The week between Christmas and New Years has traditionally been favorite of mine– perfect time to think about the upcoming year.

Real Estate Investment:

2008: Not much to say about the state of affairs in REI. Lots of talk, not much action. We made offers that were accepted and fell through due to the turbulence of the mortgage industry, made offers that were not accepted, thought about making offers but didn’t for various reasons. etc. We’re all set up and ready to go with Commercial Bank if and when we find something that makes sense financially.  Hurricane Ike had far reaching consequences that could not be foreseen ahead of time which should bring opportunities in the not too distant future.

If we’re going by feelings, it felt that 2008 was a year of wheel-spinning  without much forwardly movement. Looking at things objectively, I believe 2008 was a year of getting things set in order, preparing to take advantage of opportunities in 2009.

2009: The mister would like to buy 3 homes next year, one fixer and 2 newer homes needing mostly cosmetic work. The lack of contractors due to the storm actually provides an opportunity for the mister to teach his small fry protege’ some of the skillz he’ll need to repair his own houses one day. Holding time will be longer but we’ll get a chance to work on things together and that’s always good.

Final Thoughts: I’m thankful for our small portfolio of rent houses and the steady stream of rent checks that arrive in the mail each month. They provide a much-needed cushion during uncertain economic times. I’m thankful we now have the financial savvy to move forward during a downturn. But  mostly, I’m glad we’re able to work on something we really love doing together as a family.

Homeschool:

2008: This was a big year for homschooling in the Brz household.  DS and I are worked on his schedule and learned to balance real life experiences with the necessary academic progress to keep his options open should he choose to pursue a more traditional college course of study. I added a class in Finance which included books like Richest Man in Babylon and we played Cashflow 101  twice weekly. He loves Teaching Textbooks Pre-Algebra and seems to be retaining the lessons from Easy Grammar Plus although I’m constantly amazed at how much we refer back to those old lessons from Shurley Grammar.

2009: These days our homeschool life is just Life. Work, play, and academics all merge together. At the end of each traditional academic semester, we make notes, reevaluate our progress and fill in any gaps. He’s ahead in some subjects, behind in others and I could really care less, which is a testament to my progress as a homeschool mom more than his as a student.

If I’ve learned anything, it’s that children learn and grow differently and it’s not when you learn something but if. No one asks DD2 if she learned to read in kindergarten or 3rd grade as she heads in to Bauer Hall at the university to take her Advanced Accounting Final. And no one is going to care if DS takes Pre-Algebra in 8th or 9th grade.

Final Thoughts: The homeschool world use to be my only world. I wrote articles, spoke at workshops, taught at co-ops plus the juggling act that comes from planning coursework for 4 children and implementing same. Keeping house, teaching math and reading, growing a garden, brooding chicks… I dearly loved every minute.

And now, it’s almost over. Three more years just doesn’t sound like much when you have 18 behind you. And, no surprise, I’ve found that I am a much different person than I was back in 1990 when we cracked that first Saxon Kindergarten math workbook. Yes, the kids are doing well, but I’m the one who’s learned the most. The improved academic skills, along with the confidence that comes from tackling a multi-year, longterm project and finishing successfully have given me a ‘Yes indeedy, I can do that’ attitude that was sorely missing before. My years as a stay-at-home, teach-at-home mom are directly related to my current enthusiasm for investment and real estate.

Go figure.

Family:

2008: I dearly love my family but rarely talk beyond the frivolous basics here. That’s because family life is sacred and my love for the mister and kids is beyond question. We’ve collectively had our share of joy, stress and sorrow, but I can’t be anything other than altogether grateful for another year of love and laughs. Each one is a gift that the mrs does not take for granted.

2009: As the kiddies are all big and stuff, only they know what’s up for next year. The mister and I want to take a trip or two together– no kids, no dogs, just us. Also, as my mom enters her 4th quarter-century, there are bound to be aging issues. I hear the technical term is Aging in Place and as we’ve come to find out, that’s not so easy in a ‘give ‘em a pill and send ‘em to daycare’ world. So far, doctors have not been our friends or advocates. I expect we’ll have to find some alternatives outside the mainstream to the issues Mom’s facing with her health, eyesight, hearing and mobility.

Final Thoughts: Only thankfulness fills my heart on this one. I’m thankful the girls are growing up to be strong, independent woman who love God and still want to hang out with Mom and Dad. I’m thankful Mom’s still here and in excellent health for her age. I’m thankful DS still hugs me in the mornings and brings me coffee when I’m incoherent.  I’m so very thankful for the mister who is always the mister- steady, lovable, dependable, soft-hearted, faithful, honest. And cute.

Did I mention cute?

Friends:

2008: This has turned out to be an amazing year of reconnecting with old friends as well as bonding with those precious families we invite over for coffee and dominoes on a regular basis. And, let’s not forget internet friends who are just as real and just as welcome as those we see with eyeballs.

2009: The mister and I both have a 30 year high school reunion this summer. That should be good for a laugh or two and perhaps we’ll find a few of those we unintentionally lost along the way.

Final Thoughts: I’m ashamed to admit that I once thought friends were optional–nice but unnecessary. Marrying young, piling on the babies, then sequestering ourselves in a fit of homeschool/homestead life may have contributed. Ten years of chronic pain and poor health following a botched surgery didn’t help any either. But it is those very friends I once took for granted that have taught me of their necessity.

The day after our doublewide was destroyed, I stood in the rain, looking at the ruin of our house and instinctively did the only thing that came to mind. I called Laurie Byrd. I remember mumbling something incoherent about, “the trailer’s gone and I don’t know what to do.” Her reply? “We’ll be right over.” 

On Memorial Day, the entire Byrd Clan dropped everything, loaded up their car with homemade cupcakes and chainsaws, hooked the trailer to their Suburban, then spent hours in the pouring rain removing the tree from the roof and moving our essentials to temporary housing. We can never repay them… not only for the physical help, but also for the emotional support of their presence (although I do try to cut Vernon a larger than average piece of cake when they’re here.)

And as I approach the mid-century mark, I’m discovering how very important is that wonderful creature, The Girlfriend. Women need each other. We do strange things that men will never understand.  We bleed from various places, give birth-or don’t. Decorate various parts of our body, shaving off some things, growing out and coloring others. We gain weight, lose weight, find lumps and bumps and odd colorations. We cry and giggle and shop and dance and we need to do it in the company of supportive woman who understand and participate with joy. Thank you Becky and Sandra and Laurie and Annie and Pam and Susan and Sandra and Ann and Mom.

Spiritual Stuff:

2008: In some ways, this has been a rough year. I’ve had to learn to trust God to care for the kids while I let go of worry and fear. I’m learning that He’ll work in their lives just as He’s worked in mine.

2009: Lord only knows…

Final Thoughts: For those who’re  here to read about our real estate adventures, this will probably be superfluous. My internet buddies are a diverse group with deeply held beliefs ranging all about the spectrum. As a rule, I keep things close to the heart, not because I worry about offending anyone, but mostly because I feel spiritual matters probably deserve their own spot- a bloghome of their own where others can stop by for only such things without being assaulted by 45 pages of foreclosure pix.

Final Final Thoughts: There may be a separate blog coming. Or not.

~Happy New Year and a Blessed and Prosperous 2009 to Each and Everyone~

Hurricane Ike was rough on the trees. This cedar is sorely missed.

 

 

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Tags: friends, Homeschool, real estate investment, spiritual life

I know this is hard to believe, but the mrs has a life other than REI. DS the Only is halfway through his first year of Homeschool Highschool and, per usual, the mrs has decided that a Major Panic is in Order.

All this to say that while perusing the homeschool section of my reader list this morning, I ran across this post over at Sprittibee. And while I hate New Year’s Resolutions, I do love listmaking as various members of the Brz family can testify.

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Tags: Happy Home, Homeschool, New Year, Resolutions

Funny how those little decisions way-back-when turn into giant mountains of significance.

Today is a Big Day in the Brz household.

• DD1 enters a public high school classroom for the very first time.
• DD2 begins her senior year of college.
• DD3 starts her first year post-high school at our local community college honors department.
• DS begins high school work.
• Mrs. Brz is Nervous and considering a post-homeschool breakdown of massive proportions.

Back in August 1990, with much fear and trembling and a barely-healing c-section scar, DD1 and I cracked the kindergarten curriculum covers together during naptime for DD’s 2 and 3. We spun the Play and Talk Phonics records on a turntable the mister dug up at a public school surplus store. DD counted Teddy Grahams and drew lines in red crayon connecting numbers to pictures. She practiced drawing her letters in an aluminum pan filled with rice.

Did I mention I was terrified?

• Afraid of failing. And that failing would have life-long consequences for the kids.
• Afraid everyone else was right about keeping the kids home for school and the mister and I were wrong.
• Afraid of getting arrested. Or having the kids taken away. Or truant officers pounding on the door.
• Afraid our children would suffer for my lack of self-discipline, lack of basic grammar skills, lack of ____________ (insert fear of the day here.)

Eighteen years flew by before I could blink.

DD1 went to a nearby university on scholarship, worked 3 jobs and graduated with every honor possible and a double major in Political Science and English. At the honor’s banquet, they called her name so many times, the mister developed whiplash. Today, she enters a public school classroom for the first time, not as a student, but as an 11th grade English teacher at one of the most notorious high schools around. Now *that’s* ironic.

DD2 spent her early school years overcoming multiple learning difficulties. Born premature, this little fireball has always been a bit undersized, but at age 10 and 70 lbs, she took down a bully twice her size. During our homeschool years, we learned big words like ‘visual spatial’ and ‘global conceptual’, dosed her with noxious concoctions of herbal remedies and tried out one curriculum after another until the Brz bank account fairly screamed in agony. Today, DD2 is  conquering her finance and accounting classes as a senior at the university with bulldog tenacity and a solid 3.5 GPA. She works at and is a member of the honors department and makes us proud every day with both her grit and her loving nature. Pretty good for daddy’s mouse.

DD3 graduated from our homeschool world in May. Her high school years flew by  while we endured the trauma of losing our home in a Memorial Day weekend storm, moving her grandmother (twice), caring for the mister’s dear father during his final illness with lung and bone cancer, all while rebuilding  (and eventually moving back to) the family homestead. During that time, DD3 plugged away faithfully at her studies, balancing her books on a couple of TV trays pushed together in her room. She was my right hand and mom is *not* ready for this one to go off to big, bad college. Today marks her first time stepping foot in a public classroom of any sort and there’s no doubt she’ll do just as brilliantly as her older siblings.

So– one more little Brz, 4 more years of homeschool life. DS and I are looking over his books, planning his schedule and getting a feel for his choice of extra-curricular activities… 4-H, Riflery, Business.

Not really sure why we bother– can’t seem to see past these leaking eyes.

Maybe we should just start fresh tomorrow.

So this is what a homeschool graduation ceremony looks like– mom delivers the diploma, dad gives noogies, 40 guests in the livingroom waiting for mom to cry.

The Brz Hams.. DS, DD3, DD2, DD1.

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Tags: , high school, home school, Homeschool