Yurko Family Christmas Letter 2021 — Homegrown & Grounded

Every Christmas since my husband Owen and I were married, I’ve sent out a Christmas card. I always set one aside and add it to our own collection, which over the years has served as a sort of time capsule of our lives. Well, the year that shall not be named (cough cough, 2020) created a gap in that time capsule, as I was not able to send a card out. I was miserably waiting on the birth of our daughter, and well, I’m getting ahead of myself. So instead of risking not being able to get another card in the snail mail again this year, I decided to write a letter and put it on this blog instead. Perhaps this will be my new method of updating everyone each year, only time will tell. For now, let this letter suffice for getting everyone up to date on the Yurko happenings over the last two years (2020-2021). Let’s start at the beginning.

The year 2020 started off with a new puppy. We were very excited about adding this Great Pyrenees to our family and anxiously awaited his arrival. Well, long story short, instead of guarding the chickens, he ate them. We only had two left in our flock after months of trying to train and make the situation better, so we ended up donating him to a farm in paradise valley that was looking for a male pyrenees for breeding purposes. We felt this was the best decision for all involved, and when it came down to it, we realized we were chicken people more than we were dog people. We know he is running around in wide open spaces under the Big Sky, and that makes us happy (plus, we still have eggs to eat).

Ralston turned 4 a week before the nation locked down because of the coronavirus. His birthday festivities and buying chicks (that would later get eaten by the aforementioned dog) were the last hoo-rah’s of our family before we were locked down. We spent those early days of the pandemic taking care of our baby chicks and continuing to homeschool. Owen lost his job that he’s had for over a decade at the start of the pandemic, and he ended up getting several jobs to help us continue to make ends meet. He worked cutting meat at Sam’s Club, as well as drove for Uber Eats and Door Dash. We are so thankful for the steady hard work of the man of our house who always makes sure we have what we need. We love him endlessly. Looking back, we see how God was arranging puzzle pieces because a week after the lock down began and restaurants were closing their doors, we decided it was the best time to buy one of our own.

This is Owen’s “I guess we own a restaurant” look.

An opportunity arose for us to purchase Sam & Louie’s Pizza in Billings, and we took it. I’m not exactly sure what to say when people ask us if we were insane to buy a restaurant during the start of a lockdown, but all I can say is that there was no fear. We leaped and God has kept us afloat. It has been a rewarding and massive learning experience, and all glory to God we are still in business!

In April 2020, one month after buying a pizza joint, and when Rhodes was a mere 18 months old, we found out we were expecting another little one. Again, when people say that this time in our life must have felt overwhelming, we were not scared about adding another child to our family amidst a new business and a worldwide pandemic. It just felt right. And we were so excited.

Owen and I celebrated TEN YEARS in July 2020. We celebrated by going to the wedding of a dear friend.

In August of 2020 we opened Sam & Louie’s to the public. The lockdown lifted at exactly the time we were finishing getting everything ready and hiring and training staff. (Because, of course it would. Thanks God!). That week was full of excitement. On the same day we opened the restaurant, we found out we were having a girl! All our family came down within that first week of opening to help us celebrate, and to test the pizza, of course.

Fall of 2020 saw us beginning another homeschool year. Rhodes turned 2 in October. In November, my very own children’s book was released that I had been working with my publisher on the design of all throughout the lockdown. The book is called The Acorn Fairies and was inspired by a walk taken with the boys when Rhodes was only weeks old. Getting published has always been a huge dream of mine, and it was so exciting to finally have something to hold that contained words that I had written. I will forever feel so incredibly blessed to have been able to do that. (Click here to see the book!)

Our daughter’s due date was December 27th, so other than the annual holiday festivities, we weren’t doing much except awaiting her arrival. This pregnancy was the hardest I’ve experienced so far, and by the 1st of December I was more than ready to have a baby. Little did I know I had over a month left to wait. We were really hoping our little girl could join us for Christmas that year, but she must have known a pandemic was happening and wanted NOTHING to do with the year 2020, (what can I say, she’s a smart girl). She took her sweet time, and Ingram Lynn was finally born at home (planned) on January 7, 2021, after only a 53 minute labor. She blazed quickly into our home and hearts and we haven’t been the same since. She was named after her aunt Sarah, whose middle name is Ingram, as well as her grandma and aunt Amber whose middle names are Lynn.

The first months of 2021 had us in a cozy cocoon of newborn snuggles and love. Ralston turned 5 in March of this year. He began taking Judo classes at a local dojo and has absolutely been loving it. It has been so fun seeing him advance in rank and earn new belt stripes, and he even competed in the Big Sky State Games this summer. Ingram was baptized by her uncle in March, and in true “of course that would happen” fashion, she had a massive blowout minutes beforehand right as she was put into her white dress. All you can do is laugh.

Summer had us splitting time between Billings and Dillon, as Owen was cooking for my brother’s fly fishing and luxury vacation rental business. The kids had a wonderful time playing with their cousins and floating the ditch. Owen and I celebrated 11 years of marriage this year in July!

In the fall we began another homeschool year. Ralston has found his favorite subject to be math (which was my least favorite in school, so yes God does have a sense of humor).

In September, we took our very first family vacation as a family of 5. We went to the Black Hills of South Dakota and had a jam-packed week full of fun. We visited Mount Rushmore (via helicopter ride), Crazy Horse Memorial, Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, and lots of other exciting places.

Rhodes turned 3 in October, and we learned he is a whiz at memory games. He’ll beat you when you are actually trying! Other than school for the boys (while simultaneously trying to keep Ingram’s destruction of the house to a minimum), we are enjoying as much of the outdoors as possible. Between school, Judo, homeschool adventure group, Spanish book club, audubon science classes, and exploring nature, our days are filled with learning and joy.

If you’ve made it this far, whew! Thank you for sticking with me as I update on our very full lives these past two years. The rest of 2021 we will be getting cozy around Christmas trees, good books, and homemade cocoa. We are ready to quiet our hearts as we anticipate celebrating the arrival of our Savior, in whom we have forgiveness and the redemption of sins. Amen!

Merry Christmas!