Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
This year we decided to put our family letter on our blog. We thought this would be a good way to get all of our family and friends to visit our blog and receive updates all through the year and not just at Christmas!
We hope that you are all happy and well this year and are enjoying this wonderful season!
Our family has had a fun year. We have been able to take the kids on a couple of great vacations. This past summer we went to the Grand Canyon with another family. The kids enjoyed looking in the 'big hole' and Mike and his buddy Curt got to hike from top to bottom to top in one afternoon! This is Mike's 3rd time doing this! Each time he has had a to find a new rookie to take with him. No one seems to want to repeat it (except for Mike) once they have done it! In June we headed to Utah for our annual family reunion. While we are there we decided to take the kids to Zion's National Park and do some hiking. The kids sure enjoy the outdoors and we got some great pictures. In October we finally got the kids to San Diego to the beach. We had been promising the kids a trip to the beach since May of this year after they had such good report cards and we finally made it! We were lucky to have wonderful weather each day we were there. We stayed at a great hotel that was near the beach on one side and Mission Bay on the other. The kids enjoyed going back and forth depending on what type of water they wanted to play in. So, as you can see we have had a great year! The kids are growing up so much and are a lot of fun! We certainly can't complain!
Sawyer has had a wonderful year! He turned 5! My baby is all grown up! Sawyer has had a great year. He finished up preschool with his favorite teacher, Mrs. K and had to say goodbye to all his friends. I wasn't sure if he would like going to the 'big kid school' with the other kids because he is my shy little guy, but when he found out his teacher LOVES M&M's and has her room decorated with everything M&M's he was sold! Also, his best friend from preschool, Joey, would be moving on to kindergarten at the same school and class with him. He has done very well and is learning more every day. Sawyer does like school, but his favorite thing is to play with his buddies! His day is all about who he gets to play with today. He has the funnest little friends, Max, Joey and Xander, just to name a few!! He is all about 'his' friends!
Sadie had a big year! My little girl finished off the second grade with straight "A's" the whole school year! She has really picked up reading and I can't keep her stocked with books! She would stay up all night reading if I would let her! I finally had to get her reading the Narnia books because they are a bit longer and harder and she didn't finish a book in a day! She has already started the 3rd grade off with a bang! She has managed to keep her straight 'A' record going! She still loves school, but I think she has learned the social part of school is the best. She is turning into my little socialite! Sadie turned 8 this year and was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This was a very special day for her. She started the day off with her first Achievement Days Activity with all the girls ages 8-11 who go to church with us. They had a wonderful program and it made her feel very special and excited for many years of fun ahead. She has watched her brother in the scouting program and has been excited to do fun stuff with the girls. She is looking forward to when she is 12 and gets to go camping like the scouts get to. Sadie was blessed with lots of family being able to come down for her baptism. She is one loved little girl! Sadie also started taking piano lessons this year and is catching on quickly. I love to listen to her progress every week!
Stephen just doesn't stop growing! He is catching up to his mom every day! Stephen finished off the 5th grade just like Sadie, straight 'A's for the full year! Stephen turned 11 this past summer and moved on from cub scouts to boy scouts. I grew up with sisters and so I am new to the whole scout thing, but I love it! He has made some wonderful friends and had some great experiences. He has gone on a couple of camp outs already and is on his way to being a awesome scout! Stephen started the 6th grade this year and at first was sad that his friends all got a different class, but he ended up making a new friend and has enjoyed his 6th grade year so far. He has also continued his straight 'A' streak and we are very proud. 6th grade has been a new experience. They are preparing these kids for junior high. He seems a bit busier with homework, but is handling the pressure well. Stephen has continued with the piano and had the opportunity to play "Greensleeves" at the ward Christmas party this year. Stephen has sparked an interest in basketball this year, which is a perfect score for his height! I am hoping that we can get him involved in some organized basketball this next year. This past summer Stephen earned some money taking care of his friends dogs. He thought long and hard about what he wanted to spend it on. He decided on a gecko! I told him that was fine, but he would have to pay for everything, including the crickets he would need to buy to feed the gecko! He has had a great time with "Wiggles". I have been proud of the way he has taken on this responsibility. He even got my little sister interested and so she bought one and then Stephen educated her on what to do and not to do with geckos! This experience has been good for their relationship.
Stephen and Sadie also had the opportunity to perform in a community musical this year. Queen Creek has a Performing Arts Center that puts on a show for kids every year. This year they did "The Jungle Book". Some friends of the kids were in last years musical and had a blast, so they talked Stephen and Sadie into trying out. Stephen and Sadie were part of a villager tribe and had a good time. This experience brought back lots of memories for me and my years being involved with musicals in high school. I am glad that they get to have these experiences so early on in life.
I have had another busy year. I got to go with my best friend, Laura Bish, and our mom's on a cruise this year for our birthday get-a-way. Laura and I don't only share the same name, but we were both born in April. So, we try to get together once a year and celebrate. This year we decided to take our mom's along and try out a cruise. We had a great time! I have continued working at home doing medical transcription. This job continues to be a blessing. It is so nice to be able to help bring some money in, but still be at home with the kids. Throughout most of the year I was working in the Relief Society Presidency in our ward. I had a great time with this, but was released a few months ago. I had a few months without a calling at church and then just got called to work in the Primary with the 3 year olds. This year we lost my grandfather after a battle with cancer. This was a blessing for him, but it has been sad for those he left behind. Grandpa will truly be missed! Oh, I can't forget to tell you the most incredible thing I did this year and am still doing.....I STARTED RUNNING! Yes, that is correct, Laura is running! I ran my first 10K race in January of this year and did it without walking! I have been running with a good friend, Lori. Even through the hot summers in AZ we got up at 5 a.m. to run! Anyone who knows me well, knows that I do not like to get up early, but the bug hit me and I have really enjoyed this new adventure. I feel great when I get up and run and feel yucky when I can't get out. I have two races scheduled in the next couple of months. I am doing the same 10k that I did this year in January and I am hoping to beat my time. Then, a friend of mine decided to get a team of 12 people together to do a marathon relay, Ragnar. We will be running from Prescott, AZ to Mesa, AZ in a 24-hour period. This is about 194 miles long. We will each be running three different legs of the race to complete the 194 miles. I will be running a total of approximately 15 miles, broken up between three different legs of the race. I am excited, yet very overwhelmed! So, if you are in the area of Prescott or Mesa AZ on Feb. 28-29 then you should keep your eye out of me on the side of the road! (I might be dead!:)
Mike's year started off great. He had started working in the training department for Mesa Airlines in September of 2007, which meant he was home more and only worked 20 minutes from home. We were lucky to have him continue with the training department until October of this year when he had to go back to flying. He enjoyed the time he had in the training department because his schedule was much more flexible and he was able to be home with the family much more. It took the kids a little while to get used to daddy just going to work for the day and not for days at a time, but once they got used to that they loved it! When the news came that he would have to go back to flying we were all disappointed. Yet, we feel blessed that at least he has a job! One thing that was very nice while he was in the training department was that he got to be home most Sundays and so he was able to hold a calling at church. He worked in the Primary with the 6 year olds. I know at times this was challenging, but I also know he made some good friends with the people he worked with. Also, with more time at home he was able to do a few projects around the house. He took on the task of building cabinets for the garage. They look great and really helped organize the garage. He was just getting ready to start cabinets for the laundry room when he had to go back to flying, so once again the projects are on hold! He has also continued with his gardening projects around the yard. He has pretty much mastered the plants and flowers, but is still struggling with getting any food to grow to maturity. We thought we were going to have a watermelon this summer, but it stopped growing! I know this won't discourage him though! Mike also lost a grandparent this year. His PaPa Parr passed away this fall. He was able to go out to Virgina with his mom and sister and was able to spend some quality time with family he doesn't get to see very often. PaPa's passing was a celebration for him because he was able to be with his sweet wife once again!
As you can see, we are very blessed! The kids are growing and are healthy. Mike and I are healthy and both working. We have wonderful families and friends who love us all dearly. We have the gospel in our lives that helps bring peace and comfort at such a troubled time. We hope and pray that this next year will bring wonderful things to your lives.
We love you all,
Mike, Laura and kids
