I usually start out our Christmas letter with a song to listen to in the background. I decided to go with some nostalgic "Smitty" this time. Click HERE to listen.
There are a lot of words to share about this year but if we had to sum it up in one it would be, "unexpected".
The intensity of this year took us to places we never thought we would be in many categories. Erik's job took him around the world this year! He had business trips to many foreign countries such as China, UK, Germany, Spain, Taiwan, and California. He even went to some of the places multiple times this year. The only months he didn't travel for work were April, July, and October.
We also bought a house! When you buy a house everything goes as planned right?!?! Well, for the most part, everything went to plan. We had some awesome "highly paid" volunteers (Gary and Terrie) come all the way from Oregon to help us pack up. We were out of our rental house by the end of April. We stayed at my grandmother's house in central Phoenix for 2 weeks until we closed and Erik had a business trip to the UK during this time. No big deal, right?!?!
Getting settled into our new house heading into the summer Erik had another trip in June so I took the boys to Portland while he was gone. The forecasted high in Phoenix was 122° so we were thankful to miss out on that. We met up there and celebrated our 9th year of marriage while in Portland.
When we returned Erik's project at work intensified as it was nearing the deadlines that were set out. This is something we are used to happening every 12-18 months. This project, this company, this situation was different than any other tape out. His responsibilities and demand were far greater than any other time. July to October demanded the most of Erik that has ever been demanded of him. He gave all that he could to finish and we all celebrated the finish with much rejoicing and sleep. We had to (and still are) regaining our footing as a family. We are regaining our disciplines, communication, routines, and hopefully learning how to manage such demand with better planning and healthier boundaries next time.
We took a family trip in October to Idaho and Oregon. While in Idaho we were able to reconnect with old faces from the past. We attended the University of Idaho homecoming festivities as well as had a reunion dinner with friends. It was so refreshing to reconnect and catch up on all that has happened in 10 years. We left Idaho and headed to Oregon for the week. Erik had to work remotely during our time there but we did get to go to some pumpkin patches and spend a lot of time with Gary and Terrie. It was a fun trip...minus the work.
The boys are growing so fast. Eli is now 5, and after much thinking and praying, we decided to wait one more year for kindergarten. It was a tough decision at first, but he is in a class of 5 kids total and is absolutely thriving. He LOVES school. He loves to sing and make up songs. He is constantly pretending and having full conversations with himself. He is on the verge of reading and loves to draw pictures.
Zak is 3 (almost 4) and loves trucks. He is one who will surprise you with his silliness. He has become much more talkative and outgoing and loves to sing too. Most people don't have to work as hard to get him to chat it up. He has to make sure that you are worth talking to sometimes. He's not easily impressed..unless you drive a truck or you are a trash truck.
With parenting sometimes you learn new techniques or ways to motivate your kids. Sometimes those techniques wear off and you have to find something new. Well, so far we have found that competition has not worn off. Every day we get to compete with who will go upstairs and get ready for a nap/rest first? Who will use the restroom first? Who gets their pants on first? It's been a couple years now and that technique hasn't worn off. We also use it for getting ready for bed. This gets a little more intense if it involves Erik and me racing one another with the boys. We find ways to cheat like throwing the boys clothes down the stairs, tieing their bathrobes too tight so they can't get it off, tickle the opponent, tieing their pajamas in knots, pulling diapers off kids, locking the opponent out of the room, and maybe some tackling. It's a little intense and our kids probably think we are crazy but I'm sure they will remember the silliness that is our family. The best part is that it expedites the process and makes it fun. It also has allowed us to teach them how to be gracious winners and losers (still working on that part).
It's hard to simply sum up in words a year that has been unexpected and challenging to our family. We can give the raw details but it doesn't express hour hearts, minds, attitudes, reactions and actions. We do know that this year has been far more challenging and unexpected for others who have experienced far deeper valleys that are unimaginable. However, none of this year was "unexpected" to God. He's not surprised by anything. He's not surprised by our sin. He's not surprised by our hills and valleys. He still graciously leads us and corrects us. We are thankful for his faithfulness.
This time of year we remember the most expected unexpected event ever. Expected because Christs coming had been prophesied for thousands of years and unexpected because who would expect that God would come in flesh as a baby born to live a sinless life and die on the cross as a sacrifice for our sin. We are so thankful for this gracious gift.
We hope and pray you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
