Lifelore

Change is inevitable in life. Some changes are chosen and others just happen due to “life”. Either way, change can be difficult and exciting at the same time. It sometimes feels like, just as we are getting comfortable, change occurs.

My family and I are entering into totally new “seasons” in life. As I mentioned in a previous blog, I have homeschooled my children for 13 years. We began in their kindergarten years and continued all the way through high school. Probably the biggest change during those years were the years entering their high school career. Before they started 9^th grade, my husband and I gave them the choice of either continuing homeschooling or enrolling into school. They both chose to continue homeschooling. Let’s just say that the high school years are totally different than the years leading up to them. School takes longer, more study time is involved for the kids, and more preparation time was involved for me. Eventually, we got into a routine and it was smooth sailing, but before we began, it was both scary, intimidating, and exciting.

Now that my kids have graduated, the season changes again. College and jobs are in their futures. Their whole life is ahead of them and they get to choose their paths. They have more opportunities open to them than ever before!

This is also a life change for me. I attended college, but I always knew that my calling in life was to be a Stay at Home Mom. I have loved staying at home with my children. Yes, there were difficult days and during some of the stages I wondered how I would make it through, but we made it! Thinking back through those years puts a smile on my face. What a privilege it has been to be with my children every single day, watching them grow in knowledge, character, values, and most of all, their relationships with Jesus Christ.

Now it is time to “let them go” and be the people that God intends them to be. I once heard someone say the following: I won’t always be there to catch you when you fall, but I will always be there to help you up when you do fall. How true! I will always be there to help my children even though I do not get to spend every single day with them. I will always be only a text, phone call, or visit away. Most certainly, they will always be with me in my heart, thoughts, and prayers!

Now the question that others ask and that I ask of myself is, what will I do with my time? That is a good question that I do not know the answer to yet. I will come up with something, but for right now, I am still processing the realization that I no longer will be ordering homeschooling curriculum, writing out lesson plans, or counting the days until we start school. I do not know what to do with that new realization as of yet, but as time goes on I will get used to the change and a new normal will occur. I am looking forward to seeing what lies ahead!

Written by Kathryn Conrad