Year-end Family Update

It is entirely possible that my posting may become irregular after today. Tomorrow, the children start arriving, and I can hardly wait!

Ben and Elsa will come in from Bloomington, IN, on the 20th. Ben completed his masters degree last spring at Indiana University, and is now working on his PhD there in classical studies. He's passed his first comp in Latin grammar, and will be doing his Latin translation next spring, followed by the grammar and translation tests for Greek next year. Yes, he will be a student forever. But he is doing well, and we are proud of him! Elsa is helping keep the boat afloat by working at the graduate school of the business college at IU. In the spring it looks like she will trade in her office job for a job with the admissions department, which should be a nice change of pace for her. We are proud of how hard-working and willing to do things Elsa has been. She is a great wife to Ben! They just celebrated their first anniversary on Dec. 15. They continue to enjoy their church, and it warms our hearts to see them serving and participating there!

Tim and Nikki will arrive on the 23rd. Tim is enjoying his job at the Missile Defense Division of Raytheon in Tucson, AZ. And Nikki is doing a great job of settling them into their apartment. They are plugging in to a great church in Tucson, and making friends and settling in. We are pretty proud of both of them for making this bold move to trust God and go where they never dreamed they would go! They just celebrated their third-month anniversary on the 13th of this month.

Marilyn continues in good health, and is a huge help to me around the house. She continues a pretty rigorous schedule of walking, working out at the YMCA, volunteering at the two local elementary school libraries, and at the retirement home in town. In May she will have been living with us for five years, and this past September, she celebrated her 82nd birthday.

Dave continues to be a wonderful husband, and my best friend. He serves as an elder at our church, and continues his work at LANL. It's hard to believe he has been working there for almost 25 years! He is a faithful and diligent husband and elder and scientist and son and father, and is a wonderful chemistry teacher to a group of home-schooled high school students this year. I know I'm biased, but I think he is a pretty special guy.

And me: I've survived a challenging year. Diagnosed with breast cancer in March, I have not only completed three surgeries and 7 weeks of radiation treatments, but I have watched as the Lord has cared for and provided for me all this long, hard year. I knew God was good, but now it is a deeper, more practical knowledge. I continue to rest and recuperate and adjust to my new "normal" as best I can, with the hope that more and more energy will return to me, so that I can return to doing all the things I love, like teaching and quilting.

So, this past year has been a good year, as every year with the Lord is. We expanded our family by adding another daughter-in-love, and saw another Finnegan family unit established. And we walk in trust and amazement of all the Lord does for and in and through us. Many thanks to all of you who have and continue to pray for me. That is a precious gift, and God is a mighty Answerer of prayers!

As I look back over this year, I am overwhelmed by God's goodness. I hope you will take time, Gentle Readers, in the midst of this busy season, to look for His goodness in your life, and celebrate this season with a thankful heart! I know I will.