Highs And Lows of 2022: Year End Review
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2022…what a memorable year of highs and lows and many firsts. It was my first year owning my own business; first time getting to travel out of the country; first time cooking through an entire cookbook; first (and praying only!!) time finding out Charlie’s cancer had returned and then walking through months of chemotherapy together; first time becoming an aunt; first time finding out after two years of back and forth that we finally have approvals to move abroad as expats to Germany…what a memorable year 2022 has been.
But mostly in all the highs and lows, this has been a year of God’s faithfulness. While it was not the first time He has been faithful (as He always is!), it was the first time that I had been pushed to total surrender of hopes, dreams, potential realities… And the beauty of it is: He is good. He is faithful. He will come through. He is more worthy to hold and care and tend to each piece than I ever could have been or will be able to. His timing, His will and HE is perfect and so for that and the ways that I have known Him more, I am so thankful for every high and low of 2022. Thank you all for joining in this crazy journey with us; He has used each of you to touch our hearts time and time again.
2022 Highs & Lows
When I think back over all that has happened this year, I am a bit stunned; what adventures we have had! We began the year starting my business, beginning our cooking through Magnolia Table in a year challenge, finding out we would be becoming aunts and uncles, planning our 3 year anniversary trip to St. Martin and thinking that God had closed the door to an expat opportunity with Charlie’s job to Germany. Life was exciting, we were hopeful and prepared to plug into our friends, family and church.
Fast forward a couple of months to the week before our trip to St. Martin (which was amazing! Check out all about the “Friendly Island” here!). Out of the blue, we were told that the expat opportunity was back on the table. We were so excited, but a little guarded from the past rollercoaster experience. After our trip, we felt we should walk through the doors that the Lord seemed to open until they closed. Months followed of stalled paperwork, deadlines were nearing and moving dates seemed a little more unsteady as progress seemed to come to a halt. While fighting the frustration of not knowing the next step, we began to see clearly that the Lord might have other plans. In monitoring doctor appointments (scheduled routinely since Charlie’s first battle with cancer in 2020), Charlie’s bloodwork was found to have concerning numbers. This concern turned to sadness as they continued to come back elevated until it was determined that indeed his cancer had returned and he would need chemo. The first week of chemo was supposed to also bring news of our expat to Germany… but instead we heard crickets. With no sight of resolution abroad and daily health battles at home, we were pushed to total surrender. As many of you know chemo tries the mind, body and soul and certainly is a journey not for the faint of heart. BUT God, in His infinite grace held us tight, drew us close and never let us go. Even when unsteady, His mercy never failed as He led us through the fire and held us close like no other. Family, friends and you all displayed love beyond anything Charlie or I could have imagined and for that we are so grateful.
Months later, in His perfect timing, on the last day of Charlie’s treatment, we got word that our expat paperwork was moving forward. Finally, in the past two weeks, we have signed paperwork and are preparing for life abroad next year! With celebrations of Charlie’s treatment finale, great bloodwork results and expat news, we stand amazed at what the Lord has done!
2023 Forecast
Seeing the rollercoaster that 2022 has been, I can’t even try to predict what 2023 will entail! But, Lord willing, we will be moving to Germany in the spring and starting our next chapter abroad for a couple of years. With our cooking through Magnolia Table cookbook challenge complete and our personal home DIY’s on pause, I hope to add international design, expat tips, travel ideas, apartment transformations and so much more on the blog as we experience life in a new country! If there are topics of travel, design questions, packing tips, Ikea hack transformations, expat life, abroad hospitality, or anything else that you all particularly would like for me to integrate and cover here, please feel free to shoot me an email with suggestions at chloe@porchandpeony.com or leave a comment in the section below. I would love to know your interests and what you all would like to see more of!
Final Thoughts
2022 has been such a memorable year. A year that forever will stand in my mind as one marked by supreme joy, floods of tears and above all, God’s faithfulness. Looking back, I have had the tremendous blessing to work with amazing clients to create their dream spaces, provide beautiful brides with lovely wedding florals, catalog DIYs, transformations, tablescapes and travels here on the blog each week, host Sunday dinners and grow closer to my family and friends through thick and thin. Even regardless of Germany, in these past months, the Lord has given us one another and a greater knowledge of how He is our everything. I know that in months to come, we still will have so many questions about the future and this adventure we call life…what does moving abroad look like? Possibility of children in the future? Continued cancer monitoring? No, certainly our questions are not all answered. But in each of them, I am confident that the Lord will continue to hold us and bring our good and His glory in His perfect timing.
I am not sure what your 2022 has looked like or how you might look back upon it, but 2023 is a new year – full of promise and likely full of highs and lows. Just know sweet friends, God is more than capable to hold you (and me!) in each of them.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
