When Did You Become So Old.....

I am so blessed to be a missionary at a beautiful Catholic mission. This year was the best! I decided to bring my elementary aged home schooled kids to the mission "homeschool". It was the best decision I could have made.

Our little school only has 19 children. I helped teach in the prek to 2nd grade classroom. We had seven children in our class this year. In third through fifth they had five children, and in sixth through eighth grade they had seven children. Three paid teachers are in charge of the classrooms and the teacher I assisted is also our principal. And what a wonderful year we have had!

It is everything I want in a school for my children. It is small. All the children have grown up together. They all attend Mass each Sunday together. It is a close knit group where the older kids tend to and help the younger ones. Many are siblings. It is a wonderful school community.
Best of all, not only are the academics top notch, my kids heard about Jesus, talked of our Catholic faith, every day!!! God truly is the center of our school.

Yesterday was our moving up day and at night we had our eighth grade graduation. My son Jacob graduated from eighth grade yesterday. My fourth child to leave elementary school. It doesn't get any easier. In fact I think it is harder because I now know from experience how fast the high school years go. Way too fast. My little boy will be in college before I can blink an eye. I have one in college right now, one who is entering her senior year in high school, and a son about to enter his sophomore year. When did they all get to be teenagers?!

I mean seriously. When did this happen? It is not good for a menapausal mama to have to go through this too! I don't know how women who only have two kids go through this. My nest won't be empty for a long, long time, thank You God!! But each one is so precious and wonderful to me. It's hard when they are away from home and you don't know every detail of their day. It was a hard adjustment with my oldest, and my second oldest, my right hand girl, she will be leaving me next year. Catch me next summer. I am going to be a real downer. Mark my words.

Maybe I will be the kind of wife and mother Bill Cosby always jokes about. My husband will keep pushing them out the door and I will be bringing them back in. My oldest has been known to raid our fridge at 1 am and I like it like that.

For now, I will just enjoy every moment of family life. Right now as I am writing this, my six year old is playing hair dresser with my hair. Aaah, I have the sweet life. Ain't it good to be a mom?