Christmas wrap-up and year end review

This is kind of an out of order blog post, but wanted to begin this post with our family picture from our Christmas 2023 (which actually happened on January 1, 2024).  After so many years of things feeling sort of "out of order", you would think that I would be used to it by now!  But for some reason, I had a more difficult time with our celebration being so far after Christmas.  I must be getting old!   

Here is a recap of how the days actually went for me, leading up to Christmas.  After illness struck our family (as it did with so many families this year), we postponed our celebration.  So on the 23rd, Gwen asked me to come to their house and spend the night so we could celebrate Christmas Eve together.  It was a total surprise to me that Gwen and Tim had planned to take their family to see a very large, drive through and drive in light show.  This show is well known in our area and is really quite spectacular.  Needless to say, I was amazed and delighted to see this.  It is really impossible to get photos that do the show any justice at all.  It was a great way to spend Christmas Eve, Eve!  Christmas Eve began with a wonderful church service.  

After church, we spent a few hours just being together.  It was fun to watch the kids create Gingerbread Houses.  We had a lovely dinner together and Tim sent home enough leftovers for three additional meals for me!  

I spent Christmas day at home.  I had planned to attend a church service in the morning, but decided I would rather have a pajama day at home, which I did!  I watched lots of Christmas movies, ate those wonderful leftovers, and kept warm.  

The next week was one in which you never really knew exactly what day it was!  Everything felt out of whack with Christmas Day on Monday.  I think everyone will be glad to get to Sunday, January 7 when things go back to normal.  My family was more or less holding their breath until January 1st in hopes that no one would get sick!  Thankfully, the day arrived and we CELEBRATED!

We have learned that it is always better to take the pictures BEFORE we open presents!  This year was no different.  Pictures, presents and then food!  Everyone had a wonderful time with their gifts.  My favorite items were things that the kids made/bought for each other.  I love getting my yearly photo calendar from Gwen.  I have taken the 12 photos from each calendar since 2007 and put them in scrapbooks.  So I have a pretty good history starting with photos from 2006 when Lia was born.  I just love looking through these 3 large books.  Last years pictures finished the third book so I will be shopping for a new album to have in the ready for this years calendar pictures!  

This year Lia's boyfriend, Micah and Ellie's boyfriend, Samuel were with us to celebrate!  So we are pretty much at the end of this table fitting our entire family!  

These are just a couple of my favorite pictures from the day.  These cousins are really happy to be together.  Zeke is happy to have Jimmy around since all the girls can get a bit much for him!  Grace and Anna are close enough in age to really be good friends.  I love how much fun they have together!  

Driving home after our celebration, gave me some time to reflect on the last year.  2023 was a bit of a whirlwind for me.  My DNA discovery was certainly a big part of that.  I am still trying to locate my half-brother's son.  Unfortunately, he has a pretty common name so it makes him hard to find.  Most of the extended family don't have contact with others in the family.   I would really like to be able to talk with someone who actually knew my biological father.    Having names and a family tree is wonderful. The pictures I have are amazing.  But there are some questions that I can't get answered without this contact.  So this is certainly something that is coming with me into 2024.  I will continue to try to make these connections.   

The grandkids are all getting so old!  Lia will be heading off to college in the fall.  She has actually been a college student for two years, at a local community college.  As a homeschooler she was eligible to begin classes at age 16.  She has been on the Dean's list and will be starting college at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, MO in 2024.  This school is actually just outside of St. Louis, so it makes it a pretty easy 5 hour drive home. Its not THAT far away!  Ellie will soon be turning 15 and can begin drivers ed.  Gwen is certainly looking forward to this, with Lia leaving, they will be down one driver!  All those back and forth trips to dance are much easier with a teen driver!  Zeke will be a teenager this year!  How did that happen?  And Anna is "double digits" at the end of this month.  Grace will be 7 just days after Anna turns 10 and Jimmy is closing in on 3 years old!  You can't ignore the passage of time when you are surrounded with kids that grow and change faster than you can blink an eye!  

This year - 2024 - I will recognize my 50th Wedding Anniversary.  Ken was so looking forward to this memorable event.  It is sad that he didn't make it.   I will also turn 70 this year.  Somehow that just seems so much different than "being in your 60s."  My "word" for this coming year is PERSEVERE!  The Webster definition is "Continue in a course of action, even in the face of difficulties"     I love both Bible passages that are associated with this word -

Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  James 1:3-4

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope.     Romans 5:3-4

I love that perseverance brings hope and maturity and completion - not lacking anything!  Sounds like a good goal for 2024.  

This post completes 11 years of blogging.  That doesn't seem possible.  When I began this blog in 2013, I don't think I had any intention of keeping it for this long.  But this chronical of my day to day life is really a treasure to me.  I know that God has used these words on a page, sent over the internet to thousands around the world to bring encouragement and hope.  Seeing someone else's struggles and joys and troubles can make you feel less alone.  If these words have brightened even one persons day, the time and effort are worth it.  My prayer is that those reading this will know that the love of Jesus is for everyone, everywhere. May you be encouraged to know Jesus better in 2024.

Jesus, thank you for family, for children and Christmas.  Holy Spirit, keep our eyes on what is really important as we settle back into our "normal" routines.  Keep our hearts open to see those around us that need a kindness.  Give us courage to reach out to people who are hurting.  Help us all to find ways to grow to know more about you in 2024.  Thank you Jesus for loving us.  Amen