How can I help you to say goodbye?

Change is never easy. If it is easy, it will hit you later with the full force of the harsh realization that you can never get a specific moment in time back.
Last night I held my husband as he wept. Not because his oldest son is leaving for college (8 hours away) Friday, but because as he put it "I looked down and when I looked up he was gone". I'm not a parent. I'm a step parent. I get to endure these changes with a somewhat detached demeanor. Not Dusty. I tried to say the right things to soothe his hurting heart but at the end all he needed from me was my assuring presence. That's a lesson in itself.

I remember a time during my sophomore year in college, around the holidays. I was hanging out with my boyfriend at the time when I suddenly began sobbing uncontrollably. He asked me what on earth was wrong and I told him, "I just realized that things will never be the same again. I will never again wake up on Christmas morning with all of my siblings in Mom and Dad's house and have breakfast casserole and cinnamon rolls after opening our gifts." The realization was almost more than I could stand, and sometimes I still get choked up over it. (Again, change is hard gut wrenching)

Here's what I've learned from the crazy compilation of change that has become my life:
1. Don't rush through the difficult times. I know they are hard now but one day you will wish you had enjoyed them for the good they were hiding.
2. Don't be afraid of change. Change is the catalyst for adventure. I told my husband last night, "A child leaving home is the first step in them starting an adventure all their own!"
3. You can be sad but don't be selfish. When a child leaves home they have a LOT of emotions to sort through. Don't add a guilt trip on.
4. Smile. When everything else is going wrong just smile. It's an instant pick me up.

 

Zachery, we are so proud.  You have the whole package! You are smart, talented, handsome, funny, and most of all you love the Lord. You have all the tools to do great things! Go have fun! We'll see you soon!

Daddy saying goodbye to his boy

Hi!

Starting a new blog is BEYOND intimidating. I guess I will tell you a little about me to begin with....

My name is Anna. I am married to Dusty. Dusty has four children from a previous marriage. Zac is 18 and leaving for Pensacola Christian College in a little over a week (YIKES!) to study music. Mackenzie is 16, plays violin and piano and is an artistic gypsy girl. Levi is 14, plays guitar and is a hunter gatherer extraordinaire! Andrew is 11.5 (he would be so mad if I left off the .5) and is a computer guy who loves to read. They are all so very different and keep us ever on our toes. Mackenzie, Levi, and  Andrew come and stay with us on the weekends in our cozy little camper. Oh wow, you live in a camper??? I'm so glad you asked ;)

Dusty and I got married on May 29, 2010. At the time that we were married, Dusty was living in Shelby, NC working for a home for drug and alcohol addicts. I moved into a nice house out in the country where I raised chickens and stray animals and loved EVERY minute of it. We had bonfires and played hide and seek out in the dark. Then one day we got a phone call. There was a home for addicts in Rock Hill that was shutting its doors. The men were going to be put out on the streets. After some prayerful consideration, Dusty decided to take it over. We began commuting an hour from Shelby to Rock Hill twice a day until the decision was made by our church to sell the house we were staying in. At this same time, someone gave us a camper. It was pretty big but had a lot of water damage and mold. We fixed some key problems then gave it a good coat of paint and a cleaning and moved in.

The camper has one queen bed, two twin bunks, and a couch. We make it work on the weekends when the kids are here. As time has gone by I have realized that the camper is going to be more permanent than expected, so I have started remodeling it. Get ready for some awesome remodel updates on this blog as well as plenteous other adventures! Thanks for reading :)

Andrew and Dusty at Carowinds

Dusty and me with Zac at his graduation

Levi, Zac, and Mackenzie at their school formal