To make a long story short, Union University in Jackson, TN – between Nashville an Memphis, about 4 hours from where we are now – had an open position in their Student Services department, Director of Residence Life.  Over the past two years at Covenant, I have really seen my gifts line up well, and have desired to pursue a career working in Higher Education.  I also have an old (history, not age ) friend who took a position at Union last year and had nothing but great things to say about the school and the department.  So, after thinking, praying, and seeking advice, Renee and I decided I should apply. Almost two weeks ago I was interviewed and offered the job.  I start in a week and a half (June 8th) and we – Lord willing – will close on a house on June 29th.  A whirlwind you say?  Life as usual for the Litschers.

Anyway, while we are thrilled about this next chapter in our lives, it will be hard to leave Covenant and the community we’ve invested in for two years.  We definitely weren’t looking to leave – which makes this transition both harder and easier.  We’ll miss a ton of great students and working with the staff we’ve been with for two years as well.  But we do have peace, which makes it bearable.  And while Jonathan knows we are moving to Jackson, TN, I still don’t think he realizes what that means – that the “big kids” he’s known & pretty much grown up around won’t be there to bother in the lobby or nag into playing with him.  He was having a hard enough time when they were going home for the summer.  We’ve been playing up the fact that he’ll have a yard and get his dog back, but once it hits him that he won’t get to see his buddies here, we may have to get out the tissues.

Well, that’s it for now.  I’m up early (late?) with a bad sore throat so I’m going to attempt a few more hours of sleep before the day starts.  Pictures will come soon.  And by soon, I really mean soon-ish.

Speaking of Covenant, this past weekend we took our staff (6 student RA’s, our Assistant RD Brandon and his wife Becky and the three of us) up to Crossville, TN for a brief refocusing retreat. We had two condos (thanks for the hookup Mom!) and access to a hot tub, pool, raquetball and movies. I whupped up on some folks playing raquetball (I was the only one who had played before) and took Jonathan in the hot tub, and the rest of the time was spent watching movies, playing games and hanging out together talking about this new semester. These folks are the best kind of people and we love spending time with them…it’s always fun and refreshing. They all do a great job serving the students in our building and in the apartments and are great people to be “forced” to work with. Below is our family Christmas card.

Thanks for all you do, guys!

Merry Christmas from the Litschers! Once again we wanted to send you all a Christmas greeting and update you on some of the happenings in our corner of the world. We hope and pray you and your family are healthy and well and enjoying this Christmas season.

This year has again been full of many changes for our family. The biggest being our move from Denver CO to Lookout Mountain GA in May!! Ken graduated from Seminary on May 12^th, and it was with bittersweet emotions we said goodbye to all of our wonderful friends in Denver and made our trek across the country to our new Southern home. Ken was offered a position as the Residence Director of Andreas Hall at Covenant College, a Christian college about the same size as Trinity. We live in a brand new Residence Hall that opened in August, and we are so grateful for the ways God has provided for our family through this major transition. Ken loves working with the students in our building and he works with a great group of people in the Residence Life department too. Covenant College actually sits right on top of Lookout Mountain, and we love seeing the many gorgeous sunsets over the Appalachian Mountains. We have also enjoyed watching the leaves change colors this fall… something that we really missed while living in Denver. Ken keeps very busy meeting with the Resident Assistants and various other student leaders in our building. His office is right outside of our apartment and it is nice to be able to have him around so much. He is also glad to be done with grad school, and has had more time to read for fun and play his guitar.

Jonathan is continuing to grow so quickly. He has adjusted very well to living in a college setting and enjoys being around the “big kids” any chance he can get. He also attends a program every Tuesday called Mother’s Day Out. It meets at a Presbyterian Church on the mountain and he absolutely loves it! He loves playing with the other kids his age and we often find him singing songs that he has learned at school. We have also kept busy mastering potty training this fall, and he still loves playing with trains and cars.

I enjoyed a much needed break from the NICU this summer and have actually just started back to work in October. I took a per diem position in a 6-bed Level II Special Care Nursery and am loving work again. I only work about 4 to 6 times on a 6 week schedule (mostly days), but have been picking up some extra shifts for people on top of that as I am able. I also get to attend deliveries and take care of the babies right after they are born (something we didn’t get to do at Children’s) and that has been really fun for me. My friend Kelli also moved to Chattanooga this fall after her husband bought a dental practice in the area, and it has been a such a wonderful blessing to have her so close by.

We also found out in August, just after our 5^th anniversary, that we are expecting another child! We found out just before Thanksgiving that it is another boy J and my due date is April 21^st. I am feeling good, and so far the baby looks healthy and well. We are so thankful to God for this little miracle and pray He continues to watch over us both for the remainder of this pregnancy.

We are looking forward to a trip home to the Midwest over Christmas… this will be the first time we have been home over the holidays since before we got married. We would love to hear from you and pray you will have a meaningful Christmas season with your loved ones as we celebrate the birth of Jesus!

With much love,

Ken, Renee, and Jonathan