Teamwork and posting issues

Well, two times now during the past ten days I have been thwarted in my posting because I tried to blog with photos and some string thingy came up "null" and I lost it all when I went to publish. Apologies to any and all for my unwillingness to troubleshoot... I need Papa Bear and that hasn't been possible thus far (esp. now that I know it is not a fluke).

But I can still type (I think - if you are able to read this then I will have been able to post!) so today (just now, which is why I have a moment to post while they finish) my little still-5-yr-old Vivace read Constance's words to her and she spelled them back to her. These are words like shrink, shrank, shrunk, shriek, squish, squash, though, threw, through.... you get the idea. I was a bit floored (she had asked me to help her and I was cleaning the fish tank so he offered). Granted he was trying to read something too difficult to me while I was working and had just given up, but I was nonetheless impressed, and love the team effort to do her studying. Bravo to them both :-) What fun to watch and enjoy them working together.

NB - My beloved helped at least begin troubleshooting this evening AND we discovered that while the pictures never uploaded, blogger DID save my work as a draft from my posting attempts, and so I was able to recreate at least the one (real not a test) post from 11/18. Yay! And BTW, those snapdragons and mums (and the grass) are still growing. I think the geraniums finally died and we took them down, but I'm wondering if they're still alive in the pots we put under the back porch.... Very strange weather we've been having, and tomorrow it's December. Maybe we won't have winter this year? Hmmm. Fat chance.

November Blooms

These flowers were actually cut on 11/11/11.

What's amazing is that they were BLOOMING actively in my garden up until that date.

What's just as amazing is that the plants they were cut from are STILL growing, and still blooming, a week later (that's 11/18/11, craziness...).

Note the pictures below. You can see the mums and snapdragons to the left of the front steps.

The miniature trailing geranium is in the planter to the right of the steps (it has had better days, but it is still alive and blooming technically).

The strangest thing is that my geraniums look terrible because I stopped watering them in September like I always do, expecting them to die any day due to the frost.


But they're still alive (despite my neglect) and yes, that is a fresh bloom you see. There are others just about ready to bloom.

I took pity on them and watered them a few days ago and took off a few dead leaves but I'm not sure why, since it's now almost Thanksgiving and they're already "past dead" - at least in a normal VT November. They really shouldn't be here.

But as I remember my special trip to visit a Lucette last November (and whom I saw on this date one year ago for the first time in over 10 years!) I will also remember that she loved red geraniums even more than I do and she is why I purchase them to enjoy every year all summer long. Thanks Lulu for teaching me to love them so!

Happy weird November. I think it will get cold FAST, and SOON.... but I've been saying that for a couple weeks. It's going to be a tough winter when it does come. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy my flowers while I can!

A visit to remember

One year ago today.... how quickly time flies.

Re-Reading

I was rereading older posts, like this one from last December. Sometimes they make you laugh (this one did) or cry, or just think. Do read my comment on that one :-). But anyway, I was rereading because it's just a year ago that I took Patience and traveled over the Great Atlantic to visit my host mom in Switzerland. What a great trip - and how much work it was to leave the rest of the family here and manage it all. How wonderful that we were able to go, and how blessed I feel that God kept her well-enough that we could enjoy much time together. As we close in upon Thanksgiving next week, I am thinking frequently of that trip last year and how special a Thanksgiving it was indeed.

Apples

I love apples.

I love the smell of apples.

I love cooking with apples.

I love the way they look on the trees.

I love the blossoms in the spring.

I love picking apples.

I love the way apples crunch when you bite into them.

I love to drink fresh apple cider.

I love to watch it being made.

Note I do NOT like apple juice (and it does not agree with me).

I like my own homemade PINK applesauce. Plain, nothing added. Warm (hot), right from the pot.

Note I really don't like any other applesauce. I might eat it. I might not. It does nothing for me.

I like apple pie.

I like dried apple rings and dried apple chips. My parents even got me a professional grade dehydrator a couple Christmas' ago so I could make these (and much more) efficiently.

On Wednesday, all by myself, I picked a bushel of apples off the trees in an orchard near us, and picked up two bushels of drops. It took me just over an hour, and I got them for a song ($6.50 a bushel - for a visual of how much this is, that's six paper bags FULL of apples). It was a delightful time alone working outside. This is really good for me. :-) And it was definitely work (stretching, bending, walking, pulling....). Fun.

My house and car (my "apple" refrigerator) smell like apples.

As I'm running errands in the car, I put the ones from the trees in the front seat of the van and I keep eating them. Delicious. At this rate I'll be keeping the doctor away for months.

Thus far (in two days), I've made four batches of apple butter (I use the slow cooker to reduce it and like I said, the house smells amazing) and I have no idea how many batches of applesauce. I've used three of the bags of drops and washed the fourth. I'll finish that bag tomorrow if I have time. It's wonderful to be able to set all this aside for the coming year at such a good price, and even though it's tiring, it's work I (mostly) enjoy (though I did just have to run to the kitchen to stir this last batch of sauce as it's cooking.... I'm on a time limit here typing...)

I also have such helpful and appreciative kids. They like apples just as much as I do. They've helped when they've been around w/washing up jars, apples, and the like, and carrying things up and down stairs and more.

We'll be doing apple butter for the teachers gifts at Christmas, and we all enjoyed my mom's oatmeal apple crisp for dessert tonight (no wonder the house smells so good).

So for anyone who likes apples, here's the place to be. Please come visit and keep me company in the kitchen these next few days while I finish setting them aside. And if you're lucky, we'll not only enjoy some time together, but you'll enjoy a tasty apple treat too!

October Nor'easter Ramblings

So glad this latest storm missed us. We didn't really even get a dusting. Southern New England is a mess (except for where it was too warm to snow - they just got rain, mostly coastal areas). My folks were out of power for two days and my mom has some stories, like the half-baked pie she wanted to finish cooking when the power went back on, so she stuck the pie (still warm from the oven), in the fridge to cool (remember, no power). Oops.

I've read comments from folks battered by storm after storm this year, like "Mother Nature must be trying to tell us something". They're right - only "she" has a name; it's God. Maybe he does have something to say (like give him credit where credit is due? Hmm...).

These storms can bring out the worst - and they can bring out the best. Sometimes it's how you respond that makes all the difference. Our society is becoming so selfish - every man for himself. These events shine a light on that - abundantly! But they also force us - even if unwillingly - to recognize our dependence on others, and ultimately on God. At least that's how I understand it.

It's kind of like my daughter's diabetes. Same lesson, different circumstances. We can fight it, or we can use it to learn and grow and discover the God who made her this way. Will we ever know why? I don't think that's the right question. I think the question is one of submission - of "What now, Lord?" Submission to God's will AND to His grace. To look for Him in the midst of it. To suffer the literal hi's and lo's of blood sugar roller coasters and to wonder at the intricacies of the human body (nature), the amazing design of the pancreas (and the weather), and marvel at how we try to understand and manage it (insulin pumps, weather devices...) and how fantastic it is what we can do (praise God!) and yet how far short it falls from his perfection and control (again, we are fearfully and wonderfully made!).

We so learn the value of grace, of trust, and of love in it all. It draws us closer to him. It amazes me that these trials, storms, and circumstances - even the nor'easters of life, both real and figurative - keep us looking to Him, depending on Him, and ultimately in growing our faith in Him. He is bigger than it all. He really is. And while broken trees, loss of power and life, and messed up pancreases give me grief and often reduce me to tears, whether from helplessness or from empathy or whatever, I find myself thankful in it all, and full of wonder that He should take an interest in any of us, especially me. What wonder it all is.

...and a funeral

Yesterday I commented on the "Three weddings..." Today it's just a brief note to add "... and a funeral". Sounds like a movie title. But that's the past four weeks in a nutshell: three weddings and a funeral. I couldn't go to the funeral. But four weeks ago - is it possible it's been so long? - my host mom died. I wish I could have found time today to call Switzerland again. I've called a couple times. It's not easy with the time difference, and it's sometimes hard to know what to say. But I miss Lucette and I am mindful of the grief of my host family. I always will miss her. I imagine it will get easier of course when I do think of her. I still think of her almost daily. I am noticing already that now that she isn't there to call, to write to, to buy little gifts or postcards for, I don't think of her quite as often as I did when she was still alive. That in and of itself is taking getting used to. I wish I did think of her as often as when she was alive. I think my mom would say this is part of the grieving process - the letting go. I expect she'll write on this blog to say "amen". (Thanks mom).

Three weddings...

This afternoon, my beloved attended his third wedding in almost as many weeks - and he's attended as many rehearsals to boot!

Four weeks ago, a dear friend was married. We all attended that one, as she is a neighbor, a sister in Christ, as well as a beloved friend. Her son is a just a few weeks younger than our Andante. We've known her since before he was born and remember meeting him in his first few days - what a blessing that day was. We also know and are friends with the groom and have delighted to see God bring them together, and to give her son a father. Papa Bear was their photographer. It was a sweet gift and a privilege for us to be a part of their day.

Then, two weeks ago, one of my beloved's younger brothers was married. You can see all our commentary on that in a previous post, but needless to say, it was a special day and my husband played his part well.

Today, we got him all dressed up again and made sure he had the car. The kids implored me, "Do we have to go to another wedding?" While I would have enjoyed going, it was time to give them a break. This time it is the daughter of some of our friends, and my beloved is, again, the photographer. We both know the daughter, but the kids don't, hence the decision. But there went my handsome groom, off again. What a privilege to be able to do something so special for people as to capture their "once in a lifetime" event (Lord willing). So we share him gladly, and look forward to hearing about the time, seeing the dress, and asking a zillion and one questions about it all when he comes home (more likely in a couple days after he's downloaded the camera and rested his poor feet).

That said, this is - hopefully - the last wedding for a while. We will be glad to have our weekends, and our Papa Bear back with us. We knew this fall would be busy what with these commitments, and soccer, and the other regular things that make it busy, but I can't think of many happier reasons to be so busy.

Apples apples apples....

I love fall, and I love my four little apples. We went apple picking one afternoon last week and it took us about 10 minutes to pick a bushel of apples off two trees. And we barely made a dent! Since then, we've eaten tons of apples (yum) and dried tons more. Delicious. Soon we'll go back and get piles of drops to make applesauce and apple butter, which we can to last 'til next fall. They are definitely our favorite fruit!

Marriage . . . that blessed event

We took tons of pictures - and have no time to cull and edit them at this point. However, it's good to take a moment and pick a few to share right away, hence this post. There were so many wonderful memories of this special day - before, during, and after. All the photos capture but a brief glimpse...

Congratulations to the happy couple! Thank you for including us in so many ways. We look forward to seeing how God continues to grow each of you into His own image, now through your marriage. May what He brought together never be broken asunder! And may we, as your family both by blood and in Christ, do all we can to encourage you to seek Him first, to live graciously with each other through faith in Him, to both repent and forgive quickly when you sin against each other, and to represent Him to the world wherever He may lead you!

Irene's Wake

This is a synopsis printed in our local paper today (10/9/11) of Irene's impact to our roads, statewide. And as complete as it appears, they say the local impact is much greater than what is depicted here. Note that this doesn't begin to count the cost of reconstruction (only guesstimating that of labor on the state roads - so far), nor of the impact of all this infrastructure having been missing. Note too that Irene came through six weeks ago.

A look at the damage Irene caused to Vermont's roads and bridges

Irene's damage - state

• STATE ROADS CLOSED POST-STORM: 146

• STATE ROADS REOPENED AS OF LAST WEEK: 140 (27 with some restrictions)

• STATE ROADS THAT REMAIN CLOSED: Vermont 107 in Stockbridge, Vermont 107 in Bethel, Vermont 131 in Cavendish, Vermont 106 in Weathersfield, Vermont 100 in Jamaica and Vermont 12A in Roxbury.

• STATE BRIDGES CLOSED POST-STORM: 34

• STATE BRIDGES REOPENED AS OF LAST WEEK: 28 (three with some restrictions).

• STATE BRIDGES STILL CLOSED AS OF LAST WEEK: Vermont 100 in Readsboro, Vermont 73 in Barnard, Vermont 73 in Rochester, Vermont 100 in Jamaican and two bridges on Vermont 12A in Roxbury.

• MILES OF STATE ROAD CLOSED POST-STORM: 531.77

• MILES OF STATE ROAD REOPENED AS OF LAST WEEK: 518.76

• STATE TRANSPORTATION WORKERS ASSIGNED TO STORM RESPONSE: 700

• OUTSIDE HELP: 349 from Maine Department of Transportation; 20 from New Hampshire Department of Transportation; 667 from six states’ National Guard units, 1,860 from 185 private contractors.

• AGENCY OF TRANSPORTATION OVERTIME: 55,000 hours for a total cost of $1.8 million.

Source: State Agency of Transportation

Irene's damage - local

• LOCAL ROAD SEGMENTS DAMAGED IN STORM: 2,260

• LOCAL ROAD SEGMENTS CLOSED AS OF LAST WEEK: 175

• LOCAL ROAD SEGMENTS OPEN ONLY TO EMERGENCY TRAFFIC: 33

• LOCAL BRIDGES DAMAGED IN STORM: 289

• LOCAL BRIDGES CLOSED AS OF LAST WEEK: 90

• LOCAL BRIDGES OPEN TO EMERGENCY-ONLY TRAFFIC: 6

Source: Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission

What roads are still closed

Agency of Transportation Secretary Brian Searles said the longest-lingering projects to reopen roads closed by Tropical Storm Irene are:

• VERMONT 107 between Bethel and Stockbridge, which has two separate washouts where the White River rerouted itself. The road is expected to be open by Thanksgiving.

• VERMONT 106 in Weathersfield, which is likely to be done in December.

• VERMONT 131 in Cavendish, where Irene opened a canyon. It should be open by Thanksgiving, possibly earlier.

• VERMONT 12A in Roxbury, where two bridges and a section of road are washed out. The bridge repairs will be permanent rather than temporary and are expected to be done by Dec. 15.

Other work to reopen state roads is expected to be done by the end of October, Searles said.

A long couple weeks

My posts have been slow at best. Life has been moving at lightning speed, and full to overflowing. Honestly, the "fullness" hasn't been what's been hard; what's been hard have been the "overflowing" emotions.

Hurricane (aka Tropical Storm) Irene hit the state hard. While she failed to bring the anticipated rain to our particular region, she deluged the state as a whole, and emotionally I have struggled with the suffering felt by my fellow Vermonters. Many I know suffered job dislocation due to flooding, or business impact (destroyed workplace etc). Our infrastructure has been impacted, and it's affected much both directly and indirectly. It will take years to recover. While I know God is good and sovereign, I have had to work through my place in all this - how to process it, how to respond, etc.

School began, a busyness in and of itself, and there's always a lot of adjusting to do, between managing Patience's diabetes and setting everything in place for her at school, establishing everyone's basic routines, scheduling activities, a lot of "start-up" meetings to get the school year going. Multiply that by four. Deal with character issues as they arise. And fatigue. And growing - and seasonal changes - and thus clothes.... Always clothes to deal with, be it too small, too big, too cold, too hot, or too dirty. And the garden and groceries and so on and so forth...

And then the activities themselves: soccer, music lessons and practices, church activities...

And retreats, doctors appointments, ministry involvements, PTO involvement and so on and so forth.

And weddings (3 in 4 weeks - one down, two to go!)

And my host mother's death.

And the emotions. I'm tired. I'm concerned. I'm not "settling in" as quickly this year as prior years. I'm torn in my priorities. I'm wondering where God wants to use me. I'm happy. I'm sad. I'm grieving. I'm rejoicing. I'm busy. There are things that must be done. There are people who need me NOW. There are people who need me - and I can't keep putting them off. And the stuff must get done. Etc. For moments, things are clear, and then not so clear again. And then something will happen (like the vacuum breaking - still don't know where that's at and the house is not cleaning itself in the mean time) and the emotions will overflow. I'm going to need lots of tissues at this upcoming wedding because the joy and happiness will make me remember my host mom coming to my wedding which will remind me that she's dead and I'll cry again. I came close to crying cutting bread last night at dinner, because it was she who taught me how to properly slice bread for a meal ( THICK so you can taste it!). It's amazing how my emotions run in waves and have done so all month.

It's been a good month, really, somehow. But God is keeping me on my toes, depending on him. And if this is the new normal (this busyness), it's going to take me a while to adjust it would seem. But I am managing, day by day, to do what needs to be done. And somehow, I am not leaving a complete disaster (emotionally and relationally) in my wake. This is good, and this is progress. I am glad for that evidence that He is working in my life over the days weeks and years.

That's why I haven't written much. You see, between sprained ankles, falls on the ice skating, dodging the rain while attempting to clean out the garden by this weekend, earthquakes, hurricanes, meetings that last 3x the planned length, phone calls overseas, and bobbing and weaving a 1000 more things that I didn't expect, words have just not been there.

But they will come. This is a step, again, towards "speaking". And it's definitely a bit "eclectic".

I know the primary readers of this are family members, most of whom we'll see in just a few days at a very exciting and much-anticipated event. Between now and then I need to do laundry, juggle school, wrap a gift, put away the harvest, and somewhere find time to call Switzerland and write a bunch of cards. Pray for me to keep perspective, keep putting one foot in front of the other, and do, please, even if it makes me cry, ask me how I'm doing, and about my host mom. I need to take the time to keep finding those words..... and I also need some sleep.

Sad news

A week ago, I was notified of the death of my beloved host mother, Lucette Rupp. She spent much of the last years of her life fighting and recovering from illness. She was a spunky lady, full of life and love for those around her, and I will miss her tremendously.

Click here to see the obituary (in French)

Back to the Rink

Today was our first day back at the rink this fall (it just opened late last week). Vivace and I had the place to ourselves - all of it. Fresh ice, one hour, two dollars... we had a blast. I do so enjoy it, though it will take me a couple weeks to get my "ice legs" back. We are looking forward to this time together once a week from now until April!

Soccer for Two

Two of our kids wanted to play soccer this fall. Vivace and Constance are both signed up for the six-week rec league. It's fun, and both are on teams with good friends (two different teams, playing back to back times), which is a nice thing. So far, the weather has been fantastic. We are looking forward to enjoying lots more fresh air watching them run around after a ball - really it's quite fun, at least for me!

First day of school Fall 2011

Off to school again - this time everyone goes!
Wow how time flies.

Flooding on the Winooski - part 2

Here are some pictures of the local farm stand, August 29 after the remnants of Hurricane Irene blew through VT. It was the highest they have EVER seen the river rise. The fence was in the water! Just click on the pictures to see a larger version. The water was still rising and topped out just shy of the bottom of the gray "roof" of the stand.
And yes, those are fields - fields full of herbs, flowers, and many, many crops. Our farmer had to throw out $70,000 worth of contaminated produce, not to mention the damage to the stand and its contents. They raised everything to shelves about 4' high, having never seen anything like this before, never dreaming that wouldn't be high enough. The water was at least twice that high.

Locally, we saw little damage except a few branches down here or there - with the exception of the Winooski rising to completely unexpected heights. As you can see, there's some "drowned corn".

Upriver, not too far away, it was a different story, with the same record heights deluging the main streets by feet of water, and debris everywhere. Our state is a mess and these pictures are about some lost crops, not about destroyed roads, bridges, homes, and infrastructure. I cannot even think of trying to share that story - only that my heart aches for the loss sustained by my fellow Vermonters.

Summer Memories

As the summer winds down, we remain plenty active, indoors and out-of-doors.

Vivace got to go to his first official "Awana Cook-out". He had a great time playing in the creek, doing the zip-line many times (even standing up!) , roasting marshmallows and making s'mores over the bonfire, and much more. It is strange to think he's old enough to be a Sparkie, but seeing as he adds tons of spark to our rather dull lives, it will be a great fit for him.


Andante really enjoyed swim lessons this summer and took them three times (thank you Papa Bear!). He worked his way through level 5 in the first two full-length classes (one in June, the 2nd in August), and in the short 5-day session last week, he knocked on the door of mastering level 6 as well. Truly I must say he is a delight to watch swim; his little body is developing some real muscles and his strokes are really improving, so watching him do laps is actually quite enjoyable (I know, I am really easily entertained). Patience and I were both admiring his strength and speed a couple days ago.

I delight to see my slow, steady child developing some real interest in things - like Harry Potter books, swimming, and baseball. He's always been so non-commital and rather uncertain about what he likes. This pursuit of swimming speaks volumes to me about his growing maturity. We're hoping he will be able to join the village swim team next summer and that it will help refine his technique. Stay tuned for more info next summer!



Speaking of Harry Potter, Dante is almost done with book 6. I am requiring him to read each book twice before getting the next book. He is reading a lot this past week, hoping to get thru it at least once before school begins. He says it's his favorite! All of the kids have read a lot this summer and I actually got a cool picture of each of them reading in their own spot one recent afternoon - it was after the fact that I realized even Dante was in the photo!

Picnics are a staple of our summer, especially at the park before or after swimming or playing. Here we are with our cousins who visited for a week earlier in August. We had a nice time with them and are so glad they no longer live 2000 miles away (now we can see them more often!).

Swimming, playing, and reading pretty much sum up what we do all summer. Better go do some more while we still have time before school starts!

Rainbows

I love rainbows.

Not sure who doesn't like them.

Several nights ago, we were treated to a double rainbow, both full bows, and the brighter one had multiple iterations of the colors.

It was a pretty amazing sight to behold - and merited interrupting bedtime among other things. (Note we're out there in slippers and socks!)

New digs

Well, for the 2nd summer in a row, we have rearranged furniture rather significantly. I am pleased that it was easier for me this time around (I'm learning! Thank you Lord!).

The bunk beds got moved from this room (which used to be the "older kids'" room and is now the girls' room) to the (much) smaller room (which used to be the "little kids'" room and which is now the boys' room). That left us with the toddler bed dismantled and in our dining room and the twin bed here in the bigger room but nowhere for the 4th child to sleep (we used an air mattress for about a month).

The needed items have been purchased, assembled, and now put to use. Patience has "her" bed back (it's been years since she slept on this bed, purchased for her when Dante was an infant so he could have the crib). Constance is thrilled with her loft. And while it may not seem spacious, the room is actually quite nice, with plenty of floor space and room for their things. We're still getting things set up and arranged (toys and books don't quite have homes yet, lamps and cords are not quite in place, etc - though I think we've completed the shopping for the most part), but it's all coming together. They wanted me to show "everyone" (that's you) their room so here they are to show you! Don't they look happy?!

Grandpa's Conference

Every August, the kids love to attend breakfast and the exhibitors' booths with Grandpa when he comes to town for the annual VCIA conference. Not only is it a fun time with the grandparents during the days before and after the event (more on that in another post), they enjoy getting dressed up, eating the food (this year's highlights were bacon, hard-boiled eggs, and fruit smoothies), dropping Grandpa's business cards in all the fishbowls hoping to win Wiis and Ipods and Kindles, and collecting cool "junk" like felt computer screen cleaners, measuring tape keyrings, highlighters, and foam fish. They like the "Bermuda" bags best (I'm with them on that one) and we have amassed a collection of colors over the years.

This may well be the last time for our annual treat with Grandpa, as my Dad sold his company at the end of June. He's with the new company (the one who bought his) for at least the next few years until he officially retires (nevermind that he's way past retirement age already). As he puts it, when you own your own candy store, you can make decisions you want to even if it doesn't make fiscal sense. Translation: when you own the company, you can choose to go to the conference because you enjoy it and get to see the grandkids, but when it's not yours, well.... let's just say this may well be the last year he attends.

I'm not sure how many years we've come to this with him, but it's been a good many, and the kids look forward to "Grandpa's Conference" a lot. They've more or less grown up with it, and have tons of memories. Many of the exhibitors comment on them and how they've grown each year. One time a number of years ago, the older two even met and chatted with the governor (then Douglas). It's fun. So, this year, we enjoyed ourselves and said our "good-byes" just in case it's the last one. Thanks Grandpa for bringing us!

A visit with Honest Abe

Towards the end of the school year, Andante's teacher assigned a fun, several-week long biography project that culminated the week before school let out for the summer. Each student selected an historical figure to learn about and present to their class. They had to choose an appropriate level biography to read and then give a 10-minute presentation in character to the class, including costume and artifacts. It was one of Patience's favorite assignments a few years ago, and we understand the purpose behind the assignment well. Dante remembered it and thought it would be fun to do and got into it right away. However, our dear second-born found this assignment a bit daunting, perfectionist that he is. To summarize, he chose a book he really liked and stuck to it tenaciously despite how difficult it was to work with (no index, no table of contents, and over two hundred pages). He was behind from the get-go, and truly was in way over his head most of the way. So much for "fun" and "appropriate level." Balancing his homework and research with baseball and simply getting through the last few weeks of school was a tearful and stretching process, and this assignment sent him into a tailspin.

We stood by him, engaging with him at every step, and worked to help him learn to address his struggles, his challenges, his desires, and his stubbornness. It was difficult to know when and how to help without doing the work for him. We succeeded, as did he. It was a very hard time, but one full of great fruit in character, relationship, and learning as well. My shy child was anything but intimidated when he stood up on his "stump" and gave his speech. I helped him by typing up his notes in bullet format so he could read them and so that he didn't lose his place during his talk, and the content and the order were all dictated by him (and he had very VERY strong opinions about what he wanted to do and how!). He was creative and thorough, but did a good job deciding what to and not to share with his class. He fielded questions, in character, with poise and confidence. He maintained eye contact throughout his speech, he did not hurry or lose his spot, he knew his material, and I was incredibly (incredibly) proud. I think we were also greatly relieved when it was done. Bravo to our slow and steady boy! You did it!

Summer has begun

You have to love summer in Vermont. We do for sure. So far we've enjoyed swimming (including lessons), strawberry picking, several teeth falling out (note the obsession with pointing to the empty space in Constance's case), board and card games, and cooking with fresh fruits and veggies from the garden or the CSA.


We've tried out the new fondue pot (a broth fondue and a chocolate fondue so far), made homemade jam (Berry Cherry and Blubarb), and even made our first strawberry rhubarb pie (complete with homemade crust!).


Dante was proud of that especially and Patience and Papa Bear are begging us to make another one. We have had two birthdays, enjoyed fireworks, s'mores, the youth retreat, dinners out, and special visitors. What gifts each of these things is to us!

America

Some 25+ years ago in July, I left my country to be an exchange student in Geneva, Switzerland. This changed my life in a thousand ways - all for the better. I have befriended online the grown daughter of an acquaintance from years ago who is just completing a stint in that same place. She has reminded me of so much of what I love about Europe, and especially Geneva. That said, her words this morning describing "being American" and her love of her country resounded so vividly to me as I read them, because they are the words for the very sentiments I discovered during my time abroad, and which I still have today, so many years later. It's very similar to the way one understands "There's no place like home" when one goes away, or in the way that I discovered, after all my moving around growing up, that I was actually, in truth, "an Easterner" (and New Englander more particularly), after living in California. I couldn't get away from it, and I didn't want to - it was me. Not better, just very much who I am!

The truth is, I love the whole of the United States now in a way I could never have experienced if I had not left her for this year and a half. Eleven days ago on July 4th, I connected to the celebration of my country in a way I've never felt before. In the past, I always enjoyed the fireworks, but that's about it. I didn't have a strong sense of belonging anywhere, so naturally I couldn't connect to this celebration on a deeper level. Spending a year away has granted me the gift of "belonging." Some people leave the country of their birth and find belonging in another country. Much like the spirit of adoption, they are grafted in and a new country becomes their true home. On the other hand, the majority of us will always belong in the country of our birth, whether we're given the gift of appreciating it or not.

I've received the gift. In five weeks I'll be stepping off a plane in the United States, this time to stay. I've always thought it was super silly when people get off a plane and kiss the ground, but now I understand. The asphalt will be hot enough to fry eggs in August, so I think I'll still pass, but I finally understand the sentiment.

I still have no idea to which state I belong. I used to think it was Virginia, but now I'm not so sure. What I do know is that I belong in the United States of America and it's the most wonderful feeling.

America is not better than all the other countries. There are many other countries which deserve equal respect. To say America is the best would be like saying "my family is better than your family." I never want to have that attitude. Nonetheless, America is an amazing country, one to be proud of and worth fighting to protect. Whatever America may experience in the coming years, for better or for worse, I want to be there to experience it with her.

First Piano Lesson

Dear little Constance had her first piano lesson last Tuesday with our beloved piano teacher. It is so delightful to watch her learn new things, and she is ready for this new endeavor. Music is one of her loves. She'll have a handful of lessons over the course of the summer, enough to get her comfortable with the keyboard and practicing daily so that it's familiar come fall.