~ Remember the Waltons?~

John Boy, Jim Bob, Mary Ellen, Ben….That program always gave me “warm fuzzies”. It was my very favorite and I couldn’t wait to curl up on the couch with a bowl of popcorn and my pillow. The family unity and closeness was warm and inviting, as well as wholesome and inspiring. Fast forward to the year 2010 and here I am living in a “modern-day Walton lifestyle”…
Our story begins last year when my daughter, Lindsey and I along with our husbands started kicking around the idea of a family compound on some acreage by the river…just talk and dreams at the time. In February of this year the economy forced us to combine households, as was lovingly modeled by a good friend and her daughter’s family. On moving weekend the comment was made that this will be a good ’test’ for our family compound. (Particularly since the house is 2 bedroom, 1600 sq. feet and there are 4 adults and “the little lady and gent“). Well time has passed and here we are at the end of October making plans to pool our money and buy a larger home.

My intent is not to bore you with all our family life but rather to encourage anyone who is considering this arrangement, regardless of reason, to pursue it. Each family will have their own set of challenges but for us it is a lifestyle we wish to continue. The blessings are too numerous to count.

We would love to hear from you on this topic. Have you experienced the 'Walton lifestyle' or do you know someone who has and what was the outcome? ~Jeannie

~Lingering Friendships~

It’s funny how life unfolds. In January of this year I bought Darren Hardy’s workbook titled “Design Your Best Year Ever”, completely unaware of how life changing it would be. I spent literally hours filling out answers, re-thinking the questions, erasing, and doing it all over again. Much to my dismay, I discovered how I was allowing the urgent to push out the important, so I set about breaking some old habits and making some changes. One of the areas needing attention was tending to and nurturing my friendships. As awful as it is and I hate to admit it, I had completely let some friends drop by the wayside, like…..a sack of goodwill clothes. In an attempt to revive and renew the friendships, the girlfriends, the church ladies I had be deliberate. With the help of Lindsey, we put a plan in place. First, make some long distance ‘catch-up’ calls. Next, we invited a couple of families over to grill on the weekend, like we used to. Another step we took, starting small, was to invite a couple mother/daughter’s over on Tuesday evening for wine and cheese. Last night was our first and it was wonderful. As we lingered by the pool, candles lighting the table, I just soaked in their inner beauty, admiring where they were in life and how they were triumphing in spite of circumstances. Next week we will invite a few more. Every week, when weather permits, we will “intentionally” rebuild, reconnect, and bond with these people we love. We may even give our Tuesday nights a name. Perhaps ‘Women, Wisdom, and Wine’…... ~Jeannie