Reflections of 2009

The beginning of a new year often brings reflections on the previous year and the events that shaped that year.

For us, 2009 is a year never to be forgotten. From start to finish is was like no other.... From January to December it was like coming full circle ~ from sickness to wellness; from the depths of despair to hopeful, thankful hearts; from darkness into light. What a year it was....

January

~ Still reeling from a cancer diagnosis in mid-December, in early January Tim had surgery to remove lymph nodes, his external jugular vein and the muscle that runs down the side of his neck on the left side.

~Wonderful ward members gave us gift cards for our Restaurant Bucket List

~Two weeks after Tim's surgery was the start of his 35 radiation treatments and several chemotherapy rounds.

~47 found me (even though I was hiding out) and nature gave me a wonderful snow and ice storm as a present!

February

~Tim goes through the month having radiation 5 days a week and gets worse with each treatment

~Tim gets his feeding tube put in because the radiation has made it impossible for him to eat anymore.

~Jacob lives to see 15 :)

March

~Two weeks into March Tim finishes radiation

~Two days later he is hospitalized

~My sister, Cretta, came from New York and stayed with us for a week. Her visit was timed perfectly that she was here during the time that Tim was in the hospital.

April

~Young Tim and Lisa come to visit for a week and we celebrate his dad getting better and Young Tim having birthday #23

~In mid-April Tim begins to feel well enough to begin working half days!

May

~May 7th Tim worked his first full day!

~ I attend Time Out For Women in Cincinnati, Ohio

~Tim is a guest writer on my blog

~I spoke at a Young Singles fireside

~Abigail is in her middle school play, Aladdin

~Jordan turns 19 and submits his mission papers

June

~Abigail and Annah attend 4-H camp for a week

~Tim and I celebrated our 24th anniversary by going to Riverbend to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir perform. We received tickets in the mail and to this day we do not know who it was that sent them to us! We were shocked, amazed and grateful.

~Our new puppy is born

~Abigail attended her first Girl's Camp and had a fantastic time!

July

~Jacob and Abigail are both able to go on the Youth Conference trip to Palmyra, New York -- what an experience!

~Tim has a procedure called cardiac ablation and stays over night in the hospital

~Jacob attends EFY in Bowling Green, Kentucky

~Jordan receives his mission call to the Belo Horizonte, Brazil Mission and leaves October 20

August

~Abigail turns 12

~We bring our puppy, Ella, home :)

~I became a clock watcher again as another school year began

September

~Andrew celebrates birthday #22

~Tim celebrates birthday #52

~Young Tim and Lisa move from Provo, Utah to Tempe, Arizona

~My blog celebrated it's one year anniversary

~Tim's feeding tube comes out! He's free!

~We make a trip to New York to help out with my parents

~Tim takes Andrew, Jordan and Jacob rock climbing at Torrent Falls

October

~We take a trip to Minnesota to see Tim's family. That was the first time that his family has seen him since his cancer diagnosis

~Marissa Noe takes our family pictures at Shaker Village

~Jordan leaves for Provo MTC on October 21

~Annah turns 10

November

~We make another trip to to New York to take care of more things for my parents

~Thanksgiving finds us *very* thankful that Tim is okay in spite of choking and placing a call to 9-1-1 (that was able to be cancelled!)

December

~Tim has a CT scan and it shows no sign of active cancer -- what a wonderful blessing!

~Abigail is in her middle school play Beauty and the Beast where she played a villager and a vase!

~Abigail plays the flute in her band concert

~Annah is in her 4th grade play, The Elf Impersonator

~Jordan is granted a hard to come by visa and leaves snowy Utah for his first summer in Brazil!

~Christmas time brings us thankful hearts with reminders that the most important things in life are not things.

Welcome 2010....come show us what you have in store!