So much has happened since my November 28 blog post, in which I described our new Sunday School that was opened September 30! My goal is to blog about each major event in the coming weeks.
- At the end of September, we celebrated my mom’s birthday “at the farm” with all the family; she complained of tummy trouble the day after. The same tummy trouble had been the reason for her missing other family events beginning in June. She ended up in the ER on October 11 and was admitted to the hospital for 5 days of inconclusive scans and tests. We are all thankful that she’s much better now after weeks of a careful diet.
- A new great-nephew made his debut on October 13.
- Hubby and I took a trip to Chicago in October for the Chest conference. A friend and I snuck away for the day the go on the famous Architecture River Cruise and explore the Miracle Mile.
- From Chicago, hubby and I landed in Charlottesville, rented a car, and made our way to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. The next day, we made a brief stop on the Appalachian Trail (just to say “we’d walked it.” Then we drove on to White Sulphur Springs, WV, to attend another conference—this one at The Greenbrier.
- We arrived back home on October 30 to an overflowing harvest in my two raised garden beds that I’d built in January 2025.
- On the art scene: I painted a Christmas commission for a friend of his grandsons enjoying the beach, and then began to remodel my art studio:
- I traded out my solid double doors in my art studio for a couple of French doors. The light through them makes all the difference in that little room!
- I bought an 8’x4’ peg board on Facebook Marketplace, and my brother-in-law went with me to collect it in his new minivan. That was an adventure.
- Hubby and I hosted Thanksgiving for the family. We had 21 adults, 6 kiddos, and 1 infant. I proudly served broccoli, celery, parsley, and sweet potatoes from my garden, along with turkey and brisket.
- My oldest son and his wife bought their first house in West Point, MS. It’s a 1920’s Craftsman-style fixer-upper. Hubby and I spent several days over several weeks helping them trim bushes, power wash a porch, fix the fence and a gutter, clean, paint, scratch paint off the floor, unpack the kitchen, move furniture, etc. It was fun, and I predict that there will always be a project available there for us to tackle!
- On December 9, hubby and I flew to Dallas for an awesome Christmas party following a fun day of exploring a section of the city’s north side.
- On December 10, I flew from Dallas to St. Louis to drive my daughter home for winter break. We made our must-do stop at Taj Palace in Chesterfield, MO, for Tikka Masala and had a surprise introduction to the UPCI’s long-time missionaries to India and Pakistan there! They confessed that they eat at Taj Palace at least five times per week when they are in town. Enough said.
- Back at home, my sweet dog Izzy began to keep us up at night as she struggled with an anal gland tumor that had been steadily increasing in size for the past year. She was 13 years old, blind, and mostly deaf. The vet had told us there was no cure and that surgery would not be able to remove all traces of the tumor due to its location. We had elected to keep her as healthy as we could with medicine for her deteriorating muscles, pumpkin to help her bowels to move, and milk thistle to detox her liver; he told us that we’d know when it was time to put her down.
- I called the vet on December 12. They had only two appointments available the following week, one on Monday, and one on Friday. We were leaving town Thursday for a family Christmas gathering, so I chose Monday. Hubby stayed with her while I took care of another familial obligation.
- On December 13, my daughter and I drove to Biloxi, MS, to see a special little girl in a church production of A Christmas Carol on the 14th.
- On December 15, my son and his wife, my daughter, and I took our precious pet to the vet for the last time. I’ll blog about her soon, but I’m not quite ready to go there yet.
- On December 18, hubby, my daughter, and I drove to Houston to be with family and friends for a few days.
- On Christmas Eve, we buried Izzy’s ashes at the farm between two enormous pine trees by the back pond. All the kiddos were present. Then we celebrated Christmas with my mom and all the rest of the family.
- On Christmas morning, hubby and I celebrated Christmas with our two unmarried children, and then headed to my sister’s house to a birthday party for her oldest and my middle son.
- On December 29, my Miele fridge stopped working after a power-outage in the area. Today is January 12, and my fridge is still not working because the broken part was ordered from New Jersey and never received by Mr. Appliance. I feel like I need prayer.
New Year’s Day shone brightly as Lowes delivered a new half-sized refrigerator to my house. I thank the Lord for hardworking people who make appliance deliveries on New Year’s Day, and I especially thank Him for the peace that the workers said they felt in our home.
I’m praying that 2026 is a year of the fulfillment of great expectations in the life of our family and yours! Happy New Year!
