2018 Christmas Letter
Two thousand eighteen.
It was a year of settling for this family of ours, in the very best of ways. Settling into the beauty of Brazil. Settling into the challenges it has laid before us. Settling into our version of the expat life. We are still so grateful for the opportunity to call this country home for a little while. Grateful too for the ways we have been stretched (many times uncomfortably so) and the growth we’ve experienced because of it.
Speaking of growing, London is somehow closing in on two years of age! How can that be?! He serves as the resident dish rinser and brings us so much joy. He loves playing Pat-a-Cake, splashing in water, and jumping on the closest trampoline, couch, bean bag or bed. He slurps milk out of his cereal bowl (along with 3-4 refills) while mostly neglecting the actual cereal. And when I ask him to hold my hand, he wraps his whole hand around one of my fingers. Our favorites of his growing vocabulary include his breathy “wow,” “ap-ple,” “pease!” and “pee-yo” (play-doh)... along with his never-ending requests for “more?!” of any game, book, or bite he enjoys. His bright blue eyes and blonde hair draw plenty of adoring attention around here, appropriately so in our opinion.
Cora bravely entered her first year of preschool back in February, tackling the Portuguese language immersion style, and wrapped up the year with new friends and a comprehension that exceeds our own. What a trailblazer! She loves a good dance party, especially if Let It Go is involved, and has fully embraced her dad’s love of board games. Go Nuts for Doughnuts is the obvious favorite. She spends hours tending sick “friends” in her doctor’s office (our closet) and has announced she will be a doctor when she grows up so she can “take care of her friends when they’re not sick.” Preventative medicine is where it’s at folks. She weaves together a beautiful blend of colors in her many art projects and finds delight in train rides and chocolate. We kind of love what four years has fostered.
Greg continued the learning process in his role at Compass Minerals (aka Produquímica) this year. When he’s not working / commuting, he can be found making pancakes, reading literary classics (Dickens as of late), or throwing kids up in the air in the general direction of the bean bag. Monthly daddy / daughter dates revolve around a shared love of doughnuts and a growing collection of Pokemon cards (in Portuguese!).
As for me, I am enjoying the rhythms of home life with two littles. We spend our days rotating between books and balloons, colors and cars inside and between BSF, the park and the pool outside. Writing through our transition to Brazil rekindled my love for creating through words. I even took part in a writing workshop for the first time! It was a little scary / overwhelming but I loved it. Documenting this life of ours - and God’s abundant, generous presence in it - is a discipline I am grateful to grow into.
And now we look forward to a new year of new adventures. We’re a little (okay a lot) unsure of what 2019 will hold. But as we settle more deeply into the God who both goes before us and journeys with us, we cannot help but trust His lead and His timing. Because while His ways are often surprising, they are always, always good.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year friends!
Greg, Emily, Cora & London
Images by the lovely Jenny Rawson, taken on our whirlwind trip back to the US in June.
