Something Different

The New Year has been a busy one so far, and my family has faced some challenges. My parents' holiday visit to Kentucky was extended by my mom's two-week hospital stay. I rushed to meet a tight book deadline. And after homeshooling for several years, my boys started attending school for the first time. 

I am so happy to say that my mom is well and heading back to Pennsylvania today. I met the deadline, though not entirely on time. And my boys are doing great in school. 

My thought process on the switch to school from homeschool was a pretty rapid one, I just knew our current way of being was not working for me or them at all. So I figured we needed to make a change. It was a bit scary, but many friends offered helpful counsel and we spent December preparing the boys for school.  I am so happy to say that the teachers and staff at their school have been unbelieveably accomodating and kind. My fourth-grader and kindergartener are both enjoying school, learning new things every day and coming home happy. I am so pleased and honestly a bit surprised about how good this change has been for our family.

And I have more time and mental space than I have had since before I had kids. Quiet hours in the studio used to be Saturday afternoons when my husband would take the boys for a hike, or late at night, working in my dimly-lit space. But now, I'm sitting here, with only my lazy dog for company, working on new projects in my clean and sun-lit space. 

I feel rich and very blessed. I'm taking a couple days off from slipper designing and book work and working on something new and making a big mess. It's really fun.