A New Year, A New Nephew!

 Because of Christmas, New Year's and the expected birth of my nephew, I decided to wait to do an update.

My parents and I traveled to Iowa for Christmas this year to be with my sister Julie and her family. Christmas was a fun time spent with my nieces and nephews and my sister and her husband. We played games, made cookies, watched movies, and just enjoyed each other's company. Julie was expecting baby number seven, and he was having some complications in the womb. The doctors thought he would come before Christmas, but he decided to wait. On January 6, Julie went to an ultrasound appointment, and the baby seemed to be in distress. The plan was, if the baby wasn't born by the 10th, then labor would be induced. With the signs of distress, the doctors decided to induce that night. Joel Jirah was born around 11:15-11:30 weighing 8lbs. 14oz. he came out face up and screaming which was a good sign. Julie was able to hold him for a short time before he was moved to NICU. The doctors are keeping him still due to the heart issues he has. He will require surgery in the near future. Please pray for Julie and Andy and baby Joel.

The New Year was spent indoors due to an ice storm. The weather has remained cold since, and we did get a bit of snow, but the temps have been so cold, that the kids could only play outside for a short time. We had nights of heavy winds and extremely low temps the last couple of days. Hopefully we can get a bit warmed up before the snow melts away.

With the issues my new nephew has, he will probably be in the hospital for awhile even without surgery, so I will remain in Iowa for a few weeks or so to help with the other six kids. Please pray for my parents as they will head home in a few days. Pray especially for my mom as she is still struggling with her own heart issues, and I will not be at home to help her.

Please continue to pray that countries and airlines end their mandates. I heard that England is relaxing a bit, which means I may be able to complete my scheduled trip there if the aairlines relax some of their measures.