Myles' Baptism

We flew out to Iowa again in January for Myles' baptism. Russ preached and administered baptism which was truly a sweet blessing. While in Iowa we took in Dordt's indoor track meet and watched Lydia and Seth run. Myles even came out to cheer them on!

Breakfast at the bakery before the track meet.

Chillin' with grandma

Christmas

 

As I prepared this post, I realized I had not taken many pictures while the kids were home over the holidays. Evidently, I was just living in the moment! Caleb and Nicolas were in Iowa for the holidays, celebrating with their wives' families. We missed them so much, but we are thankful they have wonderful in-laws with whom to celebrate the season.

Lydia was so excited just to "chill" and do word searches 😂

Visiting Anna at work with treats.

The annual Christmas Lego kit

Christmas Dinner

Anna prepared about 15 minutes of organ music for the Christmas walk in downtown Boise. She played at St. Michaels again this year.

Riley visited Lydia from Florida for a mutual friend's wedding in Boise on December 28. We decided to use our raclette for the second time for something fun and different.

We wanted to ice skate in Caldwell, but since the rink reservations were full, we walked around and enjoyed the lights instead.

We fixed LOTS of puzzles and played lots of games over the holiday. Anna's work gave their employees the week off between Christmas and New Year's and she spent most of it with us.

Family paint night--Mom, Seth, Dad, and Lydia. Seth didn't like his big tree so he wiped it off just before I took this picture.

New Year Ollie Bollen. This is the first time I tried making it and it turned out so well!

Lydia loves her new silk hair bonnet--no more frizzy hair in the morning.😊

Myles' first Christmas.

Carol Herman

December began with another trip to Iowa for the funeral of Russ' stepmother, Carol. She passed away on the Friday following Thanksgiving, and we are grateful that family was present with Wayne during that time. Anna and Joshua traveled to attend the funeral, although Caleb couldn't join due to his medical school commitments. We appreciated the opportunity to spend time with extended family and also with Nicolas, Josie, Myles, Lydia and Seth.

A picture of Carol with a few of the grandkids summer of 2018

Visitation night at the funeral home.

Saturday's funeral was quite windy. Nicolas was a pallbearer with other grandsons.

Carol Jean (Kidney) Herman, age 101, of rural Glidden, IA, passed away peacefully at her home on Friday, November 29, 2024 with her husband, Wayne at her side.

Carol was born on September 5, 1923 on her family’s farm northeast of Glidden.  She was the daughter of Mason and Theresa (Runkle) Walker.  She grew up on the farm and graduated from Glidden High School in 1940 as Valedictorian of her class at age 16.  She was an excellent piano player and was invited to travel and play with Parkinson’s National Music Ensembles for 2 years following high school.  She was married to Lowell Kidney on March 11, 1942 in Grant City, MO.  The couple made their home on a farm south of Glidden.  Carol worked as a bookkeeper for McLaughlin Farms for many years. Carol and Lowell had four children: Guy, Oren, Lois, and Vey.  Sadly, in 1970, Lowell passed away of a heart attack.  Carol then began her career as a bookkeeper for McLaughlin Farms for fifteen years.

Carol donated 2 acres of farmland in the late 1970’s for the building site of Pleasant Ridge Community Church.  While attending this church, Carol met the song leader Wayne Herman, a widower with five children.  The Lord supplied Wayne and Carol with another partner after the unexpected deaths of their spouses.  They were married on February 28, 1986.  Wayne and Carol have resided in their home south of Glidden until her death.  Carol had a love of Siamese Cats, she enjoyed raising African violets, and always had a large garden.

Carol is survived by her husband Wayne Herman of Glidden; a daughter Lois Kail (David) of Concord, CA; two sons: Guy Kidney (Joy) of West Des Moines and Vey Kidney (Pam) of Greenwood, IN.  Carol is also survived by Wayne’s children: Philip Herman (Pam) of Des Moines, Keith Herman (Beth) of Reliance, SD, Nathan Herman (Tisha) of Reliance, SD, Renee Olsen (Andy) of DeKalb, IL, and Russell Herman (Laura) of Boise, ID. Between Wayne and Carol they have twenty-nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.  Carol also has several nieces, nephews, and other extended family members. Carol was preceded in death by her parents Mason and Theresa Walker; two sisters: Thelma and Verda; three brothers: Lowell, Bert, and George; her husband Lowell Kidney in 1970; and a son Oren Kidney in 1971.

After the funeral, we gathered with other family members to reminisce and reconnect with those we had not seen for several years.

Great-Grandpa Wayne holding Myles for the first time. Wayne pointed out that Myles is the first great-grandson who can carry on the Herman name.

Four generations

Wayne with his siblings

While in Iowa, we heard Josie sing at the Christmas showcase in the mall in Sioux Center and also caught Thursday night worship at Dordt, when Seth was playing the keyboard.

Myles Antoni Herman and Other Fall Fun

 After we returned from Greece and Turkey, we hit the ground running as the annual Reformation Boise Conference was the following week. Dr. Geoff Thomas and Dr. JV Fesko gave five messages on the Holy Spirit. The bookstore was again a popular draw, selling about $14,000 of solid Reformed literature. We purchased inexpensive tickets to fly Seth and Lydia home for the conference; Seth played the piano for the worship sessions. 

So fun to have them home for a quick weekend in September.

Question and answer session.

Russ again attended the Dordt Board of Trustees meetings in October during Defender Days, and this year, I joined him not only to see Seth, Lydia, Nicolas, and Josie but also to meet our new grandson, Myles Antoni, who was born on October 20. 

Meeting Uncle Seth for the first time...

...and Aunt Lydia

Grandma Laura

Grandpa Russ

Great-Grandma Bleeker

Great-Grandpa Bleeker

One month

Wrapped cozy in the blanket Grandma made for him.

Two months!

While in Iowa we fit in a substate volleyball game (niece Romee) and a trip to Glidden to see Russ' parents. Carol was still recovering from pneumonia in the nursing home while arrangements were being made for her to return home with hospice care. Russ and I were able to assist around the house and yard--Russ picking apples and I did some cleaning.

Defender Days on Dordt's campus

Peeling apples to place in the dryer.

We don't have cardinals in Idaho, so seeing the brilliant red in the landscape is always stunning.

Cora hosted the sisters and their husbands, as well as Mom and Dad, for breakfast one morning while we were out visiting.

Seth voted for the first time!

Anna made a cute car for the GEMS and Cadet's pinewood derby car races. Russ found one of Nicolas' old cars, cleaned it up, raced it, and won first place in the open division.

The lamp actually lights up!

We contemplated traveling to Denver for Thanksgiving, but the expense and timing just did not work out for Russ and me. So, we did the next best thing and purchased inexpensive tickets for Seth and Lydia to join Caleb and Mikaela in Denver for the holiday. We loved that they had such a great time together and relished every photo they sent. Nicolas and Anna both spent the holiday with their in-laws. Russ and I helped host a Thanksgiving dinner at church for anyone who wanted to join us. We had about 20 people who spent the afternoon with us fixing puzzles, visiting, and eating lots of great food!