Okay.  I wrote this June 2, 2015 and never posted it.  Well. . ., here we go again in 2017

(This post is about why I started to blog again.)

It has been FOREVER since I last blogged.  FOREVER.

There are two main reasons.

1. We moved from Michigan to Florida and have been busy fixing up our fixer-upper
2. Blogging costs money.  I needed to renew my domain name AND I needed to upgrade my photo storage.

So (surprisingly to me) the kiddos kept asking me to blog again.  I was surprised as blogging takes time away from them.

Now our Baseball Boy (who is now a volleyball boy) turned 14, and turning 14 has not been easy on any of us.  AT ALL!

(I will get around to why I started blogging again.)

We had great plans and dreams of taking a Big Ole trip out West this year, but after a “State of the Family Finances” meeting, we decided we just needed to stay home this year.  I was disappointed but somehow at peace about the whole thing.  The next question was, “How should the kiddos spend their summer?”

(This somehow will tie into why I started to blog again.)

At fourteen, Baseball Boy could legally get a job, but I hemmed-and-hawed.  He will have to work the rest of his life, and maybe he needed just one more summer of “being a kid.”   But as we battled 14-year-old issues, and when a friend offered to train our Baseball Boy to paint, we packed him a lunch and dropped him off at the pick up location along with a team of Hispanic workers.  After work, he has a two hour volleyball practice (7:00 – 9:00) each night.  Then he has to complete two lessons in his online Spanish class.  We are only two weeks into this routine, but it is a LONG day for a 14 year old.

(Almost there.  Almost to the reason I started to blog again.)

Well, today he got his FIRST PAY CHECK EVER!!!!  And this momma couldn’t be prouder!!!  So we snapped a photo of him as he walked through the door.

Then I told him, “You get to keep $40 of the paycheck, but the rest in going in the bank for college and a car.”  Then I added, “You will probably spend it all on Lego, and WE DON’T NEED ANY MORE LEGO IN THIS HOUSE.”

(We are finally there. . .to the reason why I started blogging again.)

Well, as I logged onto Facebook, The Hunni said, “While you are on the computer, let’s renew your domain name.”

“Oh, thanks Hunni,” I said.

The Hunni replied, “Don’t thank me.  Thank your son!”

It took a little, but I finally realized that my Baseball Boy was spending his first $40 on me!!!!!!

tearfully,

–rebecca

P. S. About that family trip west we wanted to take in 2015, but couldn’t. . .We took it this fall.  Posts about the trip will follow.