2010 Christmas Letter

We've officially decided not to send out a Christmas card or letter this year, so instead I've compiled our favorite pictures from this year into an on-line photo album for you to enjoy. One piece of evidence that I am poor at making decisions is that there are over 100 pictures! Maybe that's partly due to having young children in the house who change so much from the beginning of the year to the end, and partly due to digital photography. Instead of snapping one or two pictures of a special moment,  I tend to take 10, trying to capture just the right look. I'm not that good, so all 10 pictures look the same, but since they are 10 pictures of faces I love, I love all the pictures!

Anyway, 2010 - good riddance! No, really, we've had some great times this year but enough challenges that I hope for a brighter 2011. Brad's Grandma Bierma passed away in January and we were able to be with the family for her funeral in Iowa. My Grandma Schippers passed away in June, and Peter and I were able to be with family for her funeral in Michigan. Cora has taken to asking to hear stories about her great-grandmas and some of her imaginary play now includes "dead boxes" and people dying. Besides incorporating ideas of death into her vocabulary and imagination, she also talks about "coming alive again" and "living with Jesus".

Cora will be 4 in a couple weeks. She loves going to both preschool (twice a week) and her Kingdom Kids class at church. She loves playing with her friends, "reading", craft time, playing outside. She is learning to write her name. Cora and Peter are learning to play together and to have a "what's mine is yours" attitude with the toys that they both enjoy. It's a process!

Peter turned 1 in September and is loving walking! He toddles in circles around the house, content to explore the same territory day after day. He has signs for daddy, down, night-night, bye-bye/hello, dog, eat, drink, more, please, and thank-you. He makes specific sounds for sheep, pig and cow and says "Oh-wa" for "Cora". "Da" is his syllable of choice for almost every thing so we rely heavily on his hand motions and circumstances to interpret what he is talking about. He uses "Na" if it's related to food! Yes, we have a bilingual home! :)

Brad and I still enjoy taking excursions of various sorts around western Colorado and spending time with friends. This past year involved family reunions with both of our families and we enjoyed the travel and time with them. Our church is doing well and we are so thankful for the work they allow Brad to do and the support they give us. It is a wonderful group of people! I still teach piano lessons one afternoon a week and help out with different ministries at church.

The big challenge of this year was that I struggled with a long period of post-partum depression. We praise God that he opened our eyes to what was going on and provided the help we needed to recover and heal, but it's been a long process. When I look back at 2010, this clouds over much of the first half of the year. It makes us grateful that we can see how God worked in us through this time, and hopeful that the growth he caused in us will remain to strengthen our faith when new times of challenge arise.

And now for the pictures I promised you. If you've been keeping up with us this year, you've probably seen most of these before. Enjoy a peek at our adventures and how we've changed! Picasa Album 2010