We spent quite a bit of time out at the lake with my parents both in the winter and in the summer. It is such a treat to be able to go there. So relaxing and quiet and beautiful. Emma feels almost as at home there as she does in our own home and she is always so sad to leave. Such an adventure it is to stay out there and see wildlife and play in the lake and go for walks in the woods and do some fishing and boating and really just whatever we decide to do in the moment. I am so thankful for that place of refuge and for my parents' open arms.
I did gardens again this year but it just wasn't a great year for growing. So very wet sometimes that my plants wouldn't dry out and so dry sometimes that there just wasn't enough water. Still we had a fairly good harvest and Emma loved going out before supper to pick veggies to eat. Our one mighty little apple tree did have a bumper crop this year and we have so much applesauce, apple butter, apple crisp, apple pies. Yum!
Emma turned 4 in June and now she is in the second half of that year already! So many changes for her. She definitely is not a toddler any longer although there are moments when Chad and I need to remind ourselves and each other that she is still only 4 because most of the time she seems so much older. She is reading now, short words of course and she has to sound them all out, but she is doing amazingly well with it and she loves it! We will be losing her to books soon I am sure. She loves to create whether it is pictures or stories or songs. She enjoys colouring once in a while but it seems to bore her because she has to 'stay in the lines'. She would so much rather create something from her vivid imagination and then sit and explain to you what she did and how she did it. Her stories are something else! She can go on and on and on and we are looking forward to the day when she can write so that she can record them all. She is musical, loved doing gymnastics this fall, has a great sense of humor, spreads joy wherever she goes, is as stubborn as ever and striving to be more independent while still clinging to Mommy's hand. We love her so and it is such a blessing and joy to watch her grow and bloom.
Chad kept busy at work as always. It's been a stressful couple of years for him with no hopes of it slowing down. While we are so thankful for the job security that he has it is tough sometimes to see the toll it is taking on him. We will be starting 2017 with trying to get him healthy and strong and more able to deal with the stress. We painted Emma's bedroom and closet in the fall and also redid all the trim which kept Chad busy for a number of weeks as he only had an hour or so a day to work on it all. He spends as much time as he can with Emma and it makes my heart smile to see how they love each other and how devoted he is to her. The man she ends up marrying is going to have an awful lot to live up to! His girls are so blessed to love him and be loved by him!
Not much has happened in regards to the adoption. We are still on the waiting list and have been for over 3 years now. Apparently the average wait is now up to 3-4 years so hopefully it will happen soon. I have moments of wondering if we should even still be on the list as I watch Emma grow and yet my heart knows that our family isn't finished yet and so I continue to wait and pray and at times shed a few tears. This Christmas was a hard one for me as I had so hoped your baby would be here. I was hanging the stockings up one day and the tears began to fall. I had so hoped to be hanging 4 instead of 3. Emma asks multiple times a week when I think the baby might come and she told me one day that she misses the baby and just wishes she could hold it. It is hard on our hearts to wait and yet the joy when the time comes will outshine it all and we will see God's hand in it yet again.
As for me, well, there has been quite a bit going on. I found out recently, after some testing, that I have some genetic mutations that explain pretty much every physical struggle I have had all my life. It may even explain our inability to get pregnant. I will admit that when I first started finding out about it all I went into a bit of a tailspin for a couple of days. I had one weekend where I was very discouraged and emotional until Chad and I had a talk about it and I said the words I needed to say which were that I was so sorry that it might be me and that I was so sorry that I had never been able to give him a baby. Being the man my husband is he answered pretty much exactly as I knew he would and told me he had never thought of it like that, that if it hadn't been for our infertility we would not have Emma and that I didn't need to apologize. Our family is as it should be. Some of the implications can be serious in that I am at a higher risk for some things like certain types of cancer, Alzheimers and Parkinsons but the part that was the hardest to deal with was the thought that I could be infertile because of some of this. The genetic mutations I have are not serious in and of themselves. They mostly just explain a number of previously unexplainable things and what it all really boils down to is that my body does not detoxify properly and so I end up feeling sick and in me it manifests as depression, mood swings, weight gain, being achy all over etc. I am very sensitive to chemicals and my body can't get rid of the effects of them on my system so they build up in my body. It is the same with a number of foods and supplements. I end up feeling like I am being poisoned which in effect I am. It has been so good to finally have answers and to have a way to deal with it all (mostly certain supplements to help the detoxification, staying away from certain foods, using safe cleaning and personal products etc) and to know that it isn't all in my head or that I am just being paranoid. It really boils down to I just need to take care of myself in a more specific way and if/when people question my diet or lifestyle choices to not let it get to me but to know I am doing the right thing so that my quality of life can be better and Emma can have a happier and healthier Momma and Chad can have a healthier and happier wife. Which brings me to the next big thing going on for me.....
I have used essential oils for a number of years for different things like colds/flu, tummy issues, sleep issues, etc. and this past summer I signed up with Young Living Essential Oils initially just to use the oils myself but once I started using them I loved them and I am now pursuing a business through Young Living as a distributor and team leader. With the sensitivities I have to chemicals Young Living has been an answer to prayer for me. There are so many products out there that I cannot use and the ones I can are pricey. With Young Living I now have access to amazing products that are organic and chemical free and because the essential oils are so pure I can make my own laundry detergent, hand soap, skin care etc and know that it isn't going to harm me or make me feel sick. Even Emma is to the point that if she has a tummy ache or owie she comes to me and asks for oils to make it feel better. How I love being able to take care of my family with products that will only bring them health and not harm them! I recently did a 'business bootcamp' where for 6 weeks we were trained in getting started in the business and on personal development. Chad is working on a website for me. I already have a number of people on my team and a couple of them are also interested in pursuing the business. I love that I can work at it as I have time and without it taking away from family time. And I am learning so much! We will see where it all goes for me. Being able to help people care for themselves and their families in a healthy and safe way excites me! When my website is ready to launch I will post the link here. For now you can go to www.youngliving.com or my Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/JulieSakalukYL/
I think I am ready for 2017. How can one ever be ready though for what they don't know is ahead? How thankful I am for a God who knows and cares and that because I know Him I don't need to worry about what tomorrow or the next year holds. I am excited to see what He has in store for us as a family and for me as an individual!
A very Happy New Year to all of you! May the year ahead hold joy and peace and love and a certainty that the One who holds all of your tomorrows also holds you in the palm of His hand and loves you with an everlasting love. God bless.
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