New Year's letter

I just finished writing my new year's letter ( I was too busy having a baby to write a Christmas letter.), and thought I would post it here. Enjoy!


*Happy New Year! We trust this letter finds you all well, and with fond memories of a joyous Christmas and a blessed 2004. It was a wonderful year for us, as God has continued to bless our family. God's sovereign loving care in our lives has really been emphasized to me this year. We have learned that His plans and His timing are not our own, but they are infinitely better.*The beginning of this year found us happy with our two precious boys, and wanting to wait a few years before adding to our family, but in April, surprise! We found out that we had been blessed with another child on the way. The surprise arrived the 14th of December when baby Grace was born into her Daddy's hands. Nate said "We have our baby girl!" I had been so sure we were having another boy, I thought he must be mistaken, and it wasn't until the third time I looked that I really believed we had had a girl. She is a month old as I write this now, and she is such a sweet and content baby. The boys love her, and Nate finally has his "daddy's girl."* The summer brought a wonderful visit from Charity's parents in June, Ian's first birthday in July, and in August a special trip to Gatlinburg, TN for Nathan and Charity. George and Ian had a wonderful time at their Grandma and Grandpa Buchan's house while Mama and Daddy were gone.*In October, Nate surprised me with a trip up to Maine. It was wonderful to see my brothers, and both of my pregnant sisters-in-law. It was such a special time with both sets of my grandparents, and of course, my parents as well. We had a mini Thanksgiving at the Buchanan homestead and I was again awed at God's abundant blessing of family in our lives. *Nate's brother Scott and wife Mandi and little girl came down from Minnesota for Christmas. It was so much fun to see all the cousins playing together, especially Lily and Ian, who are only 6 weeks apart in age. It was so great to be with all of Nathan's family for Christmas this year. It has been a continual blessing to us to have Nathan's parents and brothers so close. They are such a comfort, help and joy to us.*Our church family has become even more precious to us as we grow in relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Nate and I were able to go on the men's and ladies retreats' this year and learned so much. I have been teaching 5th and 6th grade girls on Wednesday nights in our church's Awana program. God has continued to teach and grow me through my ladies' Bible study. We finished up "The Excellent Wife," (although Nate would probably say I need to read it again!), and are now reading "Calm my Anxious Heart." God has really taught me so much about true contentment and complete acceptance of His will through this study. *Of course, our children are the lights of our lives. It's hard to believe that George turned three on Christmas Eve, He continues to surprise us with his unique intuition, his love for learning, and his imagination. Ian is a whirlwind of smiles and mischief. He is such a happy child, and always running or climbing or taking something apart. He is starting to say more words, his favorite of which is "more!" at the dinner table. Grace is starting to smile and be more interactive. We can't wait to see her little personality develop.*Nate continues to be challenged by and excel at his job. His unfailing commitment to his work is only outdone by his ambitious planning for new and better ways to grow the business. I got a promotion recently, from mother of two to mother of three, (Talk about a great Christmas bonus!) My days are filled with diapers and dishes, cuddles and kisses. The money is lousy, but the rewards are incredible. I am so grateful for the blessing of being home with my children. * Our hope and prayer for you, our dear family and friends is that you would be able to see and appreciate God's unique presence and blessing in your lives, and, from Ephesians 4:16-19"That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." We keep you close in thought and prayer. God bless you this new year! Love, Nathan, Charity, George, Ian and Grace