From Texas

Hello out there!
A quick update.
The boys are thriving here. Devyn is happier and more content than I’ve seen him in years. Matthew is Matthew, going along pretty calm, loving how much more he gets to be with Dad. More than ever in his 4 years. In Illinois, Devyn was surrounded by girls. Friends and cousins were all girls! As hoped there are many boys his age here. We’ve been spending time with 3 families in particular which account for 5 boys between the ages of 6-10. In fact, there are so many boys around, Devyn was starting to feel lopsided. Then, last week, a new friend and her 6 year old, highly articulate, highly silly daughter came over for dinner. All three kids romped, giggled and explored our toys in that beautiful way I have come to miss. At first I figured it was a boy girl difference. But as I really think about it, I realize that one thing we’ve been missing here is having our friends come play at our house, with no other agenda(like a birthday party). Mostly we go to other peoples houses. The parties have been fun, but there’s nothing like a laid back play date shared by 2 or more families just for the purpose of enjoying eachothers company. Note to self…Invite other families over more often, with a goal of one date a week at our house(where there is not tv, video games or combat toys and the kids need to create)!
In other news, hmmm….our tomato plant has 17(?18) little tomatoes all green and growing. We’ll be bringing it in each night since the nights are getting colder sooner than expected, while the days are warmer than usual. Odd.
Unexpectedly and with much gratitude, we were welcomed and treated as family by one homeschool family, the Baha’i’s in Arlington and Grand Prairie, and by our family Aunt Louise and cousin Dorothy…to the point that from the moment we moved here, we have not had that difficult period of long days and loneliness as we get to know people. I even managed to double schedule twice in our first month here. And the people we are getting to know are so open and real. I’ve never experienced anything like it even though we’ve been the newcomers many times. Usually there are one or two people that help us get involved and gradually we meet a few families from various aspects of our lives and build intimate friendships over a period of months. This other experience goes like this. Several families from various aspects of our life welcome us into the fabric of thier lives and the friendships are mutually deeply appreciated and all concerned are initiating plans to be together. Every week or two seems to bring a new friendship as well! I am learning a new layer of love.