Joplin Journal Volume 10-12, Issue 2

From the Editor's Desk:

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Can you believe tomorrow is January 1st, 2023?! Where has the year gone? I don't know, but I do know that I have a lot to keep me busy today. Let's see how quickly I can get this journal written. It will be longer than 60 seconds, but hopefully it won't take me too long to write it. Ready? Let's get moving!

Weather Report:

This month has had a wide range of weather. The week of Christmas we had temperatures in the single digits with wind chill of -22º! And we had snow. We actually had a white, or mostly white, Christmas. But we've also had 60s and lots of wind. Today is supposed to be partly sunny and in the 50s.

"Genius Burns":

Ha! Hardly! I've written a grand total of 1,224 words this month! Exciting huh? Yes, I'm being sarcastic. Decembers just aren't good months for writing. But I'm eager to get back to all my stories next year. Wait. That sounds too far away. Next month. Uh, still too far away. Next week? That's better but . . . Day after tomorrow? Yeah, I like the sound of that.

Project Prognosis:

Let's see how my projects are coming this week.

• Work on Blog Posts for 2023 – Blinks I was supposed to be working on blog posts?
• Work on my Name List – The only Christmas story I didn't read and write down all the names was He is Still Emmanuel. That's pretty good. I can't wait to add all the names to one list and see what names get used way too many times.
• Update Website – Oh, be quiet. I'll get to you some day. I think.
• Undecorate the House – That's on my list to finish today. I started yesterday and got the tree down and the village undone.
• Plan for Next Year – Yeah, well, I'm trying.

In the Hoop:

Basketball is on break until next year.

Christmas Concert:

Jimmy, Megan, Krista, James, Drew, Lucas, Kailyn, and Grant all sang in a Christmas concert on the 17th. Only Joel and Kinsley weren't a part of it. It was really neat to watch. (It's going to be on YouTube but it's not up yet.)

Christmas Program:

The day of the Christmas Program was a bit crazy. We had our final dress rehearsal that day after church. It went well even though one of our cast members was sick and couldn't make it and we had to do a little changing of some things. We got cast pictures.

This is the whole cast and crew (except the one who was home sick). The two young men by Sarah were our stage hands and lights guy.

You can watch the full Christmas program that includes the kids bell choir, the children's church group singing with Sarah as their leader, and James playing the piano, and the play right HERE.

Christmas Caroling:

The day after the program is our caroling day to the widows at church. This was the first year that all 10 widows were going to be home and wanted carolers. There were around 36 of us who loaded up and headed out to sing. It took us about 3 1/2 hours to go to every house and sing. But it was so worth it to see the smiles on their faces.

Christmas Eve:

J & Co. came over on Christmas Eve morning. We ate breakfast together and then played a game with the kids while J & M went to the nearby farmer's market for somethings they needed. Then we did presents. Lunch was soups. Then we played another game that we were going to play for Papa's birthday only we didn't get to have a party for him this year. Then it was just hang out and play time. Joel, Krista, and I ended up building legos. Drew joined us. Actually, I just found pieces for people. Kins took a nap on Sarah. Some of the others played Pit. Grant's favorite present was a small handcart (dolly) and he spend most of the day going around the house moving boxes from one room to another and then back again. He's very good at it and knows how to keep from running into people.

I got a shirt from the kids that says:

I love it!

Christmas Day:

It was quiet here. We had church but no Sunday School. I had to be there early for orchestra practice, but it still wasn't that early. Then Sarah and I had ensemble practice. You can listen to the prelude (orchestra) and ensemble HERE.

Babysitting:

We babysat the kids on Tuesday afternoon so J & M could do some after Christmas shopping. Most of the time was spent on the floor in the living room building legos and listening to Jonathan Park. Well, Grant and Kins took naps, and James went through Grammy & Papa's jar of change looking for coins.

Visitors:

Grandpa came down Thursday afternoon. We hung out and worked a puzzle and ate supper. He spent the night and Thursday night here. It was all low key and quiet. He and I took a few walks around the neighborhood. There were some games of Tri-Ominoes and Dominoes. He went home late yesterday morning. It was nice to spend time with him.

The Music Stand:

All music practice is over for now.

KDWC:

Closed until the end of February.

Sewing Room:

Sarah hasn't been sewing quite as much over the Christmas week, but she did get a few things done and shipped out.

Read Another Page:

Nothing new to add here.

Teacher's Lounge:

Closed until further notice.

Book Nook:

I've, uh, read a lot of books this month. Of course many were my own, so I won't share those, but here's my list. Enjoy. The Christmas Hirelings (good), Elizabeth (Not a Christmas story), A Midnight Clear (didn't enjoy), The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (so many memories!), The Christmas Switch (only okay), Some Christmas Camouflage (such a lovely story), The Story of the Other Wise Man (enjoyed), The Complete Christmas Stories (all were enjoyable except the first story), Deadly Christmas Pretense (a little unbelievable), The Christmas Stove (love it!), Silver Bell Secrets (didn't resolve anything), The Nutcracker's Suite (rather fun but not Christmas), Arne and the Christmas Star (another favorite!), A Perfectly Imperfect Christmas (sweet). And that doesn't count the books I've read but haven't gotten reviewed yet. I think I need to work on getting more books read, don't you?

Farewell:

And there you have it. My month, or most of it, in a nutshell. I hope you enjoyed it! Now to go work on undecorating. I'm also teaching Children's church tomorrow and need to get ready for that.