Out of The Blue

Yes, I know I have been absent from my blog for far too long.  Rest assured that all is well with me and my family.  We've been flying by the seat of our pants right now and at the end of the day, I don't usually have the time to sit and blog about life.  Isn't that the way it always works? When I have all the time in the world, there's nothing to write about, but when my life is full of adventure, I don't have the time to jot it all down for posterity.

Rewind to last summer.

My husband and I decided it would be spectacular to buy a good sized camp trailer for the family because we had been traveling a bit for horse shows, roping, and the county fair. We love to camp and hunt, too. We knew that we would use the heck out of a trailer if we could find one big enough to fit the whole family on a meager budget.

So one night during my prayer time I said something to the effect of, "Lord, if it would be your will, I'd love to have a tiny little side job to make a little bit of fun money so that my family could buy a trailer. I don't want it to take away from my homeschooling. I don't want to be away in the evenings when I would have to miss my kids' sports or horse activities, and I don't want to be away from my family during the weekend.  I know this is a lot to ask but all things are possible with you."

I kid you not, one day later I received an unexpected answer to prayer.  Out of the blue, the principal of our local Christian school called me to see if I was interested in teaching a junior high science class for only one hour a day, four days a week.  It was one week before the school year started and the previous teacher decided not to return.  Several people had thrown out my name as a possible replacement because they knew I had a science degree.  I was flabbergasted!  I have taught my own children for eight years, and have taught numerous science courses for homeschool co-ops, but had never taught in a traditional classroom. Plus, I never saw myself as a junior high teacher of any kind.  In fact, I could still remember vividly the awkwardness of my own junior high years, and vowed to never go back.  

As usual, the Lord works in mysterious ways.  I could not deny that this job met every single one of my criteria: I would only be away from home 4 hours a week.  The hour that I would teach was after my kids were done with their homeschooling for the day, I would have every Friday off, plus weekends, holiday breaks, spring break, and the summer months.  I would be home in the evenings, and wouldn't have to miss a minute of my kids' activities.  I could still feed the cows, irrigate, and come home for a quick change before class, if necessary.

So we prayed about it for two days, and I took the job without even asking what the salary was.  With only a week to put together a teaching plan, read through the textbook, and set up my class structure, I had to get busy.  At first I thought I might be crazy to accept this job out of the blue, but I knew that since God sent me the job from out of nowhere, I could trust that he would take care of the rest of it. And he has.

It turns out that I adore teaching this group of slightly awkward fledgling teenagers. With two of our own kids in the throes of adolescent changes, I certainly understand their stage of life.  One minute they say something profoundly wise, and the next minute they are giggling uncontrollably when I mention the planet "Uranus". I have the privilege to share the wonders of God's creation with my class every day, and occasionally to parents as well.

As for the camp trailer... One day after I accepted the teaching job, a camp trailer that met all of our needs came up for sale on Craigslist.  The owners were wealthy, used it a few times for vacations to San Diego, and wanted to buy a new one.  It was immaculate inside, had new tires, had never been off of a paved road, and was priced thousands of dollars below what it was worth. Woo Hoo! We bought it immediately, and have been enjoying it ever since. Isn't God amazing?

So in the late evenings after the kids have gone to bed, instead of sitting down to blog about my day, I have been preparing physics lessons, and grading papers for both my class and my own kids.

As if that weren't enough to keep me busy, I was elected as secretary of our county's Jr. Livestock association, and our committee has the responsibility of organizing the show and sale of all the livestock in our county fair.  It's a huge undertaking that takes a full year to prepare for.  The mountain of paperwork I receive in my mailbox for the job is daunting.  But it's important to volunteer for programs that benefit the next generation of agricultural leaders.

Did I mention that I'm also teaching two 4-H sewing classes, as well?  Being a sewing instructor requires a large amount of patience, and a seam ripper in hand at all times.  I love to see young girls develop a love for sewing! I also love to see their mothers learning how to sew right along side their daughters. I feel like we are keeping a dying tradition alive. I'm always on the lookout for new projects to teach in my class.

Yes, there have been a few changes for me this year that have taken me away from blogging, but I have been immersed in things that I love to do.

There is much more to share, but this will do for today.

~Nell