It's been a full and busy few months here in New Orleans. I was able to make it home to Iowa for Christmas before the rain turned into snow, but I spent a few nervous hours in Atlanta wondering whether the flight would be on time.

The first few days were great. The temps hovered around 35 and I could manage that, but when they dipped...no...dropped, below freezing, well, I don't handle that well anymore. We spent a good deal of time just staying inside and hanging out. While that may seem boring to some, I think it was just what I needed to rest and relax before heading into this busy year.

Unfortunately because of all the bad weather in Nebraska and Kansas, we were unable to make it to Kansas City for a family Christmas but my aunt, uncle and cousin were able to spend a few days with us on their way home.

After returning to New Orleans I was back into things full-swing right away. I began work on our upcoming newsletter and when we were almost finished making edits the decision was made to change the format and how it is printed. Cost of printing was our biggest reason and we are able to save a great deal by doing all of the printing in-house. The above photo came out of a photo shoot for the newsletter and is by far one of my favorites.

So, for the last week or so we have been printing non-stop and stuffing, stuffing, stuffing. We had two wonderful teams in this past week that helped us get more than half of our 12,000 stuffed and ready to go. So when you see the new newsletter, I hope you like the changes, but please, feel free to let me know what you think works or doesn't work.

The other big news in the city, in case you haven't heard (is that even possible?) the Saints are Superbowl champions! I know, I know, you may be a bit confused because most of you know I am a Colts fan. That hasn't really changed, I do still love my Colts, but I couldn't help but jump on the bandwagon to cheer for the Saints this year.

It is amazing (and utterly chaotic) to be a part of this city right now. Not only is it Carnival season (which leads up to Mardi Gras) but the Saints have won and the city is just electric with excitement and pride. I looked all day yesterday for a newspaper and finally got my hands on one via a coworker.

But the main reason I have cheered for the Saints is because of what it has done for this city. This season has brought the city together in a way that I've never seen. It has brought joy and pride back to New Orleans and has given people something to hope for again. I think it is a great reminder of what the true "saints" (Christians) should be doing in this city. I know that God has still has big plans here and it is still so exciting to be a part of it all.

Below is Evie, the daughter of some church friends celebrating the Saints win.