Well, hello! It’s so nice to be back with you all again. As you may have noticed I’ve been on a bit of hiatus from my column (stepping away, getting fresh inspiration, trying to keep up with the whirlwind of life) and it was lovely but I’m thrilled to be back at Lifestyles.

I want to first of all thank all of you fabulous readers for showing up here every week and for all of your kind words when you meet me in the supermarket, the library or the park. It’s such a pleasure to meet you and to find out that I’m not just tossing these words out into the air, but that people actually read them. I get so many questions from you about my family and what we’re up to that I thought I’d take this column to catch you up before we get into all of my cockamamie family ideas.

The tall one (husband) and I are loving life and are so blessed by our wonderful kids. The boy one has just turned five and he loves everything to do with "Star Wars," Jedis and light sabers. So much so that I bought my own light saber to carry around the house, task to task, to protect myself from frequent Jedi attacks.

The girl one just turned three and she loves princesses and dresses and light sabers and "Star Wars." She attacks with her light saber in style typically donning a Cinderella dress, heels, and a Vader mask. They both crack me up.

Though I haven’t returned to the school system we have embarked on the journey of home schooling! Never in a million years would I (nor anyone who knows me) ever thought they’d see me as Kindergarten teacher, but it’s a role I now fill for the boy one (along with being the pre-K teacher for the girl one), and I am loving it! It’s such a blessing to continue doing what I love with the people I love the most.

Another thing I love is how this column forces me to think outside the box in regards to how I engage my family and I hope that you’ll find a little inspiration here as well.