Thursday, January 1, 2009

Reflections...2008

With the start of a New Year it seems newspapers and magazines like to give a "year in review" -- looking back on the year remembering the highlights and happenings. I decided that I wanted to do the same for the Valenta's year....
January
  • Young Tim enrolls at the University of Kentucky
  • I have a birthday
  • Lisa (our future daughter-in-law) has her 23rd birthday the same day as mine :)
February
  • Abigail wins the county 4-H speech competition for her age group and gets to go to summer camp for free!
  • Lisa visits from Canada
  • Jacob turns 14

April

  • Lisa comes for a visit from Canada
  • Tim the younger turns 22
  • Tim and Lisa get engaged over Conference weekend
  • I begin teaching the 3rd Sunday in Relief Society
May
  • Jordan turns 18

June

  • Jordan graduates high school
  • Abigail goes to 4-H summer camp
  • Tim and I celebrate 23 years married
July
  • Jacob goes to Scout Camp
  • Jacob goes to EFY in Virginia
  • Jacob goes white water rafting for youth conference

August

  • Abigail turns 11
  • The Brook Family arrives from Canada for the Brook/Valenta wedding
  • Tim and Lisa get married in the Louisville Temple on Friday, August 22nd
  • Tim and Lisa's reception is on Saturday, August 23rd
  • Jordan moves into the dorms at the University of Kentucky on August 24th -- the day after Tim and Lisa's reception
  • Tim and Lisa go to Disney World for the honeymoon
September
  • Andrew turns 21
  • Tim (the elder) has a birthday
  • Relief Society Broadcast - Elder Uchtdorf encourages us to be more creative
  • I begin my blog -- my way of being more creative :)


October
  • We take a trip back to NY over Fall Break from school
  • Annah turns 9
November


  • Richard G. Scott comes to our Stake Conference and I get to meet him
  • Thanksgiving
December
  • We had our first snow day of winter -- school was cancelled
  • Tim is diagnosed with tongue cancer
  • We spend the last day of 2008 in the company of good friends :)

While 2008 ended on a very somber note with Tim's diagnosis, our hopes for 2009 are high.

"I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto to the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (1 Nephi 3:7)

We look to the Lord to prepare the way before us in our trials and depend upon Him because He promised He would be there with us and that He would fight our battles.

"... for I will go before your face, I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you , to bear you up." (D&C 84:88)

"...I will fight your battles." (D&C 105:14)

No matter what happens in 2009, any way you look at it, we are still on the winning team!

4 comments:

Patty said...

Hey Loretta! Happy New Year! and remember, An unexpected life is no less a life!!!! Live it to its fullest! My new year's resolution!

Don and Robin Cooper said...

Here's hoping both our families have a healthy and happy new year! God Bless!

amaree said...

It's been fun finding your blog and catching up on your wonderful family's lives. I hope this new year will bring wonderful memories and lots of laughter and joy, despite the trials that are ahead of you. I was so sad to hear about Bro. Valenta's cancer! In watching my mother-in-law fight cancer the entire time I've known her, I know there are many challenges ahead. But if you and your family are as you were when I lived in Kentucky so long ago, and I can tell that you are from your wonderful blog, I know that you will all be able to find the joy in your trials, and will bless thje lives of those around you as you always have before! You're all in my thoughts and prayers!
~Amaree Kravetz Matthews (www.photokami.com/blog)

Loretta Valenta said...

Thank you for your kind words, Amaree. I recently saw your blog link on Marissa's blog and was seeing your sweet family! One day you will see how weird it is to know someone as a young girl and then see them when they are all grown up with kids of their own! It is like an amazing time warp! I can't possibly be as old as I am and you can't be as old as you are! :)