Well the Chrismtas letter made it as far as the desktop this year...We are alive and well!
We have now been in Iowa a whole year and have adjusted back to our roots (and the weather)!
The
seasons are beautiful and we are looking forward to this Christmas
Season and snow.
We
are still working on the house (slowly). We now have all functioning
bathrooms, 90% of the interior painted and the retaining wall rebuilt.
In August we went on a week “camping” trip (we stayed at a KOA with a
water park and pizza place) at Mt Rushmore. On our way home we camped
in Badlands National Park and were lucky to catch the annual astronomy
symposium and toured the missile silo bunker. The stars were beautiful,
as was the weather and no cell phone service.
Over
the summer had a community garden plot at the local park. We met lots
of people and carried hundreds of gallons of water by bucket because of
the drought. In the end had a productive garden (and good looking
arms). We did several one-night camping trips in and around Cedar
Rapids. Emmaly & Jared did their annual canoe trip on Turkey River
in NE Iowa... at the end of of drought...we ended up walking next to our
canoe for three hours, but enjoyed some kid-free time.
Jared:
Jared
continues to work at Rockwell-Collins under the government division.
Last spring he spent a several weeks (months?) in Virginia for work.
We are happy to have him back in Iowa again. In March Jared was called
as a Bishop at church, it flipped our lives upside down for the first
few months, but we have learned to prioritize and enjoy serving the
people in Cedar Rapids. In what little free time he has Jared enjoys
spending time with the youth at church and at home with the kids.
Emmaly:
Emmaly
is finding a bit of new freedom with only one at home. She started
working at the local YMCA this fall teaching a youth fit class. They
gave her a room full of preteens and a whistle, what more could a woman
ask for? She also became a trainer for the LIVESTRONG cancer
rehabilitation program through the Y and is excited to see it launch
this winter. Em ran her first sprint triathlon this summer and lived
to see the finish line.
Erin (8):
Erin
was baptized on her eighth birthday in November and we enjoyed the day
with lots of family and friends. She is active in Girl Scouts, is on
the Junior Skippers jump rope team and loves the second grade! Last
spring she ran track through the “Y” and long jumped 9’4” leading the
women's division. She loves to dance and sing and enjoys reading.
Eliza (5):
Eliza
started all day kindergarten this fall and also loves it! I hear that
she is perfectly behaved at school. Eliza was in gymnastic last spring
and played t-ball over the summer. She kept with the boys pretty well.
Eliza enjoys harassing her little brother and drawing.
Isaac (3):
Ike
is into trucks and planes. He joined Mighty Mites at the “Y” and has
enjoyed getting to know other kids his age. His favorite thing to do is
go to Aldi’s grocery store. He is VERY talkative and is an
entertaining little guy.
We
wish you all the best during this Christmas Season. May your find
great blessings in your life as you celebrate and reflect on the birth
of our Savior, Jesus Christ!
