Merry Christmas

At this time of year we start to review the events from the past year and count our blessings.  So here are some highlights from our family.

Brandon survived his first year at his new job.  He has enjoyed the challenges and also the people that he works with.  He made it through a marathon two weeks of twelve hour shifts at work because of a major wildfire.  We counted ourselves very lucky, knowing we weren't in danger, but saddened as we watched footage of houses burning.  He ran a couple of races with coworkers and managed to acclimate to the higher elevation during his daily runs.  Brandon drove with the kids to Las Vegas for his sister's wedding, a very long drive with just one parent.  Brandon spent most of the year serving in the Sunday school at church but was called to lead the music in Primary in September.  He was glad that the previous leader had taught all the songs for the program but he only had five Sundays to learn the music himself.  But he is enjoying working with the kids and our kids like seeing him in Primary.

Marybeth started the year with a couple of callings at church, in the Young Women's and also playing the organ.  The organ calling was a first, there were a lot of phone calls home for advice.  By February she was released from the Young Women's and called to lead the music in Primary.  This was also a new experience but she had a lot of fun teaching songs and trying to come up with ways to make it fun.  The highlight was probably the baking soda and vinegar.  She enjoyed taking the kids to all the nearby parks and made the drive back to Idaho during Spring Break.  Another long drive with just one parent, but Crystal was nice enough to let us break the drive up by stopping at her house.  Because of being pregnant Marybeth was unable to make it to the wedding this summer and she told she would only keep one of her callings at church after having the baby.  So in September she passed the baton for the Primary music to Brandon.  After baby she is just trying to make sure the kids get where they need to be and make sure no major damage is done while she is taking care of someone else.

William didn't mind having a short summer vacation because his birthday was during school, a first for him.  He is in the third grade and is really enjoying school.  He was very excited for his birthday, getting to go scouts and getting baptized.  Both sets of grandparents were able to make it out to share in his experience.  William declared that his favorite author is Rick Riordan and read all of the books in his Kane Chronicles series and the Heroes of Olympus series.  Of course now he has to find something else to read while he waits for the next book.  He loves to read.

Caitlyn was in charge of most of the playing at the beginning of the year and her younger siblings definitely miss her since she has started school.  She did enjoy having William home for the summer, swimming and playing at the spray park, and she filled in a reading chart to earn a prize.  She has since decided she likes to read.  She mastered the bike without training wheels, overcoming her fear of getting hurt since William got hurt learning to ride.  She started kindergarten and she loves it.  She was glad to have the many breaks that they have already had but she is really doing well.  She enjoyed her birthday, the best part might have been the field trip that ended up being on her birthday.

Britton thinks that she should be able to do everything William and Caitlyn do.  She has enjoyed going to Primary, she couldn't wait for that, and has definitely enjoyed having a parent there for most of the year.  She loved the pool this summer and keeps asking if we can go back to the spray park.  She has a great smile and knows exactly when to use it to her advantage.  She is learning how to get along while William and Caitlyn are at school, going to the park helps.  She waited very impatiently for her birthday but was happy it was on a Saturday because she got to eat cake on her birthday.

Bradley got to go to nursery at church the very first Sunday of the year.  It probably would have helped if he would have overlapped Britton a little.  He absolutely hated it for the first six months.  He has since decided that it is okay to go to nursery and actually asks to go.  This is good since the first little while was filled with tears, screaming, and Brandon spending a lot of time in nursery.  Bradley is definitely two and has figured out how to climb up on the counters to get things he wants.  Unfortunately he gets caught because he can't get down by himself.  He also thinks that he can do anything his siblings do and he has given up naps, mostly because he didn't wake up happy from naps and he wouldn't go to bed at night after naps.  He spends a lot of time giving loves to Grant.

Grant arrived right on time, a few days early would have been nice but he wasn't late.  He felt the need to surpass his siblings in weight and did it with style.  He is mostly happy, tolerates all the love for the most part, but really likes to be held.  He has a great smile and will sometimes giggle at the other kids.  He has been a great sleeper at night, a definite plus.

Our family has been very blessed this year.  We have definitely felt the love of our Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ.  We are so thankful for this time of year, a time to reflect upon that love.  We hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas season.