This may well be my last post for this year, so I thought I'd have a look back at our 2011 (well atleast some aspects of it that I can share online).
Homeschool:
We changed curriculums end of last year so this was our first year with Ambleside Online. I must say it definitely is a rigorous curriculum and reading the weekly schedule online does not give you that sense at all! I didn't even attempt to do everything, probably only 80% of what is set out and I still found it a lot busier than last year for us. It was definitely enjoyable though and I am so enjoying reading all the great books it lists along with Rebekah.
I'm happy to report that we will continue homeschooling her next year as the plan was to take it a year at at time! She is thriving and developing beautifully and we are happy with the progress she is making.
Motherhood and family:
Rebekah and I continue to share a very close relationship, a by product I'm sure that's a result of not just being an only child but an only child that is being homeschooled. We continue to have some amazing times spent together during the week, snuggled up on the couch reading, being out in nature, shopping together, riding our bikes together, etc. We have such great conversations about life, God, etc that happen at the most unpredictable times. I will always cherish these wonderful moments we have together.
Rebekah is the sweetest little girl and I'm blessed to not only be her mum but to be able to homeschool her, but of course I'm biased!
Family:
What can I say about my husband, he is amazing! He continues to be a great support to me, my closest friend, a great provider, a hard worker, the list goes on....Thanks honey, I love you!
We've enjoyed some fun times together this year including a holiday down in Victoria to celebrate Ron's big birthday with his family. While there we caught up with Jeanne and her lovely family. This was the second time we got to catch up with her and it was just lovely to meet her husband this time. Jemimah kept Rebekah amused and the girls had fun together! I'd been meaning to tell you all about this since we got back in April but seeing I didn't get around to it then, here's a wonderful excuse now to show you these pictures:
Ron's and Rebekah's birthdays (combined celebration)
Rebekah and Jemimah:
A koala out in the wild:
A rainbow in the Ocean. I've never seen anything like this before, it was amazing!
Church life: We continue to be very active in our church and life has been extra busy this year for us. Our church hosted a regional conference for the first time and I must say our little church did extremely well and we were all so proud of our achievements. We also celebrated 10 years as a local church in Sydney. This was a big milestone for us and we had a weekend of celebrating with old pastors visiting etc.
Friends: I've been super blessed in this area. God has blessed us with such great friends and speaking for myself personally, I've met some amazing and wonderful mums since I became one. They continue to enrich my life and bless me with their time, friendship, wisdom and generosity. Rebekah also has been blessed with some great friends. Homeschooling an only child is challenging in the sense that we have to be proactive about meeting Rebekah's 'social' needs. We have been blessed with friends that understand this and are so generous in inviting Rebekah to play dates with their kids etc.
In fact, towards the end of last year, even though Rebekah had lots of friends, she really wanted a girl friend who lived on our street, someone she could play with more often. Our street is filled with boys! So, we decided to pray about this and wouldn't you know a couple of months later, a little girl a year older than Rebekah moved in and they've become really good friends, God is good!
Besides 'mum' friends, I am also blessed to have other non-mum friends who continue to enrich my life in many ways!
Family: My mum and step dad continue their work in India that they began several years ago, in the orphanage they run and doing other work there as well. We miss them and are looking forward to their return in under a month's time!
Health: I've had a major breakthrough this year after finding a wonderful holistic doctor who specialises in women's health. Yes, reaching my forties has been challenging in this area, well, it started in my mid thirties really but as with most things, I don't rush into things, hence it took me this long! I can't begin to tell you what a difference the treatment I am receiving has made to my overall health which in turn has been great for my emotional well being! All I can say is GO bio-identical hormones! If you'd like to find out more feel free to email me:)
And last of all, I started this blog to keep an online journal of some aspects of our life that I wanted to pass onto Rebekah one day. It's not the most interesting of blogs in blog land so I'm honoured that the lovely friends I've mad online keep coming back to read and comment and encourage me. To all of you, I wish you a merry Christmas (if you do celebrate it) and a great 2012!
9 comments:
I really enjoyed reading about your year and so pleased that it has gone well. Congratulations on the school year:). I can't wait to hear about your 2012 year.
Blog friendships are different to face-to-face friendships, but they are still wonderful things to have, I have enjoyed your friendship this year.
In Gods precious grace to you and your family.
I enjoyed reading your yearly summary - it sounds like you've had a very blessed year; that's wonderful! I think it's probably not just AO that has made school busier for you - I found this year busier too, and it's partly because it WILL be more and more busy as they get older and learn more deeply (if that makes sense)! :)
Praying God's blessing on you in 2012...
It is lovely reading your end of year 'report' like this. Thank you. We loved meeting up with you again as well. Looking forward to seeing you in the new year! Merry Christmas!
Wow, you saw a rainbow in the ocean?! That's amazing!
I enjoyed your summary, too. It's good to do that so that we can see how much we've accomplished, since it sometimes seems that not much is happening. I guess you are feeling the opposite with your new curriculum, but it's still to take account of what we've done and how well it's working from time to time. It's wonderful to feel like you're doing just what you're supposed to be doing. It's nice to know that you're fulfilling what God put you here to do.
This has been wonderful just reading about your year, it's very interesting. God is good and I look forward to a new year with AO. Merry Christmas back at you! xxx
Merry Christmas, Rosemary! It HAS been a blessed year. We love you guys--have a great time on your holiday! xoxo
Merry Christmas to you! I enjoyed reading your post here; it was so fun to see the birthday pic, too, of your family. The link for free Christmas stories is such a nice gift, so thank you! I am going to go and check that out. Blessings to you and yours :-)
I'm sure your relationship with rebekah is a treasures blessing indeed. Continue to grow and develop it as she matures. I'm sure you will but I cant help but encourage it.
Wow, amazing testimony of Gos answering your prayer for a close friend in the neighbourhood.
Ooooh, do tell me more about these bio-identical hormones. Or maybe I should look it up? Is there much conflicting advice on the 'net about it?
Wow, the rainbow in the ocean is amazin! I've never seen one either.
Thanks Ladies! I'm getting back to this one late as I've neglected my blog:) Susan, I'm not sure if there is a lot of conflicting advice about bio-identical hormones on the net. I found out about them through a friend who has been using them for many years and her testimony of how it's transformed her life made me look into them. I then had a series of bad health (women's) issues and was not getting much help from my local dr so I gave in and decided to check out a dr who prescribes them:) My hesitancy was it's a little alternative and also she is a long way off from where I live. She has turned out to be a God send and my health has improved SO much as a result. She is trained by Sandra Cabot - if you've heard of her? let me know if you have any other questions:)
Post a Comment