Merry Christmas!

It's hard to believe that Christmas is this week - where did this year go?  I am glad to have made it through this past fall - it has been an extremely busy few months for me.  But, the Lord gave me grace and helped me prioritize and get everything done in the right time. Now, all the shopping is done, the Christmas program at church is over and I am just planning Christmas dinner this week. Ahhhh - I am looking forward to a relatively quiet week...I hope.

McKayla is doing much better since starting the medication for her JRA.  She is experiencing less pain in her knees and wrist and the swelling is going down. The x-ray that she had in November showed significant swelling, but no joint damage.  Now that the swelling is subsiding, she is gaining better range of motion in her knee.  She is also showing less fatigue throughout the day.  We are very grateful to see that she is making progress and beginning to feel more like her perky self. She will be on the medication for at least another year - she has to go a full year with no symptoms before the doctor will begin to decrease the medication and eventually take her off of it completely.  So far, she has done very well on it with little to no side effects.  Thank you to all of you who are praying for her.

Tim is still feeling fabulous and got another good report at the last doctor's appointment.  They are now stretching his appointments out to every 6 weeks instead of every 4 weeks.  He has begun writing a book about things the Lord has done and taught him throughout the last couple of years and is very excited about how the Lord is leading in that endeavor.  We'll let you know when it's done!

Michael is 14 now and doing really well!  The intense autism therapy that he received this year has allowed him to make some significant gains academically, socially, mentally and physically.  We have continued "home therapy" this fall and he is scheduled to have another evaluation in January.  We are looking forward to seeing the results of those tests.  He loves his karate classes and is moving up the ranks.  He's also very proud that he is just barely taller than I am now!

McKayla is 8 and was baptized in August.  What a sweet service that was!  She is doing really well homeschooling this year and is enjoying piano lessons.  She played soccer this fall and was the star defensive player on the team - way to go, McKayla!  She loves Master Clubs at church and is memorizing lots of Scripture -she loves earning those badges!

Mark is now 7 and loves homeschooling this year, because as he says - he doesn't have "to wait for all the other kids in the class to answer the questions. That's soooo boring!"  :)  He enjoyed playing soccer this fall and is excelling at the piano.  He loves Mario Kart and Legos, Legos, Legos!

Please continue to pray for our oldest son, Matthew, who is now 18.  He is attending classes in a program out of state and enjoys his job.  It has been a rough year with him, but we know the Lord is working and we trust Him with Matthew's future.

Thank you for following us on this journey.  The Lord is so faithful to us and gives us exactly what we need for each day.  We are excited to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ - May all of you have a wonderful Christmas with your family and friends.