we use to help keep our focus as we make decisions about posts, about how to spend our time in D.C. about how to spend our money, about how to spend the precious time we have with family and friends. We will keep you posted ;)

November Recap and December Goals

November was an amazing month. Mom came to visit. We took in some of the DC sites and some of the more local scene as well. Having her here brought a sense of calmness. It's just always good to have someone familiar around, even though many times I am sure she felt anything but calm. We really stretched her comfort level, starting with the flight here, the Metro, all the way to the nearly 14 hour drive home. She grew some, and we loved her being with us!

We celebrated Ella's birthday in Gardendale with friends! It was wonderful to see everyone. Those trips always feel like such a whirlwind, but they are worth every second.

Erik and I also were able to carve out time for a boys night and a girls night respectively - it was much needed time to reconnect with those that we miss so very much! After a Brunch with Erik's family on Sunday, we headed to Opelika for Thanksgiving week. It was wonderful! So much time with family.

And of course  the much anticipated Black Friday shopping trip that Megan and I look forward to!  Such a wonderful time filled with so much laughter!

Oh, and...this happened - BABY'S FIRST HAIRCUT!

No trip back home is complete without heading into Auburn. 

We came back ready to tackle December and prepare for more family visits.

November goal recap:

Home:
            1. Stick to my new cleaning schedule - sort of:) with mom here, we took a break- but we are getting back into it now.

            2. Finish the basement/home school/playroom/guest room.  It's almost company time, and I want to know that is finished and ready for our guests- got some pictures to hang - otherwise- DONE!

            3. Take a Christmas Picture - OR - pick one we have already taken for Christmas Cards... Maybe - I still haven't decided if I am going to send them out or not- we did get a picture and I am sending them!

Health:
            1. Get to bed earlier. I have noticed that my whole day is better when I go to bed earlier.  So I want to be in bed by 10:00- sometimes- still working on this one.
            2. Also, because I am considering Health - spiritual health, I want to take time in November to list the things I am thankful for.  For some motivation on that, check out Ann Voskamp's Blog. - fail- although I did take time to stop and enjoy special moments, I did not list them like I wanted, however, I started that today! 

Family:
            1. Two kiddos have birthdays coming up so I need to start planning those, as well as                                                Christmas activities AND gifts- I'm in good shape here.  

            2.  Back to Bed time devotions with the girls - we were doing great with this until Erik left for two weeks and we got out of the habit.  I am looking forward to getting those nightly routines back- fail- these have got to come back. It's a priority. 

             3. Find an advent reading/study for our family to do- done- we are doing one in connection with the bible app. A study done by 121. It has a family application and questions for kids. Good stuff. Our favorite, Jesus Story Book Bible also has an advent study that someone put together. It's amazing, really anything that has to do with this book is amazing. 

Home school:

             1. Move the home school room downstairs. Done

             2. I have set reading goals for Anna, and math goals for Ella that I would like to see get achieved by Christmas- getting there.

             3. Establish a work alone system for Ella. - it's in process. Takes a lot of organization on my part, I'm trying😊

Now for my December Goals:
(since it's already December 8!

Blog:
     1.List January Goals before January 8!
     2. "Mini-Tour" of our almost no cost basement set up.


Home:
     1. Really Finish the Basement - I lack a picture wall I've been wanting to do.
     2. Finish Decorating for Christmas and prepare for a house full of company! We are pumped that Erik's parents will be here for Christmas and my parents and sister, brother-in-law, and nieces and nephews will be in for George's first birthday! I'll be sharing a blog with my meal plan and some activities as well as my modified check list for company. 

Health:
     1. Outside Everyday - Vitamin D is super important and I need all the help I can get to combat the winter blues!
     2. Get up at 5:00 a.m. every day - I have done this for the last few days, and I feel like a new person! There is some time that is just mine! I need that. It's my time with the Lord, and time to plan my day. I love the way I feel ready to meet my kids when they wake up.
     3. Get in bed by 10:00 - see number 2 - I'm gonna need my sleep!
     4. I am putting this under health because I feel it's important -  I am going to try to get dressed, including make up everyday. I want to accessorize my outfits, and feel better. There are truly some days that I never leave the house. However, Erik does, and I don't want him coming home to a tired looking wife. I want him to see how happy I am to see him, and I feel putting some effort into my appearance will help that!

Home school:
     1. Find some fun December crafts and centers for the kids to do.  

     2. Finish Ella's Singapore Math part A book - my math goal for her is to move through part b and into the next level this year. We are on track for that. 

     3. I've set a sight word goal for Anna. She's really making lots of improvement! 

    4. Use the timer more.  I don't want to teach my kids only for standardized tests, however, if we get them back into school at some point - time management is an important skill. If not it's still a life skill. I want to help them be more comfortable with this.

Can't wait to share more of my progress. Part of my getting up earlier is an attempt to find more time to blog. Hopefully that will result in a better chronicling of our journey! Until then, I've got some goals to achieve, and some memories to make.