Still here, treading water

Well! July has come and nearly gone without so much as a single blog post until today. Ever have one of those seasons so full of drama that you can't even bring yourself to share it? That's where I'm at.

As the home-selling drags on with no start date for hubby's new job, a move up north hardly seems real right now. Are we in God's will and supposed to just patiently trust? I can do that. Did we make things happen in spite of His will and end up on a dead end? I'm willing to turn around. The hardest part is not knowing which it is. And so, I've asked for a sign. It doesn't have to be something huge and amazing, though I'd certainly accept that from God. I just want to hear the creak of a door or the sliding of a window.

In the meantime, I need to find a polite, pat answer for all the people who continually ask if we've had any offers on the house. Obviously, if we've had an acceptable offer, I will be shouting it from the rooftop! But how to say that? Simply saying "no" tends to invite advice or discussion, and I'm not really up to it most of the time. If you have some clever idea, please share!

The Fair

A few weeks ago, we entered several items in the Western Kentucky State Fair. I think we did very well for our first year! I did not get pictures of Toby's bread (2nd place) or Lynae's biscuits (3rd place). I was very proud of both of them, since neither has made what they entered very often. And I consider this to be the heart of biscuit country, too!

Nor did I take a picture of Toby's chickens, a couple of tired old hens who looked as though they'd rather be anywhere but at the fair. One of them placed 3rd, and the other was Grand Champion! (That tells you a lot about our fair.)

Lynae worked very hard on a cross stitch project, but due to a couple of setbacks, wasn't able to complete it in time for the fair. She's looking forward to next year!

Toby and I each placed 2nd behind friends of ours. I was surprised at the comments my friend made regarding my entries, but tried hard to be polite. I hope Toby and his friend didn't have any similarly awkward moments between them.

Here are pictures of our other entries which placed:

A duck Toby carved and painted for my birthday gift - 2" long, 5/8" high (2nd place)

A necklace Lynae made for 4-H (blue ribbon)

A belt Toby made, which will go to the state fair in August

Baby blue jay (2nd place)

Neighbor's horses - I didn't think this would place! (1st place)

This man has a story to tell (1st place)

They didn't even know how rare this boy's smile is! (1st place)

Life's a dance...

Tango: Just over two weeks ago, I told hubby that what I really wanted was for him to tell me that he would take my to-do list and work on the (relatively) small projects on one of his two days off each week, and that I should focus on keeping the house showable and working on school with the kids. He said he would work on my to-do list, and that he'd like me to keep the house showable and work on school with the kids. Well dontcha know, I spent that weekend unpacking school books and setting up an assignment sheet, and we dug in the following Monday!

Breakdancing: It's been going very well. Ok, there was that time someone decided to take 12 hours on a simple assignment and didn't finish his work until 5:30 am, but having chosen to fight that battle with him, hubby and I had to win it, and by the grace of God, we did, and everyone survived. And there have been other, smaller battles engaged with that same someone, leading me to wring my hands and scratch my head, yes. But five years of parenting him has taught me that he likes keeping me a little off-balance, and sometimes the best response is to return the favor. I think I'm getting the hang of this exhausting dance. I do fall flat on my butt sometimes, and we both hate that part. But he and I are equally determined (stubborn) and between us and God, I think we'll be all right, though "all right" might not look anything like what I have in mind.

Electric Slide: Yes, it's been going very well. The big kids are working independently, and we're all pleased with the curriculum we've chosen. I've begun holding "meetings" with them... one-on-one time to go over their work, help them with anything they don't understand (they're always welcome to come to me with questions, but sometimes it's a concept rather than a specific problem, and they don't bring it to me right away), and talk about any changes we need to make.

Chicken Dance: My little guy is thrilled to have school work to do! Sometimes he shakes with excitement when we do workbook pages together. He wants to read so much he can taste it.

Bunny Hop: Baby girl likes being involved, too, but at 4yo I'm not putting much effort into that. I tend to keep her occupied with toys, books, puzzles, and other stuff she can do on her own until the big kids are done with their work and can teach her letters, numbers, etc. That's as good for them as it is for her.

Hopefully, school will continue to go well until we get a closing date and turn our attention to packing and moving... or until the end of the school year, whichever comes first.