Changes in Life

This time in my life is strange. So much changing; me, my kids, our home life, our home, schedules, interests, relationships. We could start with me and the kids. My children are now both teens. We are still close but, they are trying to be their own people with their own interests and their changing needs. Which is great and normal and...how it should be. I'm feeling less needed by them which is again, normal and how it should be. I've become more a taxi driver to them than their mom and educator. I'm proud to say they are very much self learners and I can't even try to keep up with all they learn everyday. I've have learned to get out of the way in that regard. I miss the snuggles on the couch all huddled up together but enjoy the humorous exchange in conversation and going out on the town with them. Not bad, just different.

As I find my new roll and place in my family, I also find my friendships changing. I have been able to reach out to more people and get to know many new wonderful personalities. I'm having a blast socialising after having pulled back for so long to dedicate that time to my children. Now they are more social and so am I. It truly is wonderful! Sometimes though, it still feels strange. Throw in a career that I really enjoy and what a happy woman am I. Tired and sometimes exhausted, but content and extremely happy nun the less.

The home life is changing because of the teens and my new found social self. Which is also why we are changing our living location! We need the bigger house and the yard to accommodate all the fun we want to plan. We need this space to have our parties and activities in. If you've been to our house, you would have seen that there just isn't much room to have visitors over. So, we have listed our house. It is for sale and with that comes more chores to keep it in saleable condition. We hope it sells soon so we can start having some events at our house!

I think I'm getting the hang of this...

Schedules! A necessary evil. I have a husband with a weird schedule of 4am to whenever he's done (sometime between 3 and 7pm) Friday through Monday, two teens with active social lives and my flexible schedule that can change daily. Sometime I feel like a juggler that has no control of how many balls they have in the air at any given time! I'm not complaining. It's a challenge and I like that. I think I've finally figured a way to schedule it all. I know it sounds like it might be easy but, there is a difference on paper to having the family comfortable. We are just getting into the flow of it. Just in time for a new year and Jim's schedule to change. lol His schedule will have the same hours though the days will be Sat.-Tues. He will finally have Fridays off! Yeah!

I'm now also adding to my schedule keeping the house show worthy! As soon as we have this house in shape (wood repair/replacement) we are putting it on the market. Yep, finally getting to sell this place and move to Huntington Beach! Finally back into a single family residence. With a yard and no HOA. We like the inside of our current home, it's just that the neighborhood has become really crowded and there isn't anywhere for company to park. We just can't live with a HOA. We need more freedom. The teens need places they can hang out with friends. We have outgrown this house.

So as soon as we are getting in the swing of our schedules, they are a changing. Makes me so grateful for my flexible schedule and the flexibility of homeschooling.

Happy scheduling!

Shocked into Memory Lane...

Who would have thought that going shopping at Mother's Market would send me flooding into my past. When I had tried to leave there was some Green Peace people trying to boost memberships. All of a sudden I was back in the early 2000's with to little toddlers. Wide eyed and idealistic. Very much into Mother Earth News and a complete "Greeny" before it was coined or popular. I remember researching composting toilets for our mountain home. That was until I had my wake up call. Actually two wake up calls. The first one was a Green Party runner calling and talking with me for his support, just to tell me that maybe I should run because I seemed more knowledgeable. He wasn't being snotty, but honest. I was so applaud that someone who knew less than I would even run! The second time (not even a week apart) was when Green Peace called to raise funds to help get a big wig out of a foreign land where he was being tried for killing other diplomats! Holly SH@#T! They have Peace right in their name! So being a good homeschooler and greeny, I researched what happened. I cancelled my Green Peace membership and didn't look back. That is until this well meaning person in front of Mother's started talking to me. My reply to this well meaning man all of about 23 years of age was, "I'm an ex member. Looking into the happenings in your organization in the early 2000's and see what violence you find." He just looked at me with his mouth wide open.

I truly think if I had shared my experience it wouldn't have the same effect, as him finding it out for himself. Back in my wide eyed, blissful, idealistic days, I would have shrugged a person off thinking, they had a bad experience and mine would be different.

I still keep up to date with all the "green" stuff. Now it is more about not being wasteful and saving people money than saving the planet for me though. I still would love to be a part of building one of those cob houses in AZ! I just think it would be so fun and freeing to mold into your walls nooks, fireplaces, and any kind of decoration or seating! With all this background, no wonder I became a Green Certified Realtor. :)