May Storms

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Michelle McCallum

We’ve been fortunate, this spring, to have had relatively mild weather. The year that our youngest was born was inundated with tornado watches and warnings. It was scary for the children, and, now, whenever the wind blows strongly, they become nervous that a tornado is headed our way. The other day, we had a quick storm that blew our heavy-duty garbage can down the road. I went out to chase it was, literally, pushed by the wind. Thankfully, the storm passed very quickly.

We watched BBC news together the other night. It was heartbreaking to see the devastation that tornadoes have caused in the past week. My heart hurts for those who have lost loved ones, especially those who have lost young children.
May we all continue to pray for them in the days to come as they try to pick up the pieces.

As Spring Begins

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Michelle McCallum

When I drop off my daughter at school in the morning, we drive past this tree in the car line. In the winter, it is very dark, but in March the sun began to rise around the time that I brought her to school. These pictures span seven weeks; look at the difference!

March 28th

April 11th

April 26th

May 15th

One day we even saw an owl sitting on the fence!

Spring Is Finally Here

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Michelle McCallum

We are halfway through May, and Spring has finally arrived. Although, I fear it isn’t going to last long and is going to quickly turn into summer before we’re ready.
It has been a long while since I’ve given any sort of update on what has been going on in our home. To be honest, it has been a rough few months, but I feel like I might be coming out of it now. I no longer feel like I’m struggling to keep my head above water. I guess you could say I am now treading water.

I actually took the kids to the park yesterday! This may not seem like a big deal, but when you’ve been getting sick every single day for months, being able to do something as simple as going to church, the grocery store or the park is a monumental success. However, it doesn’t mean I felt great; it just meant that I was managing enough to have some semblance of a life again. I try to not push myself too much and I take time every afternoon to rest. If I don’t…. well, you don’t want to know.

The kids are great. Homeschooling is going well. I haven’t been pushing him too much recently because I have been so sick, but we’ve been getting things done, and he is excelling. Our daughter finished up all her end of the year testing and did very well. I’m very much looking forward to teaching her at home next year. She is such a self-motivated learner!

Our three year old is a fun as ever with a bit of the threes in there making things difficult. He is interested in learning and has finally mastered his colors; he can also count backwards. Our little guy is making progress in the speech department, but will be evaluated in the coming weeks for a speech delay. I have a gut feeling that he won’t qualify, but it doesn’t hurt to find out. The little one growing inside of me has a nice strong heartbeat that we’ve been able to hear this week, thanks to a friend for letting me borrow the doppler. The majority of our family thinks it is a girl. We will find out in about a month!

My wonderful husband has been a huge help in the past weeks. I’ve struggled with even the most basic home tasks, and he has stepped up to help out in a big way. Thankfully, I am doing a bit better, so I hope we can fall back into our regular routine soon.

Learning Outdoors

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Michelle McCallum

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.
So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
- Mark Twain

A Spring Day Yarn Along

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Michelle McCallum

I had to take a little break from the Blackberry Salad Cowl, even though it is more than halfway done, because it was exhausting and I wanted something simpler to work on for a bit. I began the Bulky Infinity Scarf and ended up basically making up my own pattern for it. It was really simple, so I added some other stitches to make it look a little fancier.

I finished reading Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster by John Krakauer while I was sick and then ordered The C limb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest by Anatoli Boukreev. There is some controversy about the accuracy of Krakauer’s account, so I decided to read about the event from another point of view. I’ve actually read Into Thin Air a few times because it is a great and easy read. So far, Boukreev’s book is just as captivating!

Have a great day!