In All My Spare Time

All in all, as a homeschooling mom with a toddler, the only "me" time I get is between 11 PM and midnight (if I'm lucky), so I have to squeeze in the creative stuff wherever I can. It is easy enough to knit or crochet a few rows here and there while the kids do a worksheet or write spelling words. Sometimes it doesn't feel like much since I'm not working in a big chunk of time, but here's proof that it does add up.

A Reminder

There has been a lot going on inside my head during my blog hiatus. A major life change is that we discovered in November that Ethan (who just turned 7 this month) has Type 1 diabetes. The symptoms and diagnosis came seemingly out of nowhere. He was fine and then suddenly, over about 10 days, he wasn't. I am so thankful for the pediatric diabetes clinic at Vanderbilt; they do a fantastic job. Going from only getting a shot once every few years to getting 4 a day, plus at least 4 finger pricks...well, it was extremely stressful for all of us at first. Children are amazing, though, and Ethan is doing great.

All the stress made me choose to avoid blogging, I suppose. There have been many things I have wanted to say and didn't, sometimes for fear of what people might think. Then again, I suppose it's not a bad rule of thumb to err on the side of silence if you're not sure what you have to say really needs to be said in a public forum! But life goes on. Schoolwork still needs to be done, bills still need to be paid, knitting awaits.

Not too long ago, on a day when I was feeling overwhelmed and alone, I went out to run some errands. When I returned, I noticed something that hadn't been there when I left the house a few minutes earlier and I had to take a picture. I know it's just a leaf, but it was a beautiful and unexpected reminder that I am loved. Strangely, when I went back outside later that day, it was gone.

I Miss You

Dear Blog,

It's been a long time. We've hardly spoken. It's not you...it's me. Really. Can we put it all behind us and try again?

Love,
Julie