Christmas Letter 2010

Christmas Letter 2010

So this is my second attempt at a Christmas letter. The one I already wrote tells all about our year, the places we visited, the people we saw, the things we did. But, I felt like it only told you about what we did, not how our year really was. This is my attempt at telling the real story. It’s a little long so grab a cup of coffee and get comfortable. Here it goes.

2010 was a year of fun and a year of new challenges. We took a couple of small trips: one to Atlanta, GA, one to Myrtle Beach, SC, and several to Salem, VA. Our big trip this year was to Walt Disney World where we met up with my parents and family. We had a great time visiting with family and enjoying the parks. We also went up to PA quite a few times throughout the year: for the holidays, for Rosemary’s college graduation, and for my parents’ 30th anniversary surprise party. Happy 30 years, Mom and Papa!

The year started out pretty normal. We were busy with school, work, and life with three kids. Then in the spring, Jim was gone for 7 weeks to Salem (hence the trips there). It was hard to be apart that long, but we made the most of it and the kids and I came along when we could. I was homeschooling Ethan during this time, so I packed up our school books, and for a couple of weeks we did school and life in a hotel. Tough, but manageable. Cooking was a little rough on crooked burners with cheapo pans, but you do what you can. And we did. And God’s grace was sufficient for our every need. The travelling slowed down as we entered in to the summer.

Then in the fall, it was time for Jim to look for his next role at GE. He looked at several options, had lots of conversations with prospective bosses, but none of the doors were opened. Then, Jim’s new boss talked to him about stepping up his responsibilities in his current role. We prayed about it, pursued it, and in October Jim officially started his new role as a project manager for a component he knew very little about. The first couple months were really stressful for him since he was in uncharted waters, but eventually he got a better grip on what he was doing. He faces the challenges of people and project difficulties, but is striving to honor God and do his best in it all. The start of Jim’s new role at work was also the start of his new role as a den leader for Ethan’s Cub Scout pack. It has been a huge commitment of time and effort, but it’s been a great opportunity for him to reach out to kids and parents outside the church. He also was able to fill in for a trumpet in a brass quintet for a Christmas concert. A fun opportunity, but it made for a very full fall.

This year has challenged me (Amber) in several ways. I love to spend time with my husband, so it’s hard when he travels a lot (as he did in the spring), works late/doesn’t come home for lunch (as he did in the fall), or has other evening commitments (again in the fall). However, I endeavored to support and encourage him in his different pursuits, even if it meant less time with him. Releasing my husband made me cling more closely to Jesus, my Comfort and Refuge. And I am thankful for the hard-fought lesson.

Another big-time challenge for me this year was facilitating a small group at ladies Bible study. It was totally out of my comfort zone to lead discussion with a group of ladies that I didn’t know, most of whom were older than me. It was very s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g, but so good in the end. We were studying the book of James, which is one of my favorites, so that made it fun (and hard since James shoots it straight ).

The other big challenge this year was finances, especially since we still own our townhome in PA. Our tenants two-year lease was up (for which we were thankful since they were late on most of their payments- big stressor for me!), and so it was time to figure out what to do next. We really did not want to have two mortgage payments for long, so we put it on the market right away. Two months later, it was still there with only one showing. We got back from Thanksgiving to find a letter from our home insurance company saying that they were cancelling our insurance since the place is vacant. Ouch. Like salt-on-a-wound ouch. We talked and prayed (and I stressed), went back and forth, but finally decided to put the house up for rent instead. So now we are waiting and praying for what the Lord will do next. We know He is good and has a plan, but we’re not sure what it’ll look like yet. That’s where faith meets the road. Psalm 37:5 says, “Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will act.” So that’s what we’re doing. We are committing our ways to the Lord through prayer and obedience, and trusting in His character knowing that He will act. Well, that’s what we’re trying to do at least. Jim is doing a much better job at it than I am (so thankful for a godly husband)!

Now for the kiddos. Ethan is in first grade this year. We decided to homeschool one more year and then we’ll see. He has been doing great and is a wonderful student. He is full of enthusiasm and grasps the concepts with lightning speed. The neatest thing to see this year though has been his heart for sharing Jesus with others. We can’t go to a store or McDonald’s playground without him asking people if they know Jesus or him trying to encourage others with the truth that, “God and Jesus are with you wherever you go.” It puts me to shame to see the boldness and child-like faith of my son. He is planning to be baptized this coming year. I’m so glad that I have a front-row seat to watch my son grow in the Lord. What a privilege!

It is also a privilege to watch my second son, Micah, learn and grow. He is 3 now, and I am proud to say that he recognizes all his letters and is beginning to sound out words. I wish I could say he is completely potty-trained, but lately he’s regressed. So we continue to plod along. I know that there are moms who train their kids in a week or less, but that has not been the case for me. However, I have found that much of parenting is not done in a day or week, but in consistently investing in your kids over time, and potty training is no different. This fall I have been trying to invest more time in Micah, in being consistent in training him while balancing the needs of my other two. But training takes time, so it must also take more intentionality to do it. I have seen little victories here and there though, for which I am very thankful!

And little Verity…we have seen her personality come out this year. She is very sweet and loving, she loves to help me out around the house, and she is very verbal and quite decisive. There is no waffling in her decision-making nor doubt of her opinion! It has been interesting to figure out how to deal with a little girl… very different from dealing with boys. But I look forward to coming alongside her and helping her to become a woman after God’s heart.

I hope you have enjoyed our real-life Christmas letter and that it has encouraged you in some way. We have had a challenging year on many fronts, but through it all we have grown closer to our Savior. James 1 tells us to, “count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience, but let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” We lack nothing because in Jesus we have everything we need!

Praying that you have a wonderful Christ-filled Christmas!

Love,

Amber, Jim, Ethan, Micah, and Verity Kolmus