It was really beautiful and inspiring. These two, they have been through so much together - married young, not having much money, war, four children, ups and downs, and so many years. And they made it work, and I am sure sometimes it was not as easy as they make it look. Such inspiration, for which I am so thankful!
I love this family!
Henry was so, so tired! He came for picture-duty and then went home with a sitter - he crashed in the car on the 5 minute drive home!
Amelia with her uncle Kent, who hung the moon in her eyes, and her Aunt Nicki, her sweet Godmother. Whenever I pine for Maine - which has been a LOT this hot, hot summer! - I think about how wonderful it is that my kids get to grow up with such great family nearby.
Sophia and her cousin Wilson - these two are joined at the hip and play so sweetly together. They will now be going to the same school (though different classes - Wilson is a year younger, so he'll be in Kindergarten) and are so excited about it.
There are hundreds and hundreds of pictures from last night, but I knew if I waited to review and edit them all, I would never get them posted. One of my favorites we took because my sister in law joked that every family should have a stuffy portrait around an old wingback chair!
Today, we visited a wonderful new church (not a new church, just new to us!) and school starts this week... I finally feel like we are on our way to moving forward from the sadness of losing our school/church. Really, I have been stuck in that sadness all summer and have dreaded finding a new church/starting a new school - like climbing up, up, up the ladder to a really scary water slide. I have had knots in my tummy and kept thinking about how I just want to go back DOWN where it's safe and normal.
This afternoon we had a church service with many of the families and staff from our old school, and it opened up a lot of the hurt again. Hearing Sophia sing all those songs, hearing the choir from the school reunited, I just felt once again everything that has been lost. I have that same pounding headache from crying too much that I had after the end-of-school service. Sophia asked me if her new school had a chapel, and we had a long talk about why her new school doesn't. But this afternoon's service was also healing, and I needed it before I could move forward. The first hymn today was the last hymn from that service in May - and it did feel like the wound was fresh again, but that bandaid needed to come off so the healing could really take place. And it did. The dread and the knots are gone.
I just know after this week I will be flying down that water slide, and the water will feel good - once we are IN the water and forced to stay afloat with back-to-school popsicle parties and packing lunches and homework and permission slips, my focus will shift back to my children, where it always should have been anways - seeing them learning and making new friends, it will heal those wounds. And finding a church that once again fills me with hope and not sadness, I know, every little thing's gonna be alright.
This afternoon we had a church service with many of the families and staff from our old school, and it opened up a lot of the hurt again. Hearing Sophia sing all those songs, hearing the choir from the school reunited, I just felt once again everything that has been lost. I have that same pounding headache from crying too much that I had after the end-of-school service. Sophia asked me if her new school had a chapel, and we had a long talk about why her new school doesn't. But this afternoon's service was also healing, and I needed it before I could move forward. The first hymn today was the last hymn from that service in May - and it did feel like the wound was fresh again, but that bandaid needed to come off so the healing could really take place. And it did. The dread and the knots are gone.
I just know after this week I will be flying down that water slide, and the water will feel good - once we are IN the water and forced to stay afloat with back-to-school popsicle parties and packing lunches and homework and permission slips, my focus will shift back to my children, where it always should have been anways - seeing them learning and making new friends, it will heal those wounds. And finding a church that once again fills me with hope and not sadness, I know, every little thing's gonna be alright.
1 comment:
All is well! Happy back to school!
Post a Comment