Oak Haven Happenings |
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Merry Christmas! As I look back over the past year, I realize how much of a gift it has been. As the kids get older, the time that we get to share together gets more and more valuable.
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Jennifer, Jim, Michelle, Julie,
Brian, & Kristin
in Rocky
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On the road again… Since adapting to our make-your-own schedule, self-employed lifestyle we have dreamed of making “the big trip out west.” We realized that this might be the last year that we would all be available for the 3½ weeks it would take. Our
first official stop, after a brief visit to the Garden of the Gods in
grated the tires on the camper down to the
belts on what passes for paved roads out there.
(Did you know that angels are now dressing as National Park Service
Rangers?) We detoured from the flow of
the Heading north we “did”
The
trip home included a too-short stop at my brother Steve and his family’s home
in
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Michelle, Julie, & Kristin in |
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Heather While we were out west we received the news that our dog Heather, an important part of our family for twelve years, had died. It’s hard to express what this font of unconditional love meant to our family. The enthusiasm and joy that she expressed whenever she was with us made us feel like kings and queens. She will be missed, but her memory has added to the richness of our lives.
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The “Kids” Kristin (20) has been pursuing her “homesteading”
interests along with working towards her degree in Early Childhood education. She has installed a beehive on our property
with the help of her cousin Hope. She
also volunteered to put in a period herb garden next to a local cabin managed
by the Historical Society at Jennifer (19) has been taking “her” dogs to classes as she works towards her degree in Social Services. The interaction has been a great learning experience as she takes on more responsibility training service dogs with Four Paws for Ability. It is so rewarding to hear from the families that are helped by these animals. We recently had a report on Sienna, a beautiful golden retriever, who was with her partner Aliya in the hospital. A woman down the hall asked if Sienna could come visit her little boy who has a brain tumor and is blind. When Sienna entered the room she jumped up on the bed with the boy and snuggled up to him. He felt her fur and said “doggy”, the first words that he has spoken in two years! You can read more about these dogs that are so much a part of our life on our website at
http://Varicks.OakHavenPhotography.com. Brian (16) got his temps this year and spends his time trying to convince us that waiting until he is 18 to get his license is too inconvenient for the family. It’s nice that he’s so concerned about our wellbeing. He is playing basketball on a good team this year, which has been a great experience. He is thrilled that winter has come and looks forward to his weekly trips to the local ski slopes to do some rails at the park with his cousin Micah. Michelle (15) has been refining her artistic flair this year. She and I had the opportunity to take a pottery class last winter which was great for the time together as much as it was for the learning experience. She has become so skilled at creating “Femo” people that
Julie seriously thinks we should bring them in to show the people at the |
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Brian bringing the ball down for the Landmark Eagles. |
Michelle with |
Kristin examining her bees |
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Jim & Julie kayaking on the Snake River in the Tetons |
Jim & Julie We have been doing a better job this year of guarding our time together. We have made it a priority to go on a date each month on our anniversary. It’s wonderful to be married to your best friend. This has been a particularly good year for me photographically. Not so much from the stand point of profitability, but because we have broken through some creative barriers that had built up from focusing too much on profitability. The wonder of Digital is that I can try all of the experimenting that I want, and not have to worry about “getting it perfect” every time. Julie has been very involved in facilitating the kids in their goals along with homeschooling Brian & Michelle, but has still found time to help me with the photography business and investments. For a break from her busy schedule she enjoys sitting on the front porch playing her tin whistle (when the weather’s nice). Now that the cold has set in, she plays her hammered dulcimer most evenings before going to bed.
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Family As a family, we have continued to be involved in 4H as leaders of the Heritage Builders Club. This year we started an outreach program to the local retirement community. We go the last Wednesday of the month with other club members to share with the residents. Kristin has shared her bees and herbs, and Michelle led an art craft with pumpkins. Our goal has been to develop a long term relationship with these people and we look forward to the mutual sharing that goes on every time we get together. We also took part in the River Sweep again this year, cleaning up the East Fork of the Little Miami River. Along with being good stewards of our natural resources, we have started learning how to be better stewards of our financial resources by starting an investment club with our family along with Julie’s parents, and her sister Melanie’s family. We’re on our way to our first million. (Well, at least we’re in the black!)
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In Conclusion As we look towards the new year we are hoping to apply some
of what we have been learning during our morning devotion, which includes reading
Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life.
We recognize that all of us have a unique SHAPE (Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, and Experience)
which God
intends us to use for His service. It’s
exciting to know that service does not necessarily mean “forced labor”, but is
more likely to mean doing what we already know and are passionate about. We hope that you will take this holiday
season to draw close enough to God so that you can hear His “still small voice”
speak into your life. Jim, Julie,
Kristin, Jennifer, Brian, & Michelle Varick
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