As I was reading through this Psalm today, I thought it was a perfect reading for the end of a year. It is a great reflection Psalm.
I have been debating how to do a Barefoot Hippie family 2012 recap. There have been so many things that have happened. It has been a great year. It has been a hard-hard year. It has been a stretching and growing and relying year.
But I don't want to focus on the negative. Not because I am pretending everything was rosy. I have said before that I am a pessimistic/glass half empty kind of gal. I have to choose to remember the positive.
Because of that verse...
His mercy endures forever.
No matter the ups and downs, the smooth paths and the rough roads, God is still my God, and His mercy
Here is the Barefoot Hippie family 2012 year nut shelled and all wrapped up pretty...(the all wrapped up pretty is supposed to make you laugh-'cause it is so not true.) So, now the question is: do I categorize by person, event or month? Hmmm...
Person-wise, here are pics showing how the offspring have sprung. How they have changed from this____ to this____
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| clean face to grubby face...rolling to running and posing.=) |
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| less baby looking, still with a mother who doesn't do her hair enough. |
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| a bit more grown up looking |
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| Awkward to more awkward.=) |
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| This is where you can see the growth the most...look how Freckles and LC have caught up to BMV. And he has grown also.  |
At the beginning of the year I started collecting the ticket stubs from the different things we did. These ticket represent a lot of fun days and evenings. A whole lot of memories made. Ball games, hockey games, symphony concerts, museums...
We traveled a bit for both fun and ministry-or a hybrid of both. We spent a weekend in Southern Michigan at a backwoods camp running a guy's retreat. Mr. Hippie facilitated, I cooked, and the kids got to run wild in the woods.
We spent over half of August traveling far and wide combining 2 vacation Bible schools with vacation. We made new friends and deepened old friendships. I packed and repacked suitcases at least 4 different times during this trip.
We spent the first week in the greater Chicago area at a hotel, swimming and eating and hanging with friends-while doing the first VBS. The kids' favorite activity was visiting the LegoLand Discovery Center.
We then ventured out to PA and DE. We visited Philadelphia and Independence Square. It was a wonderful taste of that city, and I really hope to go back someday. I want to walk the Ben Franklin bridge and hang out at the pier, and delve more into the historical district. We also visited LongWood Gardens. They were beautiful and fun.
Our final stop was Washington DC, my very first visit to our nation's capitol. I can't begin to express how much I loved DC. I loved the architecture and the history, and the awesomeness of it all. Oh, and 5 Guys. It started my craving for burgers.
We also execute Operation Meet Me in St. Louis with my parents, sibs, nieces and nephews. It was a great time of sight seeing, laughter and hanging around.
Running wise (my life consists of ministry, parenting, blogging, cooking and running) it was a good year. We ran my bucket run together-the local 25k. It was excruciating. And wonderful. And I am looking forward to beating my time this next May. We also ran another half marathon. That race was where all the hard training paid off. It was my best run ever. We also ran our first 5k with our kids, on Thanksgiving Day. We are totally going to be the family that runs together, keels over together...(barefoot hippie paraphrase)
Our roofing business is still surviving. The bills are being paid, and lives are being impacted. We see our business as a venue for mentoring young guys. Mr. Hippie works them hard, and they still come back for more. Right guys? Its because of the Christmas party...none of them want to give up my phenomenal meal. Just kidding.
Not only was 2012 made up of highlights, but it is in the everyday that you find small graces and multiple blessings. Like coffee and conversation with my heart of hearts, Mr. Hippie. And clean baby scents wafting over hugs. And chocolate-lots of chocolate. And fresh garden vegetables. And flowers-outside and in. And fluffy towels. And jeans that fit just right. And belly laughs and I Love Lucy episodes. It is literary lunch hours, and plowing through the first 5 books of Harry Potter with the offspring. The small graces...
Yes, we are surviving and even thriving. We are happy to put a lid on 2012. We are hopeful and excited for what is coming up in 2013.
What would be in your top 5 happenings for 2012?
