I thought that I might put in our family Christmas letter as my
update. I know that not everyone who checks here is on our list
(postage is too expensive!) but I do want to say, "Merry Christmas!" to
you all and let you know how we are doing currently and as an overview
of the year. In November I found another lump which had to be checked
out but was thankfully benign! My fatigue is starting to get better
again, YEAHHHHHOOOOOO!!!!!!! I am still more tired than "normal" but
nothing like it has been, God's mercy to me. So here's the letter, a
preview for those whose I mailed today. Oh, and don't forget to check
out the picture that I am uploading. A wonderful magazine donated the
pictures to us after doing a story.
What a year! When you last left your heroes (uhm, that would be us :) we were just finishing treatment for breast cancer. There have been some lumps & bumps this past year, but it’s wonderful to know we will be spending this Christmas cancer free. When we named Kateri over two years ago we felt led to name her Kateri Hope, or “Pure” Hope, & I think that sums up our last year nicely. If I was going to name the path to hope, an enduring hope even in the midst of hard circumstances, I would say it is in learning to be thankful for every second in life, thankful for all the little & big
things. Learning to look for all the good, and learning how to find joy & hope in all circumstances, has made for an amazing year.
Josh & I got to spend another whole year with an amazing family, close & extended. Faith is 8.5 years old, in 3rd grade, & taller than my armpit! I’m sure in another Christmas letter soon I will be telling you she has passed me. She still loves to read; if we need to find her, we just look for the book she is buried behind. Faith made her 1st communion this year & started serving as an altar server at church. She is so cute as she works to keep up with the older kids under the eyes of the entire church.
Caleb is now 7, started 1st grade, & is missing a front tooth (the freckles that dust his nose complete the package). He loves math so much that he does extra each day just because it is fun! (Can you begin to understand why there are so many engineers in Josh’s family?) He is our most inquisitive kid of yet & asks great questions all the time, the big “why’s” of life. It’s wonderful to see him so curious about the world & how things work.
Joy will turn 5 years old January 9th & has the sweetest disposition of our children. She loves to help Mommy & is just about to burst she wants to start school so badly. She began to read at 4 ½; it’s really funny to tell my daughter I am out of school things for her to do! We are going to start Kindergarten with her after the New Year & I just hope I can keep up.
Kateri celebrated her 2nd birthday in October & is as active as her older brother. She is a climber & constantly into things she shouldn’t. I have only had to call poison control once & thankfully she hasn’t had an emergency room trip, but she is constantly climbing up onto the counter to bring me the butcher knife. “Thank you, Momma!” she says with her gift as I try not to shout before she hands
it to me! I am grateful she is not an “easy” child to parent, she keeps me sharp! (bad pun intended)
Josh & I celebrated our 9th anniversary this summer & will both turn 35 at the beginning of 2013. We still love to teach together at church & are trying to continue to grow in our knowledge & practice of our Christian faith. I was named the Chairperson of our church’s Pastoral Council & Josh is about to start a men’s ministry. Church is life & our love. We are so blessed to have such a great community here. Josh has continued building his bridges (literal) & one of the major ones over Interstate 5 is done now. He has taken over the senior inspector position & is learning some of the project management end of things in order to help his boss. The whole project will close 2014 & so things will be wrapping up for him this year. We will likely start looking for a new position end of next year, but are enjoying the prospect of another steady year of employment. So, we remain busy & blessed. We hope & pray your year has been as great as ours has.
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