A Christmas Letter


It’s hard to believe that right before this picture was taken, these two little angelic girls were sticking out their tongues!

It’s hard to believe that Emmy entered the “terrible two’s” in July! Emmy loves taking on her big sister, and insists that she is big, too. She rivals Lily in talking up a storm. She loves playing with her “babies,” and also loves dogs…from a distance. She finally realizes that watercolors are used to paint pictures…not for a snack!

It’s hard to believe that Lily is now five years old! She attends Grace Preschool five mornings a week. On nice days she can be seen on her hot pink scooter, helmet and kneepads in place, zooming down the sidewalk! During these colder days, she is often found in the dining room, drawing pictures and using all the scotch tape she can get her hands on.


It’s hard to believe that we will not again hear Grandma Virginia’s dry wit. Yet I see the dimple from her smile on the faces of my husband and little girls.


It’s hard to believe that we will not again see Grandma Loreeta rock and sing another baby to sleep. Yet I sing the same lullabies to my two babies.

It’s hard to believe that God would send His Son to die for us, so that we will see Virginia and Loreeta in heaven again!

But it’s true!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Ed, Ginny, Lily and Emmy

Our Wait For Snow is Over….

We woke up yesterday morning to SNOW! I love playing in the snow, and so we all got out there to shovel the driveway, and then we built a snowman. It was a perfect snowy day. Since it was still snowing, the skies were very cloudy and gloomy. Maybe I should be cheesy and write, “But the snowman’s bright orange nose brightened our day!” Now, that is over the top! Cheesiness aside, we really did have a lot of fun playing outside.

Today is Lily’s Sunday School Christmas service at church. She is singing “Away in the Manger” with her preschool class. I’m sitting with the third grade class I teach. I felt slightly guilty assembling last minute treat bags yesterday. I bought my students Christmas candy; normally, I like to buy something that is not sugar-filled. I just didn’t plan ahead this year.

Today is also the fourth Sunday in Advent, so we get to light all the candles on our Advent wreath! Emmy and Lily have been waiting anxiously for the day when we don’t have to leave some candles unlit. Now everyone in our family will be able to blow out a candle. All Advent long, I’ve had to pretend to blow out a candle after we sing our songs around the wreath. Lily blows out a purple candle, Emmy gets to blow out the pink candle, and of course Daddy gets to blow out a candle because he’s the best Daddy ever. Mommy always has to wait. *sigh*

Advent is all about waiting; waiting for the Savior to come. May you have joy and peace in these last few days of waiting, as you get ready for the traveling and the family reunions; as you prepare for the feasts and the present giving. In these hectic days, don’t forget that the best is yet to come!