On to the next chapter

As I sit here at 2:55am feeding Cheerios to a remarkably cheery toddler who seems less interested in food than in keeping everyone awake for the fun of it, I am four days away from doing something I haven't done since college: going to work, full-time, for pay. I will be an intern with the Illinois Senate Democrats through the Illinois Legislative Staff Intern Program. Jonathan and the children and I have moved to Springfield, Illinois, where we live very near Jonathan's parents and brother's family, and after all of the massive chaos of moving we are finally beginning to settle into our duplex on a beautiful tree-lined street west of downtown. Although we'd like to stay in Springfield, we only know we'll be here for a year - the length of my internship and also of Jonathan's visiting professorship at Illinois College, a small liberal arts school with a great history (heard of William Jennings Bryan? He was an alumnus) in nearby Jacksonville, Illinois.

So, it'll be a hectic year. The children will be getting used to not being with us during weekdays (although Jonathan's schedule has some flexibility, and he'll be dropping some children off late and picking up others early on some days), and we'll be getting used to not being with them, and coordinating their care. Charlie and Kristianna started first grade and kindergarten, respectively, last month at Graham Elementary. Kate will be attending preschool full-time three days a week. Juliana will be staying with a good friend who has an in-home daycare. We are excited about their opportunities and ours, but with excitement comes uncertainty and a very different schedule.

All that to say, I probably won't be blogging much this year (not that I blogged enough last year), for two reasons: first, our demanding schedule and my need to spend as much non-work time as possible with my family, and second, my need to avoid commenting independently on many political issues, certainly anything having to do with pending Illinois legislation, for a while. I will still hopefully be chiming in from time to time on this blog (I'll be shutting down my South Carolina blog on Wordpress since I no longer live there), but the posts will likely be on broader social and Christian-life-related topics rather than particular policies or political news. It's all politics, of course - thinking about how we relate to each other in our communities, churches, institutions, and nation.

Thank you for your patience as our family moves in a new direction. I look forward to hearing about where your year takes you, too.

- KPE