August somehow passed both incredibly slowly and in a flash. I’m still reeling from all that’s happened, and still hardly believe September is around the corner.

Regarding Jake’s job news, we’re still waiting on some last minute things, but his start date is hopefully in early September. We continue to ask your prayers! Thanks for being along for the ride with us. It’s been a very interesting season: so much unknown, so much “hurry up and wait”. It’s been an emotional and spiritual workout, learning to embrace the discomfort of this transitional season. We’re exhausted, yet also restless. But God is good — so, so good — and continues to show us His love through our communal and church support.

When Jake begins his job in September, it’s going to be a big shift for our family. We’ve loved having him home with us all the time, despite the circumstances that led to it. With this new job, he will be doing a lot more travel. I’m very grateful I have such a fantastic family and community — their help will make the transition much easier for us. But, to prepare for the inevitable routine disruption Jake being gone will cause for the kids, I’ve been working on developing rhythms that can carry us through it. For the daily rhythms: morning prayers, read aloud snuggles on our bed, music time, and walks and outdoor time when weather permits. For the weekly rhythms: special crafts and recipes, scheduled play dates, and library and museum visits.

Speaking of rhythms and routine, Michael has been begging to “do school”, so I’ve been putting together a very low-key preschool plan for him, cobbling together my favorite bits of different curriculum I have. We had a fun mom-and-son day out to get some supplies, like a pencil box and decorations, and he loved covering it with the stickers he picked out (and I made one for Beatrice too, so she wouldn’t feel left out).

We had our “first day” recently, which wasn’t as chaotic as I feared. Beatrice was incredibly clingy (of course), but we still managed to do prayers, recitations, fine motor skills practice, and number/letter practice throughout the morning. And only a little blood was shed! (He got my finger during scissor practice by mistake as I was helping adjust his grip). Also, he insisted on calling me “Teacher Mama”, which both melted my heart and made me laugh.

I’m not taking a super structured approach — just trying to follow his interests and foster a love of learning. It’ll be a perfect addition to our bimonthly Orthodox homeschool co-op.

Beatrice’s language skills have exploded: she quite clearly asks for what she wants, whether it’s a banana, her pacifier, a baby doll, a hat, or one of her other favorite things. She does still resort to an earsplitting shriek when she feels we aren’t listening — I admit, I’m looking forward to her outgrowing that. She has developed a tendency to look straight at you and say “bye bye” when you’re doing something she doesn’t like, or when you’re trying to stop her from doing something she wants to do.

She and Michael continue to be both the best of friends and the worst of enemies. They play together very well for short periods of time, and they often snuggle/hug/kiss each other out of the blue. It’s quite adorable to watch and makes my mama heart full. Don’t let the pictures fool you, though: we deal with our fair share of screaming/sibling spats.

Mid month, we took a day trip to the mountains with my cousins and family and played in and along the lake. Michael had his first fishing experience and was very excited about it even though they didn’t catch anything. Both kids adored playing in the water and on the boat. It was a beautiful, marvelous time.

My brother was able to come too, and we had a lot of fun watching him and my cousins wake-surf. Michael and Bea both loved bobbing in the lake with their life jackets too. That was my favorite part, personally — swimming in the lake at sunset.

I relocated my huge pothos plant from our bedroom to the living room, and entwined it around our gallery wall. It definitely prefers the sunshine it’s getting in our living room. This plant is so dear to me: I bought it when Jake and I moved into our first apartment six and a half years ago.

In making news, I finally finished piecing the quilt top. I’ve been working on for over a year. It’s nowhere near perfect: in fact, after finishing it, I found three squares I messed up that should be flipped 180°… but I’m saying that gives it character. Now I’m working on hand-quilting it in the evenings, which is my favorite part. It’s very meditative and just what I need right now.

I haven’t had the mental bandwidth to do much knitting or spinning. Most of my energy is being taken up with parenting, writing, and the preparation for Jake’s new job. But as our weather finally cools, I’m hoping I’ll get back into it and cast on a new project or two.

My writing also continues: I’ll have more articles to share shortly, and I have some more short stories out on submission — we’ll see if any get accepted. I’ve found a local coffee shop I adore, and I’ve been spending an hour or two there some mornings to really focus when I have a deadline to meet. When I can’t make it there, I write at my desk with my noise cancelling headphones in.

I’m finding that relying on daily and weekly rhythms isn’t just good for the kids: it’s good for me too. I’m penciling them in wherever I can — writing, physical activity, cleaning, reading, making; staying off my phone, knowing these routines will carry me through the next set of life’s waves.

Life feels like a stormy sea with all the recent and upcoming changes. But Christ is in the boat with us, and Christ will calm the storm.

I know it’s been a while since I’ve last written, and mostly I’ve been holding off until I could share the good news: Jake has an official job offer! We are elated and grateful. We’re waiting on a few more things before we share the details, but he loves the company and the people he’ll be working with, and he’s excited about what he’ll be doing. It will involve a bit of travel, so we continue to ask your prayers as we get ready to adjust to it all!

And, in writing news, I have another article published in HERLIFE magazine’s August issue. You can read it here. I really enjoyed speaking to these winemakers and learning more about their artistic process — it was such a pleasure!

We celebrated Jake’s job offer in style (steak and champagne). It felt good to rejoice together over something after so many months of navigating the unknown.

And — more to celebrate! My grandparents had their 60th wedding anniversary at the beginning of August. They had a party to mark the momentous milestone of a Diamond anniversary. It was a beautiful event full of music and laughter — so many people showed up to show their support. Their steadfast example of love and sacrifice blesses everyone around them, and the celebration was a testament to that.

Michael is a joy, with hilarious one-liners and profound thoughts that come from the most random moments. It’s a such delight to be his mom. He is finally successfully weaned from using his pacifier at night, too. We got him a weighted dino plushy as a replacement comfort item, and Michael promptly named him “Twinkle” and loves him. He’s also beginning to show great interest in numbers: we have a game where I hold up fingers on one hand, then fingers on the other, and he counts them separately then together: “two on this hand, and two on this hand, and one-two-three-four on both!” It’s a way I’ve snuck in some basic addition skills.

Some recent quotes:

Jake: You’re not as light as you used to be.

Michael: That’s because I’m standing in the shade!

Michael: I’m gonna play at Grandma and Grandpa’s today for SIX MINUTES!! (His go-to “biggest” number is 6)

We were listening to the theological podcast Lord of Spirits….Michael picks up on the best part…

“Mom, we’re on the ROAD to HELL??”

As Jake works on getting Bea down for a nap:

Michael: Mama, does dad need help? I think he needs your help.

And as the screaming continues…

Michael: “….maybe you need THREE people…”

When we introduced him to VeggieTales for the first time a few weeks ago:

“Wait…fruit doesn’t have EYES…”

And, my little 3 year old introvert, after a very busy weekend:

“I want to stay in my house forever”

Beatrice continues to be a force to be reckoned with: she holds her own against her brother and is absolutely fearless. She’s taken to climbing everything she can, including ladders and kitchen tables. Her favorite thing to do is play with shoes (and hide them around the house). No one can make her giggle like her big brother does. Her verbal skills have exploded recently too: words now include: shoes, hat, ball, no, yeah, grandma, grandpa, juice, kitty, and more.

My brother is home for a little bit before he begins graduate school for his PhD — it’s been so great for the kids to have extra time with Uncle Jon (and I love it too). Michael especially loves telling his godfather alllllllll about each and every one of his trains.

I got my knitting mojo back recently after falling into a bit of a slump. I made two different hats for babies at church, and I’m still working on a handful of my languishing WIPs during the quiet evenings. Writing takes a lot of creative energy, so I haven’t had as much bandwidth for other crafts.

I’ve been doing a lot of writing — both speculative fiction and articles/journalism — and it’s been lovely. I really enjoy working with words, and rediscovering my passion for writing in the midst of a rather stressful time has been rejuvenating. I’m trying to find the balance between mothering and making, and how my writing fits into both.

One of the best things writing has been teaching me recently is delayed gratification. In the age of being able to share everything with the internet in the blink of an eye, making things (whether knitted or spun or sewn or written) is counter cultural. Making takes time, as all good things do. When I make things with yarn I can share pretty pictures of each step, but it’s a bit different with writing.

When I write something, I have to return to edit and polish it (sometimes multiple times). Then I have to wait for its publication before sharing. Many of the things I’m working on right now won’t be shared with the general public for a few months.

So, I’m constantly learning to sit with the quiet slowness of the making process. It’s a lesson that’s been super applicable to every area of our lives right now, specifically in the job search process and parenting. Sometimes, things are quiet and slow, or there isn’t much visible progress. But growth is often quiet, and in tiny increments that can’t be seen with our eyes.

So glory to God for growth, however small, and glory to God for His goodness in both times of trials and celebrations.