Life in Ohio

We've been back in Ohio for three years now, and I've started writing an update post a few times, but haven't quite known what to say. I just reread my second to the last post from our gap year, in which I'm reflecting on the difficulties of life in the United States. Yes, we're privileged here. Both as a nation, and our family in particular. But it's also difficult. The first thing I realized coming back is how much I love the farm.

 It was neglected while we were gone,  and it took about a month of solid work to get it back in shape.  It was disappointing,  but in hindsight,  a month of intense work isn't that bad considering we had a year of amazing experiences.  Once things were livable,  I started focusing on finding a job for me,  and setting up a homeschooling routine for J and the kids.  

We needed friends,  and found two great families on Facebook, which became our regular weekend fun group. We often meet at Victory Pints in Maineville, which is a game store and café and a really great place to hang out and play board games or just grab a coffee and chat.  That became the highlight of our week.

Finding a job was a bit harder.  Actually,  finding a job wasn't so much the problem as finding a job that offered affordable health insurance and a living wage.  After exploring a few Montessori teaching offers I realized I was going to have to look elsewhere. Most Montessori schools don't offer health insurance,  and those that do would require such a large deduction for a family of five that the take home pay would be negligible.  I started with a part-time online tutoring job, and by March of 2023 added a full-time manufacturing job. The base pay wasn't much,  but the insurance was very affordable and there was plenty of overtime. For about a year and a half,  by working 55 hours a week in the factory and 6 hours a week tutoring,  I was able to cover our expenses.  It left little time for anything else,  but I did enjoy time with the kids by being very conscientious about prioritizing them.  

I was able to get the occasional Saturday off and the kids and I took some great camping trips. 

Tar Hollow State Park

Morgan’s Family Campground

Hocking Hills State Park

Ohio really is beautiful.

We took a long weekend trip to Texas for my cousin’s wedding.

The other bright spot is Pippin.  We added a dog to our family the following summer and now have a huge two year old of undetermined lineage. 

He's silly and goofy and totally a handful,  but so loving and so much fun. 

I can't say I enjoyed much else.  The factory job was grueling,  day in day out,  monotonous and exhausting.  But I'm glad I experienced the reality of life for many Americans.  J was having a hard time too. Managing a farm,  kids, a house and pets is absolutely a full time job.  The kids made a lot of academic progress and enjoyed music lessons and PE, to shin do for Collin, and rock climbing for Sean. 

I learned to look forward to little things each day,  even if it was just lunch.  Which helps me understand the obesity issue here,  many days it was the only thing that was different from the other days that week.  J is an excellent cook. 

About a year ago however,  the work started to dry up.  The tutoring job was in LA, so I could do it after work because of the time difference,  but LAUSD decided not to renew their contract with that agency,  and my schedule didn't allow for any other tutoring positions, so I lost that income.  Then I stopped getting Saturday hours,  and for most of 2025 have only been able to work 40 hours a week.  I'm less exhausted,  but things keep getting more and more expensive and we're back to living off savings,  which again,  we're privileged to have.  However, two more kids need to go to college in a few years. This really brings home the struggle to earn a living here.  You can work as hard as you can, factors beyond your control can make it impossible. 

Around the time the tutoring job ended I got back in touch with our Madagascar friends who started a Montessori school. So that became my creative project,  giving meaning to my days. Even when still working 55 hours at the factory it amazed me how much more energy I had on days that I got up an hour earlier and did a video call with emerging Montessori teachers. So now, with finances not really working here, and the insurance problem getting more manageable as J will be 65 in a few weeks and eligible for Medicare, it's time for another change. Big C graduated from Earlham College, after a year in Japan, and has a job lined up which will mean he can soon be independent with insurance too. 

So the next adventure will be a return to Madagascar for little C, S and me. I'm going to work with the new Montessori School, Sekoly Kintana, on teacher education and curriculum development.  The boys, who are now 14 and 10, will be students in an actual school for the first time ever. 

J has many house projects that he hasn't been able to get to,  so he'll be staying to take care of those things and the animals, but will visit us in December. 

Financially,  I think we'll be ok, the kids’ and my living expenses will be mostly covered by a grant. J will be putting a lot of our savings into the house,  but that means we could rent it at some point if we travel again, or offer it for a farm swap. And honestly,  I think real estate is probably a safer investment than the stock market.  It will be hard I'm sure. Mostly because we'll be separated and the kids and I will miss the farm. Most things worth doing are hard, and I'm excited to get back to education.  

Not sure how much time I'll have to blog, I'll be solo parenting,  working full-time and hopefully starting a master's degree. But I'll let you all know how we're adjusting when I can.