Each Year is Different…and New

Tonight I’m sitting here and pondering. Feeling immensely behind in all that needs to be done and started for the upcoming year. 

Because here’s the truth you all – I haven’t completely wrapped up last year yet. 

There are so many excuses I could give and they are all valid, but the biggest one is this: we put stuff on hold because our girl was leaving to head across a huge ocean and would be gone for over a year. (gulp)

Every moment we had with her was precious. Filling out course descriptions for kids that aren’t close to graduating – well, that could be put aside. The focus was on the most important thing: relationship.

And yes, now I’m feeling a bit of the crunch in this moment. Each year isn’t just a “cookie cutter” year of what our older children have done. While that may have been a bit more so when the kids were younger, as our children have aged, both their interests and abilities have varied drastically. 

One kids loves medical stuff. 

Another one is a sports enthusiast. 

Still another – drama and music.

Each year is different and new, offering a chance to reevaluate decisions we’ve made in the past and the opportunity to make changes for the future. 

You know what I love about each new year though? Each year is an opportunity for me to learn all over again along with my kids. Sometimes that is in a new subject area and other times it’s an area that originally filled me with fear, but now I look forward to with anticipation (biology labs, I’m looking at you). 

In the next week I’m tackling some of the areas that have been driving me crazy. Curriculum that hasn’t been put away will find its way to the proper shelf. New curriculum to be ordered (and hopefully some missing items will show up…). A semblance of order should hopefully be established for the upcoming year.

Here’s the thing. We may not be starting as early as I had initially hoped, but we will be starting. One of the kids may be working on a few lessons that weren’t wrapped up last year (oh yes, it’s true) before launching into the upcoming year, but we will get it all in. 

And the focus? 

Enjoying the learning together and finding the JOY in the opportunity that we have: being with our kids and guiding them in the learning process. The past few months with our oldest out of the house have shown me nothing short of this: our time with our kids is so precious, so we need to soak up every second we have!

How are your plans coming for the upcoming year – no fear, friends! JOY!