Adjusting

As the new school year approaches, I have been made humbly aware of just how much change is taking place in our little family.  At church on Sunday, I wrote down in my notes that change is going to happen.  Ever been to a sermon that you felt like was just for you?  God knew what I needed to hear.  Sometimes though, change is tough.  It's especially tough when you like things the way they are.  My Grandma Paula always tells me that I am living in the best years of my life.  She's right.  If I could just freeze time and soak this season in a little longer, I would.  I know that's not possible and I also know that I'd be robbing our family of the joy that is in store as the kids grow up.  So, I will try my best to embrace all of the changes that are taking place or will take place soon.  I'll learn to adjust.

A big recent adjustment, which has been a huge blessing, is Jason's changing positions at work.  Having him closer and working a more normal schedule is amazing.  He'll never be a 9-5'er with weekends and holidays off in his line of work, but his schedule now is as close to that as it ever will be. It's such a far change from his old schedule.  He used to work around 70 hours a week on a rotating over night schedule. It was tough on all of us.  When school starts, he'll be able to take Payton and Addi most days of the week.  The girls are looking so forward to daddy taking them.  He'll also be able to help with after school practices, depending on which day of the week they fall.  He has every Sunday off now and we love knowing that he can always be at church with us.

I'll soon be adjusting to being a working mom again.  I'm excited and nervous.  I'll only be working 16 hours a week Monday through Thursday.  Morning are going to be hectic at first.  I've been working on a schedule for us all and trying to get things organized to make mornings flow as smoothly as possible. I know we'll need to lay out our clothes and pack lunches the night before. The kiddos and I have done a practice drive through of all of the schools.  I am really looking forward to teaching a class of three year-olds every day.  I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

Evan has a huge adjustment period ahead.  In a few short weeks, he'll be a middle schooler.  He's already decided to adjust his schedule. =)  He's decided that he wants to give band a try.  He's hoping that he'll get to play the trumpet like Jason.  He's also hoping that he'll end up getting offered a full music scholarship just like Jason did. Making that decision made us very happy, but it also made us kind of sad too.  In order to pick up band, he had to give something up.  So after this summer, Evan will be giving up basketball.  He'll still play soccer and will start wrestling. I think it's a good choice for Evan, but I'll sure miss watching him out on the court.

Payton will be adjusting from being the little sister on campus to being the big sister on campus.  She's so excited to get to look out for Addi.  She's also really excited that she won't have to hear how cool it is that her big brother skipped a grade.  There are days when it really drives her crazy. She'll be adjusting to a new dance schedule.  She'll be picking up lyrical and gymnastics too.  She's can't wait.

Addi is over the top excited about going to Kindergarten.  She asks nearly every day if school is starting.  I know she's ready, but it'll be a huge adjustment for me.  I'm going to miss her so much during the day.  As much as I'm going to miss her, Karsyn will miss her even more.  They are so close and it's going to be hard.  I'm confident that Addi is going to be great in Kindergarten.  She is going to love school.

Between Addi going to school all day and Karsyn starting school, she'll really be adjusting.  Karsyn will go to school every day with me and be in my class.  I know she's going to try to run the show, but I think she'll do wonderful. At the beginning of the year, we still referred to Karsyn as our baby, but she reminds us every day that she is now a big girl.  

For the next month, we're going to try enjoy the rest of summer break and be in preparation of all these things to come. I know that when it is time, our little family will adjust just fine.