Changing Seasons

I know you've heard me say it many times, but I just LOVE fall.  It seems I am more motivated to do fall cleaning than when it is spring.  I love the cool, crisp weather.  And it seems that the moving bug always starts to hit me around this time of year.  Every move our family has made since being in the military has always been in the summer.  And we have never stayed longer than three years in one place.  It seems to be a cycle that we find ourselves in.  We move, get our home settled, begin to make friends, feel a part of the community, get involved, really learn our way around the area (you know those secret routes only people native to the area seem to know), and then about the time we hit a few months into our third year (that would be about now)…it's time to start anticipating our next assignment.  

The older I get, the more I don't like waiting to the last minute to get things done.  Throw homeschooling full-time, year round in there and there isn't a lot of last minute time to get things decluttered and organized.  I find myself thinking quite a bit about the upcoming move.  I know anything can happen and there is always the slim chance we might be able to stay.  But, that has never happened yet with us.  

So, as I decorate and welcome fall, I am also working on areas in my home that need work.  It always brings me back to the minimalist mindset.  You really begin to think about what you need and love when you move often.  It is no fun lugging things from one place to another and having no need for them in either house.  It just takes up much needed space and time by demanding attention to clean and store properly.  

So, my fall cleaning is underway.  Right now I am weeding out curriculum that I have collected for years and know that I will not use again.  It is time to try and sell at a good price and hopefully, bless others in the process.  What are your plans for fall?

It was never my intent to stay away this long.  But, that is what life brings sometimes…the unexpected.  So much has happened since the last time I wrote…over a year ago.  There have been health issues, homeschooling, classes in co-op, housekeeping, fellowshipping with friends and so many other things.  Some have been pleasant and good.  Others have been hard and hurtful.  But, through it all, God has remained ever faithful and that I can always say with confidence.  

There are times when we all need a break.  Time to focus or re-focus.  I needed that time. A time to hear from God and a time to prepare for what God knew would be one of the hardest times of my life.  I may feel the liberty to share some of that time, but for now, I don't sense a freedom to do so.   It is fitting that I am drawn back in the fall of the year.  This has always seemed more like new beginnings for me than January.  I really do love this time of year.  The changing leaves and the crisp fall air…smores, campfires and hot chocolate, I love so many things that fall brings.

I hope to share from my life and my home as I feel led.  It is my desire that this be a place to help record my ordinary days…days that God takes and makes something special.  After all, it is finding joy in the ordinary days that makes life so worth living!