Christmas 2015
Merry Christmas Family & Friends,
Sorry I haven't written a Christmas letter since 2010. Haven't had the urge to write, plus the kids are grown and don't always like mom writing about them. But here goes....
2015 finds us all healthy and well. Eric and I are both at the same jobs as we were in 2010. Eric is with Wynalda Litho (now called Wynalda Packaging). He is their best paper-cutter extraordinaire! In other words, he is very good at what he does and is a great asset to the productiveness and success of the company. I am with Vredevoogd Heating & Cooling as a CSR (customer service representative). I am the cheery voice at the other end of the phone when you have a heating or cooling need. I love what I do. I feel like I am making a difference in people's lives - the clients and co-workers. I will continue to let my light shine with a compassionate heart no matter where God places me.
Eric and I are still very involved at Standale Baptist Church. We both teach Sunday School. I am also co-leader and teacher of our Wednesday night kids club (Good News Club). Eric has been a deacon since he was eligible to be one (25 yrs old), but has taken a year off every now and then, and 2016 will be one of them. We are very blessed to have a wonderful Pastor (and his wife) who preaches from God's Word and never veers from the truth. We are spiritual fed each week in order to do what God has planned for us each day. Did I say, we are blessed?
Caleb is now 31 years old. He is our own personal technology geek...and that is a very proud endearing title for him. He can build a computer, network with other computers, repair computers, hook up sound systems to a TV or computer, and many more things that could fill up pages and pages. He recently bought a Raspberry Pie online for $60. What? That is what I said! Ok, that doesn't sound too intelligent. I can make one cheaper than that...if I made pies. LOL It is actually a Raspberry Pi. There is a difference you know. If you didn't know...now you know. It is a little device that you hook up to your TV and it allows you to see information that you normally only see on your computer online. We can watch online TV programs and movies on our TV. We can watch Youtube videos or anything else on the internet on our TV. I think when our contract is up with our cable provider this next summer, we will cut ties for good. I just have to find a way to get the local channels and then will have no need for cable TV ever again. Anyway, Caleb is a very talented young man.
Grace is 29 years old and a stay-at-home mom. She has three children now. Gavin is 3 years old, Emma is 2 years old, and Carter is 1 year old. Yes...she has her hands full with three children 3 years and under. Makes me tired just thinking about it. We have had Gavin and Emma overnight several times and I find myself wondering how I ever had the energy for my own five children. Good thing we have more energy when we are in those child-bearing years. Grace is very blessed to be married to a wonderful man (Vic). He is a great provider and a loving husband and father. He is our secondary technology geek. In some areas, he knows more than Caleb. Between the two of them, we will never ever need to call the Geek Squad from Best Buy!
October 2015Gavin 3 yrs
Emma 2 yrs
Carter 11 months
Josh is 27 and happily married to Lisa. They have a 1 year old daughter named Clara. They lived with us for a few months this year while they were between houses. It was a bit crowded since they brought their two big dogs with them. Buddy is a huge black King Shepherd and Izzy is a Golden Retriever. We all got along nicely and we loved seeing Clara everyday. They now live about an hour away from us. We don't see them as much as we used to, but we have enjoyed a couple summer pool parties at their new home.
Sept & Oct 2015
Clara
Kristi is 25 years old. She is still my stubborn take-charge child. This is a much better combination as an adult. She is going to do great things as she applies her God-given leadership skills to her life. I love her compassion and heart for me and others. She LOVES her role as Aunt. She can't get enough of her nieces and nephews and they love her just as much. She is a great help to Grace and spends a lot of time at her house playing with the kids.
Isaiah is 23 years old. This can't be!!! It is hard to believe my baby is 23 years old! Then I look in the mirror and see the wisdom highlights to prove it. Where did all the years go? Isaiah still keeps me laughing. I love his humor! The others may think he is annoying, but I just love playing along with his antics. This too has been a much better trait for him as an adult than when he was younger. He had a lot of trouble in school being the class clown, but now he has learned to hone in those bursts of craziness in order to be a responsible adult. He has worked at a metal laser cutting shop for a year and a half and has made us proud.
As you can see, Eric and I are blessed. We do have our struggles that are only mentioned between the lines, just like any other family. But all in all, we are a blessed people.
Our prayer is that you will see the blessings in your lives as you go through your daily struggles. God is there to help us through.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!
Eric & Susan
Mary Did You Know? - by Pentatonix
