So what’s been happening in your world?
Well it’s been a pretty crazy year. Here are the highlights before I delve deeper.
- Daughter turned 21.
- Son made top 6 at Nationals for lead climbing.
- Daughter got married.
- Son finished High School.
- No more homeschooling for me - yeeehaaaaaa!!!
- So qualified to represent South Africa in June - 😳
So its been WILD!
Noone warns you about rhese life changes and how they sneak up on you. As a mom of two kids (now 21 and 19) I’ve spent a chinck of my life being a stay-at-home mom. The first 11 years if my daughter’s life, and 9 years of my son’s, I was there for absolutely everything. Changing nappies, messy food, tantrums, school drops and pickups, school lunches, sleep overs, teenage fashion, more tantrums and mood swings, door slams, heart break and eventually the switch to homeschool.
For 5 years in the latter portion of my kids lives I worked full time and felt like the juggle was insane. I worked in a fantastic environment in a creative producer role that was my dream job, but knowing that my kids were getting home from school wothout me was tough. Iy was even harder knowing that they werw an hours dribe away and I could get home fast in case of an emergency. Eventually my hisband and I made the decision that we would make a big lifestyle change.
We had bought a small cottage further down the coast from our current family home and when Covid hit we sold up and moved. The cottage needed WORK so we mdid everythyneedes to make it comfortable and sold the big house. I was once again a SAHM (ie. Stay-at-home-mom). My daughter was beginning senior high online, my son was beginning grade 8 also online. And my new job was to facilitate our life while my husband ALSO worked from home.
Initially our new normal felt cramped, and sometimes its still does, but the benefots of this big change were incredible! We were connected as a family. We took walks on the beach together in the evenings. And were figuring out how to do this new life with one less income, but far better quality time.
My daughter wroye her final school exams at 17 years old and was quickly au pairing in our village and valley. And she soon met her boyfriend who is now her husband. How is that possible? How am I a Mother-in-law? Anyway, hes a sweet surfer boy and they are happy navigating their new marriage together in the valley next door. So i guess that covers 1 & 3.
Over the last 3 years my son and I needed to find a sport that he loved and it turns out he has a PASSION for ROCK CLIMBING! Whaaaaat!???!? I grew up going to the beach, swimming in the sea, surfing and sailing and now i had a kid that loves the mountains. I had started hiking a couple years prior and he just disnt enjoy the mundane hikes. But rock climbing? Now that brought our two worlds together. I got to be outside in the mountains with him, but instead of hiking I was belaying him on crazy overhung rock in the crags.
This lead him to competing and at his 2nd Nationals he placed 6th in tbe Open Division for lead climbing. The top 8 get invitations to apply to compete overseas and and he accepted 2 European Cup competitions coming up in June-July this year. It that will be a whole other post.
Anyway, in the midst of competing we managed to write his final school exams and in January he passed the final exam completing his school leavers diploma. What a crazy time its been. 2024 was focussed on climbing and training with a bit of high school here and there inbetween. But we got it done.
Now I have no more school kids. And a little bit more
Time on my hands to get back to my blogging. Did you know that I once spent an entire year blogging daily? (I think it was 2021) I had challenged myself to be creative every single day for a year! And oh my goodness, it was fantastic. So maybe now I can get back to 2 or 3 blogs a week. What do you think? Should I give it a go?
What has happened in the Hive over the last couple years? Let me know what the new trends are and how to stay connected with my fellow hivers. What tags should I be using? What are the new communities?
I know this blog isnt about coffee, bit it just felt like we needed a big catchup and chat after all thentime that has passed. It’s been too long. So here we go. Lets do this!
Love Zoe
I think it's easy to do blogging each day if you are fully at home and not working. I tried to blog for 30 consecutive days before, but it was hard. How much more could it be the whole year?
!LADY
Thanks! Yea sometimes it became a chore, but most of the time it was alright. My whole life became about taking photos and experiences that I could blog about.
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Hi, Zoe. Wow that sounds like it's been an eventful few months (years?)! Congratulations to both your kids...and to you for doing what sounds like one hell of a job with them. :D As a fellow homeschooler, I definitely relate.
Though quick note, please try to only post in the Cinnamon Cup Coffee community with posts actually relating to coffee. Posts that fall outside our niche tend to be muted, which would be a shame, as this is a lovely post (So I suggest in future, looking for better-suited communities for these kinds of long catch-ups!) :D I hope your next few months are as charged and happy and that your daughter's happy in her marriage! At 21, that's impressive! Cheerio! :)
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STOPI would say that there are many things together, but that's life, suddenly, everything happens in fast motion and when we look, what? We are left with is to continue moving forward, excellent that you resume your blog. Much success and I'm glad to have you back, greetings 🤗🥰
Amazing
Thank you! It’s been a crazy year but this year is calming down just a little. Hopefully I can blog more regularly again.