Wow! 2020 was.....different! I don't think any of use expected what this year brought. We at the Lindsey/Ryckman house have been happy, healthy, busy and more busy!  Here is a recap....

Zack turned 22 in May of this year.  He lives with 2 other guys in a house in West Fargo.  He is very independent and is  good at figuring out whatever life throws his way.  Sometimes adulthood is tough, but I am proud of him for the decisions he makes.  He has his best buddy, Brutus, his adopted dog by his side at all times (except work...obviously).  They make a great team! Brutus is getting grey around his snout.  Since he adopted him, we aren't sure how old he is.  Zack continues to cook at Doolittle's.  He works as a kitchen supervisor for some of his shifts and works the evenings.  He really enjoys it and talks about staying with the company for awhile.  Hopefully Doolittle's will be able to make it through Covid closings.  He was out of work for about a month when they had to shut down, but they were up and running normal hours this past Summer.  They did have to cut back down to 25% capacity recently but he is, for the most part, maintaining his FT status.

Gage turned 19 in October.  He graduated in May and seems to be very relieved!  Covid defiantly made for a different grad ceremony....it was basically a "drive thru" type thing.  But he didn't seem to mind.  He got a signed diploma and that was really all he needed.  We had a grad party for him in August after Covid settled down a little.  It was a great day with lots of good food and a good turnout.  Travis had fun putting it all together and he really did a great job complete with a slideshow of pictures!  Gage is still living with us for the time being.  His girlfriend is a senior and in the process of deciding where to go for college which may determine where and when Gage leaves.  We don't see much of him.....he works evenings at Little Caesar's and than usually hangs out with his friends after his shifts.  He is a night owl so he pretty much sleeps until it's time to go to work and than the process starts over :)  

Zarrett is a Senior, busy navigating his last year of HS and his future.   He turned 18 in November but missed the presidential voting by 1 day (he was bummed)!  He is planning to go into either welding or diesel mechanics.  He was suppose to do an internship at a local welding company for his last semester but thanks to Covid, it got cancelled.  He was hoping that actually being in a working environment would help him make the final decision which way to go.  He had his 3rd (YES....you read that right!!!) knee (meniscus) surgery in October.  He apparently inherited his Dad's bad knee's and playing Goalie in hockey for 10+ years didn't help either!  Unfortunatly that means no hockey his Senior year.  I think I am more bummed than him.....I miss the games and that feeling I got in the pit of my stomach when he was playing.  Oh well!  He also works at Little Caesar's.  You can imagine how much pizza we have in our fridge at all times!  Both Gage and Zarrett enjoy creating different kinds of pizza's.  So far the favorites are The Big Mac, Ruben and Peanut Butter Pepperoni.  You will probably notice that none of these have made it to your local Little Caesar's menu yet....haha....maybe someday!  Zarrett has the biggest news of our family for the year 2020 and that is.....HE IS ENGAGED!!! Yep....I am finally gonna have a daughter!  Zarrett proposed to his HS sweetheart in October!  Her name is Liz and she is an absolute sweetheart!  They are planning a June 26th (2021) wedding in Kindred and will make their home in this area, depending on which career path Zarrett chooses.  More info to come on wedding details....

Zaden is 15 and a sophomore.  He is doing really good in school and has really buckled down and made school a priority.  He is a big "gamer" (Yay! *sarcasm).  But actually with Covid, it has been a good way for him to stay connected with his friends.  They did go all online back in March and finished out the school year that way.  Both of the boys did do good though and Kindred HS really did a good job of keeping classes the same....they were still required to log into the same classes they would have been at in person.  Just a strange way to adapt especially so spur-of-the-moment the way it happened.  We all had to adjust to life differently.  Zaden just got a job at....you guessed it...Little Caesar's!  He was working at Culvers when Covid hit so when they closed, he was out of a job.  When Culvers opened back up, they only took back their employee's that could work the most hours.  Since Zaden was so young, he couldn't work past 7 pm due to state rules.  So he had to find something else.  I guess you could say he had an "in" at Little Caesar's….lol!  He is now a permitted driver (watch out!).  Being the youngest of 4, he has always traveled in the back seat and never really paid much attention to where we were going.  So we are working on navigating as well as learning the ropes of driving.  He doesn't really ask to drive often, probably because he is so used to being chauffeured! 

Travis turned 48 in September…..HAHA!  I figured since that is how I started the boys' update, I had better keep that going :)  His routine basically remains the same.  He is on his 13th year at Bellerud Transport.  Covid didn't really effect the trucking business much.  That's one good thing about his job....there will always be the need to transport.  In the Spring, he bought a fishing boat!  Nothing fancy but it works....so he did a lot of fishing at the lake this Summer.  He could sit out on the lake all day every day even if the fish don't bite....it's his happy place!  He continues to be my rock!  He isn't afraid to do housework and often cooks meals when I can't.  For better or for worse certainly became our relatity 2 years ago and I am the luckiest girl in the world to have Travis by my side!  

Well it's my turn but I'm not sharing my age....although it's probably not hard to figure out :)  I have improved greatly this past year!  I started off the year still relying on the wheelchair full time, still in a lot of pain and very weak and unstable.  I would try to use a walker in therapy and some at home.  But it isn't an exaggeration when I say that standing for only 30 seconds was so difficult.  When Covid hit and the kids were home with me, I decided to really focus on strengthening and if something happened to me, the boys would be home to pick me up....literally.  All of my doctor appointments and therapies were postponed so it was up to me.  I told Travis to put the wheelchair in the garage so I wouldn't be tempted to use it.  Having been in the chair for over a year by this point, I had gotten use to doing daily activities sitting and life had gotten comfortable....I had adapted to doing basically everything that way.  But it was the perfect time to learn how to do everything all over again....standing!  It was HARD and being a stubborn German, I probably pushed myself too much some days.  Thankfully it worked to my advantage because I did get much stronger and more steady.  I eventually got a walker that has the seat on it so I could easily pack that into the car and was able to go into public much more often....and by often, I mean like once a month.  If I was at a place that didn't have a motorized cart, I could still use my walker to sit on to rest.  There are only a couple stores that I would venture to on a somewhat regular basis but each time I went, it was a complete workout for me and I could do a little more each time.  I was able to see the progress.  A couple of months ago, I got a cane.  I have been able to take just the cane with me to shop...going from the car to the motorized cart usually isn't too far but as a "functional paraplegic", holes in the pavement, curbs to step up and now with winter, snow and ice are all things to think about when trying to get around.  The cane apparently makes me use even more muscles than I'm used to because I started feeling more pain again.  I continue to push through but I am realizing that I have limits, experiencing more pain and numbness in my legs and feet.  I am excepting that I may have reached that "platue" my doctors and therapists talked about.  And if I never get better than I am today, I am ok with that!  I exceeded my original expectations and I am satisfied.  I would love to be able to rewind and realize how simple my simple old life was.....but I'm so thankful for where I am at now personally and with my family.....I treasure each moment!  Life is truly a gift from God and the simple things mean so much more these days!

Now for the Fur Kids!  They are....hmmm.....where to start?  Well lets start with the newest member of the family and that would be our 5lb, totally black Shorkie named Sadie Bear Wookie!  She is tiny but doesn't know it!  She has a big attitude and is little Miss Independent!  Travis was very against getting another dog even though I had been asking for one since my injury.  So I didn't tell him about her and just brought her home.  Luckily it took about 5 minutes for her to grab his heartstrings and fall in love with her.  So we both still have a home :)  ElRoy, our Bassett is 8 years old now and acting very much like a senior dog.  Bassett's aren't known for high energy but napping (and snoring loudly) is what she spends most of her days doing.  She had an infected tumor removed from her mouth in June and they had to take a tooth with it.  Now when she smiles, its even cuter!  Her yearly physical discovered what the vet thought might be cancer on her tummy but she was put on antibiotics and it shrunk so I think we dodged that bullet.  Unfortunately, we lost our 6 year old Lab/Retriever, Gabby.  She was the first dog Travis and I got together and my shadow, especially after my injury.  It was unexpected and as a family, we were all so heartbroken.  Her absence still affects us but we are slowly healing.  We will never forget her and can only hope she is running around happy and free in doggie heaven.  

Well, that about sums up our year.  I hope you made it to the end.  We are blessed to be staying happy and healthy and wish the same for you!  I have included some pictures that didn't make the Christmas card cut so check those out!

Blessing to each of you and prayers for a happy and healthy 2021!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Love- Kami for the Klan