Looking back

I'm sitting in the Brisbane airport, thinking about the hard, but meaningful last week.  Having all four kids under one roof meant breakfasts spent discussing our personalities through the lens of the Enneagram.  And Benjamin introduced us to the spot-on Enneagram songs (here is Aaron's type if you want to hear a sample).

As a family, we make an incredible team when we use our strengths to complement each other's weaknesses:

Aaron - 5

Joanna - 9

Sarah - 2

Benjamin - 8

Olivia - 3

Katherine - 4

One of our goals was to pack slow and steady, allowing time for Nerf gun wars and coffee breaks so that we could continue to give each other grace and make good decisions.  Amidst the crazy work of packing and weighing suitcases, we made a visit to Murry's Dinner Playhouse for an early birthday present to me.

We finished reading "The Horse and His Boy".  Sarah does great voices, and I had forgotten how much I enjoy hearing her read.

At the end of a very long day of packing we enjoyed celebrating my cousin as he performed his senior piano recital.  These Schalchlins are some of my very favorite people!

Saturday, we got the treat of spending a coffee break with Aaron's brother.  We haven't seen him in four years!

And I can't remember the last time these three were in the same room together, so it was a special Mother's Day gift, too.

These two spunky brothers, still goofing off together.

Still comparing their hair loss (Aaron is definitely winning).

My cousin, Samuel, showed up Saturday afternoon to help us scrape even more paint.  We finished that exhausting day with The Game of Things and a run to Sonic for half-price shakes after 8:00.

So as I'm fighting heavy eyelids here in the airport, remembering to walk on the left side of the aisle, and ordering a flat white on the other side of the world, I'm grateful for the hard things that we've experienced during the packing and moving process.  Those emotions of grief and loss as well as the emotions of joy and the sound of laughter mean that we've put down roots and loved people well.