Dear Family & Friends,
We hope the end of 2020 finds you well. What a year! We have relished in the benefits of a large family and rural living in the midst of stay-at-home orders and been conscious of the loneliness and isolation felt by many we love. We should have predicted that 2020 would be a doozy when our January started with Ruthie getting Salmonella and being hospitalized for three days. It seems appropriate that we chose the word gratitude to focus on for the year.
We are keenly aware that, pandemic or not, children and babies don't keep.
Anne, 13, is now solidly taller than Emily, standing proudly at 5'4” with hopes of another couple of inches growth in the coming years. The pandemic changed her school plans for 7th grade and instead of going to Linville Hill Christian School she has been homeschooled again, taking on all her own education with a little guidance from mom. Her favorite part of the year has been the expansion of our chicken flock. She spends hours with the chickens, training them, building and mending shelters and fences, teaching them tricks, and enjoying their quirky personalities. She has started selling eggs and has almost saved enough money to purchase an incubator. Anne is excited to try hatching eggs in 2021 and is dreaming of adding some rare breeds to our flock.
 |
| Anne, 13 |
Abbey, 11, is also growing up quickly. She also loves animals but is more interested in dogs than chickens. Abbey loves playing with Heidi and is a big help to Emily, especially in the mornings. Abbey continues to be a voracious reader. She has honed her persuasive skills this year and has been impressive with her organization of an argument. Abbey is growing up into a delightful young lady. She is a great help in the kitchen and is gaining confidence to read a recipe and bake unassisted by mom. Her greatest hope for 2021 is to add a dog to our family who isn't old and decrepit like 14.5 year old chihuahua, Petey.
 |
| Abbey, 11 |
Maggie, 10, has been relatively healthy, but had a sleep study which revealed moderate sleep apnea. Most surprising was the fainting spell she had upon waking up from the sleep study. She has fainted a couple times in the past so her doctor said she's just a “fainter” much to the jealousy of her sisters who claim it's not fair they have never fainted. She had her tonsils and adenoids removed and has had improved sleep since then. Maggie had the main care of a piglet this year which grew rapidly into a disgustingly large pig which we took to a butcher in September. It was an enormous responsibility that she never wants to do again. We found that getting a pig to a butcher is much more challenging than you would realize, which created a very memorable, but gruesome story that we will not tell in this letter. It is, however, the best pork we've ever eaten. She is also very good with Heidi and loves to make her laugh. Maggie also loves to read, occasionally to the detriment of her other work, but mom can relate to getting sucked into a good book. It's not uncommon to find her with her three little sisters, playing a game or making up a story. It's really delightful to see her kindness and compassion with them. Magdalena is on board with high hopes for a puppy in 2021.
 |
| Maggie, 10 |
Carrie, 7 (on Dec. 20) continues to bring sweetness and joy to all she meets. More than anything, she wants to be a missionary when she grows up, and especially wants to play piano and sing about Jesus in prisons. She has a tender heart and feels strongly for the hurting of the world. Shockingly, Caroline does not love homework and needs a little motivation to keep her on task. She does love to read, and it's beyond precious to find her curled up with Ruth or Heidi, reading to them. Carrie loves being a big sister and is so good at making Heidi laugh. She and Ruth continue to be the best of friends. What a privilege to grow up and share a room with your BFF.
 |
| Carrie, 7 |
Ruth, 5, has had a challenging year. She started 2020 (Jan) by getting Salmonella and spending three days in the hospital with a blood transfusion and IV fluids. She fell while we were camping (July) and got two staples in her head. She needed another palate surgery and it was determined she should have a blood transfusion prior to the surgery (Sept). Those are just a smidgen of the medical appointments she has had. She has weekly speech therapy and recently picked up an additional speech therapy every two weeks. Through it all, Ruth has proved to be a remarkably happy child. She is so smart, learning to read small words, rhyming, and so quick with math skills. She has a beautifully steady hand and loves to color and draw and come up with creative crafts. Her penmanship puts her older sisters to shame. Ruth brings so much spice to our life. While quite the opposite personality to Caroline, the two of them are practically inseparable. They balance each other out very well, each bringing out in the other what they would otherwise lack. It's amazing how God knows just what we need to develop our character.
 |
| Ruthie, 5 |
Heidi, 3, has grown so much since last year. She is 3 inches taller and 8 pounds heavier. She is starting to say some words and has several signs. She still has the most contagious laugh. Heidi loves to swing, jump, throw and kick things, and run. She loves music, and her current favorite song is “5 Little Ducks”. Horses are her favorite animal and she loves watching our Amish neighbors go by. We've been blessed with amazing therapists in the birth-3 program and were so sad to move on to the next level for children 3-6 years old. But once again, God has placed great therapists in our lives to help us learn about how best to care for Heidi and guide her as she grows up. She now has a speech therapist, occupational therapist, and a special education teacher. Everything is done on Zoom so it is a lot of the therapists guiding Emily to teach Heidi in a variety of new ways. We are grateful to have Heidi as our daughter and cannot imagine our lives without her. She is a very special little girl.
 |
| Heidi, 3 |
Emily's days are full between therapies, medical appointments, and homeschooling. Because she is who she is, she added on a hobby of growing lavender last year. This year she distilled it into oil and made a variety of products (mainly soaps) all featuring her home grown lavender. It has been a fun activity that all the girls and even Trent have gotten involved in. She hopes someday to expand into a farmette. She's already dreaming up new recipes and has plans to expand the amount of lavender she grows. In the midst of the busyness, the hobbies, the hard days, and the fun ones, God has been evident in our lives. We are grateful to have our faith deeply rooted, like a tree planted by streams of water. The pandemic and political climate has not shaken our faith. In fact, we feel more firmly planted than ever. God is good.
Trent continues on with his 15th year at BCF Group in the commercial insurance department. He started working from home in March which was an adjustment. Emily especially liked having him home for lunches and to be available as an extra set of eyes when she had to take younger kids to medical appointments while Anne was babysitting (because of Covid, siblings were no longer allowed at appointments). This year he enjoyed working on our little piece of land, building strawberry boxes, planting a garden, expanding our pasture for our chickens, working with his dad to rehab a shed for the chickens, and more. He also really enjoyed our church's outdoor services over the Summer/Fall. We had 17 outdoor services in a row without a single rain out! What a miracle.
As we look back on 2020 we say: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His love endures forever!
Sending you all the warmest wishes for a happy new year!
Love, The Hess Family
Trent & Emily, Anne, Abbey, Maggie, Carrie, Ruth & Heidi
