I need a nap…guess it will be on a plane

February and March were wonderfully slow months for us. We really didn’t have much going on in regards to extra stuff on the calendar. Basketball season wrapped up. It was cold and I hibernate. They were two slow, easy-going, chill months. And then April hit.

Things are fast and furious around here. We are wrapping up our school year with our homeschool community. Three of my kids have huge memory challenges they are working towards. For those familiar with CC, I’ve got 2 doing Memory Master, 1 doing Grand Master (his second time to do it) and 2 doing Grammar Master. (Corbett is in Challenge) 

I won’t try to describe what all that is, other than to say our days are feeling SO LONG. I’m tired. They are tired. There have been lots of tears (from kids and mom). It isn’t a required thing for them to do the challenge, but I know they can each do it…we do it each year. Of course, the content of what they are learning is important to me, but the process is really why we are doing it. I want them to learn they can do hard things. I want them to know how to push past the desire to quit when everything in them wants to give up. I want them to learn to look at a mountain and not turn around, but realize they can climb it one step at a time. Perseverance. Grit. Determination. Fight.

My boys have all been forever changed by this process. My older daughter is experiencing it for her first time this year. Last week was full of tears for her. This week she is beginning to laugh and smile as she realizes she CAN DO IT! What a gift as a parent to watch it all play out. What a gift it is to see her brothers rally around her and cheer her on as she tackles each subject.

I am covered in maps, flash cards, kids and a dog all day. My youngest, on the other hand, is often found chilling in the hammock while the rest of us study. I’m trying really hard not to be jealous.
By the end of next week, the memory challenge will be over.

In the back of my mind I keep thinking, “I need to prepare for China.” I mentioned it on Instagram, but I don’t think I’ve share it here. We are headed to China! We board the plane the first of May and won’t be coming home until mid-July. 10 weeks in China!!

I’ll share more about why we are going and how we are going later. That is a big post to write and my mind can only deal with so much right now. Finish up school with kids and then plan to move to China for a couple months!

I need a nap. I guess it will have to wait for the plane!