Bethany Vitaro - Honest yarns of faith and family
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Bethany Vitaro - Honest yarns of faith and family

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Share Four Somethings February 2025

Share Four Somethings February 2025

February 27, 2025
  • My Books
  • Five Minute Friday
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Faith, Family, Five Minute Friday, Writing

Realism vs. Idealism: Fashioning an Attainable Family Culture

May 24, 2019 by Bethany 2 Comments

Before I had children, I had an image of what my family would be like. I would be organized. I…

Advent, Faith

3 Reasons My Family Celebrates Advent (And I Literally Wrote a Book on It!)

December 3, 2018 by Bethany 2 Comments

I grew up celebrating the Advent season. Advent, if you aren’t familiar with it, is the period of weeks leading…

Family

Our First Family Amusement Park Trip: Edaville

December 12, 2016 by Bethany No Comments

My children have never been to an amusement park. Due to the combination of high cost of tickets and difficulty…

Family

Because Friendship Always Matters

February 22, 2016 by Bethany No Comments

  My mom just celebrated her birthday. I won’t say which one, but it was a major milestone one. We…

31 Days to Clean, Organization

Priorities: 30 Days to Clean

July 9, 2014 by Bethany 7 Comments

Photo Credit: Courtney Dirks via Compfight cc Ouch! I am so guilty of living differently than I say I want…

Family, Five Minute Friday, Writing

Making Room

March 14, 2014 by Bethany No Comments

I can barely get from one side of the bed to the other in our bedroom. It felt small before…

Exercise, Family

Fit2B Studio and a Family Fitness Commitment

January 9, 2014 by Bethany No Comments

One of my major goals for this year is to adopt a lifestyle a family fitness. I have struggled for…

blogging

The One I Put Off Writing to Avoid Disappointing Myself

January 6, 2014 by Bethany No Comments

I’ve put off writing my first post of 2014. Partly because I wasn’t all that happy with how I finished…

Faith, Family, Writing

Celebrating Advent: Sharing a Family Devotional

December 4, 2013 by Bethany 4 Comments

Sharing a family Advent devotional together can be a wonderful experience. In the Christmas rush, just taking the time to…

Cooking, Family

Keeping it Simple to Make Room for Gratitude

November 28, 2013 by Bethany No Comments

This year is somewhat unique for my family. My sister has a newborn. One that we all love and adore,…

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This girl! She just comes to life on stage. The la This girl! She just comes to life on stage. The last three months have been grueling for us all. (Hard work for her trying to learn all the songs, dances and lines and for us managing schedules and transport). 
She'd never done a musical before and it's been quite an experience. In the end, I know she's proud of what she and the rest of the cast accomplished. (And still has two more shows to go!)
So grateful to @chrysostomacademy for opening their doors to homeschoolers and giving her this chance to shine. 

#musicmanjr #chrysostomacademy #parenting #parentingteens #theaterkid #homeschoolkid #babygirlgrowingup
At least seven years, possibly longer. I've lost t At least seven years, possibly longer. I've lost track at this point. 
There is still tons more work to do but I'm officially done with my first full manuscript edit and ready to send this well loved (and sometimes hated) project off to my beta readers. 
Holding my breath and hoping it's as good as I hope and not as bad as I fear. 

#manuscript #firstedit #betareaders #actsofwives #amwriting #amediting #historicfiction #onwriting #amwriting #writerproblems #theendisnear #musedontfailmenow #writingonthego #writerslife #wordcount #80000strong
#justafewmorewords #honestyarns #author #writing #workingtitle #AuthorsOfInstagram #WritersOfInstagram #alwaysawriter
What does rest mean to you? I've always thought of What does rest mean to you?
I've always thought of rest as either physical rest (sleeping) or something like a vacation when there is a freedom from responsibilities. 
I'm taking some time off from work this week and it's harder than I thought it would be. I'm not actually going anywhere so the daily needs of the house and family remain. 
If anything those needs loom even larger because without my job taking priority I suddenly feel responsible and even guilty for all of the undone projects. 
There is a sense of panic about what my in-box might look like when I return, and the need to feel valuable at my job.
Perfectionism raises its ugly head as I try to figure out the ideal, most efficient way to spend my week. 
But instead of galvanizing and exciting me, it paralyzes me. 
All the usual things still need to happen (laundry, cooking and cleaning), my children are still here and my husband is still working his paying job. 
Perhaps what I need most is freedom for my mind and spirit. 
The freedom to not be in charge of everything. The freedom to let go of the outcome (even though it wasn't truly within my control to begin with.) 
While I have always tried to create some sort of Sabbath rest, I wonder if this is the part I'm the worst at. Because the responsibility of life and parenthood never takes a day off. The weight of responsibility for their present and future needs is palpable. Some days I can almost feel my body bend under the pressure. 
Except these children are not mine alone, they are given to me to steward. The same power that spoke the world into motion is at work in their lives too. There are good plans for their life that I have no knowledge of or responsibility for. 
I may not be able to take the week off from parenting but I can take a break from worry and strife. I can be present without having to be pressured to produce perfection, in myself or in them. 
Now I just need to take a deep breath, and begin. 

#honestyarns #sabbathmonday #parenting #sabbath #rest #timeoff #presentoverperfect #freedom #recoveringoverachiever #preventingburnout
The only thing better than having a garden is havi The only thing better than having a garden is having a friend with a bigger, better garden. ☺️ Especially one who lives out in the country and invites you to come harvest berries (and peas) during a heatwave and it's a good ten degrees cooler than at home. 
So grateful for a community of friends that continue to be part of our kids' lives and education in so many ways. Last night was the most relaxing, fun I've had in a while, especially considering this heat. 

#garden #gardenlife #harvestoffriends #berries #summer #summergarden #natureday #notaschoolday #alwayslearning #alwaysgrowing #communityeducation #communityhomeschooling #microfarm
In the last week this kid has turned 15, and finis In the last week this kid has turned 15, and finished her first year of high school. She's become more independent while still being very aware of the benefits of childhood dependence. She's strong and stubborn, funny and deep, delightful and exhausting. 
I see glimpses of possibility and hear whispers of intermittent competence. Most weeks I'm not even sure how I feel about her growing up and I'm for sure grateful that she is my first and not my last. 
But this week has mostly been the joy of milestones completed with cautious moments of optimism. 
They get older. The problems are different. There is still joy, there is still struggle. But we change too. Our shoulders grow stronger and our hands open wider. 
I'm not ready to let go, but I'm getting used to the idea. 

#thisis15 #babygirlgrows #growingup #rootstogrow #wingstofly #celebrate #endofyear #homeschoolyear #honestyarns #faithandfamily
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