December 2010 Christmas letter

As I look back over 2010, I am continually amazed at God's provision for us, His awesome attention to detail and His protection. I pray you've experienced this yourself because, I gotta say, life is pretty dull/sterile/hopeless without Jesus!

Here are synopses of our lives:

Nate - started cooperative preschool AND hockey this year! He attends ParentShare Preschool three days per week and calls it is "real school" as opposed to MouseTrap daycare where he attends whenever I'm working. He is growing like a weed, both height-wise and verbally. At four, he's in the embarrassing statement phase of life - one that's great for stories but produces cringes for everyone else at the time. My most memorable anecdote this year: At the fair, we were sitting in a crowded area eating dinner. He points out the woman right behind him - less than 5 inches - and says, "Mommy, look at her hair." This woman has a long braid hanging down her back. I say, 'Yes, isn't she pretty?" He says - "Yeah, and she has a REALLY BIG bottom."

Mary Grace - turned 11 this year. She is in fifth grade at Academy Charter School, taking piano lessons, played basketball and participated in robotics this season. She is busy raising money with her Girl Scout troop to take a California trip next May and walk the Golden Gate Bridge with 3000 other scouts. She's as tall as I am - finally - and a huge help with her little brother. Her favorite thing this year was our big family vacation and the fact that we added a kitten to our household this fall.

Luke - is going on 15. He ended 8th grade with a class trip to Washington DC and started high school this year. He has adjusted well to the idea of permanent grades, deadlines and endless hockey practices. He's a swing player on JV and varsity hockey, and also ran both JV and varsity cross country. He's a member of Mat-Su Youth Court, where teens learn the law by acting as prosecutors/defense attorneys and judges for their peers who have pled guilty to misdemenors. His least favorite thing about this year was the loss of his beloved cat/best buddy, Casey, who disappeared last August.

Roger - turned 40 and had THREE separate parties to celebrate this fact. He continues to travel about half the year all over the world, to Belgium, S. Korea, China, Ethopia and Dubai. After three years, we've found peace despite his frequent absences and he does love his job. He also likes staying home when he has time off, but was a good sport for a five-week, multi-state/Canada vacation in June. We visited family in several states, spent a week in NYC before heading up to Nova Scotia. It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime family trips.

Me - cannot believe I'm almost 30! Ha. I'm on my next-to-last class to finish up my master's degree. After much prayer, I decided to take another year to finish graduate school before Nate started kindergarten. I've been substituting long- and short-term, and teach a Wednesday night class to 5-6 year-olds at church. While full-time teaching is the eventual goal, I'm willing to wait for the right time. It is a trick negotiating solo parenting with full-time work and extremely busy kids.

We look forward to hearing from you all - my new email is rewrighter@gmail.com. If you have yet to visit Alaska, come on up! We promise fishing, four-wheeling, mountain hiking and glacier-visiting. May God bless you in 2011.