Friends, I have wanted to sit down and write a post. I have tried, even. But I just haven't had the time or motivation to really be here, and I'm so sorry. I'm afraid there is just about no one left who reads this little neglected blog of mine, but I still want to be here.

So first, thank you for all your fantastic book recommendations! I'm so appreciative!

And next, today was the final swim practice of the summer. It doesn't seem possible -- this weekend is the state swim meet, and the season really has ended. I feel like it just began. Elisabeth swam two hours a day (morning and evening practice -- her choice!) all summer. In addition to James's swimming lessons (and he still has 3 full weeks left of those), we have hardly had a moment this summer that wasn't lived at a pool. (Which is both fine by me, and also means not a lot of variety.)

It has been dreadfully hot, though the heat has been punctuated by afternoon thunderstorms -- some of which have been fantastic! And lots more has happened, too. There are probably things I want to share here when I have the chance to look through my photos.

But really, most importantly, my husband has a new job. At the end of June, we were at a baseball game with friends (by the way, if you have one of these summer collegiate baseball leagues near you and you enjoy baseball, it's definitely worth checking out! The games were free but were on a near-professional level. Very fun!), and while we were there, the principal of a high school in an older suburban neighborhood about 30 minutes from where we live called him out of the blue. He had not even seen the job posting yet. She gave him a 30-minute phone interview on the spot, and the next day he went to interview in person. Within 72 hours of the initial phone call, he had been offered the job. It's hard to describe the combination of disbelief and relief that we felt. Within a week of being offered the job, he was preparing for the school's 4-week-long marching band camp which began on July 5. It was 3 hours a day, 5 days a week for all of July. He says he thinks it was a bit much and the kids are feeling a bit burnt out, so he might do it a bit differently next summer, but this was the schedule that was already in place.

Yesterday and today he was at new-employee orientation. On Monday he starts a week of in-school professional development and teacher planning days, and on August 8, classes begin. This school district is on a pretty different schedule than other districts in our area, so he is back to work weeks sooner than he would have been at his old job. The transition to him going back to work in August is always a hard one for me, and this year it's even earlier, so I'm feeling a bit disoriented right now. I know from experience that things will ease up and we'll find our way into a new routine. Still, I don't do well with transitions, and we have a lot of them with his work.

At any rate, I wish to thank all of you who have thought about us, prayed for us, and sent us all your good thoughts and blessings as we have struggled with job stuff over the last 4 years. We are hopeful that things have finally turned a corner for him professionally. Though his new job represents more time and more responsibilities, I think we are ready now to deal with those in a way we might not have been before. So, it's exactly the right time.

Anyway, that's just a bit of where I am right now. I have been inspired by Kyrie's "Week in the Life" posts this week, so I thought maybe next week I'd try something along those lines, though it could be more of a "Rough Week in the Life" since we are very much finding our way right now.

uncommon grace