Friday, December 30, 2022

Merry Christmas from the McVal Clan


Christmas 2022

Dear family and friends,
This has been an interesting year for the McVals. We got past all the firsts without Robb and now we're working on new memories as much as we can. God still holds us in His hands and as we enter this Christmas season of the birth of our Savior, all the decor and activities are bittersweet but more meaningful. Robb's bagpipe hat and a gold colored crown of thorns sit on top of our Christmas tree. We have a new tradition of stuffing Robb's stocking with memories on paper for us to read whenever we get to his name opening presents.

As a family, we all stayed at a cabin this summer in Northeast Iowa and enjoyed quality time together. We all went kayaking and only two of us got through the entire 5 miles on the river without capsizing, one was Leon. The picture is all of us at Eagle Rock overlooking the Mississippi River. Robb and I took the kids to this very spot 24 years ago on vacation.

And like we did last year, we drew names for writing about each other.

Val (written by Matthew) While this past year and a half without Robb has been tough for all of us, especially for Val, we are comforted in the knowledge that he is with our Savior and we will be reunited. There was still plenty to be thankful for in Val's 2022. She continues to work from home for XXXXXXXXXX. She loves the flexibility (and commute) it gives. Despite her lack of commute, there have been enough car troubles that the family mechanic really should dedicate any new garages to Val for her patronage. She is always busy, whether it's sewing up a storm, canning things both conventional (beans) and unorthodox (cappuccino - Maddy's favorite) or organizing her local widow support group. Val is very popular; we're glad we live close enough that her biggest fans (our pups) can see her often.

Ryan (written by Maddy) Throughout the past year, Ryan has been introducing me to the world of gaming. Ryan organized family Death Stranding nights where we’ve been playing through the game together. With unending amounts of patience, he also helped me defeat one boss in Dark Souls. He’s continued to work on his pacifist tutorials of Dark Souls 3. This is an especially tricky feat as he must not only play through the game successfully while not killing anything, he must also record it, edit the clips, and provide narrations. He has released two episodes on his youtube channel, DaBeeezKneeez, and is currently working on the third. The episodes are both informative and entertaining; I highly recommend subscribing! You can easily view his Youtube channel with this QR code.

Ryan has spent his free time painting mini figurines with Jen and Leon, reading the first six Dune books, and watching the 1984 Dune movie over 200 times. Three years ago while playing Doom online, Ryan became good friends with a man named Gary. They would often play online together, talk, and Ryan even streamed his graduation service from carpentry school. While on the way back from Jen’s sister’s wedding in August, Ryan and Jen were able to surprise Gary in Indiana. Ryan even helped him defeat a boss in Elden Ring.

Jen (written by Ryan) Hello, This is Ryan and I get to write about Jen this year. Jen is a very sweet lady. When she’s not watching one of her favorite shows, like Ugly Betty or Community, for the 100th time, she’s taking care of babies at the daycare, playing Sims 4 or other games with me, or just straight up relaxing. Jen patiently listens to my rants about sci fi and fantasy topics. My goal ultimately for her is to learn the lore of Dune, Doom and Dark souls through my random rants to her about my day.
Jen and I attended her sister Jessica’s wedding in Michigan this year. We had a great time and even got to visit my online gaming friend Gary for the first time on our way back. Roadtrips are filled with Taylor Swift, Lofi hip hop, death metal and nostalgic Pop punk.

Jen and I have been together for close to a decade now. I’m lucky to have met someone whose birthday is only 2 days off from mine. I’m happy that I get to spend my life with such a wonderful person.

Leon (written by Jen) Leon has been a very busy kid this past year. He has a lot of really cool hobbies, including drawing new characters for a video game he wants to create, drawing his cat, Kevin, and anything else he can think of, painting miniature figurines with his dad and I, reading up about mushrooms, watching fun TV shows with his grandma (Willow, Wednesday, Dr. Who) and playing video games; his favorite games right now being Hollow Knight, Dead by Daylight, Resident Evil or whatever games his dad is into. He is still enjoying online schooling and is currently a Fifth Grader! They grow up so fast, don't they? Like any other kid, he somewhat enjoys it, but he loves the freedom of being able to take a mental break from school in the middle of the day or whenever he wants! It is also nice because he is able to spend a week with us and a week with his mom. He is growing to be a really cool kid with a great sense of humor, awesome interests and we are so proud of him for that!
🙂


Maddy (written by Val) Without giving away WHY they moved to XXXXXXX, I'll just say that they did. Whoever is writing about Matthew can tell you why. Maddy started a new job this past spring with XXXXXXX and is able to work from home. She loves it! She and Matthew are settling into their new house and enjoy exploring their new city in their free time. Maddy spends a lot of time with "the girls", their rescue pups, Daisy and Zola, and lately has been throwing them birthday parties. I am always looking for an opportunity to go see them, so I try to make every one of those parties. There are even formal invitations! Both girls are 3 years old now. Maddy is enjoying new hobbies like embroidering and has gotten back into knitting. She also has a personal goal of reading 52 books this year and at last count this week, still has two to go. Even though they're a bit further away now, I still get to see them at least once a week.

Matthew (written by Leon) I love Matthew! We play Pokémon Go together! It’s such a great experience to have an uncle that loves Pokémon even more than I do. When we’re not playing Pokémon or watching movies together, we play with the dogs. Maddy and Matthew moved to Mason City this year because Matthew got a job in XXXXXXX. I get to see them a lot still but miss them being closer.

Meri (written by Ryan Hadaway) Starting off the year, Meredith was feeling twenty-two. When asked about it in December she replied, "I'm still feeling 22." A very standard answer, but we all know she is really feeling 22 and 11 months. Though the loss of her father has been difficult, she has pushed forward into an eventful year. Meredith became a pet grandma to six beautiful kittens! After achieving her title of Crazy Cat Lady, she was able to successfully rehome them to families in need, bringing order back into her home. Not wanting to sit idle, Meri and I went to visit the Omaha zoo, enjoyed "The Sound of Music" put on by Harlan Community Theater, saw "Hadestown" in Des Moines and vacationed with her family in Harper's Ferry. We enjoyed the Effigy Mounds and rode the rapids of the Yellow River. She has also picked up photography and has been enjoying that, even doing a maternity shoot for a friend to help build her portfolio. Meredith and I will be heading into the New Year with high spirits, looking forward to the year to come!

Ryan H. (written by Meri) Ryan H. started a new job at XXXXXXX in March. He enjoys being able to work with one of his close friends. He turns 26 on the first of January. Ryan continues our relationship and is extremely helpful with the renovations on my house. He carries this helpfulness over to his family as well, always willing to help his parents with the farm or his sister with her dogs. I admire his dedication to the people he cares about. In his spare time he likes to raise his stats in Old School RuneScape and enjoys playing Pokémon occasionally with Matthew. I have also been introducing him to many movies and shows my parents brought me up with. A few of these classics include The Wedding Singer, Waterboy, and Tucker and Dale VS Evil. We also enjoy watching One Punch Man, Chainsawman, Disenchantment, and Wednesday.

Grandma Maggie (written by Meri) Grandma Margaret and Teddi still reside at XXXXXX in XXXXXXX. Teddi has grown wary of me since it seems like almost every time I’m there, it’s time for his haircut. He is very persuaded by treats though, so I’ll continue to try and gain his trust back. Margaret is extremely active in bingo. She wins often but unfortunately (for her) most of the prizes are chocolate. I personally love going to visit her after her bingo wins! Margaret likes spending her time reading mystery novels, watching Hallmark movies, and entertaining me on our weekly visits. I value our time together so much and she loves to introduce me to all of her friends.

We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas season and Happy New Year!

Love Val

3 comments:

SAM said...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Val and family.

Rachel said...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Practical Parsimony said...

I thought I commented on this post. Belated Merry CChristmal.

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