On this Labor Day, I hope my friends and readers have been having a pleasant break from their daily routine. We have enjoyed this day, as we have had a mixture of routine (violin lesson) and special (DH's birthday dinner out and DH home from work!) events.

My children surprised their violin teacher today with a handmade birthday card for her, and a plumbago plant for her to plant in her back yard. She seemed sterner than usual during the first half of the lesson, and somewhat lacking in patience. But after about 50 minutes, when the children suddenly presented her with a card and gift, her face lit up, and she wanted to know how they knew about her birthday. She gripped Little Son's arm, and earnestly thanked him, with a big smile. And the rest of the lesson time was definitely more light hearted for all. It warmed my heart to see the effect their simple gift had on Miss S.

There is much abuzz on the blogs I read regarding John McCain's choice of vice presidential candidate. Apparently the choice of Sarah Palin is rather controversial, even among social conservatives. I have decided that my blog is not going to be a place for me to express my political opinions. I have never made new friends from discussing politics. Besides, I have never been one to feel comfortable publicly discussing politics, anyway. Politics are freely discussed in our home between my DH and myself, and with a few close friends, but I have decided I am not going to share my opinion of the GOP ticket.

However, I will say this. I feel that we are at a critical crossroads in our country, and that the upcoming Presidential election is an extremely important and weighty one. I would urge everyone to be in prayer for the future of our country and our leadership. The world is a complicated place, and we need the wisdom of God in our leaders. God works His plan in history through all people, and has always worked his will through sinners, big and small. Just look at Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph's brothers, Pharoah, Moses, Saul, David, Solomon and the list goes on. God has no problem working His plan through weak, frail, and faulty human beings, and nothing is going to stop that now.

My blog shall be a place of peace, rest, introspection, thanksgiving, spiritual growth, and sharing of my life as a stay- at- home- adoptive- homeschooling- violin- mom of two. So, on that note...

I am happy to say that September is here, and whereas Labor Day signals the unofficial end of summer for most of you, it merely signals six more weeks of brutal summer heat and humidity for us where we live. In truth, this is my least favorite month, because for me, September holds the built-in tantalization of the season to come - Fall, but provides no evidence of its nearby arrival. September, rather, is the month where I find myself frequently analyzing 5-day hurricane cone maps. It is the month where the spiders and webs around our house seem bigger than ever; the weeds higher than ever, in more cracks than ever. It is the month where "Love[bugs]is in the air", literally, and they have been known to simply plaster the front of the house, even getting inside all the entrances. If you are fortunate enough not to know what lovebugs are, check out this Wiki article .

So I need to be patient at this point. I have endured three full months of heat and humidity, and I just have to hang on for six more weeks. October 15th is the magic day: the day when the break in the heat seems to occur. As I write, there are three named storms, and three tropical waves near the Cape Verde islands, one of which is very likely to develop into something more. I am sorry for the victims of Gustav, and I truly grieve at the burden that these storms place on our country -- the government, the economy, and the insurance system. Would that these storms could simply go away out to sea! But I have to admit that I am relieved when our state is spared. Even now, there are residents of my village whose homes are still partly under water due to Tropical Storm Fay and the heavy rains we have had even since Fay. We really need a break already. This has been the wettest summer since I've been a resident of this state, and the mosquitoes are thriving here to prove it!

But there are many good things to be thankful for this September. We are planning our annual family vacation, camping in Georgia, and that will begin in late September. We celebrate my DH's birthday on Wednesday! Some new activities are kicking up, among them a homeschool P.E. program that the children are set to begin tomorrow, and we are all excited about that. Sunday School is starting again next weekend, and that is a good thing. I am merely a teacher's assistant for a class of 4 and 5 year olds, but it is always refreshing to begin Christian education with little ones after being away from it for the summer. Wednesday begins AWANA again, an organization that is loved by all in our family. And tomorrow is a very special treat for us. We are going to see a performance of Romeo and Juliet set to Prokofiev's music with a symphony orchestra and ballet company from Ukraine, as well as some local talent. It is a free event for homeschoolers, and we are excited to take a day off from lessons to experience this.

So I am thankful for the good blessing bestowed on my family this September!