Christmas Letter 2017

December 2017

Dear Family & Friends,

 ^“The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:25-27

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” 1 John 3:1

“Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” Psalm 51:12

We pray that this Christmas season you are filled with peace, love, and joy.  May you know the peace and contentment that only Christ can give, feel the love that God has for you as his dearly loved child, and proclaim that good news with a joyful heart.

Our year, was a busy one, filled with new family memories and old family traditions.  We’ve enjoyed all the blessings, large and small.

In January, Liam finished up his first season of Upwards basketball.  He did a great job on defense.  It was fun to watch him gain confidence on the court as the season went on.

Tiffany went to Charleston, South Carolina with her mom for a weekend getaway in March to see the Camellias in bloom.  It was a lovely weekend, full of history, delicious meals, and of course, beautiful flowers.

In May, we took an adventure on a Disney cruise to the Bahamas and Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island) with Grandma Kusch.  It was a magical event!  The kids loved swimming in the ocean and seeing the nightly shows.  Liam loved the water slide on the top deck of the ship.  Lilly loved all the dance parties and the ice cream stations.

After the cruise we attended Dave’s Thrivent conference in Hollywood, Florida.  While Dave listened to wonderful speakers, Tiffany and the kids swam in the pools and soaked up the sun.  We took a day trip to the Miami Seaquarium.  Liam fulfilled a wish by swimming with dolphins.  

In May Lilly danced in her recital.  She brought tears to our eyes.  She has come so far and we are so proud of all that she has accomplished.

The summer brought many small day trips and family out-tings.  The kids are at such a great age – we can just get up and go.  They love learning new things and having new experiences.

In July we had our Pure Michigan vacation with Tiffany’s family.  We started the trip at Mackinac Island, then spent several days in Traverse City at Great Wolf Lodge.  Liam went on many magic quests and both kids enjoyed all the water slides.

August brought a new school year with some changes.  Lilly started Kindergarten at Harris Elementary School (the deaf/hard of hearing magnet school).  Liam started Second Grade at Central Lutheran.  Tiffany took on a new role as the special education teacher/consultant through Lutheran Special Education Ministries at Central Lutheran.  She starting teaching 4 days a week and kept her role as the Indiana/Ohio Coordinator with LSEM, which allows her to mentor fellow special education teachers.

In August Dave and Tiffany also took a weekend trip to French Lick, Indiana.  It was a quick trip, but a much-needed break from the busyness of life and a time to reconnect.

Tiffany was supposed to travel to Kisumu, Kenya in October with the mission team from Emanuel Lutheran Church.  However, due to civil unrest because of their elections, the trip was postponed.  She will have to wait until July 2018 to work at Point of Grace.  Keep an eye on the family blog in July to hear all about that trip.

Lilly just finished this year’s Nutcracker performance.  She was the cutest little Bon-Bon.  She danced very well and smiled from ear to ear.

Both kids are getting ready to start basketball with the Upwards program.  Lilly wants to try everything her big brother does.

In addition to our adventures, we’ve enjoyed all the ordinary days too.  Liam continues to love Science, Legos, learning about nature, weather, and animals.  He has become such a great reader.  He loves to escape into the stories in books.  Both kids dress up and take imaginary missions together.  They are blessed to have each other.  Lilly continues to demonstrate her independent spirit and has started reading as well.  It is neat to watch her read a book, because she signs as she reads.  She is teaching us many new signs.  She still enjoys all things girly and would dress up and wear make-up everyday if we let her.

You can keep up with our family throughout the year by visiting our blog at – www.davetiffanyliamlillyherman.blogspot.com.

Remember to take time this Christmas season to rest in the peace of Christ, remembering the love he has for you, and sharing the joy of that good news with others.

Merry Christmas!

Love,

The Hermans