Well, hello there, friends! And happy July to you all! Since it has been a while since I posted, I think it is high time for a little update here. In case you didn’t notice, I took a break from the blog for the entire month of June. I didn’t originally intend to take a month off from writing, but once June was underway, I quickly realized that I needed some time away from blogging. So what have I been doing all this time? Let’s see…
School Planning…
The last week in May was also the last week of our spring term of homeschooling. Since we school year-round, I like to make time for break of about 6 weeks in the summer and 6 more weeks for Thanksgiving through Christmas. During this summer break I have been tweaking our school schedule and planning our July memory work, etc. This is our last week of summer break, and I still have a few details to get nailed down, but most of the big tasks are complete. I plan to write another post tomorrow with all the July memory work information for those of you who might be interested!
Swimming Lessons…
Both my kids have a bit of an aversion to the water, so one of my big priorities this summer is getting them both more acclimated to it. I put them both in a great swim class at our local YMCA, and even though it cost a small fortune, I am glad we did it. They both have improved tremendously and worked through some of their fears. It was exhausting for this homebody momma to truck the kids to swimming 4 days in a row for 2 weeks, though! I think next time we will try doing 1-2 day a week lessons instead, but this time it just worked better for our schedule.
Travelling…
We live pretty far from family, the closest being my husband’s parents about 6 hours from us. As a result, summer vacation almost always means traveling to see relatives. At the beginning of June we made the long drive from Middle Tennessee to the Black Hills of South Dakota to visit my parents, my brother and his wife, and my grandmother. It was a long trip, but the kids were good travelers overall, and we had a good time with my family.
This past weekend we hopped back in the car again for a shorter trip to northern Ohio. There we attended a family reunion for some of my husband’s side of the family. We got to see his parents, grandparents and siblings, along with a whole passel of more distant relatives we hadn’t seen in many years. We also had a chance to meet up with my husband’s college roommate, Pete, and his family, which was a rare treat.
Resting?
Um, as much as I would love to say that June was a chance to rest between school terms, it really has not been at all restful. We have gotten important work done and made connections with people we love, though. July promises less travel and a chance to get back into a normal routine with the commencement of our summer homeschool term. Even though we haven’t gotten much resting done, sometimes “a change is as good as a rest.”
Just Living Life…
Of course, in the midst of all the extras, we are still playing outside, enjoying nature with friends, reading lots of good books, listening to podcasts and music, taking long walks and cooking meals together. We also had a HUGE answer to our prayers when we finally sold our house in Illinois. After having it on the market for nearly 13 months, this has been an immense weight lifted from our shoulders. We are now debt-free, and we have more financial freedom that we have had for at least 2 years. God is so GOOD!
Now I want to hear back from you! What have you been up to this summer, friend? I would love for you to tell me in the comments below or link to a blog post about your own summer activities this year. I promise to be much more present here at Tuning Hearts this month, and I hope to see you around, too!
