What follows is another yearly installment in our family’s complete history told via the 2006 Flanders Family Christmas Update. To see a full listing, see Our Christmas Letters. For tips on writing your own family history in this fashion, follow this link. In the meantime, enjoy!
The 2025 Flanders Family Update
November/December 2024 Happenings
As our family gathered last Thanksgiving, each of us shared what we considered God’s biggest blessing over the previous twelve months. When Doug’s turn came, he stated earnestly, “I’m just grateful our family hasn’t had any big crises this year. It’s been a nice breather.”
Well, things began to change almost the instant he said it! It’s as if God were telling us, “I’m glad you enjoyed the break, but easy times produce little growth, and we need to get back to work.” Within a week, our 2-year-old grandson had to be intubated and care-flighted to Dallas after swallowing something toxic.
That was followed by one fender bender, one burned-up engine (when a drain plug was improperly tightened after a routine oil change), and a highway collision that resulted in two totaled vehicles and a broken leg but—miraculously—no fatalities.
Next came a breast cancer diagnosis for Jennifer. The discovery of enlarged lymph nodes in her armpit led to a flurry of doctor appointments, biopsies, and other medical procedures as physicians fit us into already-packed schedules, staff voluntarily worked through lunch so we could have a definitive diagnosis sooner, and family, friends, and people we’ve never even met faithfully lifted us up in prayer, came to visit, brought meals, and covered call for our daughters so they could come home for an extended visit over Christmas, which was a joyous occasion despite the uncertain future.
January 2025 Happenings
January brought us another grandbaby. Joseph and Emi welcomed little Percy mid-month while we kept big brother Cassian, now fully recovered after last month’s poison scare.
Baby spent his first six months living in a tiny, rented RV that served as his family’s home while their land improvements and house construction progressed at a snail’s pace—but that just made their final move-in all the sweeter!
Jennifer and Abby won first place this year in the Q&A game at their co-op’s mother/daughter retreat by matching the most answers. Winning question: What’s your daughter’s dream job? Answer: Working as a florist!
Abby’s not the only one in our family who loves plants. Gabriel has lately enjoyed great success cultivating a variety of trees from seed. He also hired on to do some landscaping for family and friends. What began as weeding flowerbeds and clearing brush eventually led to building perimeter fences (with help from brother Daniel).
Jennifer had a lumpectomy and lymph node excision on January 31. After lots of prayer and a deep dive into every clinical study she could find on various breast cancer treatments, she opted to forgo the recommended chemo, radiation, and hormone blockade in favor of lifestyle change. (She also declined a plastic surgeon’s kind offer to give her the perky figure of a woman half her age, but that’s another story!)
Instead—and with Doug’s full support—she cut out all refined sugar, refined flour, and ultra-processed foods in favor of a whole food, mostly-vegan diet, plus daily exercise and monthly fasts of three to five days. The result? She has shed sixty pounds, feels great, and—praise be to God—shows no sign of remaining or recurrent disease in any subsequent testing.
February 2025 Happenings
Rebekah hosted her traditional Galentine’s brunch in February, reminding guests that, no matter what their current relationship status, they are all dearly and deeply beloved of God.
Mom did her best to share the same message with Miriam Margolyes when invited to appear this month on her podcast, No Small Talk. The purpose of the two-hour interview was presumably to discuss whether Jennifer’s recent cancer diagnosis has shaken her faith (spoiler: it hasn’t), but Miriam couldn’t resist taking the opportunity to rail on President Trump, despite the fact we’ve been telling her for eight years our hope is not in politics but in Christ.
Thankfully, her producer kept redirecting the conversation: “Ask Jennifer what she believes about [faith…Jesus…death…heaven] and why.” What a great wingman! The episode won’t be released until they have ten ready to drop, but there’s no telling how soon that will be. Miriam stays quite busy, even at 84.
March 2025 Happenings
March found us in Europe, where Doug dubbed Nana our “flash pass,” since every time the attendants spotted her transport chair, they’d advance our entire party to the front of the line. Bekah and Abby came, too, and Rachel (still living in Germany at the time) met us in Hamburg for a North Sea cruise aboard the MSC Preziosa.
We feasted on fresh berries and Belgium waffles in Bruges; sipped hot tea at a cat cafe in LaHavre; and toured Jane Austen’s home in Chawton.
The minute we disembarked at voyage’s end, however, everyone’s phone blew up with notifications that our flight home had been cancelled due to an airline workers’ strike. We had to scramble, rerouting through Amsterdam and taking trains, planes, automobiles, and busses (which seriously taxed Jennifer’s scopolamine patch) to make it to London (or, in Bek’s case, Dublin) in time for our connecting flights the following morning.
While we were overseas, grandbaby #24 was born. Samuel’s wife, Rebekah Joy, delivered Caleb, but their oldest daughter, Evelyn, laid claim to her baby brother almost as soon as he came home from the hospital, intent on exercising her own budding mothering skills at every opportunity.
April 2025 Happenings
April took us to DC where we toured the National Zoo, several Smithsonian Museums, the Capitol, the Library of Congress, and the amazing Museum of the Bible, walking up to seven miles a day and taking turns pushing Nana, who graciously held in her lap whatever grocery items we picked up along the way.
Abby turned 15 and started driving this month. The ink on her learner’s permit barely had time to dry before Rebekah (being a licensed driver over the age of 21) volunteered to supervise her sister’s driving practice. They soon discovered Bek is a bit closer to Dad’s seat-gripping “What-are-you-trying-to-do?-Kill-us-all!!?” end of the spectrum than to Mom’s chill “Next-time-remember-to-use-your-blinker” mode of response.
Doug bought a reel mower this spring at Jennifer’s request. She wanted the exercise and likes the fact it’s quiet enough for her to hear audiobooks while cutting the grass.
Mom took Gabriel, Abby, and Aiden to Waco for the BeSoConference.
They had a blast and hope to return next year. Bekah bought the tickets, planning to accompany them herself, but a work conflict prevented her going. Samaritan’s Purse recently hired her to serve as a DART (Disaster Assistance Response Team) nurse, and she had to undergo a week of intense training designed to teach staffers how to respond in every imaginable kind of high-stress situation (with the obvious exception of teaching siblings how to drive; nobody prepared her for that one!).
May 2025 Happenings
Our family celebrated three graduations in May, plus a fourth in June. Beth finished her pediatric dental fellowship in Dallas. Daniel earned his BSN from UT Tyler’s School of Nursing.
And Gabriel and Aiden both graduated from Providence Preparatory Academy (Jennifer’s name for our homeschool, which sounds more distinguished—especially in its abbreviated form—than the next closest contender, “Flanders Academy for Really Talented Students”).
Isaac turned 22 on the 22nd (his golden birthday!) and moved to Longview for a summer internship with Eastman Chemical. The house seemed oddly quiet without his continual geeking out over math problems, something he’s been known to do even in his sleep, as his brothers have occasionally awoken in the middle of the night to hear Isaac explaining physics and mechanics concepts in minute detail to someone in his dreams.
Daniel took and passed the NCLEX this month, bringing him one step closer to his express goal of being ready to support a wife and kids by the time he turns twenty. We thought he might’ve found the necessary other half of that equation this summer when he began dating a lovely young lady from church but, alas, she broke up with him in July, something he suspected was forthcoming when she told him they needed to talk but insisted on meeting in a Walmart parking lot for the conversation.
So Daniel donned a $3 pair of bright blue and pink rubber flip-flops that he got at a grocery store and headed out the door. When Mom later questioned his fashion choice, he told her, “I didn’t want to be wearing my favorite shoes when I got dumped. From now on, these will be our official break-up sandals which brothers can borrow as needed.”
June 2025 Happenings
June was packed with weekend trips: We attended a homeschool conference in the Woodlands, where Gabriel, Aiden, and Abby served as teen staff volunteers.
Rachel flew in from Germany for a short visit, so we took her to San Antonio to meet her newest nephew (although Doug had to cut his stay short thanks to jury duty back home).
A week later, he and Jennifer took Abby (our little Caitlin Clark look-alike) and Nana (our favorite college basketball player) to an Indiana Fever Game in Dallas. We had courtside seats but, sadly, Caitlin was injured and didn’t play.
On weekends we weren’t traveling, we played in a CLUE tournament some friends hosted (J.T. and Gabriel tied for first place, and Bekah, dressed as Miss Scarlet, won the costume contest); Daniel honed his cooking skills; Gabriel and Aiden earned lots of spending money moving Doug’s old partner to a new house; our high schoolers volunteered at the hospital once a week…
…and Mom and Dad agreed to play pickleball with our Canadian friends. None of us knew what we were doing our first couple of times on the court, but that didn’t keep Doug from jumping in with both feet. By summer’s end, he had purchased 17 paddles (so each kid would have their own), and on the rare occasion he couldn’t find a family member available and willing to play, he’d sign up for round robins at our local indoor court—and win!
Mom joined a summer book club this year. The hostess expressed shock and dismay over our family size—“I don’t know how you do it!” Jennifer was quick to reassure her we’ve never adhered to the typical soccer mom schedule: no sitting for hours in school pick-up lines or rushing individual children from one extracurricular activity to the next every night of the week.
The hostess seemed satisfied with that answer and nodded her head in understanding, but for the rest of the summer, whenever she introduced newcomers, she’d say, “Have you met Jennifer? She has twelve children—but that’s not like it sounds, because they don’t do anything.” Ha!
July 2025 Happenings
Doug officially joined the faculty of the UT Tyler School of Medicine in July, meaning he now teaches medical students in addition to training residents. One unintended consequence: A disproportionate number of students have decided to specialize in anesthesia after completing their rotation, as it’s obvious Doug and his colleagues all love what they do!
Several of our singles (namely Bethany, Bekah, Gabriel, Abby, and Aiden) traveled to California together this month to hike half a dozen National Parks. They had quite the adventure combing beaches, sharing picnics, admiring ocean sunsets, gathering wild raspberries, and swimming in mountain streams. During the long drives, Beth (who broke a toe on the trip) and Gabbers entertained the rest of the group by reading Pride and Prejudice and The Hobbit aloud, respectively.
We found out mid-month Ben and Mikayla are expecting again. Mik consulted Jennifer about the names they’re considering: “We plan to use all four eventually,” she explained, “so I want to know what order sounds best.”
Jennifer was delighted to learn her daughter-in-law is open to having at least eight kids, but suggested she wait and see whether God sends sons or daughters before assigning such gender-specific names!
August 2025 Happenings
Mom, Dad, Gabriel, and Abby flew to California in August to enjoy a few days at Big Bear Lake with Doug’s folks, who drove over from New Mexico to meet us.
Grandma and Grandpa were seldom ready to get out and about before 11 AM, so the rest of us spent mornings playing pickle ball, trying out local waterslides, and listening to Project Hail Mary.
We’d pick up Dad’s parents in time for lunch, then go sightseeing together in the afternoons. Favorite outings this trip were the Alpine Zoo and a Pirate Cruise around the lake.
Another Flanders Family Challenge awaited when we got home. This year, Samuel and Bekah sponsored a Shark Tank competition: Sellers had to convince sharks to fund their projects, which started with a $7 ask from 2-year-old Sarah for sweet tea to share with her family at the pool (because “it’s important to stay hydrated”) and went up from there.
All projects were at least partially funded, although some presenters had to negotiate to make that happen. Most memorable pitches: Emi’s loving tribute to her hardworking husband, Easton’s well-articulated request for a set of free weights, Ben’s super-sleuthing skills, and Isaac’s presentation on penguin pebbling rituals.
Rachel (who won first prize in last year’s STEM video contest, incidentally) completed her au pair contract and moved back from Germany. By that time, she’d spent two weeks video-chatting with a young man named Micah (a tall, handsome, mechanical engineer who loves Jesus and, like Rachel, is #8 of 12 children) after a mutual friend gave him her contact information. They had their first in-person date August 23 (once Rachel’s brothers voted on what outfit she should wear), and they’ve seen one another nearly every day since.
September 2025 Happenings
David flew back to the States in September to take (and pass!) his oral boards. We met up with him in the Metroplex, where Samuel also arranged to be working for the week. Bonnie stayed behind with kids in South Korea but sends frequent photos and videos of their Bible memory work. Their entire family will be here for Thanksgiving.
In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, Gabriel stepped up his involvement with Turning Point USA. He’s participated in a dozen tabling events since then, debating a wide range of hot button topics.
Jon and Haley (who is loving life as a stay-at-home-mom) attended a Voice of the Martyrs conference this month, and we watched their kids while they were gone.
In addition to keeping up with nine grandkids, we had seven volleyball games in that same three-day span and attended a huge book launch party for our dear friend, Abbie Halberstadt, who surprised Jennifer by dedicating You Bet Your Stretchmarks to her!
October 2025 Happenings
Nearly everyone in the family joined us for at least part of Family Camp in October. We were all assigned to Pink Team (AKA “Bubblegum Bruisers”) for which Samuel served as team leader, successfully motivating troops and maximizing participation from all ages in challenges that ranged from bridge building to relay races to mural painting. Pink won first place in apple cobbler baking and finished fourth overall!
Competition continued back at our campsite as Bethany sponsored a family s’more making contest this year. After we submitted our most creative recipes, everyone voted on their favorites, then Beth supplied all necessary ingredients for a head-to-head taste test of the top three. Emi’s s’more flavored macrons took top honors, while Ben’s s’moreo ice cream sandwich and Bekah’s bougie charcuterie s’mores tied for second.
Abby’s extremely active volleyball season culminated with a gold-medal win for her JV team at Nationals in Kansas this month. A formidable blocker, she played her best ball of the season in those final games. Off the courts, she and mom scoured local thrift shops. It took some creative cramming to fit all their finds into carry-on luggage for the flight back.
By the time they made it home, Rachel was married. Micah called earlier in the week for our blessing, which we gave without reservation, and asked at that time whether we’d mind if they eloped. We didn’t, so they did—although they’re planning a formal ceremony to take place while siblings are all home for Thanksgiving.
Our 8-year-old grandson James had a harrowing mishap this month while using flint and steel to kindle a fire. A bottle of alcohol exploded in his hand and set his face alight. Ben and Mik snuffed out the flames as quickly as possible, covered his head with a wet towel, and rushed him to the hospital.
When James asked on the way whether he’d still be able to see, Ben admitted he didn’t know and advised him to keep his eyes closed. “I don’t want to be blind,” James replied sincerely, “…but I trust God. … I just want His will to be done…. I know He has a purpose for this.” Would that we all had such child-like faith!
The ER docs sent him and his mother by ambulance to Parkland in Dallas. Mercifully, his eyes (ears, nose, and lungs) were spared, and it looks as if scarring will be minimal.
November 2025 Happenings
The first half of November has been filled to overflowing with fun memories: an outdoor movie night with family and friends, bread baking with the sourdough sisterhood, pottery lessons for the girls, a holiday craft bazaar, a bridal shower, two trips to Dallas.
Next up: Thanksgiving and an outdoor wedding—we’re praying for amazing weather (rather than the 70% chance of rain that is forecast)—but you’ll have to wait for next year’s update (or listen to Jennifer’s podcast, Loving Life at Home) for those details, as this letter will go to print before either event takes place. Meanwhile, we pray this season draws you closer to the Savior whose blessed birth we celebrate. Only Jesus offers peace that can weather life’s every storm. Let us hear from you soon!
With love from the Flanders family—
Doug & Jennifer, Jon & Haley, Bethany, David & Bonnie, Samuel & Bekah, Benjamin & Mikayla, J.T. & Emi, Rebekah, Rachel & Micah, Isaac, Daniel, Gabriel, and Abby (plus an ever-growing number of grandkids)
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