Greetings and Happy New Year!

I don’t know about you all, but I am ready to take on 2019! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and holiday season...now back to the grind! We have had so much going on, and sometimes it’s hard to get back to it. The end of 2018 has been challenging for my family. If we are Facebook friends, you have probably seen my posts about my friend’s 13 year old son and my kids’ good friend. He got very sick at the end of November/beginning of December and still remains in the hospital. He acquired a bad infection that spread throughout his body, was nearly septic, and on a ventilator for 14 days. He was recently moved to a regular floor after being in PICU for 22 days. It has been a whirlwind of emotions for all of us and your prayers were heard, so thank you so much for that! He is on the way to recovery, but has a long road ahead. We have also been anticipating the end for my husband’s uncle that has Stage 4 lung cancer. We have friends fighting illnesses and suffering with the loss of loved ones. It has not been the most joyful month for us, but nothing like watching your friend nearly lose her son multiple times or sick family or friends that are going through so much, to make you STOP and remember what’s really important. Not gifts or things, but the people that you love and the ones that love you. With the New Year come new opportunities, new challenges, new blessings, and maybe even some new struggles. I hope you find new strength to get through all that the coming year has to throw at you. One thing I have learned recently is to give myself GRACE. It’s so easy to get caught up in the everyday hustle and bustle of life...kids to teach, running kids to practice, errands to run, catching up on things that you put aside for a bit, and all the other stuff in between. I have learned that it’s ok if I don’t get it all done. After all, I am not Super Woman and frankly, it’s exhausting to try and make it all happen. I have decided to work on myself for a while. My family needs the happy me, the strong me, the confident me... and I am going into 2019 with A BETTER ME! Giving it all to The Good Lord has been really hard for me, but it has also given me a new sense of Peace. I am learning to slow down and not let precious moments pass me by. I hope you will allow yourself to slow down and savor those moments. I also hope this New Year will bring you and your family many blessings, a renewed spirit, and determination to finish off this next half of the school year with a Bang! Happy New Year!

Dana Engdahl 

SAVE THE DATE: 

Box Tops deadline: Friday, February 1

Mid-Year Fellowship: Monday, February 4
First Baptist Church of Lexington

Standardized Testing: April 4–5