2024 has been a year of transitions. It started with a very sad goodbye when Zack moved to Atlanta to pursue his passion in film and acting. It was the first time any of our kids had moved out of our home, and was a huge transition for all of us. Even though I know we are raising our kids to leave our home and be independent, it’s so hard to let them go. And that initial transition from having all my kids under our roof to launching them out, was an especially hard one for mama. But what a joy to see Zack take such a bold step to pursue his calling. We were so excited for him! He makes us so proud!
Also in January, we took in a young man who Jake knew from a distance who hit some difficult times. It was a joy having him stay with us and try to make an impact in his life for a little while. I joked that God was filling the empty seat at the table that Zack left, and that for every kid that leaves, maybe the Lord will bring another one in. Sadly, our time with him ended with many challenges as he turned against us after he left, accusing us of treating him badly. We still pray that God will use his time here with us for his good.
In the spring, two more friends of Jake’s came to live with us and prepare to move into a place together (one from Hawaii and one from Delaware). They were a true blessing to our family! During this time Jake got an offer to move to Utah to work on The King of Random YouTube channel as their new host. So, the 3 of them moved to Utah in June. Another hard goodbye, and so far away. But we are so proud of Jake and excited for this opportunity for him!
Also in June, Sam left to serve at 2 different camps for a month, and Ben and Steven got the opportunity to travel to Cuba to meet the girl Ben has fallen in love with. Yes, as crazy as it sounds, Ben met Liz on a language app, where he was practicing his Spanish. They entered into a 2 month long conversation about God, worldview, beliefs, etc, and eventually Liz gave her life to Jesus! She has been pursing the Lord ever since and devouring the Bible and other Christian books we’ve given her. She and Ben have also grown and deepened in their relationship and finally met in person in June when he and Steven went out there to spend a couple of weeks with Liz and her mom. They had a wonderful time and it really confirmed their love for each other.
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| Sam leaving for camp |
Also in June….(June was a very busy month!)….came an exciting transition as my parents moved from Washington state to Mississippi! The house across the street, on the other side of the pond, came available and they tried for a year to buy it (too many details to write here), but finally God answered our prayers and they arrived! It was a long and challenging journey to get here, but so worth it! Now we can walk to their house, and the boys have created a whole disc golf course on their 10 acres! We LOVE doing life with them!
In July, we had the opportunity to keep our 6 nieces and nephews for a couple of weeks as my brother Danny and his wife Jessie traveled to Atlanta for Jessie to have surgery for breast cancer. It has been a very difficult year as they have battled cancer and Danny lost his job through lay-offs. Please continue to pray for them! We have seen God do amazing things through this journey and expect more this next year. It’s been very impactful to hear Danny & Jessie testify to God’s faithfulness. (You can follow their journey here: Jessie’s Caring Bridge).
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| Praying over Jessie and family |
August brought more changes, including a long and difficult decision to leave our church, following the Lord’s prompting that he has something new for us. We are seeing him lead us and we’re excited for what He has in store.
August also brought Zack back home to us!! It was an amazing provision from God, with an opportunity to work as the director’s assistant on a feature film right here in Mississippi! You can hear more about his whole experience here: Good-bye Georgia…I’m Moving Back Home and I Worked on a Liam Neeson Movie! Zack is currently living in the guest house on my parent’s land, so we see him all the time. We couldn’t be more happy to have him back!!
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| Steven’s last Sunday leading worship at our church |
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| Zack is back!! |
In October we entered our busy market season for Dad’s Disappearing Salsa and Dad’s Dogs, and the younger boys continued their “Balloon Bros” business, making animal balloons with great success! Haven joined the ranks of successful salesman in the salsa booth this year. Ezra taught her what to say and she was an instant pro. It’s crazy to think that we started doing this business when our oldest was about her age.
Also in October Ben was able to make another trip to Cuba to see Liz, this time taking Zack along with him. They had a great time visiting and sightseeing, and Zack gives his hearty approval of Liz.
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| Haven is a rockstar! |
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| Zack and Ben traveling to Cuba |
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| Ben got to see Liz graduate from college! At the top of her class! |
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| I think I almost knocked him over, I was so excited to see him! |
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| The 4 boys went on a boy’s trip for a couple days while Jake was home, before everyone else arrived. |
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| The Adult Table |
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| The Middle Kids Table |
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| The Little Kids Table |
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| It was so great having everyone together for a week! It’s been 3 years since the last time. |
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| We got to enjoy some of our Christmas traditions before Jake left to go back to Utah. It was our first Christmas not being all together. |
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| My oldest and youngest. We call them our bookends. They look alike and act alike. It’s amazing how God allowed me, in a sense, to relive my first experience as a mother through my last. |
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| Brother goodbyes |
And now here we are at the end of the year. We have so much to be thankful for. And through all the changes, the joys & sorrows, God has walked with us faithfully, showing us that He is a God who cares and who hears us. What an enormous gift to have a Father like him.
2024 Individual Updates:
Jake (23) Living in Utah, currently finishing up his time with The King of Random YouTube channel (for various reasons the channel will be coming to an end) and transitioning back to his own personal channel Jake Makes. Go subscribe!
Zack (22) Living in Mississippi, collaborating with a team to produce short films, looking forward to more opportunities ahead. He loves playing disc golf with his brothers, going to the gym with Sam (well, maybe he doesn’t love having Sam as his personal trainer), and doing Donald Trump impressions (he’s really good!). Subscribe to his YouTube channel Zack Mena!
Ben (19) Working at Native Coffee Shop (he loves being a barista!), oil painting as often as he can, and often on the phone with Liz. :-). He loves music, playing disc golf with is brothers and has a goal to build an online business selling his art. Check out his art on Instagram
Sam (18) Working at MS Children’s museum as an after school counselor of 4th graders. Will be graduating in May, then heading to Camp of the Rising Son as a counselor for the summer. He loves working with kids and is praying about how to pursue that in his future! He also is very talented at leatherwork, playing disc golf and running track. Check out his leatherwork on Instagram.
Hailey (16) She writes all day long—poetry, songs, fiction. She’s currently writing a fantasy book, and loves learning more about how to develop worlds and characters. She loves reading (especially old books) and music and is a beautiful young lady inside and out!
Jed (15) Can’t wait to get behind the steering wheel. He hopes to get his learner’s permit this year. He loves to build. He and Abel got to help Steven build our carport this year as well as continue adding onto their awesome fort(s) on our land. He also loves the drums, disc golf, Minecraft, and juggling while on stilts.
Abel (13) He’s really taken off on the piano this year (self taught). He could play all day long. He loves creating his own songs and even composing digital songs with various instruments. He has amazing talent! He also loves playing disc golf and Minecraft.
Ezra (11) Loves building Legos and Minecraft worlds and playing disc golf with his brothers. He’s excited to build a survival pack with his new backpack that Zack bought him for Christmas.
Haven (10) Loves playing with Hazel and Joey, and has developed a love for cooking this year. She has single-handedly made spaghetti dinner for 14 people when Grammy & Grampy come over on multiple occasions! She also loves Bluey and disc golf.
Hazel (8) Loves playing with Haven and Joey, and keeps us laughing with her wild personality. She loves Bluey and disc golf and dancing around like a ballerina. She has enjoyed reading a lot of chapter books this year!
Joey (3) Has a huge personality, and can win over hearts in moments with his expressive and articulate conversation and his over the top affection. He has a huge imagination and is always playing something make believe that is very “real” to him. He is never without playmates, including all of his older siblings who join in his creative worlds and dynamic battles. He is my most snuggly and affectionate child yet, which has been God’s gift to me with my last little one. He’s still very much my baby!
Steven (52) Very much enjoys working Dad’s Dogs hot dog cart, especially working with the kids who he alternates taking with him to each event. He has developed quite a following and loves interacting with his regular customers. He also has a lawn care business, which he really enjoys as well. He loves having variety to his days, and having his kids with him in all his work. He loves learning new things (this year it was car mechanics), and studying theology.
Jenny (48) Loves taking walks, watching the sunset, learning new things (my crazy ADHD brain is always going a million directions) and especially enjoying all the wild and crazy days of our large family. Homeschooling for us means time together and time to pursue the gifts and calling God has for each unique individual. I love being a mom!
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing!” Isaiah 43:18-19
What a good verse for a year of transitions. May we run with anticipation into the new things God is bringing about in 2025.
If you made it to the end of this, you deserve a medal!
Much love to you all,
The Mena Family
