The Best Five Years

"I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." -L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables      School is in full swing, and rightly so, for I am learning much. I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to be homeschooled and to learn in the way that I am learning. We have done many fun things the past few weeks. The highlights are visiting a pumpkin patch, biking, running and playing outside.              I have been going to Youth Group again, which is nice. All of the Fall Feasts began on a Wednesday night this year, and so I had missed about five consecutive youth group meetings.            Mom has been teaching Penka and Petra to crochet, and for Sukkot, Mom and Dad gave Donka a charming Princess Drawing kit. Ivan and Petra are just finishing soccer for the fall season, at which Ivan especially has excelled. I, for my part, have acquired new slippers.        ...

Walter reflected a moment and then responded, “Sadness, I daresay, is what shapes a person. It is what mends their flaws, and what matures them. I cannot say that I am sorry of this news, though I fully comprehend your unhappiness. As to life continuing on the same, what a bore that would be.” -Miriam Billing, A Rose, The Unfinished Novel I wanted to share a favorite passage from the book I am writing with you today as my quote. I would gladly share several more quotes from the book but do not because I am never sure what I will end up keeping. This line, however, I am positive about, because I love it so much. This week I have started participating in the Drama club at Hanford High. I am working with the makeup crew. It has been an all-new kind of experience. We are doing nine old person faces for the upcoming show, and I have learned a good deal about makeup from the other girls there. School is also in full throttle, and I must admit that I have quite a bit...

"And the Sun took a step back, the Leaves lulled themselves to Sleep, and the Autumn awakened." - Raquel Franco It is true that I know that Fall is still a week away, but I am simply too excited to wait that long for a Fall quote.  Just picture it... Warm scarves... smores... Crackling bonfires... Books... (The last word was supposed to be Boots, but Books is even better...) Waking up on a frostbitten morning and watching your breath in the air as it freezes... Foggy car windows... Pumpkin Spice... Rosh Hashanah... Sukkot... Singing and Dancing... And all things fall... Am I excited? Yes, yes. I am excited.  The past weeks have been rhythmical, calm, and new.        School has once again taken hold of all our lives, and the workaday world seems but a step and a sigh away. And yet, the joy of order and reliability that these days afford is a treasure itself. A greater reward than that of a hectic, everywhere-at-once summer as I have just finished. No, t...

"True friends are always together in Spirit." L. M. Montgomery      The last few weeks were filled with the crazy. (It should have been "the busiest moments of life," but it had to be "The crazy.") The first week I did not write, I was at my Grandma's house. As I assume she will read this, I must add that I had an enjoyable time there, and I think Penka did too. We went to the lake, floated the river, and went on a rope swing, as well as many other fun things.     The next week we went to(Drumroll please!) TRI Family Camp, which I have long labeled as one of the very best weeks of summer. We made lots of fun memories, such as staying up until 1 am watching and Italian opera with subtitles, and staying up until 2 am watching The Phantom of the Opera another night. All this, not to mention playing capture the flag in the dark, being in puppet shows, having Italian sodas from the snack shack, and hearing some fascinating teaching. I made some pretty a...

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I ended up where I needed to be." -Douglas Adams Ahh. Now the writing itself shall begin. What a busy week. Not only did it seemingly go on forever, but it was filled with every imaginable kind of mischief. On Monday I was off for Silverwood with my youth group. It was a really fun and crazy day, waking up at 5:30 and going to bed past 1 am, but it was worth it! On Tuesday I honestly am drawing a blank for what went on, but it was good, nonetheless. I had a list made of different little conversations and such that passed, but I cannot find the list, and so shall try my hardest to do without. Tuesday night, I believe it was, we made a reward for the kids if they would sleep in their beds. We would not mind them in the same bed except to eldest two keep the youngers up, and they get sleep deprived. We told them that if they would sleep in their own beds, then we would take them to McDonald's for ice cream. Well, aft...

"Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen." -Hebrews 11:1 It has been a crazy week full of good, bad, and bittersweet moments. Now that the kids have fully adjusted to the time change, they can finally go to bed later than 7 pm without 100,972,300 breakdowns in the space of thirty minutes. It may not have been quite that much, but you never can tell... I have been given permission by my mother to post particulars, such as names, on this blog, and will now be referring to everybody by their actual identities, and shall enjoy doing so. This morning, at lunch, Ivan, the only boy, made a little mistake that accounted for a hilarious picture. I had a hard time keeping a straight face, for obviously, it was a waste, and should not be found entertaining, but it was pretty great. There, that matter being clarified, I shall continue in this monologue. I just want to shout out to my mom, who has been doing an incredible job these past few weeks. (...

"Arise and seize the day!" -Newsies, and also a famous Latin quote. The kids have arrived. I was not happy that I could not be there the minute that this happened, but it was not as big of a deal as I had thought. I thought it would be strange having them here, but it honestly feels natural. I suppose it’s just because I have imagined them here so long that it feels normal to wake up and see them. They are behaving well, and it has been a fun (though tiresome) two days. Today I, my cousin (7), my friend (my age), and the oldest girl went to the mall on the bus. It was nice to get to know just her and to spend time with all of them. Anyways, on the way back, we had some annoying trouble with the bus system. I am afraid I have given the oldest the wrong impression about buses in America. (The trouble was that we missed two buses and had to wait extra for another). She seemed to like the trip anyway. Both days we have gone to the pool. Everyone loves the lazy river, an...