I am writing this post on the last Sunday of January 2024. The first month of this year has gone by quickly. Julie and I have been busy with work, household chores, and other important tasks.

At the same time, we are grateful that we have had time to slow down and also focus on what is important. We have enjoyed worshiping together at Kernersville Wesleyan Church. We have appreciated time with our daughters and extended family. Quiet evenings of watching a movie and spending time together have been helpful resting points.

We learned earlier this month that Julie has breast cancer. Her first oncology appointment was on 1/26/2024. We didn’t know what her prognosis would be until that appointment, which was only a few days ago. Her cancer was caught very early and the tumor is small. Julie has mammograms each year and preventative screening is what enabled early detection. She will have surgery on 2/13/2024. She will need about 2 weeks of recovery, and then she can gradually start driving and resuming routine tasks again.

The doctors are very optimistic that her treatment will go well. We won’t know if she will need radiation therapy or chemotherapy until after the surgery. It is likely that she will need radiation therapy, but will probably not need chemotherapy. Although the surgery will be painful and there are always risks, the oncology appointment went well, and it was good news considering the serious nature of her diagnosis.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Stay in touch.

Christmas 2023

The Spriggs family enjoying Julie’s birthday dinner

Dave and Julie are grateful for the blessings of 2023. We are grateful for fulfilling work. Julie works as a mail carrier for the post office and Dave is a psychologist at the Department of Veterans Affairs. We are grateful that we have both had good health in 2023. We are grateful for our family.

Amanda’s Graduation Picture

Amanda graduated from Wake Forest Law School and passed the bar exam. She has been living in Winston-Salem, NC and working for a law firm in New York. It may turn into a permanent position, but she may also need to find another job and may need to relocate. Her husband, Will, sold his business in 2023, which is a great achievement.

Emily was recently hired as part of the grounds crew at a nuclear power plant. She is looking forward to starting her new job. She lives in New York. She is engaged to Marshall who works at the power plant. We plan to visit Emily this coming Spring.

Julie brought home two additional rescue dogs this year. She found Duke by the Duke Power Plant. She found Deacon (we call him”Deacon”) on her way home from work. We now have 3 rescue dogs, including our beagle-dachshund mix that we have had for about 11 years. She doesn’t plan to bring any more dogs home.

Lux

Deac

Duke

We are reminded of God’s goodness and mercy each day, and especially at Christmas. We look forward to what 2024 has in store.

– Dave and Julie Spriggs