25 December 2008

Merry Christmas!

Just in case you aren't on my address list, I thought I would share my Christmas letter with you! This is not our Christmas Card picture but I liked this one of us in our matching Christmas pjs on Christmas Eve (I'm sure I will share some of our other family pictures in the near future)! We had a great day and I enjoyed my birthday. I hope you and your family enjoyed celebrating Jesus' Birthday too!

Now for my letter:

Wow, it is already that time of year again when I attempt to take the business that is our lives and condense it all into a one page summary letter to you!

James keeps us on our toes. He has made quite the transformation this year from our baby to a very busy 19th month old boy. So you know, there is actually no such thing as childproofing for James because he is both fearless and curious. He says a few words like 'LOOK', 'TOUCHDOWN', and 'Nan Nan' (Kirstyn) along with the standard Mommy, Daddy, and Pappy. He also realizes that it is not necessary to say much else because he has sister to do that for him. We are all rather trained, because when he starts walking around the house shrugging his shoulders, whimpering, and smacking his lips we start to help him find his favorite thing...the pacifier!

Kirstyn has grown and matured this year so much. She turned 5 in November and celebrated with a My Little Pony roller skating party. She loves to spend time at the office 'working' on the computer playing Webkinz. In her Tuesday/Thursday pre-K class she is learning to read and she also loves to sing. She has learned her 10 Commandments, the 12 Disciples, and the 50 States in alphabetical order, along with being able to spell all of her colors, and all to song. During the first part of the year she stayed busy taking Ice Skating lessons and is now taking both gymnastics and dance (tap/ballet). She is a very giving child and loves to create us crafted presents. She has also embraced her role as big sister and is a great helper with James.

David has been extremely busy this year growing our business. The economy has been hard on us lately but we are looking hopefully toward the future as I know everyone is. He is a very involved Daddy and is able to drive Kirstyn to pre-K on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. They look forward to this time together singing and listening to music. He also trys to make sure he stops working from 6 to 7 every night so that we can have dinner as a family and he can do bath and bedtime with the kids. He often has evening appointments with clients and potential clients but he makes sure to schedule them around that important hour and I am very grateful for that. David just finished his 5th and final year on our church finance committee. He also attended his early Tuesday morning men's Bible Study again this year where they studied Exodus focusing on Leadership and a study called "Getting in the Game: Going from the Sidelines to Significance". This past fall our Sunday School class participated in a Bible study on integrity, and we were both able to serve as small group leaders.

I stay extremely busy with the kids doing playgroup and MOPS, but this year I have learned the importance of taking care of myself. One of the ways that I have done that is by joining a gym with a fabulous childcare program. I am able to take the kids to play while I spent at least an hour each day focusing on just me. I have also gotten very into blogging and have built a community of support around me of other moms from all over the country. It is a great creative outlet for me and is a great way to document the happenings around our house. Stop by and say hi at www.daviddickeyfamily.blogspot.com. I am still attending Weight Watchers and since I have added consistent exercise I am seeing results with my weight loss and I hope based on our picture you too can see that I am finally having some success and am getting healthy.

Speaking of getting healthy, during the first quarter of the year, we had to put tubes in both Kirstyn and James' ears. Kirstyn also had to have her tonsils and adenoids taken out. Since their surgeries, they have both been very healthy and we are so grateful for that. As a family we stayed busy all year using our Six Flags season passes. Kirstyn loves to ride the big roller coasters with her daddy. James likes talking to the characters like Scooby Doo and Sylvester so imagine our surprise when Santa terrified him! This summer we also went on our yearly vacation to the beach with my mom and dad (DeeDee and Pappy) and had a great time playing in the ocean.

As I type this letter, David and I are enjoying some alone time at home because for our 30th birthdays (David 12/20 and mine 12/25) DeeDee and Pappy have both James and Kirstyn for 5 days and 4 nights on the farm. Mom and Dad will be bringing them home on Christmas Eve and will be here to celebrate my Birthday and Christmas. Neida, Paul, Logan, and Bryton will also be coming to our house for Christmas dinner and my Birthday celebration. I am looking forward to us all being together for presents and a steak and shrimp feast!

We pray that you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

sign

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I WAS just going to read this through my reader since I'm so behind on my blog reads, but I couldn't resist popping through just because you all are so cute in your matching PJs! :) I hope your day was merry and bright. Hugs to you and yours! :)

Christina said...

you guys are adorable in your matching pjs! So fun to read about your year all at once.

sassy stephanie said...

Oh I love love love your PJ pic and that you posted your Christmas letter. What a great idea!!

My six yr old loves to roller skate too!

Laurens_Closet said...

HELLO! I just found your blog from another blog where you had posted... (in other words, I need to get off the computer & feed my kids their breakfast.) And I had to tell you- WOW! I saw your "little black dress" pic & to think you've lost over 70 pounds~ that's AMAZING! You're an inspiration to ME as I need to lose about another 35. I've lost 52 but it's something to see what another 30ish can look like!

Take care & keep on doing it!

Amy

hippos toes said...

What a great pic of your family!! My little guy will be 2 in Feb and he does the smacking and starts saying "PC" (not sure why we called it that), for his pacifier. Thinking we might have to break the habit but not sure when..... :) Happy New Year to you and your family!

Kamis Khlopchyk said...

Love the pj's!!! I have always wanted matching for all 4 of us but have never found them :-)

Thanks for sharing your letter, it was fantastic.

And Happy belated Birthday!

Cynthia said...

Cute jammies! Hope you had a great Christmas:)

Candace MacPherson said...

Now where oh where did you find 4 matching pj's. Love them.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Anonymous said...

What an adorable picture. So sweet!

P.S. thank you so much for the prayers! Thank you a million times over!

Unknown said...

awe, i love the matching jammies! too cute!

Crystal Rae said...

That is so stinkin cute, you all have matching PJ's.