Our Favorite Books of 2024
We share our very favorite books in our annual Christmas letter each year. But sometimes it’s hard to limit ourselves to just a few titles. So here are our top picks for the year…
Gretchen Louise
the tradition of an annual family photo & letter
It’s been a tradition in my family for three generations… Grandpa Marvin and Grandma Mary started sending out a annual Christmas card picture the year their first child was born. I’ve heard that Grandma often included handwritten notes in each, until she finally began sending the same photocopied letter to everyone sometime in the 1980’s….
The Hymns My Grandma Loved
Grandma was a woman of many roles and responsibilities—a real-life Proverbs 31 woman. She was a thrifty cook and a meticulous housekeeper. A skilled nurse and industrious businesswoman. An avid photographer and a careful historian. She was a voracious reader and a frequent letter writer. A faithful wife, loving mother, precious grandmother, and doting great-grandmother….
the fields out my kitchen window
I was born in a valley known for its production of peppermint. We named our first dog Minta as we sat on our front porch swing and watched the mint trucks drive by. When I was eight, we moved across a few fields to twenty acres planted in peppermint. My brother and I loved to…
Quality Children’s Book Recommendations You Can Rely On
We sat around the table the other day swapping book titles with cousins we hadn’t seen in years. Our children share a love of many of the same series and authors, but my oldest still filled both sides of a sheet of paper with hastily scribbled titles for them to check out. That conversation got…
Our Favorite Books of 2023
An annual Christmas letter and family photo has been a tradition in my family since I was born, but really it goes back even further than that: my parents started the tradition in 1982 as their version of the annual Christmas card photo that my paternal grandparents began in 1957, the year their first child…
2023
Dear Family and Friends, 2023 has held triumphs and tears, but even in the grief we’ve been held in the grip of God’s grace. In January, we attended the award banquet for the 2022 Veterans of Foreign Wars “Voice of Democracy” audio essay youth scholarship program where Ruth tied for second place in Washington state….
a humble man of God
Papa was a humble man with a hidden sense of humor.
One of his favorite sayings was, “Eat dessert first in case of the rapture.”
Papa was a man of few words, but when he spoke, it was worth listening. He taught us so many memorable lessons—in both word and in deed.
a legacy of love, loyalty, and calm courage
Many who recognize the name of Elbert Hubbard would rightly associate his name with the Roycrofters and the arts and crafts movement. But a few years ago, my husband and I heard two stories about Elbert Hubbard’s writing which we will never forget. Hubbard was a well-known writer and philosopher in his day, many of…
Our Favorite Books of 2022
With a more specific book rating system in place last year, it wasn’t hard to skim my highest rated books and find my top ten from 2022. My children decided to join in the fun (one couldn’t keep it to ten favorites, while others were more selective).
So here we present the favorite books read and listened to in our house in 2022…
The End.
The End.