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.