Happy New Year! This was the first year that I can remember actually considering going to bed before midnight. But I just couldn't. It felt too wrong! Maybe when I'm another year older?
My brain is really scattered right now. Not a great time to sit down and try to do a blog. But Danny just left to go back to work after lunch and the kids followed him out the door so I'll have a few minutes of peace anyway:)
I took this picture when a Facebook friend was taking a poll on the pronunciation of the word "poinsettia". Next year I'll have to buy one if I want one in my house rather than just look in my backyard!
We have reached the climbing stage. And he is just pleased as punch about it.
Early December brought Rick A. and Rick W. in for a visit. Not sure who initiated but that Sunday afternoon Sawyer attempted to teach Rick W how to play chess. It was a cute thought, but it's really hard to learn how to play a game like chess from a 5 year old who barely understands it and who talks in really choppy sentences because he's not focusing on what he's saying. So then they moved onto tic tac toe.
He said he was NOT tired. And then it was nearly impossible to wake him up.
Every year at Christmas time I like to make chex mix. I didn't think about sending all the stuff I would normally use on container back in August though. There came a week when I was really missing it and wishing I had it. So I made the degaje (just make do) version of chex mix. I had a box of wheat chex. So that's what I used. Good thing those are my favorite part of the mix anyway!
Herrmann's got together with some others from their church and sent down a fun Christmas package where the kids could open a small gift each day. One of them was a "build a snowman" kit and it was Summer's favorite!
One of the hospital employees in the department Danny manages has bees and brought us some honeycomb. It was sooooooo yummy!
Again. Pleased as punch.
Sugar cookie cutouts were another thing that I realized I was really missing. I don't necessarily make them every year, but I love to eat them every year! So one day on a whim I made some and there were no regrets about that decision!
We decided to send all the kids' Christmas presents to the states this year to open once we move back. But they were pretty sad to not be able to open anything on Christmas day and I had a couple things I found in closets that I wrapped up. Then went on a scavenger hunt to find their gifts and had a great time with it. Tucker's present was a jar of marchino cherries that have been in the pantry for a couple months. I just wish I had a video to show you how excited he was about his cherries! It's the little things I guess.
We really had a nice Christmas. We actually had one visitor that had come to work on some IT stuff at the hospital and he spent a little time with us that day. But otherwise it was just us. It was simple and sweet and I loved it.
By New Year's Eve our visitor had left and we had another just us gathering. Summer and Sawyer were sure they were going to stay up until midnight. We started a movie with them around 8:00 and when all was said and done at 10:00 they were glazed over. They wouldn't admit defeat of course but sleep came pretty quickly once they laid down:)
Now we are staring down the packing process. I am not one to really work ahead but maybe this week I'll pack a box or two. Our departure date is January 18 which will be here before we know it. We are ready. I tend to get pretty excited actually until I really think about the finality of it. It's not like we'll just be able to take a weekend trip to Haiti for a visit. And in the past when people have left Bonne Fin, they could come back and be with whatever missionaries happened to be here. But that's not the case anymore. It feels strange to leave and not have anyone else coming. But the main leadership roles at the hospital have been filled, Harvest Call will still be involved, and we know it's in God's hands.
So yeah, there's a whole lot of mixed feelings about everything and still quite a bit of unknowns to figure out in the coming months. But we are at peace with it all and will just keep walking forward one step at a time!
