Dear friends and family, this year I did not send out Christmas cards. It seemed like the days were rushing by too fast and I was just too busy and instead of getting stressed out about it I thought I'd just post a greeting on my blog. Besides, I can update you on our lives a little better here instead of with a Christmas card with a photo or two.
Two thousand eight has been quite an eventful year for our family. Brooke started 1st grade at Franklin Elementary School and when we arrived at her classroom open house we realized that she would have more than one teacher this year being that her teacher, Mrs. McDonald was very pregnant. We, well really I, was concerned about Brooke having such an interruption in her education. However, when the time came in the beginning of October for the interim teacher we were so blessed with a wonderful woman who has been just an amazing teacher. (It is quite interesting that Mrs. Miller, the interim, is getting her Master's degree at Trevecca.) I am blessed that I am able to be involved in Brooke's school as her Room Mom. The kids have gotten to know Dale and I as we go into the classroom to work and help out.
Brooke has grown into a tender-hearted and compassionate young lady and we are so very proud of her. She was in gymnastics in the spring and soccer in the fall and she is growing into a very athletic girl. We are just waiting for something to really spark her interest to find what sport she will stick with.
Connor has really grown and matured this year. He is such a sweet and quiet boy but he has a twinkle in his eye that lights up a room and his laugh is worth a million dollars! If you ask Connor what he wants to be when he grows up more than likely he'll tell you that he wants to be an artist like Uncle BB (Randy). We are amazed at his drawing and coloring abilities. He is so careful and precise and he can spend an hour coloring in the ear or eye of an animal! Connor has also taught himself to write his ABCs. He asked me to write them down for him and he quite frequently we'll find him practicing his writing. Connor will start kindergarten this fall and I'm already feeling very anxious and sad about letting him go! Maybe he should wait until he's six?!? :) Connor also played soccer this fall and I volunteered Dale to be his coach. Dale did such a wonderful job with the boys and it was so much fun watching him teach Connor a sport.
Liam just turned three in November and he has more energy than the rest of the family combined! Liam has the bulk of the personality in our family as well! He is a little clown and is just adorable all the way around - even when he is being naughty. He has always had quite the vocabulary and he expresses himself so well. We always get a good chuckle when we talk to him. Liam and Connor are such great playmates while Sissie is at school. Pretty soon he'll be my only one at home.
I am realizing that my children are just growing up too fast! Not long ago it seemed like they'd all be home with me forever, but such is not the case as many as you know. I am reminded every day that this season of my life truly is fleeting and that I need to treasure and savor all the "every-day" moments because all too soon this will be gone.
Dale has been busy this year but that is nothing new! The church is flourishing and we are so blessed to be on staff with such wonderful friends and co-pastors. We leave tomorrow night with our youth group for a 10 day work and witness trip to Puerto Rico. We are going with Pastor JP and Traci to help with the Nazarene church in Caguas. We are quite excited for this opportunity to get to know the youth better since we don't really get to be around them that much. I, however, am a little anxious about leaving my children for that long! Dale's parents will be here for a couple days and then Grammy will be here for the remainder of the time and so the kids are sure to have a wonderful time!
Our next big trip is in February when we go to Israel for almost two weeks. Dale and I are truly blessed that we get to go on this trip for a 2nd time. The first time we went was in our first year of marriage and it was a completely overwhelming experience. I am hoping to soak in even more than I did the last time. Thankfully, I have a much better camera with which to document the whole experience. Pastor Henecke and Dale are leading this trip and I am so excited that my mom, Judy (my sister-in-law), and Jen Jones (my good friend) will all be going! Once again, I'm a little anxious about leaving the children for that long but I know that they will be in the care of the Heavenly Father.
Well, as for me, it seems that the end of the year has really cranked up my busyness meter! This fall I decided it was time to prepare for the time when my husband would boot me back into the workforce (once Liam was in Kindergarten). I know that is several years down the road but I decided if I didn't want to go job hunting I better find something that I really enjoy doing and start doing it soon so that by the time Liam was in school I'd be making enough money to justify working from home. Since I love scrapbooking and graphic design I decided that I would start my own album design business. So, I set up a website and I have done a couple albums for people. More exciting than that though is that I was contacted by ScrappersGuide.com (the website from which I taught myself to use Photoshop to do digital scrapbooking) asking me to teach some online courses for them. I have been feverishly preparing curriculum for a 4 week class that I'll be teaching once a month (or more) beginning in March once all my travels are through! I am continually amazed at God's goodness towards me. I have prayed about finding work I could do at home (and work that I would enjoy) and I believe this is a blessing from God!
In additional to my personal work I am still leading our MOMents group at church which is the group for moms of preschoolers. I am so blessed to be able to work with wonderful ladies who inspire me to be a better mom than I am. We all are able to share in our motherhood journeys and we are a source of encouragement to each other.
Well, as you can see, 2009 promises to be an exciting and full year! We pray that God will be glorified through our lives and that we will continue to grow as a family in his goodness and grace. Our prayer for you, our family and friends, is that God will bless your homes and that whatever this year may bring that you will feel God's presence in your lives.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Dale, Amy, Brooke, Connor and Liam
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