Outstanding

Today, my husband graduated with his Master of Business Administration degree.  He was named the "Outstanding Graduate" student in his major, earning a 4.0 GPA.  We didn't know he would be receiving the award until we arrived at the ceremony and saw his name in the program.

My husband is a quiet, humble man.  He is not one to brag about his achievements.  In fact, he often says, "I'm not that smart.  I just work hard."  Understatement!  As his wife, I am proud and impressed and blessed.  When the dean spoke about Mike, she shared remarks from one of his professors about an extra project that he worked on in the course.  The project was challenging, and only one other student accepted the challenge.  Mike was the only one to follow through the whole semester and complete the project.  His follow-through is amazing.  I've mentioned before in this blog that he is an ultra-marathoner.  Mike has a work ethic like nobody else I know.

We were originally given 5 tickets for the graduation ceremony.  Of course, we invited Mike's parents to come.  That meant we could only bring two of our four children.  We opted to bring the oldest and youngest.  When I realized he was receiving the award, I was disappointed that he hadn't asked if we could bring everyone.  I checked with the greeters from the university, and they assured me there were enough seats.  We live about a mile from the school, so I called the children, told them "Get dressed and ready.  I'm picking you up now--Daddy is getting an award!"  I ran like, well, a runner, to the car in my dress and heels.  Drove safely, but swiftly home.  The children came quickly and we got back to the university with 15 minutes to spare before the ceremony started.

I was so happy that all four of our children were able to witness their father earning a special award for his hard work.  He's such a good example for them.  He worked through his undergraduate and graduate degrees while all of them were old enough to know what "Daddy is studying" means.  I hope his example inspires them to use the talents and intelligence God has blessed them with and to develop those talents to serve Him in the world.

Ready, Set, Go!

This week has flown by! Tommy had swim lessons every morning, the older boys had work at the garden, Elizabeth and I ran.  We also had the consultation with the oral surgeon regarding wisdom teeth extraction for Elizabeth.  Today, we head to the beach with my in-laws (mamas, grandma, and kids day).  Instead of packing lunch and getting ready, I'm sitting here writing.  I fear, though, that if I don't take a few moments to write and collect my thoughts, that I might become screamy mom.  I don't like her....

Anyway, Tommy turned 7 this week on the Feast of the Assumption!  It's hard to believe my youngest child will be entering his 2nd grade year in a few weeks.  I remember 2nd grade and First Communion preparation.  It's hard to believe he's so big already!

With all of the "out-of-the-house" activities, I've become a little anxious the last few days.  I need to make final preparations for our new homeschool year.  I would like to wrap up the laundry room project so the space will be organized, and all of the overflow that has been moved to other rooms can be put away.  My college course syllabus and assignments need to be completed.  There is much to do.

But today, before the teens go to camp next week and school begins the following week, we will have one carefree day at the beach.

List-making and Getting Things Done

Last Friday, I turned in grades for the summer course I was teaching.  Some might think that means "vacation" until the next semester begins on September 4.  In my mind, it actually means a mad frenzy of back to school preparations and tending to the chores that haven't been done properly for the past month or so.  This morning, I made a to-do list.  The plan is to delegate a number of tasks to my children.  The hope is that they will take the assignments cheerfully and perform them with enthusiasm and joy at the opportunity for loving service to their family.  I'm genuinely optimistic at this point!

This past weekend, Mike and I made some progress on the laundry room project.  We cleared a 4-tier metal shelf against the wall that will become my pantry storage area.  The metal shelf was here when we bought the house, and it's rusty and ugly.  To-do item--sand, prime, and paint the shelf.  The shelf will have a new home in the utility corner of the laundry room where it will be used to store tools and supplies for painting and household repair projects.  That shelf was a primary problem spot.  Until we cleared and moved it, nothing substantial could be completed in the laundry room because the space is so narrow.  I kept avoiding the task, but my husband encouraged me that we could get it done.  We filled a trash bag with stuff that had been taking up space but was really junk.  We moved the shelf outside to be sanded, swept the floor, and dusted the wall.  Then I masked the area to be painted.  We need to do a few other things before painting (removing a paper towel holder and switch plate from the wall and removing the door and hinges from the door frame adjacent to that section of wall), but it's definitely do-able this week.  Once the tool and pantry sections are done, the rest of the laundry room project should move along more quickly.

In addition to the laundry room project, we need to tend the garden.  The weeds weren't bad during the drought, but we've had several good rains now, and the crab grass, lamb's quarters, and their weedy companions have taken over in the garden beds.  I had hoped to plant seed for some fall crops, but I'm behind schedule.  At the minimum, I still plan to plant a few varieties of radishes and lettuce/spinach to continue a harvest through October.  The beans, which were stunted by the drought, have started to take off now and have flower buds!  I thought we'd have no beans this year, but God seems to have other plans.

Besides the physical jobs, we must prepare for a new homeschool year and I need to prepare for my fall classes with a new textbook.  We have three hectic weeks ahead of us in August, but with some delegating and a lot of prayer and trust in God, I know we can accomplish our goals. I'm looking forward to the new school year!

Where Are You?

And this, my friends, is why I hesitated to start a blog. I know it's been quite a while since my last post. You can only imagine how many posts are sitting in my head that I just haven't taken the time to write over the past week or so!

I won't make excuses, but let's just say it's been a bit busy in my world lately.

Check back over the next week, and I hope to have written on at least some of the following:

Yummy step-by-step recipe with squash, eggs, ricotta cheese, and kale.
Running with my daughter.
Preparing for a new homeschool year.
A recap of the ultra-marathon experience with my husband and our crew.

I am teaching a summer English composition course which ends this week, so I will be able to spend some time focusing on my writing instead of critiquing the writing of others once the research papers and final exams are graded.

Have a sweet and blessed day!