Summer Recap

We had an ambitious list of goals this summer and I will review each of them in terms of accomplishment......

• Learn to swim 

This was a goal for Austin and he is much more comfortable in the water.  Swimming on his own power, as a matter of fact.  I had ambitions to get him lessons at a local facility that has a salt water pool, but he and a neighbor boy with a pool became better friends this year and his sporadic trips to this boy's house when they were playing in the water increased his confidence and comfort in the water.  So proud of him that he accomplished that on his own!

• Harvest abundantly from our garden

Well, we have had success in our garden.  We fenced it off and that kept the little critters that voraciously eat my produce out (AKA ~ the bunnies).  We had some great successes (like the tomatillos that are almost ready to harvest) and some losses....the cauliflower that just didn't take and the broccoli that bolted to seed.  We enjoyed some super sweet kale, Austin's slicing tomatoes did well, our herbs were awesome (chamomile tea for the winter!!) and our cabbage and pumpkins are thriving.  Lots of peppermint for fresh tea (need to harvest for the winter) and the rosemary, sage, thyme, basil, marjoram, stevia, and oregano did well.  We had a feast for the birds with our anise hyssop.  We blessed some friends with milkweed, anise hyssop and Egyptian walking onion (which always does fantastic......you couldn't kill that plant if you tried).  I enjoyed the butterflies, birds and bees that often visited.  No monarchs this year, though.  The first year we have not had monarch caterpillars in the house, though we did harvest 13 eggs of a black swallowtail and enjoyed those.  I'll have to post on those later.  We kept a log of them and what a variation that nature has with those.....all were laid at the same time by the same butterfly.  Austin saw her and watched her as she laid and we brought them in.  

• Rehabilitate our dogs completely
• Ideally, to have Cesar come and visit us to help us with this task!

We have made great progress on this front, but still much to be desired.  Someone (a dog boy) urinated on the front of my stove.  Still can't trust them in the carpeted areas unsupervised, though they are better.  Tom needs a lot of physical activity that we can't give to him without a fence and without his cooperation on wheels (that is, one of us on a bicycle or roller blades).  And Jaxson has almost totally released his food aggression and outside the family people aggression/fear.  I am still thinking about a temporary home for them (separate ones) so we can move forward on some things and they could get the individual attention that they deserve.  That will be hard to find......

And Cesar Millan is not taking cases from America.  I know......I tried to contact him.....or his people.  Apparently he is in Europe helping to place previously unplaceable dogs with families in Italy, England and somewhere else.  He supposedly has a new facility in Spain and brings the families there to get training and a dog.  Something like that.  But if anyone knows Cesar or how to reach him, tell him to call me!!!  Still wishing for his help.

• Catch up on lessons from a really tough year (OK, a really tough couple of years......)

Still doing it.  Lack of support from key people in my boy's life are hindering him in the confidence area.  And the fact that his worth seems to be tied to various family members' approval of him and his "competence" significantly hinders things also.  But he has serious skills; he just needs to learn to apply them to all situations and that his worth is not tied to the performance of those skills.  I think the life lessons are so much more important than the academic lessons.  It is relatively easy to learn academic skills that are missed than it is to learn to craft a meaningful adult life when that was not integrated into your youthful life.  And I strongly feel that a child's life is meaningful.  We don't wait until we "grow up" to have a meaningful life.  We are all important and make a difference in this world.  Our spheres of influence are just different at different stages.

• Declutter and bless others with our extras

Some progress.  I wish I could bless others straightaway, but I've been having garage sales to augment the cash flow in the household.

• Play tennis

Didn't get to do it.

• Enjoy the summer

I must say I really enjoyed my summer.  I can't believe it is over.  It is not that I was rushing here and there to do everything.  I wasn't.  I took time to smell the roses (literally and figuratively).  I spent many a morning on the patio in the wee hours watching the sunrise and doing yoga.  Bliss for the moment....

My personal goals for the summer include:

• Being able to generate a full time income from home so we can continue to homeschool
• To book classes for the fall
• To get speaking engagements
• To finish my writing projects
• To create meditation audios
• To start online video classes
• To keep my blogs updated and useful for the people who use them

Oh, how much would life be easier if I had income rolling in.......

I did things this summer to move forward, but it is not enough.  I need to carve a steady rhythm out and not care what anyone else thinks so I can purposefully move forward and be able to steadily work on my plan and evaluate and revise it.  It is not easy raising a child by yourself with an insufficient support system, so I do need to cut myself some slack.  And once the threat of losing the house is gone (whether we are gone from here or I can work something out) and I am not living in limbo as I have for too many years to admit right here and right now, my mind will be clearer and I will be able to move forward without always being sidetracked.

• To be able to keep our home (long story)

Part of the story is above.  More at a later date.  

• Mercilessly declutter
• Especially the paperwork

Slacking in that arena.  Much still left to do, but I have some frameworks to use.  Need to get a better grasp on how my updated technology can help me without taking over my day or tempting my son to use media by always having this in front of him. 

• To get back some semblance of a routine so I can create balance in our home and so I can feel well again

Struggling, as I said, with the rhythm.  I feel that this is key and that once I have my rhythm down pat, things will move forward more effortlessly.  Not without work, but smoothly and able to handle the sidetracks the inevitably crop up.  

• To have fun every day with my boy

Need to do more on that front!  I am putting that ahead of all else.

• To plan our learning year ahead

I have most of it planned.  Need support to get supplies and books that are included.  It is nice to use the library books, and we use the library liberally (at times, I think I own part of it!), but Austin loves reading certain books and series that to have them would be a blessing.  

• To move forward with the personal difficulties I have had 

Moving forward too slowly, but going in the right direction.  I need a lawyer and am still working on the finances.  Things keep happening, like my brakes going out.  I tried to fix them myself, but the pins were so rusted in that I couldn't get them out even with a neighbor's help.  So the waiting continues.  Moving forward is healthy and I seriously need to move more quickly.  I've chosen who I need to help me, but, as I said, it is the finances that I need.  It's not much in the scheme of things; it's very reasonable, but I'm still struggling nonethelesss.  

Sounds daunting.  But it needs to be done.  Failure is not an option here.  Life lessons going on.  Especially for the mama.......

And as I said, failure is NOT an option here.  Just wish the progress was moving faster.  And it is daunting, but life just is, isn't it?  It's nothing to fear or dread or tolerate, it is something to embrace and find joy and learning in the challenges.  Life lessons going on here.  God is good.  And I am stronger than I ever thought I'd have to be.  Blessings to all on your own journeys and challenges!