The Schlatt Family

Today is the last day of school for our kids.  A at her Kindergarten promotion ceremony.  D with his awesome 3rd-grade teacher. B (in the red shorts) with his group of friends at OOVOTO (Our Own Version Of The Olympics)... Wilmore Elementary's Field Day.  Normally, this day is met with much excitement and dreams of sleeping in, PJs all day, and getting to stay up later than 8:00 every night.  This year, it's a day being met with lots of big emotions. Dreams of sleeping in and hot enough to set-up the pool, yes... but also, it's the first big loss for our kids. (and us grown-ups, too.) Next year, to ease the transition overseas, we have decided to homeschool. That way, whatever we start, we can take with us. (Or wait to start until we get there, depending on when we can buy plane tickets.) So our children are not only saying goodbye to Kindergarten, 2nd-grade and 3rd-grade teachers, they are also saying goodbye to school buildings and principals and friends that they ...

 3:30 - 5-year-old is sitting outside, practicing her sight words on her drawing pad. Mom goes outside to clean up a few things leftover from storm. 5 year-old asks, "Mom, will you sit outside with me?"  3:35 - Mom joins 5-year-old outside on the porch.  3:36 - Mom notices 5-year-old still diligently working so she opens a notebook to try to complete a task. At the same time, 5 year-old stops working and shouts, "Mom, watch me do a cart-wheel!" 5-year-old does cart wheel. Mom watches. 3:37 - Mom looks back at notebook, 5-year-old announces she needs water and runs inside, slamming porch door. Door handle falls off, 5-year-old fears she will be stuck inside forever and begins to cry. Mom gets up and fixes door.  3:39 - 5-year-old returns, slams door, door handle falls off. 5-year-old fears she will be stuck outside forever. Mom fixes door.  3:40 - 5-year-old sits down with drawing board. Mom opens notebook... again.  3:41 - 5-year-old announces, "Mom, watch ...

As a general rule, our family decorates for Christmas before the first Sunday in Advent, and undecorates sometime after January 6th. Then, the Christmas decorations get replaced with snowflakes or hearts or "Happy Birthday, Daddy." This year, our family was doing everything we could to extend Christmas... A still wants to listen to Christmas music every time we're in the car, D is still reading the stack of Christmas books we bring out every year, and B is still working on Christmas art pieces that we didn't get to over break. (and Mike was also very sad when the last of the decorated sugar cookies were eaten... so he's requested more for Valentine's day.) We were determined NOT to undecorate... for undecorating meant deciding which Christmas decorations will go in a suitcase, which will go into storage and which will be given away. This was a reality none of us was really ready to face once the calendar flipped to January 2023, but it was, in fact, unavoidabl...

 Here today, in the northern hemisphere, it's the winter solstice.  Few of us, perhaps, have noticed this. Here in Kentucky, we are out enjoying the sunshine, squeezing in some last minute shopping errands, savoring whatever bits of outdoor playground time we can grab, for tomorrow the weather will turn and we will be forced inside. And though few of us may have noticed, the shortest day of the year is upon us. The day with the least amount of sunshine. The middle of the darkest season.  and for some of us, that feels just about right.  This Christmas time feels strange and complicated for our family. Hoping to be move to Albania sometime in the spring or fall of next year, we are keenly aware that this will be our last Christmas stateside for awhile.  Everything feels super important this year. Middle is keeping track of how many of our Christmas traditions have not yet been accomplished. (Check Firehouse lights off the list as of last night. ;) )  Firehou...

  We're here... we're back... we're processing... but most of all, we're together again.  While in Tirana, we saw a lot... we walked a lot... we talked a lot.  And we drank a lot of coffee and tea.  (Tigey McTigerson traveled with us. Each of our kiddos had an identical stuffed animal at home. It was a little bit of each of them on the trip with us.) Even though parts of the country try to function like a European city, Albania still has a tribal culture background. Because of this, it is still a highly relational culture. "Oh, you need something fixed? I got a guy." We laughed the number of times our team leaders said "we got a guy" when we asked them how certain parts of life function in Tirana. If you want to have a chat with someone, you meet them at a coffee shop.  If you want to discuss a business deal, you meet them at a coffee shop. If you're a man and you don't have anywhere else to be, you meet people at the coffee shop. (Unless you...