Tag: stage

New Season of Beginnings

Life moves on! Our new seasons and stages

August 31, 2021

New Season of Beginnings

As I drove to work, I noticed the goldenrods in bloom. My mother always told us that meant six weeks to cooler weather. Everywhere I have lived, that bit of seasonal information has held true. From Virginia to South Carolina and, yes, even in steamy Florida.

The thought of seasonal change made me smile and reflect on the seasons of life our family is shifting into this year:

Christina started her first day at an “away” college. She’s a junior at Embry-Riddle. Her literal first day of classes was today. A season of independence for her – her eighteenth birthday is looming closer than I want to believe. Secretly, I already consider her an adult. I’m so excited for her and pray for wisdom in her new ventures!!

Christina took her sisters shopping!
Coach Christina spots a bridge

Rebeccah got her first request that wasn’t family for her art. Her birdies are almost old enough to sell. Her hobbies are blooming the imaginative artist within her! She has been raking up driving hours with us… Sixteen is too close.

Kimberly has taken on teaching roles at home, at gym and at church. She loves teaching. She loves tutoring. She is growing patience and understanding. She is facing tough decisions between CAP and Xcel Team gymnastics. Her goals, respectively, were officer rank and team. Made one! The new restrictions and the lack of social interaction at CAP versus the unlimited freedoms, friendly faces, and encouraging camraderie at her gym. She asked me to make her decision… I have to let her decide and I will support her decision.

Kimberly and Jaquline

Jaquline is maturing into a young lady. Mom may not be ready for that! She loves gymnastics and thrives in her books – she, just like her older sisters, is a bookworm. Jaquline is beginning to enter her realm of personal responsibility and leadership.

Jillian is learning to manage friendships and learning to discern when to follow and when to lead.

Lucas entered school “officially,” as he’s first grade. He is enjoying his new challenges!

Big sisters like to take pictures and selfies…

Thea started Gym-N-Learn at WGV Gymnastics. Mom isn’t ready for some of the skills she tries, but her ability to learn from others and take direction? Yes, that is so awesome!

Each season is a new discovery of challenges. Of fun and fabulous adventures… Of making new friends, finding new loves, achieving new goals…

Life constantly moves forward. You can never go backwards in life. If you missed something, start over. Renew. Rejoin. Always move forward. Someone said to me, “you’re such a dreamer, you’ll never have your own (house).” But I believe in God’s timing and plan for the future while living in the present! I embrace this new season nd pray for wisdom to guide my younglings (and not so young younglings) through their new seasons of life.

I hope as this season starts for you, you remember the awesome past, look to the future, and build memories in the present!

Type at you later!

~Nancy Tart

Independence Day 2021

Independence Day 2021

July 10, 2021

“Freedom fireworks!” Screams one of the littler girls when she hears me say, “fireworks over the Matanzas starts at 9:30.”

The best fireworks show in the world (okay, maybe since St Augustine is my city, I might be a little biased) is our downtown spectacular “Fireworks Over the Matanzas.” Every year since our little family moved to St Augustine with a one-year-old little Christina, we’ve been down at the bayfront when the sky explodes with vibrant colors to musiç that stirs your soul and shakes through your shoes up to your chest.

My sisters have joined us, my mom came to her first one with us in 2019, various nieces and nephews have camped out in the stroller (now retired) or on blankets at the festivities. We dance, enjoy the day, watch fish, marine life, and people.

This year it was park late, walk fast, and get there with 15 minutes to spare!

I love our tradition!

As long as we have “Fireworks over the Matanzas” we will be there. Sometimes more than “Tart, party of 9” and sometimes less as the kiddos start branching out, but we will be there!

This year was exciting as everyone stayed up through the show but also sad because Christina wasn’t there (in Indiana doing pilot stuff).

Time marches on.

Seasons change, stages overlap, and years pass by. You have 18 summers (maybe) before your infant, who slept though her first Fireworks, becomes an independent adult. That could be scary.

This year Christina is 17, going to Embry-Riddle, and just graduated with her AA and is blowing our expectations out of the water! I’m so humbled by watching this amazing young woman become an adult.

Becky went to PreMed camp. Her triumphant return with a passion that turned my silent introvert into a chatterbox relaying exciting experiences and new goals and plans made me thankful for our decision to send her. She is such a caring heart and her passion is contagious! I’m humbled by this beautiful heart I’m getting the privilege to connect with. I’m praying God grants me the wisdom to guide her as she chooses her next steps.

Kimberly had a difficult decision to make for summer and did it with grace. I’m proud of watching her take control of her responsibilities.

Jaquline is proving herself a competent household manager and baby/toddler whisperer. I can’t wait to see what God does with her tender servant’s heart.

Jillian is learning to take direction and focus better. Her live of sports and can-do attitude make for a world of possibilities! I’m praying this season teaches her responsibility and determination.

Lucas is growing by leaps and bounds. I pray his tender heart continues to protect others.

Thea is learning to count by 10s and quarters!! (That made Jaquline and I blink) “Mom, I need 25 *raises 1 finger* and 50 *raises 2nd finger* but not 75 *raises 3rd finger* for goldfish.” She was right, goldfish snacks at gym need 2 quarters aka 50 cents.

Treasure each stage. Embrace each challenge. Look for the positive in what appears to be negative. Find truth. Choose joy. What few summers you have with each one will slip away faster than you think. It wasn’t like last year (with no Fireworks over the Matanzas) I thought, “Christina won’t be here next year.” Nope, didn’t cross my mind. Just like I balk at the thought that Becky is beginning to mange her own schedule… As is Kimberly.

Just like pregnancy (I love being pregnant, the feel of honor carrying life), you never know when “the lasts” will happen so you have to treasure each moment.

Enjoy your last half of summer! Make some memories!! Do the unexpected simple things (like play a game outside in the light rain) to make this summer special. Treasure each moment. I’m trying to…

Thanks for reading!

Type at you later!

~Nancy Tart

And… It Happened!

Look out world! Here comes a full confident young woman who continually amazes her family! #ProudParent #WeLoveYou

And… IT Happened!

January 9, 2020

I am at work, minding my own business, trying to focus solely on work.

*BLING* No noise, though, because my phone is on silent like it should be.

I glance at it laying on the desk.

WHAT!

“Mom, which day is good for University tour? I need it for my scholarship application next year.”

I reread that with bugged out eyes.

Yes, next year. Like, application to be delivered in the beginning of fall 2020. Where did time run?

Fast forward to the day before said university tour date (I’ve already asked for the day off months ago & am really excited about visiting this place!).

*BLING*

Um… Really? It’s lunch, though (oddly she seems to understand the no-phones-during-work concept already), so I look.

I get a picture… it’s an outline of our entire day, which not only includes the long drive, university tour, campus discussion, and such, but also squeezes in “appointment at DMV.”

Wait. What appointment? It’s Jaquline’s 10th birthday – my mind instantly pops to Kimberly and Jaquline’s open request for their FL IDs. Nope. Three dots (means she’s typing another text) pop up…

“Oh, that’s because 01/07 is when I can get my real driver’s license & I already booked the appointment so we will just make it if there’s traffic.”

I laugh out loud.

I could say impressed, but I’m not really. I know my young woman very well. She knows that if she wants something, she has to set it all up and make it happen. Expecially since I’ve been working full-time now, all of the girls have become far more independent. Before it was my policy that if they wanted something (plan an outing, attend an event, join a club/group, get a job, etc.) that wasn’t a family thing, I would help research and direct, but they had to do the paperwork, calling, or whatever else that had to be done. Now, though, my free time at home is taken up with the younglings doing really basic stuff like verifying schoolwork, going over new concepts again, attempting to train basic manners and such in two of three hours without feeling like a joy-leech (more on that to come later), and other such. Sometimes I feel like I never get to talk to my teens & preteen.

Driving them places was my only dedicated time to talk with them… I’m not sure I want her to have her license…

Nothing is going to slow her down.

I love that she’s so independent and self-reliant. I love that she has goals and makes things happen to reach them.

…I’ve been in thought too long, the three dots come back…

“It shouldn’t take too long. I made an appointment.”

So I send a smiley face. (I didn’t even realize the DMV was open that late)

*Pause for the tour… and the sweet story of this picture!*

The above picture was her grabbing a “quick selfie” with me as Dad stopped for his breakfast after the tour – “we have to have one picture from the tour with both of us!” (My heart almost melted, I had several pictures of her, just none of me... she meant she wanted a picture with me.)

Fast forward to January 7th, and I’m typing on a blog after driving Christina to her appointment. I’m waiting for my sixteen year old to get back from her test. She’s about to step into a new level of independence.

I’m not really scared – though most people say I should be.

I trust that she’s learned well. I trust that she will make safe, wise decisions. Mostly, this peace I’m carrying is because I know regardless of what I want, I can only hold her hand for so long – I have to let her grow. I let her go into God’s hands… back into God’s hands, actually. Not that she ever left His care, just that he entrusted Louis & I with her for a while. A few short years in the span of life… we get to hold, love on, teach, and enjoy our younglings as they learn in a safe, protected environment.

The ultimate test is what they do once they leave.

I see her trying to hide her excitement – CAP has taught her that – as she comes back in. She needs me to come to the agent’s window. I smile as I mentally ask myself, “is this the last time I’ll need to sign something for her to give permission?” (She’s not 18, so silly question, but that’s what my mind says to me.)

She passed (no, I’m not surprised) and we drive home. I tease her that I could take a nap in the backseat now.

Someone asked me, “aren’t you worried about her driving the interstate after…?” They didn’t complete it but my head did, “…you just lost Mary there.”

No. “Why not?”

I asked myself the same thing as Kimberly and Christina loaded up in “Old Blue” (her name for her car) in their ABUs and my oldest and preteen drove out on their first solo drive. “Why aren’t you worried?” – and I give myself the same answer I gave that person, “Jesus is in charge of my heart and hers.”

I’m secretly thrilled beyond measure of the whole university experience she will launch into next year. I’m excited for her getting to drive at 16 (I was 19 when I got my first driver’s license). I’m so proud of her I sometimes feel my heart might bust. And this is just the beginning… New stage, for me and for Christina.

This year, 2020, has already seen my first university tour (Christina), first fully licensed driver (Christina), and Kimberly’s first long trip away from home. 2020 will include: oldest trio’s first summer camp together, Christina’s first solo flight, Lucas’ starting kindergarten, Becky’s learner’s permit, and Kimberly’s Vyteen account. By their plans; Kimberly wants to take the PERT, Jaquline & Kimberly plan to be team gymnasts, Kimberly wants to be C/Sgt before summer… and those are just the ones I currently know about… I’m blessed to be their mom. I’m super excited for them.

Jesus is in charge of my heart and theirs. I have a peace as they grow that some people just don’t understand… but my joy in their achievements is something everyone can relate to!

Type at you later,

~Nancy Tart

The Big Boy Bed

May 2, 2019

The Big Boy Bed

The girls shifted their beds around so that the Playroom is now the sleeping quarters for Kimberly, Jaquline, and Jillian and the Barracks is sleeping quarters for Christina, Becky, and Primrose.  This shift was so that the barbies, legos, and small toys like polly pockets and art stuff could be in the Playroom while the Barracks holds all of the toddler toys that cannot fit in a child’s mouth.

They are planning for Thea to be running around already.  (Mommy is not ready just yet! I plan on being in Baby Stage a little longer!)

Lucas was bunking with Christina.  But then we got a toddler bed!  It needed some repair (but a few wooden dowels and extra bolts made a solid fix!) and we had to dig around for toddler bed sheets, but now Lucas has a big boy bed!

20190401_2236048569054926671722146.jpg

Sheba thinks this is her spot to share with Lucas.

Lucas was so excited to have his Star Wars blanket on his very own big boy bed!  Last year, he didn’t want anything to do with a special trundle bed so we gave it away.

As we grow, sometimes the things we brushed away turn into the things we love ~ strange thoughts, I know.  But that’s what goes through my head when I watch my little love snuggle into his big boy bed under his blanket; he has grown just a little more independent.

Thanks for reading!

Type at you soon…

~Nancy Tart

An Attitude of Gratitude

June 24, 2018

Attitude of Gratitude

Have you ever felt depressed because something you planned for didn’t come to pass?  Something you wanted to do with someone didn’t pan out?  Have you ever thought you did everything you could but were still shoved down?

Sometimes an unexpected illness happens even when you are doing everything to keep yourself healthy.  That causes mountains of bills.  Maybe we are contract employees or making “too much” to qualify for assistance, yet we can’t afford insurance premiums.  Sometimes, even an insurance policy doesn’t help much.  Maybe, it turns $40K bills into $14K with “rate adjustments.” (That’s still $14,000!)   You thank God for discovering the cause and pray you can manage the enemy that infects your home so you can breathe.

Bills that big can bankrupt people.  Some medical providers will work with a former patient to take monthly payments.  But for some families, the additional $200 or $300 a month means no food.  (Yes, most will take $25 or $50 a month, but when you have six or eight different bills from one visit, that adds up to a lot.)   You know you have to pay it.  But you can’t manage it.  You can’t even go afford to visit the doctor for the required “follow-up.” You just pray.

Fiscally responsible people cancel all unnecessary expenses.  But when your annual clothing budget of $50 is already gone, you don’t go out to eat, you don’t do theaters, you don’t buy new things, you haven’t even replaced your broken couch with a $50 resale one, and you already spend less than $350 a month for food for 8 people, all you can do is cut food.  You just pray.

Or try to get a higher paying job.

But you’ve been applying for every job you think you have qualifications for in north and central Florida for over 20 months with only one interview and three emails claiming: “you are overqualified.”  That’s seriously frustrating.  You have no experience with “foodservice” or “retail” and all those jobs want experience.  You just keep applying; you pray each time you email, drop-off, or hand-in an application.  You pray God’s will for your job life and pray He opens a door for you.   You’ve expanded from a 20 mile commute to a 100 mile commute.  You just pray.

You can look for cheaper housing – but that’s hard when you are paying less than what you’d be required to pay for an income-restricted apartment.  You keep looking, but really don’t have any money to move anyway.  The home you’re renting is the cause of your medical illness and thus financial problems, so yes, you’d like to leave it; you just can’t afford to.  You just pray.

This is the time when it’s very hard to really mean “I’m believing God for my needs.”

Then you had planned to go visit family for a couple of days, but because of another unexpected expense, you find you won’t have the gas money to go.  Besides, if you miss work, you’ll just fall further behind in bills.

This is when you bury your head in your hands and scream.  You’ve been trying everything humanly possible, or so it seems, and something that appears it would be so simple for most people is just out of your grasp.  Driving 10 hours to visit your brother might as well be a mission to Mars.

You may not have control on the circumstances that have put you here, but you can control your attitude (how you handle this stage of life).

This is when you have to remember to encourage yourself.  You have to say “God, you are my Rock, my fortress, my help in time of trouble.  God, you are my provider, my father, and I thank you for life, health, and provision.”

You choose an attitude of gratitude.

You have to take stock in what you do have: you have a roof (even if it’s the cause of health issues you’ve never had), you have a job (your “unofficial second job” is what you love; just no paycheck yet), your children are doing well, your marriage is strong, and you have family and friends who love you.

The last three are the most important.

Family is life.

Money is just a currency of this world to give us stress.  We either stress because we don’t have enough and literally pray for our daily bread or stress because we have too much and worry about losing it.

I can choose to have an attitude of gratitude, be thankful for what God has gifted me and trust Him for everything else.  I want my children to see thankfulness and trust. This attitude works for every stage in life – valleys full of bills and mountains with plenty.

I choose gratitude – I choose to smile.  I choose to trust. I choose to rejoice.

Thanks for reading!

Type at you next time…

~Nancy Tart

A New Step

A New Step in our Educational Journey

January 8, 2018

A New Step

Saturday afternoon we got Christina back from her week-long Civil Air Patrol encampment.

Today, Kimberly, Jaquline, Jillian, and Lucas are doing school at a stone table on the beautiful grounds of our state college waiting for Christina and Rebeccah to finish with their first class.

My younglings are growing up too quickly for me!

The sweet lady in the college bookstore was very helpful and encouraging.  She handed the girls a copy of the eleventh edition of their Biology… I have the seventh at home (from when I went here only a few years ago).  Honestly, I’m so excited for the girls in this next step.  (But I won’t say that to them; I try to make this as normal as possible.  We’ve treated every step in their educational journey as simply another textbook to study.)  I’m very thankful for the awesome opportunities available to students in our county.  (This is a big difference from growing up when home schooling was illegal!)

I’m remembering them at the preschool level (Lucas: counting pinecones and creating stickmen from oak leaves and pine sticks), kindergarten level (Jillian: reading and doing her math problems), and working through book steps like Jaquline and Kimberly. (I “stair-step” arithmetic and language arts in a progression they move through and they get to pick one, two, or three “study books” from history, science, and other subjects.) Then they get through independent learning in preparation for college or vocation. (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, various social studies, upper level literature studies, etc.)  Now, Christina and Rebeccah are at the next step: dual enrollment (college credit classes!).

The nostalgic part of me wants time to slow down.

The logical part of me is thoroughly enjoying each new step each one of my children take.  I love the baby stage, but I get excited when the baby steps up to dress and feed themselves.  I love the learning-independence toddler stage, but I love it when they discover reading!  I love the everything-is-new discovery stage, (I try to keep that going as long as I can) but that is too quickly followed by the totally-independent-learning stage.  Yes, I get a little sad when they complete their lesson goals without my help, but I am proud and excited as they jump ahead of my goals by making and achieving their own personal goals.

I see the goal of my “teaching” job as helping my students learn how to teach themselves.  This means inspiring a lifelong love of learning, challenging them to reach higher and higher personal goals, and instilling core principles like academic integrity and determination.

I’m sure they will do well.  They love to learn and are thriving in their “adult” environment where their fellow students are all serious about their work.  I have to smile because I feel like I’ve accomplished my teaching goal – at least for these students – they are fully independent learners with their eyes on future careers and their lifelong pursuit of knowledge.

Of course, I will never truly stop teaching.  I’ll be asking, “so, how was school?” even when they call me from their university in years to come.  That thought makes me smile again.

“Jaquline,” says Kimberly, “why aren’t you writing?”

Jaquline is sitting at the stone picnic table, her paperwork on a clipboard, smiling and staring at the sky.  She sighs and says dreamily, “I’m doing my school at college!”

Thanks for reading!

Type at you next time…

~Nancy Tart

 

Level Up!

Who knew video games were a parody of real life?

October 2, 2017

Leveling Up

On this nice warm day Jillian, Lucas, and I sat playing a video game on the couch.

We like to play this game together because Lucas can push the buttons (he thinks this is super) and Jillian narrates (this is Mommy getting creative about reading practice).   Some monkey bandits approach and Lucas tosses the controller to my lap. (I get to fight the battles.)

Afterward, Jillian reads “Alena has increased!”  She adds, “I like it when they level up.”

“Why?” I ask.  Lucas is walking the character around again.

“Because they learn new stuff.”

“I’m about to level up,” laughs Christina from the kitchen table.  (How is she following our conversation when she’s nose deep in chemistry?)

“In your game?” Jillian asks.  (Everyone has a saved game for this game; it’s a family competition.)

“No,” Christina laughs, “in real life.  I’m about to enter level 14.”

“Oh,” Jillian says thoughtfully.  She grins like Davy Crockett and starts bouncing (she does this when she figures something out), “you mean your birthday!  I love birthdays!  So I really love leveling up in real life.”

This made me smile.

It also made me think:

Our lives are quite like a game.  We go through “stages” in life that change as we grow.  Sometimes entering a new “level” is challenging, and we need help to get through this trying time (aka handing the controller off to mom).  Sometimes we are perfectly happy with the level we are at and don’t want it to change (Why can’t we stay in this land?).  Just like our goal in games is to “level up” by moving into new territory with new challenges, our goal in life is to “level up” by continuously learning, growing, and moving beyond complacency.

This also means we enjoy the journey as we go.  (Who would play a video game they didn’t enjoy?)  We find something fun in any situation and depend on God for direction, strength, and the wisdom to meet all challenges.  There’s even a guidebook!

The goal of our game is to make good choices and collect enough skills to win at the end.  In life, since being with Jesus in heaven forever is our end (we already know we will win!), our life choices should be made with this goal in mind.   (Being careful that what we do and say reflects Jesus is a good start!)

I never thought video games could be such good parodies of real life!  Oops, I’ve got to go get a “level up” cake ready for tomorrow!

 

Thanks for reading!

Type at you next time…

~Nancy Tart

Follow me!

Get my latest posts delivered to your email: