Well hello everyone and a very merry Christmas to you!
I’ve been missing in action these last several months as it is a lot of work to keep myself between the ditches and sane during this season of life! I’ve really longed to keep up with all of my friends (you) who for one reason or another like to stay up on all things Chapman, and yet I have found it difficult to keep the keyboard clicking away. I’ve also got to be honest…I’m terrified that I will let you down. I don’t consider myself any wiser or more “in tune” than the next person. I’m just a wife, mother, grandmother on the journey with you trying to SEE goodness in the hard, stop the insanity of life, and take some deep breaths along the way. With that said, my hope is that as I begin to step into communicating with you a little more these next months that we will learn from each other, pray for each other, and certainly laugh with each other.
Since you’re here, I wanted to share an update on the Chapman family. Pour yourself a cup of coffee, get comfortable, and consider this my end of year Christmas letter to you!
Steven
What has that man not been doing?! All things SCC, and mostly this amazing SCC SOLO show that takes the concert goer on a “Great Adventure” (SEE what I did there?) of his last 30 years (yes I said 30 and he still looks good in a speedo LOL!) and he has had an absolute blast doing it.
He loves to talk (I know this is hard to believe), so this is a perfect fit for him because he gets to tell more stories than usual about how the songs came to be and more about the journey God has had him on these last 3 decades. It’s a very inspirational night for him to spend with you, his friends. He looks as young and energetic as ever (see above about the speedo, and yes… I’m getting plumper and more Grammy “ish”) and he loves what he does. He started a new company this past year called The Stable Collective with his friend Mark Mattingly. Between the two of them, they will manage all things SCC and MBC and as God allows, bring other creatives to our “Stable” that Steven can mentor and encourage along their journey.
Emily
What can I say…now the Vice President and Assistant Executive Director at Show Hope…as she should be. This girl was writing letters about us possibly being disobedient to the Lord when she was 11 years old for Pete’s sake! She has been part of this work since before she was educated, and then to go off and get her Masters in Theology and come back with even more passion for the work, well God has been writing this story for a long time now. Please be looking and listening for her. She is a strong voice in the sphere of the Show Hope work, but she’s also an influencer in the area of kingdom work and ministry to women and the church. Emily is an amazing wife to Tanner and mom to Eiley, Della, and Verity. She is a working mom and juggling it all - some days awesome and some not so awesome - but juggling like the rest of us and making it work!
Caleb
He is as unique as they come and the laughter of the family. What a freakishly creative soul, a deep soul, and an all around hard working, great guy. He recently built a dining room table that is really really good! And the benches! He is a good friend, and on top of it all, an amazing songwriter (rivals someone else I know).
He leads this amazing band, Colony House, and might I just predict…you’ll see them on the big stage some day. They are so talented, and if you have kids or grandkids, they will love them as much as I hope you all do. Caleb and his wife Julia are expecting their second child in January. Julia continues to work for Show Hope and takes care of their son, Noble Day, as well!
Will
What do you say about Will Franklin? For one, he is doing amazingly well and is happily married to the love of his life, Jillian. They just had their first baby, Willow Faye, and the adjustment to life with a child has been really sweet for them, and really sweet for Steven and I to witness.
So many of you have prayed for Will Franklin these past 9 years now, and I can’t thank you enough for investing the time to hold him close to your thoughts.
He is as talented a drummer as you’ll find and loves being Caleb’s wingman in Colony House. The two of them have been playing music since they were 4 and 5 years old, and I don’t suspect that will ever change. I love watching them do life together.
Shaoey
Hang on and get ready! Shaoey is 18 years old and is a senior in High School!! Yes, her last year of high school! I can’t even take it. It seems like yesterday she was placed in my arms for the first time, and now she is prayerfully considering where God may take her next. She is our resident high academic achiever and has a ton of options that she is considering. I’m going to go ahead and tell you...a 35 on the ACT definitely increases your mailbox traffic from all the schools. However, she has been diligent to pray and consider these next years, and I feel that God has something special in store for Shaoey. She began her year with a terrible cheerleading accident that ended up with surgery, 5 screws and a plate to hold her ankle/foot together. Believe it or not…12 weeks later, she has had zero pain and is tumbling again and getting ready to play softball. She has done great with physical therapy and has done everything the doctors have asked. She is going to be a college freshmen this time next year and I’m anxiously awaiting what team I’ll be rooting for…and honestly what color I’ll be wearing a lot of!
Stevey Joy
Our High School freshman. Yes she is 15 years old and has started driving us everywhere with her permit! All 4 foot 9 inches of her! She loves cheerleading and is working hard at the possibility of cheering in college. Some of you may have seen some of the crazy videos I have posted of her stunting and doing crazy stuff. She loves it and is extremely goal oriented. It’ll be fun to see where all of this takes her.
The thing, however, that we all love about SJ is her never-ending joyful personality. Everyone loves SJ and she is an encourager to all. She loves being a good friend and helps anyone who needs it. She is a bright girl, and she loves life and makes us laugh.
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Phew! That’s the update!
Now that you’ve heard about my people, I pray you and your families are doing well and are enjoying this Christmas season. I can’t wait to connect with you all here in this new space in the days ahead!
-MBC