Last week I was around a lot of people who were finding out for the first time that I was hosting an AFS student. After their initial reactions (whatever they might have been) often conversation would come around somehow to how the experience was matching up with my expectations. I knew there would be hard days… and there has been. I knew there would be times when I’d have no clue what to do… (fake it til ya make it right?!?). I knew there would be challenges that I could have never guessed and so I didn’t even try.
Yea we’ve had tough curfew conversations… and then ones about consequences. We’ve had disagreements because, well, she’s a teenager and I am not. There are some days we may be thankful to have two separate rooms to go to at the end of the evening.
But more than any of that…
we’ve had nights filled with laughter… lots of laughter…
we’ve shared ‘firsts’ together … first day of school… first VB game here… first Baseball Game ever… first (American) football game…and hope to have many more to come…
I get to cheer her on each week from the stands at her volleyball games (which comes with the distinct ‘mom privilege’ of putting her nose ring in my purse for safe keeping during the game) …
I’ve taught her to do laundry and she’s taught me to use snapchat…
we’ve eaten ice cream out of the carton (shhh) and I occassionaly get her to try some new vegetables …
I correct her [already amazing] English … and she laughs as I make sad attempt to say 6 words I know in Faroese …
She’s done my make up for fun on a Saturday night because she was bored and she likes doing people’s make up (I told you there were new things for both of us!!!) …
we’ve had chances to hear about each others’ days at the dinner table and on the great days we celebrate together and on the hard days I’ve gotten to remind her that ‘boys are stupid’ or ‘just be yourself’ or some other almost-cliche truth …
we’ve made Faroese pancakes …and American pancakes … and enjoyed them both…
These are the things I hope I remember most when we get to the end of the year. These are the moments that make all the hard ones worth it. These are times I thank God for what He’s called me to and rejoice in one more day I get to be Mom.
joyfullyblessedblog.com 