Hello everyone!
We are very happy to be sending you our annual Huggins Family Christmas Letter, and I am sure you are just as enthused to be getting it :) A lot has happened in our lives the last year and we are eager to be able to update those that we don’t see or speak with as often as we wish. We experienced a year with many highs and lows, but as always, came out of it stronger, happier, and more blessed and more in love than the last year.
So let’s get the low over with first :) As you all know we purchased our first home in November of last year, so our Christmas letter last year was full of excitement. We are still very happy and excited about our home, though we really miss having a landlord when something breaks or the lawn really needs a good trim. Just three months into our new life and new home adventure we were suddenly both out of work. No, neither of us was fired for pulling pranks on our co-workers or for skipping work to go to the beach:), due to the economic situation we were both laid off, with Barclee’s lay off from GM being permanent. So it was time to start the hunt for new jobs, or our new mortgage payments would get the best of us! Once again our God proved His faithfulness in times of need, and after enjoying a month off together, we were both back at new full-time jobs! When we were out of work we prayed each night for two specific things, we prayed that we would find new jobs that wouldn’t affect our schedule with the youth (so we would need Friday evenings off) and that we would have weekends off together! In May Stu was called to start work as a Millwright at Hike Metal, working on boats and coast guard ships on the shores of Lake Erie and in June Barclee began working for the Royal Bank of Canada doing a large variety of roles. We are both working day jobs, with weekends off! So our “low” of the year did not last very long! We both feel blessed to have our jobs; we have both advanced quickly in our companies and like to hope we are a good witness to those working with us. As Jim Elliot says, “I realized that the 39th street bus [or boat yard, or bank] is as much a mission field as Africa ever was”
In February and March of this year we travelled to the Middle East to visit Barclee’s brother and his family, which was one of the most amazing things we have ever done. We could never have prepared ourselves for how different and how beautiful the countries are over there. We even had the chance to back pack into the Israel and visit Jerusalem as well as the historical landmarks of the Bible. We ate weird cuisine (Stu not Barclee ate lamb brain ), floated in the Dead Sea, rode camels, stood in awe of Petra and actually got used to everyone carrying guns :) Returning from that trip sparked a desire for more travel in our lives and we are planning to have some adventures in Central America in early 2010. We did come home just before Levi’s wife Theresa gave birth to our beautiful new niece Elisabeth. Though her first few weeks in this world were spent in the hospital very ill, she will be a thriving, gorgeous 7 month old when we get to see her for the first time this Christmas. Stuart’s brother’s wife, Catriona, is also expecting her fourth boy in February at which point we will have 4 nieces and 4 nephews!!!!
Which brings up another bundle of joy that came into our lives this year, and no, it is not a baby. For Stuart’s birthday this year he was given a gorgeous purebred chocolate lab puppy. We named him Pismo, after Pismo Beach, California one of our most favorite places. A puppy is definitely hard work but we are in love with the dog, and spend lots of time playing, running and wrestling with him. He is almost 8 months old now and weighs in at around 70 pounds, so the wrestling is definitely interesting to watch :) Stuart has also become quite a talented tattoo artist and quite often I come home to find people covered in ink in my living room and the sound of a tattoo gun rattling away! He is definitely the more talented one artistically! We have also fallen more in love with being youth leaders. We work with the most amazing group of kids and remarkable leadership team. Though there are definitely some trying times, the laughter, the hugs :), firecrackers, candy, potato guns, parties, late night texts, early mornings and concerts make it all worth while.
We are so very happy; we are richly blessed in every area of our lives. Even through the dark times, our love for each other and for God has exceeded any trials that come. We pray blessings on all of you this upcoming year; that you will be happy and loved and safe. We miss you! We love you!
“And when the day is dawned and when the race is run, we will bow down before God’s only Son, and we will lift our hands in praise for all you’ve done, and we will worship you, our faithful one”
We are very happy to be sending you our annual Huggins Family Christmas Letter, and I am sure you are just as enthused to be getting it :) A lot has happened in our lives the last year and we are eager to be able to update those that we don’t see or speak with as often as we wish. We experienced a year with many highs and lows, but as always, came out of it stronger, happier, and more blessed and more in love than the last year.
So let’s get the low over with first :) As you all know we purchased our first home in November of last year, so our Christmas letter last year was full of excitement. We are still very happy and excited about our home, though we really miss having a landlord when something breaks or the lawn really needs a good trim. Just three months into our new life and new home adventure we were suddenly both out of work. No, neither of us was fired for pulling pranks on our co-workers or for skipping work to go to the beach:), due to the economic situation we were both laid off, with Barclee’s lay off from GM being permanent. So it was time to start the hunt for new jobs, or our new mortgage payments would get the best of us! Once again our God proved His faithfulness in times of need, and after enjoying a month off together, we were both back at new full-time jobs! When we were out of work we prayed each night for two specific things, we prayed that we would find new jobs that wouldn’t affect our schedule with the youth (so we would need Friday evenings off) and that we would have weekends off together! In May Stu was called to start work as a Millwright at Hike Metal, working on boats and coast guard ships on the shores of Lake Erie and in June Barclee began working for the Royal Bank of Canada doing a large variety of roles. We are both working day jobs, with weekends off! So our “low” of the year did not last very long! We both feel blessed to have our jobs; we have both advanced quickly in our companies and like to hope we are a good witness to those working with us. As Jim Elliot says, “I realized that the 39th street bus [or boat yard, or bank] is as much a mission field as Africa ever was”
In February and March of this year we travelled to the Middle East to visit Barclee’s brother and his family, which was one of the most amazing things we have ever done. We could never have prepared ourselves for how different and how beautiful the countries are over there. We even had the chance to back pack into the Israel and visit Jerusalem as well as the historical landmarks of the Bible. We ate weird cuisine (Stu not Barclee ate lamb brain ), floated in the Dead Sea, rode camels, stood in awe of Petra and actually got used to everyone carrying guns :) Returning from that trip sparked a desire for more travel in our lives and we are planning to have some adventures in Central America in early 2010. We did come home just before Levi’s wife Theresa gave birth to our beautiful new niece Elisabeth. Though her first few weeks in this world were spent in the hospital very ill, she will be a thriving, gorgeous 7 month old when we get to see her for the first time this Christmas. Stuart’s brother’s wife, Catriona, is also expecting her fourth boy in February at which point we will have 4 nieces and 4 nephews!!!!
Which brings up another bundle of joy that came into our lives this year, and no, it is not a baby. For Stuart’s birthday this year he was given a gorgeous purebred chocolate lab puppy. We named him Pismo, after Pismo Beach, California one of our most favorite places. A puppy is definitely hard work but we are in love with the dog, and spend lots of time playing, running and wrestling with him. He is almost 8 months old now and weighs in at around 70 pounds, so the wrestling is definitely interesting to watch :) Stuart has also become quite a talented tattoo artist and quite often I come home to find people covered in ink in my living room and the sound of a tattoo gun rattling away! He is definitely the more talented one artistically! We have also fallen more in love with being youth leaders. We work with the most amazing group of kids and remarkable leadership team. Though there are definitely some trying times, the laughter, the hugs :), firecrackers, candy, potato guns, parties, late night texts, early mornings and concerts make it all worth while.
We are so very happy; we are richly blessed in every area of our lives. Even through the dark times, our love for each other and for God has exceeded any trials that come. We pray blessings on all of you this upcoming year; that you will be happy and loved and safe. We miss you! We love you!
“And when the day is dawned and when the race is run, we will bow down before God’s only Son, and we will lift our hands in praise for all you’ve done, and we will worship you, our faithful one”