Jon has been on break from school for a week and a half and it has been awesome--except for us getting a little cold. It interfered with my (long) honey do list.
We have had some fun family times eating lunch on the front porch, going to the Y to swim one afternoon, and playing together as a family. Jon and I have had lots of much needed conversations that we didn't know we needed to have. We have been playing cards over lunch after all the kids are down for naps. Nothing like a good game of cards to reconnect, apparently.
Sadly, I don't think our honey do list will be completed by the end of this week but a good portion of projects will be finished. We have discovered that one project often leads to MANY other projects which is really annoying. It is tempting to start on 5 other projects related to the original which then makes you not ever complete the original. Here is a funny post relating to that concept from another blog that I love to read. It has taken Jon all year to hang up the curtain rods in our bedroom and the boys bedroom so I know that whatever is left unfinished or not started won't be completed for a LONG time. I don't want him to look like a bad guy--it isn't that he WON'T finish the projects but we have a value that on the weekends we like to hang out together as a family and projects take a backseat. Now that the boys are a little older, the weather is conducive to being outside, and the boys are content to play outside while projects are being done nearby, I think it is possible to get stuff done.
We are repainting the front porch (floor, inside and outside trim, railings, porch swing, ceiling) and thankfully the boys have been happy to play outside while daddy works on the porch. No major paint spills or injuries have taken place. We did have a scary run in with the possibility of lead paint. The ceiling really needs to be stripped and scraped before being repainted. Jon started scraping and we noticed that there were about 6 layers of paint under what was on top. I wondered aloud if there might be lead paint underneath as I watch paint dust and chips falling on the floor of the porch that we all walk in and out of 20 times a day. I happened to have a little lead paint testing kit and the results were a little ambiguous but a part of the paint turned pink which means that dangerous levels of lead are around. I was trying not to freak out that a pile of poison was scattered all over the porch and figuring out how to clean it up safely without letting lead dust get in the grass and dirt around the house. All I could think of was how we could track it in the house and then Graham would ingest lead paint dust from the floor and become mentally retarded from some stupid house project.
Needless to say we abandoned scraping the ceiling and are just going to repaint over what is there. It does make it an easier project for Jon. And when mommy isn't freaking out about the possibility of her children getting poisoned by paint then everyone is much happier. Living in a house that is sure to have lead paint in it somewhere is a faith stretch but I have to trust that God called us to live here and will protect us and give us wisdom when we need it.
Our two weeks of Saturdays will end when Jon starts Hebrew Exegesis on Monday for two weeks. Then right after that class is over he starts Greek which lasts all summer. Even though he is in classes all summer they aren't paper writing classes which means that life will not feel so crunched and Jon will have more free time than normal because he won't have to be reading and staying up late finishing papers.
We have been warned by many that Greek is so hard and that if you are married to someone taking Greek then you are basically a single parent for the whole summer. Um, that isn't intimidating in the LEAST....not! We are trying to be optimistic that Jon will do fine with it since he loves learning languages (although, what doesn't Jon like to learn?) and he did fine with Hebrew last summer. I am praying that it comes easily to him because I don't want him to be stressed all summer and selfishly, I don't want to be a single parent all summer because he has to study all day and night.
So, I heart school breaks and I am going to spend every minute I can enjoying warmer weather and sunny days (when we have them).
I'm a Texan born woman transplanted across the ocean to live in England with my husband and four boys. Aside from being a stay-at-home mom, I teach birth classes for couples who want to birth naturally. My blog is about my life and how I stay sane through it all.
5 comments:
Jon will do fantastic in Greek. I know it.
Enjoy your vacation time together! I'm in the midst of finals!!!
i know jon will do fine, esp. since greek isn't that hard; however, it's a lot of work, especially during the summer. Some people who have taken greek and hebrew say that greek is significantly harder. i'd be prepared to give him that space to do all that memorization. He'll do splendidly and may not find it as hard as his peers, but it can take up some time!
Here's to Greek learning! May the learning of it come very easily and may you not have to ever feel like a "single mom"
You're right about Jon loving to learn ANYTHING, but languages are especially fun for him and he already knows some Greek (unlike his mom who only knows the alphabet because of Calculus classes). Sorry break was so short....I think the thing about the curtain rods is hereditary. I still don't have curtain rods in the family room and it's 10 years this year.....Maybe he's holding out for not having to do them at all!
Love you all -- looking forward to Torrance!!!
I completely understand your love of school breaks. I feel the same way when Rob is on break in between his seminary classes. Since he works during the weeks, he takes seminary classes on the weekends. Studying happens in his "free" time. So, time together as a couple and as a family is precious when it does happen. You are right to savor every minute of it! Enjoy!
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