The Eggs Did Not Get Deviled in 2022
Happy New Year! To tell you the truth, I can hardly remember the last weeks of 2022. Wyatt got strep throat, a virus and then a sinus infection. I had mastitis. My mom came in town. And we moved! My 2022 ended at 10pm because I knew 2023 was going to start early, and I was already wildly sleep-deprived. But here we are now, all settled in to a beautiful place God has provided, cherishing moments with my mom, and enjoying a Cape Town summer together. We are healthy, and the small people are finally sleeping again.
There was a lot of a lot in 2022. Here's a "Year in Review" in bullet points!
What Happened in 2022:
Wyatt was born on April 12! Brotherly love and delight is exponential since he came around, and that boy is a giggling wildfire.
We started to understand Benjamin's special needs and super powers. We began a journey that's taught us about a unique form of autism called Pathological Demand Avoidance. There are many kinds of therapy and changes in our parenting, home life and schooling to help him succeed.
We had visitors! I saw my mom for the first time in six years! Faith Promise Church from Knoxville, TN sent a missions team, and several other guests have come into our home and church. It's been so refreshing after Covid and the years of not having a visa to be able to re-connect to God's bigger picture.
Chris traded in his running shoes for a weight belt. My RIDICULOUSLY strong husband hits the gym five days a week to lift weights heavy and hard. His mental and physical transformation has been unbelievable this year! Lifa is not far behind him. He goes to the school gym at 6am every day to pump iron. There's no shortage on strong men in my house!
Southpoint Church is blossoming into something more diverse, more Spirit-filled, and more incredible than we could have ever dreamt or imagined. We are surrounded by an incredible community, rich friendships, a generous church, and great hope for the future. Lifa is a regular volunteer; Benjamin adores Sunday mornings; and Chris leads with great wisdom and passion. I'm so proud of my guys.
WE GOT A VAN! It's here! It's finally here! In the moving-Christmas-week madness, the AMAZING van God provided through His very generous and faithful followers arrived. We LOVE IT and feel like we're riding in a miracle every time we get in. Especially Lifa since he's not in the trunk anymore!
What Did Not Happen in 2022:
Family dinnertime. Dinner together is one of my favorite things. This year, we were doing good just to get the people fed while juggling a rugby-playing teenager’s schedule with a newborn entering the scene and an eruption of special needs. (It was very much an eruption.) I skated through the year on instant oats, and my children consumed countless jars of peanut butter. I made smoothies with spinach as often as I could just to make sure there was some kind of vegetable going in.
Birthday parties. We celebrated each family member's birthday with great intentionality, but made a decision for Benjamin's well-being to not attend others' birthday parties or gatherings. In fact, our world got very, very small. We didn't go into public spaces, avoided crowds and cut back on as much stimulation as possible. We changed schools and much about the way our family worked. I’m in a continuous lesson of choosing what’s best for us in the moment we’re in rather than what I think we should be doing for others or even for the future.
A trip to America. We haven't been since 2015, and I swore we would go as soon as Benjamin and I got our visas. We got our visas after Wyatt was born, and now we've got to wait on Wyatt's! We don't expect Wyatt's to take a long time to get approved, but, honestly, I'm a little scared about traveling with Benjamin now. I don't know how he'll cope with the unknowns, stimulation and change. Our first trip back will be a very low-key, family trip. Trips to America to see family and friends will be a regular part of life, and we'll learn how to do it well as we all get paperwork in order and Benjamin develops a few more regulation skills.
Deviled Eggs. As American kids, Chris and I both savored the sanctity of Christmas morning at home... waking up early, rushing to the tree, and diving head first into wrapping paper and Christmas magic. Now as pastors in South Africa, Chris (and Lifa) have to be at church at 6am to set up for the Christmas morning service. We love Christmas morning at church and come home to brunch and a birthday party for Jesus before tearing into the gifts. I try to get brunch prepped the day before so it's spread out and ready by the time Chris locks the church doors behind him. This year's menu was ham, veggies and crackers with dip, cheese rolls, deviled eggs and Jesus' birthday cake. To make a long story short, after setting up Christmas two times in two different houses, moving, and walking the hallways with sick kids night after night leading up to Christmas morning.... The eggs did not get deviled in 2022. We had hard-boiled eggs on our beautiful Christmas brunch platter. Not deviled. Just plain old boiled eggs - and an overcooked ham! It goes against every grain of my existence to not do the holiday things I set out to do and to not do them perfectly. But guess what... Christmas still happened! Everyone was ok with regular eggs!
I don't know what 2023 holds, but I'm quite sure it's ok if all the i's don't get dotted, t's don't get crossed, or, heaven forbid, the eggs don't get deviled. New years often come with new ideas, new resolves, and sometimes even new struggles.
This year, no matter what happens or doesn't, I pray that you live life abundantly. You don't have to do that thing you resolve to do every day to live abundantly. You just have to know that you are loved deeply and unwaveringly by Your creator and redeemer. He did the thing that matters so you don’t have to do anything but show up just as you are.
Jesus died so that you could live this year all the way alive, no matter what happens or does not.
May God bless you in 2023!