Merry Christmas 2011

We will be staying home this Christmas. Matt's family (parents from Chicago, IL and brother's family from Denver, CO) will be visiting us on New Years' Eve weekend. We're looking forward to a Christmas at home and also the time with family. We are all healthy and happy to have had this year as a family continuing to grow in our relationships with each other and with our Savior, Jesus Christ, whose birthday we are celebrating!

2011 Highlights - Matt

• PF Chang’s ½ marathon with Dr. John Trent
• GUR (Great Urban Race) event in Phoenix with friend, Jim Taggart, – they placed well enough to be invited to the National (but didn’t go)
• 10-day Mission Trip to Tanzania, Africa to meet our sponsor child and both villages we support
• Tour De New River Bike Event raising money for the Tanzania schools
• Turned 40 years old
• Coaching Micah's basketball team
• Graduated from the Timothy Men 2 year Leadership Program on Dec. 3, 2011 
• Matt continues to work at Honeywell in the Space Division

2011 Highlights - Jodie

 

• Wife, mom, teacher
• Tuesday morning Bible Study classes (spring: Galatians ; fall: 1 & 2 Timothy & Titus)
• 5-day mission trip to Guatemala, Central America (with Micah)
• Homeschooling (Micah - 2nd grade)
• Teaching monthly Bible lessons, with the kids, at the Barton House (Alzheimer's home)
• Eastside Explorers Yearbook Coordinator
• Director for the 4/5 year old dancers in the Winter Wonder Christmas program (Lilly was in the group)
• Best year ever with the garden!

2011 Highlights - Micah

• "Robot" themed 8th birthday party
• Piano lessons (reached 1 year anniversary in Sept.) - had 2 recitals this year
• Art classes using acrylic paints on canvas
• Basketball (fall/winter)
• Baseball (spring)
• 2nd grader
• 5-day mission trip to Guatemala, Central America (1st one!)
• Participated in the Winter Wonder Christmas program as a singer and front-stage actor
• Favorites:  playing with 'the guys'; Hexbugs; GoGos; riding his bike

Piano Teacher:  Amy Cline

Art Teacher:  Amy Whitehouse

2011 Highlights - Lilly

• "Snow White" themed 4th birthday party
• Gymastics classes
• Tea parties, birthday parties & baby dolls
• Opened "Lilly's Cupcake Corner Cafe"
• Participated in the Winter Wonder Christmas program as a dancer
• Paper, tape, scissors, & markers
• Favorites: dressing up (fancy skirt - even over pants; 'tapping' shoes; sticker earrings; accessories); fixing hair (headbands; barretts; 'twisting/braiding'); baking; swinging on the swingset

2011 Highlights - Sydney (beagle dog)

• Celebrated her "Sweet 16" in July (that makes her 112)
• Moving slowly, but gets to the rooms we are in to hang out with us
• Hair is graying but still sleek and maintained
• Back legs tend to give out on her and the tile floors cause her to "spread out & get stuck" (Lilly has a cute interpretation)

2011 Highlights - Sammy (cat)

• Celebrated her 12th birthday in April
• An indoor cat, considered "lost" for almost 3 days in June (causing me to stand at the front door and/or pace up and down the street continuously; put up "missing" posters; found in neighbor's yard
• Recently started sleeping in Micah's room
• Frisky & fun, likes to be in the same room as us; Likes to sit on our games and papers
• Continues to get saline fluids every 2 weeks (helps reduce strain on kidney usage) 

The Christmas Story with cookies

A new family tradition before baking sugar cookies ... we read The Sweetest Story Ever Told by Lysa Terkeurst.  When it was time to make our sugar cookies, Lilly grabbed the 5 cookie cutters:  angel, star, tree, heart & bell.  As we made & decorated the cookies we talked about the significance of each shape and recited the part of the Christmas story it told.  Once they were baked and cooled, we wrapped them up and delivered them to some neighbors.  We typed up the following story and attached it.

Here it is for you:

An angel brought the glorious news to the shepherds that a Savior had been born.  Wise men followed a bright star to worship the new king.  They brought precious gifts much like the gifts we have under our tree.  The best gift of all that day was Jesus.  God sent His only Son that whoever accepts Him into their heart will have life everlasting and go to heaven.  Let the bells ring out this Christmas season as we celebrate Jesus' birthday and God's greatest gift to us.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!