Life as a Yowler

Happy New Year from the Yowlers!

2021 started out as a year like we would not have imagined. I think everyone has dealt with difficult circumstances in one way or another. There’s been loss, hurt, pain, trauma, sickness and many other things. I am thankful for a new year and a new beginning. While 2021 was difficult in a lot of ways, it was also good. The beginning of the year was very tough for me personally, but the cloud has lifted. God continues to show us so much blessing and favor. Whether it’s in our personal or professional lives, we continue to see God’s hand working powerfully. For that we give Him the glory!

Our family has been living in a one room cabin on our property during a house remodel for over seven months now. The good news is, we are nearing the end! Our builder is moving very quickly. He is working so hard to get us back into our home. We’re hopeful that in early 2022, we will be able to enjoy our new, bigger house. Our kids are really looking forward to more space.

Gascho Furniture is prospering and growing thanks to God’s favor and anointing. We came through an Art Van bankruptcy (our largest retailer at the time) and covid. Brandon has been traveling like crazy and selling a lot of furniture. Recently, we acquired and partnered with another family member’s company. We are so excited to see what doors will open from this new relationship. There is much excitement in the furniture marketplace over the Gascho Family Brand’s companies.

As I said before, Brandon is traveling a lot. He went from mostly virtual meetings and sales trainings, back to in person. This has been refreshing for him, as he enjoys having the opportunity to meet face to face with the people he works with. Brandon enjoys hunting more than any other human I’ve ever met. He had a bummer of a Fall season aka he wasted hours and hours of time. He tells me it’s actually not a waste of time, because that’s how he unplugs and de-stresses. He spends lots of time praying and reading in the hunting blind. He sometimes takes a kid with him, and spends that time bonding.

I have been busy trying to keep everyone alive. I’ve been getting creative with how we spend our time. I try to take the kids on tons of outings to get some energy out and help them learn and grow. I continue to homeschool. We use Abeka curriculum. We have joined a homeschool co-op each Friday. The co-op offers several educational classes. Fridays are so much fun. Co-op offers social interaction and classes and teachers. It fills in a lot of the gaps that homeschooling lacks. We’ve recently gotten into ice skating as a winter activity. We also try to get outside every day to do some running. These are the things that help us survive a one room cabin.

Joah is 9 and in the 3rd grade. He enjoys hunting. He loves nature and being outside. He’s very athletic. He begs to play every sport, but unfortunately our travel schedule makes it difficult to commit. He played soccer this last year and really enjoyed that. Brandon ended up coaching his team last Fall. This was fun for our family.

Brielle is 7 and in 2nd grade. She is very creative. She loves crafts. She also has discovered a love for cooking. She begs to help in the kitchen. She is my most willing and helpful child. I love that she is at the age now where she really is helpful. She can tell when I start to get overwhelmed and always offers to help me without me having to ask. She is a servant at heart and loves to serve others. She is a great student and very eager to learn.

Caed is 6 years old and in Kindergarten. Caed is also a very eager student. Caed has a love for numbers. He loves math. He’s our deep thinker. He thinks so hard and asks the funniest questions. He’s our child who makes us laugh all the time without even trying to. He loves random animal facts. He loves to belt out singing at the top of his lungs (but only when it’s his idea. He definitely won’t on command). He confuses me daily. He is either our most laid back child, or the most stubborn. Depends on the hour. He’s extremely compassionate and caring. He loves to try to make peace whenever he’s faced with conflict.

Isla turned 4 in October. In some ways she is more grown up than her age, in other ways she’s still very clingy to me. She ends up in Brandon and my bed every night around 3am. She snuggles right up to me and warms her feet/kicks Brandon’s stomach all night. She is very musical. She loves singing and listening to songs. She loves worship music. She loves anything girly. She’s usually wearing jewelry and makeup. She loves playing dress up. She is very opinionated and sassy. She’s so much fun and makes us laugh daily. She’s a little fireball of energy. She’s nothing I imagined, but everything we needed. She has a way of melting me, when I need it the most.

We added a new member to the family this year. His name is Bear Grylls Yowler. He’s an Aussiedoodle. He’s named after the survivalist, who Joah loves reading about and watching on tv. Bear is a little bit of an idiot, but he’s pretty tolerable…..for a dog. He actually is a champion for what he puts up with from the kids. Isla kisses him about 600 times per day and hugs him 500 times per day. He enjoys sneaking food off plates when the kids aren’t looking. He enjoys licking my skin once per time. Not twice….just once…..just enough to receive the death glare. The best news about him is he doesn’t shed and he’s low energy. I am a little bit of psycho when it comes to dog hair. Bear is the perfect breed. He’s big enough that the kids can’t squash him. And he’s not a shedding dog. Beautiful mix!

A prophetic word was spoken over our family and I’m clinging to it. This person felt God spoke to them that God is leading us into a season of greatness, prosperity, growth and blessing. Toward the latter part of this year, a huge burden lifted in my spirit. I feel so much freedom and so much blessing. I don’t ever want to go back to that place of despair. I am choosing to walk in God’s favor and blessing! We are beyond blessed. Our family is growing and thriving. I’m so thankful for the obstacles that were removed. I am choosing to walk in wisdom and truth. I am so thankful for Grace. Where I am weak, He is strong.

We have so many fun adventures ahead for our family. We have some trips planned. We will do the usual where we combine business and fun experiences (depending on the place Brandon travels for work). We have a home that is nearly completed where we plan to host and cultivate community with our family and friends. We have each other. As our kids keep growing older, I’m amazed at the fun we can have together. This is a new stage of parenting for me. We are beyond diapers and the tiny little baby and toddler stage. It’s fun to see my kids’ different personalities. It’s fun to see their hearts for Jesus. We give Him all the glory. We thank Him so much for the gift of life and health.

We wish you all a Happy New Year. Blessings to you and your families!