This will be my final column I write in 2024. I wish each of you a blessed holiday and much love and prayers to all for a wonderful 2025.

May God bless you richly and may those with health problems be healed if it’s God’s will. May you put your trust in God to help you through your trials.

Let us remember those less fortunate and all who have lost their dear loved ones and must go on without them.

It has been four years now since we lost our dear son-in-law Mose.

My husband Joe turns 56 on Dec. 22. I am inviting our family to come for supper. So far, I haven’t told him as I want to surprise him if I can. We will attend church services during the day at our neighbors’.

That will be followed by our annual holiday potluck dinner with the church.

We also have two grandchildren with birthdays close to Christmas: Timothy (T.J.) turns 6 on Dec. 17 and Allison turns 5 on Dec. 27. They are daughter Elizabeth and Tim’s sweet children. It seems so hard to believe that they are those ages already.

Since I am writing this column to be published at a later date so my editors can have a break over the holidays, I will add dates of the happenings.

Tonight (Dec. 17) our neighbors David and Barbara are hosting a Christmas dinner for some of us couples our ages and older. Also invited are some older singles and widows and widowers.

Joe and I plan to attend. They will send a ride for us. My sisters Verena and Emma will also be there. Verena has been staying at Emma’s house the past few days. Nephew Steven is still recovering from his recent surgery.

Barbara said there will be Christmas carols sung for us and snacks later on. Sounds enjoyable!

On (Dec. 14), we butchered 71 chickens. They were divided between daughter Loretta and Dustin and daughter Lovina and Daniel and us. What a big job done! Our freezer looks fuller now with pork and chicken done. Next will be beef but not before the holiday season.

Son Joseph and Grace showed up to come help us with the chickens. Also Verena’s special friend Daniel Ray. We were glad for their help.

I know daughter Elizabeth and Tim and daughter Susan and Ervin would have gladly helped us too if we had asked them to. They are both so busy at this time of the year though and have plenty to catch up with at home.

I remember when our children were at those ages and how busy life was. It was always one or the other of the children having an eye, dentist or doctor appointment it seemed.

Not that we still aren’t busy but it’s different somehow.

While the rest of us worked on the chickens, Joe butchered a deer that Daniel Ray gave to us. It was an eight-point buck he shot. Joe mixed up 50 pounds of summer sausage and 25 pounds of deer jerky. We also have some steaks and venison burger in our freezer now.

It wasn’t our church Sunday so it was nice to rest. Dustin, Loretta, and sons joined us for a brunch then. After we ate we played a game of “Life on the Farm,” which is always interesting to play. Denzel, 2, asked if he could “have cows too.” I was tying to teach Denzel how to play “Memory” with the Memory cards. I think he is a little too young yet but he was catching on fast.

He would say “Oh” every time I told him where the matching card was. We would lay all the cards face down on the table then Byron, 1, thought he wanted to play and push all the cards on the floor.

God’s blessings in 2025 and always!

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup caramel sauce (plus extra for drizzling)

sea salt for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar and sugar until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract, mixing until combined. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips and caramel sauce. Spread the dough into the prepared baking pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the center is set. Once baked, let cool slightly before drizzling with extra caramel sauce and sprinkling with sea salt. Cut into bars.

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight who lives in southeastern Michigan. Readers can write to Eicher at Lovina’s Amish Kitchen, P.O. Box 234, Sturgis, MI 49091 (include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails.