Merry Christmas 2013

Hello loved ones, near and far! We send you Christmas Greetings, and wish you a Happy New Year. Here’s what’s been going on in our family this year.

The first big news that many of you may already know, is that we are expecting BOY NUMBER SEVEN! He is due on March 1st, and his big brothers are very excited to welcome him into the family. Mom is trying to hold back time and enjoy getting done what she can before baby arrives. But the uncomfortable last days of pregnancy will surely change that soon enough, and we’ll be counting down the days!

Bentley

Bentley (3 ½) is our talkative, adventurous boy! When he talks, he wants to get out everything in his mind without interruption, and with a stomp of his foot and some stuttering, will start over if necessary. He loves to giggle away his bumps and falls and is all boy with running, jumping, throwing and even head-ramming (right into mom!). We’ve learned through sad experience that if Bentley does not get all his boy energy out during the day, it will come out at night, sometimes in the form of way-too-late nights. Mom is usually his playground, while she’s “trying” to sleep - she’s his centerpoint for teeter-totter, her legs are the slide, and any part of her he can balance on is his jump-off point. The giggles are priceless!

Michael

Michael (7) is into science experimenting, reading, and writing. His birthday party this year was a Mad Science party with a lot of fun experiments. He continues to write great stories with a lot of personality in them. His turtles are growing (!) and he loves to talk to them, “show” them things, feed them, and inform mom of their latest habits and activity. Last Christmas day, he sadly awakened his parents to inform them that he “knew what Santa was going to bring him” - a new turtle, because one of his turtles had died that very morning! Fortunately, he bucked up about it real grown-up like, and is happy with the two that are doing well. Michael is taking piano lessons, and took some tennis lessons this fall. He is looking forward to being baptized next year!

Seth

Seth (9 ½) is doing so well in 4th grade. He takes responsibility for his work and projects, and is always eager to “get his stuff done” so he can be free! Soccer is still his FAVORITE sport, and he is so sad when the seasons end. He played both Spring and Fall this year; his best positions are defender and goalie - many games were saved by Seth’s efforts! He continues to do well in piano, and is also on target in cub scouts. Chess is also a favorite - he’s always looking for someone new to beat, and he’s looking forward to being in chess club at the elementary school at the beginning of next year with his mom. Seth’s contagious smile and laugh are a joy to have around!

Jordan

Jordan (12) is now a Deacon in the Priesthood and passes the sacrament every week that we’re on time to church! He is also serving in the Deacon’s Quorum Presidency and fulfills his responsibilities with honor. He is doing really well in Scouting - he’s earned enough merit badges to be a Star Rank or beyond - he’s just working on the last few First Class requirements so he can move on. He attended Scout Camp for the first time and earned 5 merit badges, 4 of them required ones! He also took a few horseback riding lessons over the summer. Jordan did something this fall that no one else in the family has done yet - he was in a musical at the middle school! He played the part of Ado Annie’s father in “Oklahoma!” The music and his singing has been filling the home for the last several weeks. He also continues to play the cello in orchestra, and the piano at home and orchestra. His music reading skills are really taking off!

Chandler

Chandler (14 ½) is a Teacher in the Priesthood now, and this summer enjoyed youth conference, EFY, and youth dances for the first time! He also went on a high adventure camp to Pictured Rocks with Andrew and his cousin Adam. They biked, hiked, and kayaked all over. The week preceding that, he and Andrew went on a difficult hiking expedition at Philmont, where he ascended from 6,000 to 12,000 feet in just a few days. It was a busy summer! Chandler has also completed his Eagle Project and is working on the last couple merit badges - we will be having a court of honor for him in the very near future! He continues to enjoy piano on the side, but is focusing his efforts on the cello in the high school orchestra. He is also on the high school swim team, and has been faithfully arising for 6am seminary every day! Believe it or not, his grades are still near perfect. He is living his freshman year to it’s fullest!

Andrew

Andrew (almost 17) is a Priest at church, and blesses the sacrament nearly every week. He is also licensed to drive! What a relief this is for mom - he drives himself and Chandler to seminary, then the seminary kids to school, home from school or swim practices, to swim meets and so on! Mom has so much free time now! - well, at least a little more. Andrew also went to youth conference, Philmont, Pictured Rocks, and EFY. This year they attended EFY in Provo. It was an awesome experience - one they both want to repeat every year if possible! Andrew continues to play the cello in the high school Philharmonic Orchestra, and is on the swim team again. The days are long during swim season, with early morning seminary and swim practice after school. But Andrew is dedicated and is still excelling in his grades, even with AP English on the roster this year (definitely not his favorite subject, but he’s doing well!). He’s looking forward to having one or two AP Science classes next year instead - science is still his favorite! We are trying to enjoy these last couple years with Andrew before he goes on his mission - but time is flying too fast!

Greg continues to serve as Stake YM President. He participated as Scribe at Woodbadge this year - it was quite the dedication of time. He also continues to be the inventive breadwinner at IBM (over 300 patents!), and still manages to be an awesome father and husband. There are many nights he is up late cleaning the kitchen so Sherie can have a clean start in the morning.

Sherie continues to serve in the RS Presidency. She got to attend her scrapbooking retreat in the fall again. She is enjoying her second trimester, is grateful that the first wasn’t as bad as it could have been, and is gearing up for the third. She is truly grateful for the opportunity to have another child come into the family! Some days, it seems crazy and impossible, but with the Lord’s help, she somehow makes it through each day.

Our family did receive some sad news this summer. Sherie’s brother, Dan, passed away from a brain tumor in late June. She was grateful she had the opportunity to see him one last time in early June, while he was still able to communicate - though it was limited, there were some special moments exchanged that she will treasure. She was grateful to be able to fly out for the funeral just days before Philmont started.

The family had a very busy summer. We were blessed to enjoy a lot of great trips. We started with a Memorial Day weekend getaway to Mackinaw City and Island with our good friends the Merkleys. As mentioned previously, Greg, Andrew and Chandler spent a couple of days near the Detroit temple for youth conference, then the family had the opportunity to attend Philmont in New Mexico. This is the largest Boy Scout Ranch in the world (around 100,000 acres!) and is used by boys and leaders for high adventures, training, and so on. The LDS church uses it two weeks out of the year to do LDS-Scouting specific leadership training. The whole family is invited and everyone gets to do fun activities with kids their age. This year was special - it was the 100 year anniversary of the LDS-BSA relationship, 75 year anniversary of Philmont, and 50 year anniversary of LDS-Philmont training! Andrew and Chandler separated from us the first day and went on a week-long backpacking trip in the mountains, while the rest of us enjoyed the training, classes, and activities. It was an unforgettable week!

The family also got to go to Utah in August. Andrew and Chandler flew out early to attend EFY, while Jordan was at scout camp, then the rest of us drove out. We stayed with family for 10 days and enjoyed seeing friends and family. Then we went to Aspen Grove Family Camp for a week-long reunion with Greg’s side of the family. It was a blast!

We send our love to each of you, near and far! Know that you are in our hearts, thoughts and prayers, even when our face to face time is few and far between!

Love,

Greg, Sherie, Andrew, Chandler, Jordan, Seth, Michael, Bentley, and Number Seven!

The family at Aspen Grove