Merry Christmas from the Brittons 2016

Merry Christmas! How are you? I hope you're looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus and thoroughly enjoying the Advent season.

Let me get you caught up with the Brittons.

We did NOT move this year! Yay! We're still living in Bloomsburg, PA. While summer is mild and fall is gorgeous, we're not excited about the coming winter months. This year promises to be cold and snowy. But, since Allen and Davis have joined the ski club at school, they're willing to deal with it.

We're already praying for safety during those Wednesday afternoon ski trips because we've used up our injury quota for years to come. Last year during football season, Allen re-injured his shoulder but continued playing and even played a season of basketball. Near the end of basketball, he asked if we could get his shoulder checked out. Turns out he had a “slap tear” or torn labrum. His doctor recommended physical therapy instead of surgery which would have included 6 months of rehab. So, spring found him at our physical therapist once a week at 6am. He worked hard, rarely has pain in that shoulder now and played a great season of football this fall.

In the 5^th game of our football season this school year, Davis severely sprained his ankle. He couldn't walk off the field and the team trainer quickly called an orthopedic doctor, who's also a football player's dad, from the stands to the sideline. Davis was out for the next 3 games, became good friends with the team trainer because of all the hours spent icing, taping and rehabbing that ankle and now does exercises every day during his chemistry class in order to strengthen his joint.

Both boys attended Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week this summer where they, along with about 500 other high school students, tried their hand at running a company. They learned about marketing and stocks and the costs of running a business. They both enjoyed it but Davis' interest in business as a profession seemed to be particularly peaked.

Both boys started on the varsity football team, Allen at free safety and holder, Davis at defensive end and left tackle. They're considering wallpapering their rooms with all the college letters they're receiving and they're enjoying the newfound freedom of driving themselves around town in their Nissan Altima, or the Vroom Vroom Car as Bobby likes to call it. Though neither is quite sure where they want to attend college or what they want to major in, they're learning to face the future and all it's uncertainties quite bravely. They are just juniors, after all, they have some time, and we're quite proud of them.

The "Vroom Vroom" Car

Allen is taking another AP history class and planning a trip to Germany, Austria and Switzerland (and Lichtenstein, says Allen, everyone forgets Lichtenstein!) in the spring with the German Club. He worked at the Bloomsburg Fair in September. Friends of ours from church hired him for their apple dumpling stand which their family has run for years. Allen worked about 60 hours hauling drums of ice cream, taking customer orders and scooping Penn State ice cream (that's a real thing for those of you non-Pennsylvanians!).

Davis also planned on working at the fair, but since his ankle injury was the Friday before he was to begin, he had to sit this year out. This summer Davis played a lot of golf with a patient friend who's on the golf team at school. He also attended a mission trip with our church youth group to Ocean City, MD. There, they helped serve meals to international students, shared the Gospel on the boardwalk and participated in Bible studies with a local church. He recently got his braces off which makes him happy and Allen irritated in equal measure. Allen gets his braces off on February 2^nd. We're all counting the days.

Davis' Braces

At Thanksgiving, Bobby fulfilled a bucket-list dream of his by taking us to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. We spent a long weekend wandering around the Hall of Fame, reading inspirational stories, looking at team memorabilia, listening to famous clips of baseball games and watching video of incredible plays. We stayed in a cozy and comfy cabin just outside town, enjoyed the cute shops in Cooperstown and the beauty of Lake Otsego.

Bobby also really stepped out of his comfort zone when he reluctantly agreed to be the president of our high school football booster club. He did a great job and has been asked by more than one person to take on the job for another year. I'm not sure he'll do it again, but I'm so proud of him for all his hard work. I didn't realize the booster club presidency came with first lady responsibilities, but alas, it did. I ended up selling ads for the weekly football program and helping to organize senior night. It was fun to be involved, help out and get to know people better.

This year I hosted a weekly Bible study at our house and attended Moms in Prayer meetings to pray for Central Columbia schools. I was lucky to be able to make a trip back to Alabama in March to celebrate my Grandmama's 95^th birthday! And, I grudgingly had my second knee replacement in 2 years. This time my right knee needed to be replaced and the same doctor who did my left one in May 2015 did this one, too. I found this surgery harder to recover from, but am happy to report that all's well now. As my doctors continue to joke, luckily, I only have 2 knees (har har), so hopefully I'm done with major surgeries for a long while.

As you can tell from this blog, I continue to write fairly regularly and appreciate the outlet it offers. Thanks for indulging us and reading this letter here instead of receiving it in the mail. Doing our part to save the rainforests, I suppose.

Allen in the foreground, Davis with the Auburn hat

May you find a chance this Christmas to slow down, reflect on your blessings and plan for the coming year. May you feel the presence of the Almighty God down to your bones, may you swim in His love and revel in His grace. May your time in the glow of the Lord Jesus change you, grow you, and set you free to live the life you've so freely been given.

Gather 'round ye children, come

Listen to the old, old story

Of the pow'r of Death undone

By an infant born of glory

Son of God, Son of Man

Gather 'round remember now

How creation held its breath

How it let out a sigh

And it filled up the sky with the angels

Son of God, Son of Man

So, sing out with joy

for the brave little boy

Who was God,

but He made Himself nothing

He gave up His pride

and He came here to die like a man.

“Gather 'Round, Ye Children Come”

• from Andrew Peterson Presents Behold the Lamb of God

Merriest of Christmases to you, dear friend!

Amy, Bobby, Allen and Davis Britton