Our Sweetly Surprising February

These two do NOT belong on the slopes

Tall and gangly as we are, John and I have always been a bit too clumsy to seriously consider winter sports.  As big as it is for every other Viennese resident, hitting the slopes is really out of the question for us (ambulances and crutches come to mind) and I only wish the alternative--a fantastic tropical vacation--was on the books. We've been taking it easy this winter.  In truth, I was apprehensive about this. Most Februaries find me sullen and grumbling about the unlikelihood that the sun will ever return.  I tend to shirk any duties around the house that aren't vital for human survival and John starts avoiding eye contact.  Luckily, though, this year my little family has seemed to be a true elixir to the winter doldrums.  I won't rule out the fact that I'm eating better, exercising, and just generally living a more relaxed lifestyle, but I've been able to find true joy this year in nothing simpler than spending time with my family. 

Part of this is why we've made the decision to pull Audrey from her preschool to pursue homeschooling this Spring.  More so, though, Audrey is starting to show genuine interest in learning how to write and learn her numbers--this is stuff that Austrian schools won't even begin to address until children are six years old.  And since Audrey will be nearly six (I start hyperventilating even writing that) when we return to the States, we figured we might as well take advantage of her interest.  It helps that my girls prefer to spend every moment--waking or sleeping--with each other.  And I prefer to spend all my time with them as well.  So, traditional school is out and we've stepped our unconventional way of living up a notch.

I know that homeschooling is fairly prevalent in the States, but here in Europe it is a rarity (it's even illegal in Germany).  So, we've encountered a LOT of confusion when trying to explain this to our peers here.  I've been asked if I'm a certified teacher or if we plan on hiring tutors.  In all fairness, though, I have had a few friends express interest and even one mama with three kids in Austrian schools who professed to be jealous of our ability to homeschool.  As a family, we're really looking forward to it.  I've always doubted my ability to teach my kids while retaining my sanity, but now that Audrey is on board, this prospect seems so much more promising. 

And that brings us back to just how much we like spending time together.  I've been reading The Red Tent by Anita Diamant--a novel narrated in the voice of Leah's (one of Jacob's four wives) daughter Dinah.  I'm finding myself able to relate with these women more than I had anticipated (outside of the sister-wife thing), but especially how Leah conveyed the joy she felt during her "fallow years"--when she was allowed to let her body rest from growing and nursing babies: "Leah remembered her fallow years as a time of great contentment.  She held the fullness of every day in her hands, numbering the sweetness of children, the pleasure of work." 

I haven't found anything that speaks so truly to how I feel during this season of my life.  That seemingly insatiable baby fever that once consumed me is now a thing of the past and we are certainly out of the trenches of infancy.  I hold the fullness of each day in my hands now.  I don't need ski vacations or preschools to give me a break in my mothering.  I enjoy the work there is do be done in my home and, especially, the time I can take every day to number the sweetness of my children.  We aren't doing anything but numbering the days spent together this winter, but still, life feels so full.  Once the weather turns, we'll surely be off on day trips and will hardly spend two waking hours together in the house, but for now we are basking in the sweetness of a simple life.