2010 - the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

So far 2010 has been pretty dramatic for us. Besides the national & worldwide catastrophes (the U.S. economy & health care sagas, the Haiti earthquake, etc.), we've had a lot of unexpected personal drama. We like amusement park roller coasters, people, not emotional ones. Oh well, here's our January so far.

Family
The Good: We loved seeing our family during the holidays and my parents are coming to visit us in Feb! Also most of us are in good health and have stable jobs or retirement set-ups that are providing well for us.

The Bad: Dan's dad had a heart attack last weekend. All the Jesters (except us) live in Williamsburg, VA, so we felt especially helpless since we couldn't even be there for moral support. The good news is that they put a stent in, and he's been doing great since then! We're very thankful! We also just learned that my uncle on my dad's side has leukemia, so we're waiting to find out more about his treatment options.

Work
The Good: Dan's had a really exciting & positive year - probably his best year yet as high school principal.

The Bad: My company kicked off the new year by laying off employees, including 50% of my department. We're definitely down to the bare bones & we can feel it! Also, we're now all required to keep an 8-5 schedule, thus killing my morning workout time, since I was waking up to work out at 6:45 and going into the office at 9. I'm not getting up at 5:45. I have my limits.

General Life
The Good: I had an awesome 32nd birthday! (I'll write a separate blog on that) I used my birthday money to join the YMCA that's across the street from our new corporate office. They have really good classes and it's nice to belong to a gym again. The spinning instructors are punishing me for every cookie I ate during the holidays.

The Bad: I work out during lunchtime, so I have to shower in the gym locker room before going back to work. Eeeeew.

There is no more bad - so that's good. :) It just seems like the past few weeks have been extra emotional, with few breaks in between. But we know that God is using it all for His glory & our good! We're praying that we can truly rest in Him, no matter what the circumstances!