This weekend Dave and I made a big decision. Oddly enough, this decision was made in part because of our weeds! I am going to give my 2 weeks notice when I go to work today and become a full time mom. My job of tutoring a few hours a day, a few days a week has been a great blessing in my life. I have shared with most of you the awesome rewards I have found in it. I have rejoiced over how the timing has worked out so perfectly that I was able to continue doing it even after we had Ella. It is the right time to be done, though, and there are many good reasons why...
1. Here is what a normal day looks like for our family: Dave is at church from 8 to 2 or 3 while I entertain Ella. When he comes home, I give him a 2 minute synoposis and he takes over Ella while I head to work until 6. When I come home we quick eat the dinner I have made in advance then he leaves for a 7:00 meeting usually returning around 10. We can go weeks passing each other and doing "tag-team" childcare like this. And when the weekends are full of retreats, fundraisers, lock-ins or sermon writing this pattern continues. It makes us feel distant and unconnected. My being free each afternoon would help.
2. I love the character of our 1950's house, but it comes with lots of projects and upkeep too. Dave has a chance to work on it about one Saturday every 2-3 months, it seems. By freeing up his afternoons from watching Ella, he feels he might be able to actually stay more on top of things like mowing the lawn or completing projects. (This was where the weeds spoke to us!) I'm sure that as I get nearer to the end of my pregnancy I will think up more and more things to fix and do, also.
3. Dave recently took over a new position as Stated Clerk of our area's Classis. To do this big job he will be compensated. The salary is equivalent to a year's worth of my little pay checks!
4. We are in a time of transition at my learning center. Since we switched ownership a year ago, I've seen many changes. We're less efficient and organized, we've fired important and valuable staff, our enrollment has dropped, etc. In general, my job has been less satisfying because of these issues.
There are only a few months left where it will be just Dave and Ella and I. I want to treasure those times before our lives get busier and my attention gets divided. For me, it came down to which people and kids I wanted to give my time too. I do value my students, but of course I love my own family more. Time is short and my family needs me. So this 4-year chapter in my teaching career is about to close. And I am happy with this decision.
Even though for some reason we still use the adjective "new" to describe our friends Jeff, Amy and Jonathan, they are quickly becoming some of our favorite and most regular friends. Here is a list of things Ella has done with her buddy, Jonathan: 
