"Marley was dead..." but he kicked off, on Sunday night, our traditional celebration of the Christmas season. The reading of A Christmas Carol is the only thing that felt the same, though, since for the first time in our lives we are missing two of our children: Lindy is spending this Christmas in Idaho with Nick's parents and all of her Georgia and Shumway relatives, and Quinn is serving the Lord in Oregon. So, though we are down two kids (really three, since Nick is now part of our family), we are grateful.
We are grateful that the Lord has blessed us so much this year. We have all come through safely both in body and spirit. Our children love the Lord and each other. Our marriage is strong. We have food on our table, warmth in our home, and books on our bookshelves. Each of us is working on becoming, each day, who we desire to be (we have a long way to go!).
We pray that God will bless and keep each of our dear friends and family members in the upcoming year.
