We had a nice family Christmas with new dolls and remote control cars, gifts and phone calls from family far away, lots of cards. The kids' school program was folk songs, some with allusions to the biblical Christmas story. We had a meal and a short nativity play at church. The evening of Christmas Day we drove to Ernie's folks' and we spent a few days with them. Liam helped Grandpa make wooden bowls and he practiced and practiced with the wooden yoyo Grandpa made him. The girls had fun dressing up with neighbor kids.

When we returned, a man in our church who had been struggling with cancer for quite some time, passed away. So at the end of this week will be a funeral. Life is short. Please, God, help me use it well. As Lici writes and writes in her new diary, telling it everything, dear diary this, dear diary that, may I turn over all I do to You.