I was recently reminded about this blog again, so I figured I may as well at least give another year in review..per the usual.
“2020” has been like a dirty sock in one’s mouth this year for a lot
of people. We are here to tell you just how great it actually was!
January: Lots of ice-skating, lots of hot chocolate and squinting our eyes against the bright reflection of the sun off of the white snow and shiny
frozen pond. Shane and I spent many an evening putting together a
Mandalorian costume for the Pathway Carnival and Emma dressed as Baby Yoda. We
were proud.
February: I took up teaching art at Shane’s Alma
Mater as the need for an art teacher suddenly arose and it was a lovely
challenge. Not too many tears shed for a first-timer.
Shane made his second biggest purchase of his life: A portion of Graber
Heating, and officially became one of the 3 part-owners. Not too many kids buy
a house AND a business by 23 years old, so Shane likes to feel like he’s on his
way to a supreme world-wide take over.
So far, so good.
March: Is this when the whole “pandemic” thing
started? What a month. My younger sister, Eva, moved in with us when
colleges went online for the rest of the semester. Social gatherings shrunk
down and suddenly, the busy-busy-go-go-go of life melted into a gentle rest.
But all that “suddenly-being-shut-in-the-house” thing turned violent. Night
after night of fighting, finger-nails digging into flesh, bruised knuckles and
dry, sore throats from the yelling, it was determined that the evening Dutch
Blitz games were getting too competitive and a calmer, less physically
demanding sport needed to be sought out.
We did find, (Over Shane’s birthday) that Clue, though less violent, did not
take off the competitive edge and it was determined that an evening walk
through the neighborhood was the best way to stay at peace.
April: Our first Easter without an in-person Easter
service and egg casseroles by the dozens. We also missed dying eggs, but that
was more due to our lack of planning than anything. We did have a very lovely
day celebrating Eva’s birthday and a small gathering with Shane’s family as we
figured if the Corona was going to get us, it would probably get alllllll of us
sooner or later.
No one got Corona that day, so all is well that ends well.
May: Of Course we celebrated May the 4th
(be with you) with Starwars themed desserts and a Mandalorian marathon with our
sweet friends/neighbors/family (Shelby & Keilah Graber). May brought warm
weather and spring. Also, thanks to the Pandemic, Shane got to take his week
long journeyman classes at home (Instead of getting up at 5am and being gone
for 12 hours). We loved that!
June: June was pure delight as we celebrated Shane’s
brother’s graduation from highschool and Shane’s sister, Shelley, from Oregon came
to visit for a full month. June was filled with laughter and swimming and
watermelon and chasing fireflies and shooting stars.
July: July started with a family reunion in Michigan
that made us feel like the world was spinning like normal again. After our
6-8hour drive back home, I drove sweet Emma to my sister, Pearl’s, house
to drop her off for a week while Shane and I took Shaylon’s senior class on
their class trip to Connecticut. “What is in Connecticut?” You might ask. Well,
it was the only state not in the Midwest that had some historical things open
to the public this summer. The rest of July flew by as it was mostly fixing air conditioners and wishing the summer would stay forever.
August: Emma turned 1! We are so in love with our
little girl. We had a joint birthday party with her and her cousin, Valor, who
is just 2 weeks younger. They are already best friends and we intend to
encourage that forever. We gave up on our garden mid-august as well. What
garden? Well, ha, we planted this garden back in may under the cover of
darkness. Meaning, we were out there at 11pm and it was so dark that when we
looked the next day, our rows weren’t even a little bit straight. All our
summer activities prevented us from (At least that’s my excuse) keeping it from being overrun by
weeds. It turns out we are REALLY good at growing crab grass. Our most
delicious crop this year was cherry tomatoes. And we didn’t even plant them,
they just came up on their own. (Maybe next year..?)
September: For my birthday, Shane offered to finish
the basement bathroom and I excitedly spent my birthday evening wandering
through Menards, smelling 2x4s and picking out flooring samples and ordering a
shower. *Sigh* what bliss. It is December. (I'm still dreaming)
October: We took advantage of the
low-costing airline tickets and flew to Oregon to see Shane’s sisters. It was a
wonderful trip, filled with hiking, late night discussions and precious moments
with our nieces and nephews that are growing up way too fast. When we arrived back
to Iowa, we attended the best murder mystery dinner party of our young lives
and it was an added highlight to the month.
November: Not that anyone wants to
hear anything more about Covid, but, thanks to most of mine and some of Shane's family getting
it, Thanksgiving gatherings were unchanged. Being with family was the perfect
way to celebrate what we are most thankful for and we will never take it for
granted.
December: Shane won another co-ed volleyball league
championship. Fern finished her semester teaching 1st-12th
grade at Pathway Christian School. If 2020 taught us anything, it is that
friends and family are of the most precious gifts we’ve been given and time
with those dear to us should never be taken for granted.
As we head in to another year, another trip around the sun, we look forward to
all the ways God has planned to grow us and stretch and sharpen us for His
purpose.
