Amber is usually the one who sends out updates and that kind of stuff, but she’s so busy and not feeling well these days, so I’ll post a Christmas Card Letter of sorts here. This is how I remember this year:
In January, we were living with my parents in the basement and feeling kind of squished. We started looking for a place of our own and found a cute little 4-plex right by our old high school. It had a basement and a yard so the thoughts of the boys having a space to play were very tempting.
At the end of the month Amber and I took a weekend trip to Edmonton for a worship conference. It was a nice refreshing time but Downtown Edmonton closes for the weekend, so we were stuck walking in -20C snowy weather trying to find a place that was open and without a huge lineup for our mealtimes. I wouldn't recommend Edmonton in the winter.
In February, we signed a 6-month lease and moved into our second place of the year. We bought some new furniture and a digital piano and were settling in for a new five-year plan. We’d stay there until our two boys were in school and then move on. Unfortunately, God had different plans.
In May we found out that Amber was pregnant with our third child. This was a bit of a surprise, but only a few months ahead of our plan. The spring brought many opportunities for church work as I sent out more than a dozen resumes over a month’s time.
We took a vacation to Winnipeg for over two weeks in June. When we left for Calgary two years earlier, we had promised ourselves that we wouldn't be making that 14 hour trip again, but as we've come to learn, nothing is forever and we cannot plan on anything. My June blog entries seemed to be focused on sleep and Star Wars.
We ended up accepting a bi-vocational position in beautiful Nakusp, BC in July to start in September. I was able to lead worship at the small Alliance church and work 4 days a week at a lumber mill making fence posts and rails. We had a new 10-year plan. We’d stay until Daniel was about 13 and then decide if we want to move on to a bigger centre. After about a week at the mill I developed a severe allergy to the cedar dust and ended up in emergency. I spent a lot of time in this small town hospital and the doctor advised me to quit my job.
We celebrated Josh and Amber’s birthday as well as Thanksgiving while we were there, but ended up moving back to Calgary in the middle of November – to house number four of 2005. It was so nice being able to spend time with Amber and the boys. It was somewhat stressful not having a job, but God was good and He provided in His own way.
We had a nice housewarming party and a birthday party for my brother in December. It gave us a chance to have a bunch of our family and friends over in a few days. Christmas was a busy weekend with a steady stream of people coming through our house, but it was great.
Now we’re back in Calgary. I have started a new job with a great company that offers me plenty of opportunities for growth and advancement. We are renting a duplex with a huge basement, and enough room to host several large family gatherings in the last few weeks. The boys are happy, sleeping better, and are acting like normal boys.
I'd like to say we have a multi-year plan, but I'm scared to even buy green bananas these days. Opportunities are still open for change and by next Christmas we may have moved 8 more times, or (hopefully) we will be settled and enjoying life teh way it is for a while.
Happy New Year and God Bless You from
Jon, Amber, Daniel, Josh, and baby mcbean
Friday, December 30
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