Merry Christmas from our family to yours! We made it to the States and are excited to celebrate with family and friends.
We pray that you and your loved ones will rejoice in the miracle, gift, and promise of Christmas.
• Christmas Card 2015
• Christmas Card 2014
• Christmas Card 2013
• Christmas Card 2012
Merry Christmas from the Benedicts! We are spending our Christmas break in the States – both Michigan and Arkansas this year!
We pray you have a wonderful season filled with peace, love, family, and joy.
» Christmas Card 2014
» Christmas Card 2013
» Christmas Card 2012
Merry Christmas! We wish you and your loved ones great joy this season!
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. –Luke 2:10–11
Last Friday our school hosted their annual Christmas concert.
There were several performance groups: the junior high band, concert band, brass band, junior choir, secondary choir, and teacher choir. David performed with the teachers. Our school atrium serves many purposes. It makes a fun performance hall.
This student was the narrator. She shared the reason for Christmas:
The seniors have been raising money for their end-of-the-year trip. They sold treats and hot drinks at the event:
The performance groups did a fantastic job! It was a fun night.
We had a wonderful Christmas break!
We especially had a lot of fun playing with our nephew Ethan. He’s about 15 months old now, babbles away in his own language, and loves running and kicking a ball. He reaches for everything and likes to look through his board books. Such a cutie!
Christmas Eve was the annual Benedict caroling and fondue party:
Our families live less than a hour apart, and we were able to see them both on Christmas Day. (This was the last year for that, though! My mom is retiring and heading south as soon as she can!)
We spent Near Years Eve with our dear friends and their sweet little one. (David was annoyed though – everyone fell asleep before midnight. He had to wake us up to watch the ball drop!)
We also spend some quality time with Grandma and Grandpa. We love them so much!
We even got in one of Sam’s basketball games:
It was so great to catch up with family and friends. We were also glad to visit with our church family. And we attended the wedding of one of our friends!
We made it out of Michigan just before the polar vortex. And even though our travels didn’t go completely as planned, we made it back safely and for the most part on time. There was a short week of school last week and we’re slowly getting back into sleep patterns and a routine. As much as we love our time at home in Michigan, it also feels good to be back home in Turkey!
We had a white and icy Christmas in Michigan this year. I don’t think I’ve ever seen ice stay on the trees this long. The ice has weighted down the trees. Branches have taken down a lot of power lines in the area. There are some people who have been without power for almost a week. David’s family lost power for 3 days, but fortunately it was restored on Christmas Eve Day.
The ice is beautiful and terrifying. Especially when the sun comes out, it’s as though the road is lined with crystal chandeliers. You can hear the ice and branches falling, especially out on the farm. It’s a chorus of shattering glass.
Many trees are so heavy, they’ve bowed over the road:
This poor tree by one of the barns lost half of its branches. David said they will probably cut the rest down once it’s warmer. We’re fortunate that branches have not fallen on the house or our cars. We haven’t seen the damage inside of the maple woods yet, but we know it’s brought down some of the tap lines.
On our way to break, David’s aunt called us and told us to check out a bald eagle in someone’s yard. It was so cool to see it sitting on the icy branches:
David took the Gator out to the edge of the woods and ran into some deer. A couple of these were trophy bucks. He purchased his hunting license last night, so hopefully he’ll get some venison before the end of break.
Merry Christmas from the Benedicts! May your days be merry and bright! (We were the elves at the Christmas Craft Fair this year. Santa told us we were on the nice list.)
