Hello, and welcome here! I’m Kathleen. This is my family:
I’m a semi-crunchy, bookish, barefoot, unschooling mom of two.
I love YA fantasy and sci-fi, knitting, cheesecake, Sherlock, and DIYing just about everything I can, from blankets to toothpaste.
I hate winter, getting up in the morning (EVERY MORNING), showers (of the bridal/baby variety), licensed children’s merchandise, and stories with sad endings.
I was raised an Old Colony Mennonite in southern Ontario, but became an Evangelical in my teens. In adulthood I have been on a continual journey of deconstructing and reconstructing my faith, but always with Jesus at the center.
I got married when I was 20 and my husband was 22, while I was still working towards a Master’s degree in English literature. I am a stay-at-home mom in part because I love it and in part because I am completely unemployable. We still live in our hometown — our house is in walking distance of the hospital we were both born in.
I was super-duper hippie-dippie with our first baby (think: home birth, cloth diapers, extended breastfeeding, co-sleeping, etc); but our second baby was born with a life-threatening immune disease and spent most of his first year in the hospital in strict isolation, hooked up to IV’s and fed via NG-tube. We then took him to Los Angeles to undergo an experimental (but life-saving) therapy in which his bone marrow was genetically modified and then re-implanted into his body after a dose of chemo. (He’s doing well, by the way. More on him below.)
So, yeah: I have had to parent my two children from two completely opposite ends of the spectrum. Going through that harrowing first year with our son has changed and shaped me profoundly in ways I’m still wrestling with. But my heart still belongs to the crunchy community.
The Family:
My husband, Ben, is a carpenter who runs his own business. If you can dream it, he can build it, whether it’s a kitchen set, a toddler toy, or a chicken coop. He’s also a musician, an excellent listener, and a dreamer.
Lydia is our artistic, talkative, and headstrong kindergartner. She is passionate about drawing, dragons, and mermaids. She can also talk her way out of almost anything she doesn’t want to do.
Felix is our genetically-modified toddler. He has two emotions: deliriously happy and utterly outraged. He is curious, cuddly, and has the opinion that night and day are interchangeable when it comes to sleep. He is still facing challenges as a result of his difficult first year, including hearing loss and several developmental delays, but adores and is adored by his family and friends. (Again, to learn more about severe combined immunodeficiency, gene therapy, and his horrific/miraculous first year, check out Felix’s story.)
Well, I’m glad you stopped by! I look forward to getting to know you, too!
(Click here to learn more about the blog!)
