Merry Christmas 2009!

Dear Loved Ones Near and Far,

We send you our love and greetings this beautiful time of year again. We have so much to be grateful for, including the wonderful family and friends that we are blessed with. We hope this letter finds you enjoying the season.

This year has been busy, but wonderful. We have settled nicely into our new home here in Saginaw, Michigan, and are very happy. Greg and I celebrated 15 years of marriage this year by spending a few days in New York City in the spring. Our family also had a blast returning to Utah for a couple weeks over the summer. It was so good to renew relationships with our loved ones there.

Andrew (almost 13) is turning into a man at our house. He shows great responsibility in his schoolwork, in arising on his own every morning to practice the cello, and always getting his jobs done as early as possible so he can be “free!” He participated in Lego League these last few months, an after-school club where the kids build a robot using Lego Mindstorm, and then participate in a competition at the local college. Although he loves swimming and building legos, he most looks forward to anytime he can play Starcraft with his brothers and Dad!

Chandler (10 ½) is a great worker. I can always depend on Chandler to do a careful job of whatever I ask of him. He is doing very well in school, with math still his strongest subject. He has become an amazing reader this year; he has read the entire Harry Potter series in just 3 months. Chandler also participated in Lego League at his school, is a great basketball player, and is also enjoying Chess Club right now. In his free time, he can be found reading, jumping on the trampoline even in the cold, or playing Starcraft with Andrew.

Jordan (8) was baptized this year! We are so proud of him. He was very excited to get glasses just a month ago, and was shocked at how much he was missing without them! Jordan continues to excel in school - he is a great writer, and still LOVES to read. We will bring 30 or so books home from the library, and he will have read and often re-read many of them by the time they are due. Jordan enjoyed going to Scrabble club this year, and is now going to Chess Club with Chandler. He also played soccer this fall after a few years’ break, and found that not only does he love it, but he is very good! Jordan loves organizing his Pokemon figures, building legos and bionicles, and outdoor adventures with his brothers.

Seth (5 ½) is in Kindergarten and belongs there! He started the whole school routine without a hitch, and he loves it! He’s already reading, knows his math, and just struggles a bit with shyness, which is somewhat of a surprise, considering what a happy boisterous tike he is at home. He is a great buddy for Michael at home, and also loves his swimming lessons. He continued to play soccer again, and does pretty well when he focuses! Seth loves to play Chess with Mom– he does pretty good! It takes some patience on Mom’s part, since he’s more interested in how many pieces he can “kill” rather than actually ending the game with a checkmate!

Michael (3) is such a fun buddy for Mom now that all his brothers are in school all day! She really wondered if it would be hard or lonely for him, but he seems to enjoy the solitude as much as her. He loves choo choo trains, Go Diego Go, and building the marble run toy. He has a bit of stutter, just the kind where you know his mind is going faster than his mouth can keep up. It’s really cute. He makes very astute observations about the world around him, and it’s a blast having conversations with him. We love our little Michael!

Sherie is loving her calling as Primary Chorister. It has been fun to be in the Primary again with her kids, and she’s had a lot of fun teaching and learning from all the children. She has bittersweet feelings about how quickly her boys are growing up; she cherishes little Michael all the more because of it! But she’s so grateful for her bigger boys that are such a help to her as well!

Greg has travelled with his work this year more than any other year. He has been to Australia a few times, Singapore, and of course from one coast to the other here in the states. We are so grateful for his employment and that he works so hard for this family. He continues to serve in the bishopric in the Saginaw Ward, and is a wonderful husband and father!

We love you, and miss those of you that live far. We look forward to the cards and letters we get from each of you. Thank you!

Love,
The Greg Boss Family
Greg, Sherie, Andrew, Chandler, Jordan, Seth, and Michael

P.S. Oh, and by the way, some great news!

July 19, 2010!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Greg Boss Family!

Seasons Greetings!! We are happy to give our love and report to our friends near and far. For those who haven’t heard, we hail from Saginaw, Michigan now! We have just settled into our new home this last month. Our new address and phone number is:

4344 Maple Woods Dr W
Saginaw, MI 48603
989-607-9157

Our family has had a great 2008. We enjoyed two great family vacations before the upheaval of moving came along. We went to Disneyland and Seaworld in April, and came to visit family in Michigan at the end of school in May. It was during our visit there that the idea of moving began to evolve. After some careful consideration and heartfelt prayers, we felt impressed that Saginaw, Michigan was the place our family was supposed to be. Due to the slow housing market, it took some time for it all to take place, but we have now settled into a beautiful home just 5 minutes from Greg’s parents, and a few minutes from his brother and family. We’re having a great time here!

Andrew (almost 12) enjoyed some karate lessons earlier in the year, but his favorite sport is still swimming. He has recently begun taking cello lessons from his Mom, and is participating in the middle school orchestra. Andrew loves to play his Nintendo DS and does well at arising early so he can get his jobs done before school. He is preparing to receive the priesthood and become a deacon in the young mens’ organization. Middle school has been an eventful change for Andrew, but he’s been a real trooper through all of it. One morning when he was complaining about the long school day, Mom reminded him that this was just the beginning of the rest of his life, and that when he was grown up, he’d work even longer hours, to which his response was: “But at least then, I’ll be able to stay home!” Oh, his mom had some sad news for him! We’re afraid our boys have had a slightly warped sense of adulthood seeing their father work from home all these years! Andrew’s been a great help to his mom through this move, helping out with his younger siblings, and doing extra work around the house as well. We are grateful for Andrew!

Chandler (9 ½) also took karate this year, and continues to take piano lessons from his mom. Chandler was accepted into the advanced placement program at his school and is doing very well. Math continues to be his academic strength. He tries his best to get his homework done quickly so he can earn time on his Nintendo DS. Chandler also loves swimming, but likes basketball equally well, and is looking forward to playing this next month. He was one of the first to discover the great tree-climbing opportunity that our back yard provides. Even the cold weather didn’t stop him! Chandler gave us a chuckle the other day when he informed his dad that he hated olives, and that his dad probably couldn’t guess his favorite part of the cheese rolls that we make each year at Christmas. After his dad failed to guess by listing every possible ingredient, Chandler finally exclaimed, “it’s these little black things!” He was quite surprised to learn that they were olives! Chandler continues to make his brothers laugh, and has an easy going attitude about life that has helped our family in our big transition this year.

Jordan (7) was also accepted in the advanced placement program at school, and continues to shine academically. He still enjoys homework, and loves to make coloring, cut and paste/tape projects on his own initiative. He likes taking care of his stuffed animal collection, and building various things for them. He also loves to write very sweet notes, and he has already written Santa a couple of well-thought-out letters. In his first letter, he asked for 15 pairs of pajamas (listing exactly which kind), but then wrote a second letter letting Santa know that it would be alright if Santa just gave him 5 pairs for the next 3 years. Jordan has great initiative and a bright mind. He brings good order to our family, and keeps us all in line.

Seth (4 ½) is all about fun. He still thinks everything is funny, and it adds a great element to our family. Seth got glasses this year, and may need to patch his right eye next year because he apparently isn’t using it. He is even more darling with glasses. Seth loves to ask me how to spell words so he can write them, and loves throwing dice so he can add the numbers together. He continues to be musically inclined, and still goes to sleep with his play piano. He is also an amazing DDR master! Seth says some funny things sometimes – the other day, when Andrew kept repeating something over and over, Seth complained that Andrew was hurting his ear’s feelings. We love having Seth around to make us laugh!

Michael (2) is either a fifth child that thinks he should be able to do whatever his older brothers do, or just much too adventurous. He definitely has had the most injuries of any of our children at this age, but thankfully, he is amazingly “tough.” He broke his femur in May (fell at a playground) and was in a body cast for 6 weeks. He also gets bloody noses more than any of the boys (basically by face-planting into walls, or tripping), and he broke one of his fingers last year. But our Michael is so much fun. He loves choo-choo trains, cars, and airplanes, especially if there are remotes or buttons involved. He wants to do everything himself, and Mom gets to practice patience every day. His favorite phrase is “Go back!” and “Wait!” He calls this out as we descend the stairs, and if Mom gets ahead, it’s “Wait! Go back!” until we’re holding hands and in lockstep together. At bedtime, when we near the end of the book, he’s saying, “Go back! Go back!” until we’re at the beginning of the book again. Such a tricky little boy! We love that Michael brings adventure to the family.

Sherie is glad to be settled into our new home, and no longer in-between. Although it was sad to leave her family and friends behind in Utah, she is looking forward to the adventures of living here in Saginaw. She is trying to remember what she has done this year besides de-junk, pack, unpack and sleep. She did manage to do some decorating this year, which she loves (some remodeling of the bathrooms in the old home, and painting the master bedroom in our new home). She is enjoying giving Andrew cello lessons, and can’t wait to rediscover her other hobbies this next year.

Greg still works from home for IBM, which is of course why we had the choice to move. Greg was released from the bishopric a couple months before we moved, and many joked with him that we were moving so he could get out of the calling. Well, believe it or not, Greg was just called into the bishopric here in Michigan (1st counselor again). An amazing coincidence – I guess you really can’t move to get out of a calling! Greg continues to be an outstanding father, and currently holds the title of Dishes Coach – each boy takes a turn each night to take on the dishes with their dad while Mom wrestles the other boys into their baths and showers.

Our family got a puppy for Christmas last year. Her name is Ellie, and she has been a great addition to our family. It’s been fun for us to spoil a “girl” and there’s no doubt that Dad is her favorite. She greets the boys with lots of love when they come home from school, and they take turns sleeping with her each night. She’s a great dog!

We send our love, and are grateful for the association, friendship, and love we share with each of you. We miss each one of you that we don’t get to see often, but know that we think about you frequently. We love you!

Love,
Greg, Sherie, Andrew, Chandler,
Jordan, Seth and Michael