Janet's Blog

Look! The virgin will conceive a child!  She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means "God is with us." Isaiah 7:14 And just like that, Mary's and Joseph's lives were changed forever--as were the lives of millions throughout the ages who have believed in Jesus, our Savior. May this Christmas season bring you great joy and peace! Nothing can match the changes that Jesus brought into our world, but as I was thinking about writing this Christmas letter, I realized that my family's lives have been marked with much change this year, too. Back row, from left to right: Andy, Tobin, Lucy, Meagan, Bill, Levi Front row: Ari, Ruthie, Lydia, Evie, Janet, Victoria, Erin, Anna, Will, and Reed To begin with, Erin and Reed, with their two kids, moved from Ohio to Parker, Colorado, (a Denver suburb) in May, when Erin took a new job as an academic dean at Arapahoe Community College in Littleton. Reed continues to work from home. Will loves kindergarten...

  Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel, (which means "God is with us.")     Isaiah 7:14 NLT Once again, it's time to wish all of you a Merry Christmas. In a year filled with inevitable ups and downs, we rejoice in God's gift of a Savior, born as a baby in Bethlehem more than 2000 years ago, and still present with us today.  Last Christmas, we were certainly glad that God was with us after Bill's dad died suddenly on December 21st at the age of 98. And then, when Levi and I contracted Covid soon after Christmas and were unable to attend Al's memorial service, it was comforting to watch the live-streamed service from home--an unexpected result of the pandemic. January brought us record-breaking snowfall, but spring arrived early enough that I could plant things like snow peas and spinach in early April. We had an abundant harvest that continued even after June's devastating hailstorm, with more tomat...

  "Glory to God in highest heaven,  and peace on earth..."   It's that time of year again, Christmas in all its glory.   As we get ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus, it's time to reflect, once again, on the challenges and blessings of the past year. It's been another eventful year for us, one that is best shown in pictures, but I'll start with a few notable events. After spending a year and a half at Gardenside in Fairbury, M om contracted Covid for the second time in 6 months, and wasn't able to overcome it. She joined Dad in Heaven on April 17th, just four days shy of her 89th birthday.  Bill's Dad also had Covid this summer, and spent some time in the hospital before moving to Heritage temporarily, after he fell. He spent several months living with Bill's sister, JoAnn, and her husband, Bill, but he is back at Heritage now. He has some mobility issues, but he's doing pretty well for a man whose 99th birthday is fast approaching. Levi sta...

Merry Christmas! The trees have been up and decorated since the end of November. The presents are piled high. The lights are shining brightly inside and outside of our house. This week's blizzard brought enough snow to last until January, so our Christmas will surely be white. And, most important of all, we are ready to celebrate the birth of our Savior, who is with us still, through life's ups and downs. This has certainly been a year of ups and downs. Here are a few highlights (and lowlights): I am glad that my vision is good enough for me to drive back and forth across Nebraska. The beginning of the year found me making that trip more and more often, to visit Mom in the nursing home, and to help Dad make the transition from home to assisted living, and then to the the nursing home, where he was able to share a room with Mom for the last days of his life. It was a privilege for me to spend so much time with both of them at such a difficult time, and to be with my brother and ...

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us... And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. It's December, the beginning of "birthday season" for our family. Two December birthdays down--Will and Evie--and four January birthdays to go--Ruthie, Lydia, Erin, and Tobin. But this week, we are focusing on that one birthday that changed the world--the birth of Jesus, our Savior. The house is (mostly) clean, the trees are decorated, the nativity scenes are in place, the shopping is done, and the gifts are wrapped. Now, we wait for Erin's family to arrive from Wisconsin, for Christmas Eve practice to commence, for cookies to be baked. And then, the celebration will begin! As we wait, it's a good time to reflect on the past year, which has been another hard one, in many ways. But it has brought us many blessings, as well. Levi, a senior this year, has put forth a lot of effort, and is on the honor roll for this semester. H...