How It's Going ... 2026
I thought the last few years were pretty bad. Still nothing tops my brother dying, but 2026 is a close contender! January started off the way the last few January's have with a sinus infection that just kept hanging on. I decided to go to the doctor to get antibiotics and was reminded that my heart murmur was "sounding pretty bad." So after some contemplation and a follow up with my doctor in March, I decided to schedule what I thought would be a routine echocardiogram to take a look at my Bicuspid Aortic Valve. A birth defect I found out I had about 4 years ago when I suffered a Trans Ischemic Attack (TIA).
When I had my echocardiogram on March 24th it revealed that my Aortic Valve was now severely stenosed and I needed to have the valve replaced ASAP. Suddenly, all of my weird symptoms and lack of energy made complete sense! My heart was overworking to pump blood, through my blocked up Aortic Valve, to the rest of my body. I kept writing the symptoms off as something else, because 4 years ago I was told that the valve only had mild stenosis and I "probably wouldn't need to have a replacement for 15-20 years." Well, here we are 4 years later, and I had Open Heart Surgery (the only surgery I have ever had) on June 8th! Of course, not before I landed in the ER on Mother's Day due to severe symptoms that kept me at the hospital until 11 pm! That was fun!
My surgery went very well. I had an excellent surgeon who had anticipated a successful surgery and a fairly quick recovery due to my age (44). My recovery has been going pretty well! Quicker than others I know that had surgery in their 60's and 70's, but of course I am quite a bit younger. The harder part about recovery in My 40's, as a late bloomer who had children in my 30's, is that I have not been able to get rest whenever I need it. I'm still a mom, and I have to do mom things, like homeschool my kids! I'm grateful to have had a full 12 weeks to work on recovery before having to start school though! Also, since I was feeling symptoms before my surgery, I have been told to give myself a whole year to really start to feel like myself again. Almost 5 months post surgery I can say, with confidence, I am now feeling better than I have in several years.
The hardest part of my recovery has been the emotional aspect! The fact that I will have an ugly scar, that's almost a foot long, on my chest. The non stop ticking of my mechanical valve (which was strongly suggested to me due to my age, and the hope that I will never have to have another open heart surgery). Or the fact that I have to take Warfarin for the rest of my life, because of my mechanical valve. A medication that, historically, hasn't been very kind to people. It has also been really hard to process going from only finding out I have a birth defect at age 40 to needing a full valve replacement at age 44.
The absolute hardest part, however, has been feeling like I needed to leave my husband because of the lack of emotional support being provided to me post surgery. Only to find out that my wanting to leave him for nearly 8 years makes total sense, because he's been lying to me about his pornography addiction for the last 14 years! He's also lied to me about many other things (that I've caught) to hide his addiction! Meanwhile, manipulating me and gaslighting me in the process! He's talked negatively about me to his family and friends to make them believe I am the problem in our marriage, and not his addiction and emotional abuse. He claims he's going to change, this time, but I've already heard that many times before! Currently we are separated because I desperately need space and a chance to heal. My girls are with me during the week, because I am still homeschooling, and with him on the weekends. I am also working part-time ... my life has changed drastically, and hopefully for the better!
I initially created this blog as a creative and emotional outlet, but the pressure to get "hits" made me change my creative focus. Initially, I was writing from my heart about things that mattered to me, but eventually, I started writing information I thought people wanted to read about living in a Yurt! I have written all I can possibly think of to write about Yurts, and since I have had to move, I see no point in writing about that anymore. With that being said, I am going back to my original focus; a creative and emotional outlet.
If you are here, I hope that you can find some comfort and peace through reading my experiences. I hope that we can be encouraging to one another as we navigate all that life throws at us!
Picture take by my 8 year old 5 days after my surgery, and my second day home.
2026 Recap
I thought the last few years were pretty bad. Still nothing tops my brother dying, but 2026 is a close contender! January started off the way the last few January's have with a sinus infection that just kept hanging on. I decided to go to the doctor to get antibiotics and was reminded that my heart murmur was "sounding pretty bad." So after some contemplation and a follow up with my doctor in March, I decided to schedule what I thought would be a routine echocardiogram to take a look at my Bicuspid Aortic Valve. A birth defect I found out I had about 4 years ago when I suffered a Trans Ischemic Attack (TIA).
Homeschooling a Child With Autism
If you have a child on the Spectrum or know someone who does, you've probably gotten a glimpse of the challenges that arise from raising a neurodivergent child in a neurotypical world! The normal rewards, consequences, and disciplines just don't work the same as they do with a neurotypical child, and if you are trying to homeschool your Autistic child, the difficulties can feel very isolating!
Slow but Steady Progress
Since my last blog, in March, my health took a turn for the worse at the end of May, when I got Shingles! It was horrible and I was in extreme pain for quite awhile! Anything that wasn't needed for survival basically fell to the wayside! A lot has happened since then, though, and it's time for an update!
Yurt Life: Sap Season
Sap Season. It is something I never thought about before marrying my husband. We never tapped trees when I was a kid, and therefore, never made our own Maple Syrup. However, over the past 12 years, it is something that I have grown to enjoy more than I ever imagined I would! My husband grew up making Maple Syrup with his family. They own a lot of property with Maple trees and so it was a family affair! Sometimes requiring overnights, in the woods, to keep the sap cooking! It is time consuming, for sure, but otherwise a fairly easy process! There are three main reasons I'd encourage you to try your hand at making Maple Syrup. With a few tips, on how to do it well, in a Yurt.
Yurt Life: Construction Challenges
I’m a carpenter. I know how to build things. Nevertheless, there was a lot I didn’t know going into the project of building our yurt home. In my frustration I even dubbed one of the yurts “Matthew’s Folly” and the other the “Yurt of Hurt”. We’re not just happy-go-lucky hippies who do weird things because we think we’re cool or enlightened. We would have much rather built a house. The reasons we decided on yurts are, first, that we could afford it, and second, because it seemed like a good way to get away from moldy homes. One of the things I hoped would be a great benefit is that everything in a yurt is accessible - there is no crawlspace or wall cavities to quietly harbor damp and mold. Mold is the main reason we were forced out of our previous homes; mold hiding somewhere that would have cost a fortune to find and mitigate. However, the minimalistic building style has some challenges, and they mostly have to do with weather. I like to tell people that we are very close to nature. Thereis no question if it is raining, snowing or blowing, because the canvass transmits the information passionately. We are also acutely aware of the outdoor temperature without even going outside. Now, in our third year living in the yurts, I am still figuring out what to do to mitigate these problems, while at the same time maintaining the benefits of the unconventional construction and not breaking the bank.
Yurt Life: Fostering Togetherness
It's been a long time coming. Matt started construction on the loft in the Fall of 2023. At first, it was just a space to move our bed, so we weren't taking up room on the main level (and to give us a little more privacy), but now it has become more! As I type this, I am doing so from the comfort of our "reading nook" in the loft (pictured left). The bookshelf/railing was just finished a few days ago. A vision that Matt had to combine a railing into a bookshelf, so we could have a little more, much needed storage!
Yurt Life: Homeschooling
If you homeschool or have thought about homeschooling, you may be wondering how to set up a learning space for your children. If you live in a Yurt, you may be wondering if you have enough space to devote just to learning. This was my concern also!
Yurt Life: Apple Season
It's that time of year again! There's a crispness in the air. The leaves are starting to change, and the apples (so many apples) are ready for picking! If you have an apple tree, you probably want to know what to do with all of those apples!
Yurt Life: Baking Sourdough Bread
When Summer started, I was in a bit of a bind with all three girls home, needing lunch ideas, and not being able to as easily get to the store. Sandwiches are a bit of a go to around here, but the ingredients in store bought bread leave a little something to be desired. So what do you do when you are a mom of three young girls and you want to feed them the healthiest foods possible?
Yurt Living: When Nature Feels A Little Too Close
It's the beginning of Summer and it has been RAINING!!! We had a drought last year, but it's looking like this year might be different! One thing I can say with utmost assurance is that living in a yurt brings you VERY close to nature! I take comfort in knowing that round structures handle wind better than square buildings, but hail on a canvas roof feels a little nerve-wracking ...
It's Been a Hot Minute
WOW!!!! It has been four months since I have written! I took two college courses during the last four months and got my Associate Degree in Liberal Studies. My youngest daughter turned 3, in April, on the 1st anniversary of my older brother's passing. Also in April, my oldest brother moved home from Oklahoma after 25 years! In May, my older two girls finished Kindergarten and 2nd Grade, and construction on the spiral staircase for the loft progressed! We also celebrated my mom's 70th birthday, my parent's 50th wedding anniversary, and my niece's High School Graduation! It's been a busy four months, but especially in May!
One Year In Our Yurt Home!!
One Year!! We have been in our Yurt Home for one year ... and a few days! My how time flies! We moved in last year, on January 6th, 2023, and never looked back! Okay ... maybe we looked back a little bit. We have found ourselves asking if we've made the right decision many times over. Quickly followed by, "but this was really our ONLY option!" We've had our challenges, but we are learning to get used to our Yurt Home. Dare I even say that we are getting comfortable? There is still A LOT of work to do, but slowly and surely, we are making it feel more and more like home. Our dreams (that felt like they were in the VERY distant future after having to give up our farmette) are starting to look a little clearer. Things are slowly starting to come into focus. And by slowly, I mean S.L.O.W.L.Y! We can only do things as time and money allow, and we are short on both, so things don't happen as quickly as we'd like them too! Most days, we still feel like we are merely surviving, but we are getting closer to the life that we have been hoping to create for ourselves.
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