Paying Hope Forward

HOPE.

Sarah has always loved horses. Always. She rode before she lost her vision and tried riding after she lost her vision, but could not find the right program for herself. We finally found Sky View in Oregon, and many of you know the wonders it did for her. To be able to feel free and "normal". To be empowered to help herself and do things the way just about everyone else does them - to saddle her horse and brush it and ride it - was the best gift that Oregon offered any of us.

One of the first things I did when we moved to Indiana was to reach out to as many people as I could find to see if I could locate a program similar to Sky View that would allow Sarah to continue on with her horsemanship. After several months, we finally found Theratails. We met with the owner and found that CJ was very willing to allow Sarah to volunteer at the program in exchange for riding time. And so she began volunteering at the beginning of last month. It has been amazing. Just as Sky View was perfect for Sarah in Oregon, I truly feel that Theratails was meant for Sarah. Sarah arrives early every Friday and helps feed all of the horses on the property, she waters them, mucks stalls, brushes horses, saddles them, helps with the therapy sessions with clients who are all abled differently children. She works with the horses on a lunge line. Next summer she will be competing with one of the horses in a 4H competition.

We found out recently that the board of directors (which I had no idea Theratrails had) was so pleased that Sarah was a volunteer. Parents have contacted both CJ and the board and told them that seeing Sarah volunteering just like every other sighted person at the program gives them Hope for their own children. Hope that their children will be able to accomplish their own goals in their lives. Hope that their being abled differently won't prevent them from following their dreams.  They see Sarah as a living example of all that can happen in their own children's lives.

Sarah, CJ told us, is also providing Hope to the children who she works with each week. They see Sarah helping them out and it inspires them to want to work harder and accomplish more in their sessions. After all, if Sarah can do it so can they.

When Sarah heard this news she smiled bashfully and blushed. She had no idea that she was offering to others the Hope that has gotten our family so much just by being herself and living her life. To know that she is a role model to these children and their parents has done so much for her confidence. We spoke after meeting with CJ and she was blown away that she would be such a beacon of light for those around her.  She was touched and honored. She carries herself just a bit differently. There is a quiet confidence that I haven't seen for a very long time in her steps now.

Indianapolis was the right choice. I knew it the second Bob mentioned the opportunity here I just didn't know why. Now I do.

There is no greater joy than seeing your children thrive and come alive doing the things that bring them immense happiness and peace. Sarah has that at Theratails.

And for that, we all have newfound HOPE.

Anderson Orchard

I love eating fresh picked apples right from the farm. I love eating fresh picked apples that I have picked myself right from the farm even more. So does everyone else in the family. Luckily for us there is an amazing apple orchard about 15 minutes from the house. They also have some amazing raspberries that we can pick too, which we have done several times since finding out about that option.

I found out about Anderson Orchard while I was looking for a cool corn maze to take the kids too this fall. I was pretty stoked that they were so close to our home. The prices are great and I have fun every time I go. Now that I know that they exist I plan on heading that way as soon as they open for the season rather than like this year when I discovered them at the end of their season.

My mom came apple picking with us on one of her visits and we had a blast.

Sights Around the House

We got this craft idea from Pinterest. It was easy to make and something that Sarah could easily do. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays to decorate for. 

I got hooked on this dishware set from Nora Fleming. I can change the pumpkins out and put in different decorative pieces to celebrate the different holidays, seasons, special moments in life. It is expensive, so I am slowly collecting items as I can afford them (or as my mother can spoil me with them because she has been buying me a ton of this stuff which I love and means so much to me.)

Flowers are the best. (Minus when they wilt, but the roses were from my anniversary so I don't want to throw them out quite yet. )

Bobby and the boys went back to Ohio for a super quick trip to go to a Brown's game with my brother-in-law, nephew and mom. The girls and I did crafts and I looked up recipes so they could have a spa day at home. Here they made masks out of banana, lemon juice, and baking soda. 

What A Season It Was

Warm ups before the game. 

They ended their season 12-5-1 including their play off wins/losses. It was the best season Josh has had by far during high school. I loved watching him re-emerge as the player I know him to be: confident, quiet, surefooted, a leader, and a starter. His ability to see the game in real time as the players and ball are laid out before him on the field are second to none. What he lacks in speed he makes up for in his ability to understand the game. Watching him play has always been and will continue to be (as long as he continues to play) one of the best gifts of being his mother. I love watching him play because HE loves playing. He is so passionate about soccer and always has been. From the time he was 4 years old soccer has dominated his life in a way that nothing else has.  I am proud of him for persevering. I am proud of him for not giving up this sport besides the hardships he has been through these last two years living in Portland. He is flourishing once again here in Indianapolis, and I am so thankful to this town for providing Josh the circumstances in which to thrive once more. 

Before every game the starting line up huddles together like this. Like a band of brothers, they stand arm and arm while one of their players says a quick prayer. The first time I saw the boys do this I knew that it would be one my most treasured things about this team. 

The boys that made of this team really made Josh feel at home from day 1. I can remember him coming home from his first summer session of soccer and telling me how friendly these boys were. How welcoming they were. There is something very true about Midwest values. The boys here were all polite and interested in getting to know this boy fore them who has played all over the country. And over a short time, Josh become one of them. Down in the trenches with them, side by side, winning and losing together, as a team. 

The boys ended up losing 2-0 to a team ranked #8 in the state. To be honest, the other team was a better team, but our boys could have beat them that night. An own goal and a controversial penalty kick are what created a final score of 2-0. We could have won that night. Our starting goalie ended up with a concussion so bad he doesn't remember much from the night and stayed out of school for the better part of a week. The penalty kick was scored on our back up goalie. It is hard to say for sure, but I don't think that goal would have been scored if our starter had been in. 

Standing the requisite 10 feet away from his opponent while the other team took a free kick.

Already, Josh and few boys who played on the team who aren't currently seniors are looking forward to next year's season. They are hoping to make it even further out of sectionals than this year's team did. (This year's team went further than last year's team.) I don't want to rush things, so I am not looking that far into the future yet. I am not sure if Josh will end up playing college soccer, so next year may be last too. I am not ready yet to face that possibility. 

In the meantime, I will focus on how lucky I am to get to be Josh's mom. What a gift he truly is and always has been. I don't know what I did to win the second son lottery, but I must have done something right because I hit it big. I couldn't ask for a better second born son. 

High school soccer  has been a while ride so far. It hasn't been anything at all like I would have hoped or planned it to be, but it has been exactly how it was meant to be. Go Quakers!

Pioneer Park

Yesterday afternoon, after their school work was completed, the kids and I (minus Josh) went to a park located 10 minutes from our house. This great park is located about ten minutes from our home and is the perfect spot to spend an afternoon with its abundant trails, open spaces, and playgrounds. We had a really nice time and enjoyed the perfect fall afternoon. This is one of my favorite things about homeschooling - the ability to take advantage of beautiful days and spend them outside instead of indoors. 

The girls brought 'Terry' (the tandem bike) with them to ride around while Andy and I walked together. 

I don't know why I loved this tree so much, but I did. While Bob misses the trees of the Northwest I am loving the trees in the Midwest. They give me a kind of comfort the trees in Oregon never did. 

I don't even know what we were laughing about. I just know I love this kid to pieces. 

I never realized how certain things about the Midwest give me such comfort. I feel like living here is like a giant hug and a welcome back from our journeys. A place to recharge before heading out again. The woods here especially give me comfort. A place to steady myself and catch my breath. Don't get me wrong - I love living out west. I cannot wait to get back out there, and hope that when we have to head out next that we can venture back out that way, but for now being here is so perfect.  

School Days: The Week of September 17 - 21

School is well in full swing in our household. We began homeschooling when Josh started back at the public school on July 31st. I really, really don't like starting school that early and next year, if I have anyone still at home with me, I will not being until the Tuesday after Labor Day. Indiana law requires that I homeschool the kids 180 days a year. They do not care which 180 days that I pick. During the years when I take an actual summer break instead of schooling year round I find that the kids have a hard time transitioning back into a school routine. To combat that this year I had the kids start off with two school subjects and then added a subject or two each week, so that they could ease into the full swing of school life. As with any kid and school some days are more of a struggle to get things done than others, but we almost always get what we need to do done.

This school year is certainly more hectic with Josh being gone full time and Sarah being gone part time. I thought that their absence might make things easier because it meant my work load would be lighter, but I am finding that this is not the case at all. Joshua still needs help and oversight just as he always has it just looks differently than if he was at home. Plus, I miss him a lot. His absence in our family is felt, but I know that this time away is so good for him.

Here is a look at pieces of our week last week:

Andy was helping Elizabeth to make a Roman pillar out of cookie dough. The idea was to create the pillar, bake the dough until it became crumbly, and then remove it from the oven. This is supposed replicate what a lot of the architecture felt like as it was going to ruin. 

Elizabeth completed a project about the solar system. She choose to do Astronomy this school year for science. 

Sarah was working on a writing assignment. 

This is supposed to represent a Roman banner that was carried into war. 

A homeschool week wouldn't be complete in this house without spending some time outdoors. 

I love the sky here. 

Reading time! 

I can remember when we first started learning braille about 3 years ago getting a book like one and thinking how in the world would Sarah ever be able to read a book with braille so close together and on both sides of the page? I thought the task would be impossible. And here we sit. Sarah reading a book that I thought I could never teach her how to read. This is one of my greatest accomplishments and one of the things that I am most proud of.