As most of you know we went from being a West Coast family to being an East Coast family. At the end of July we made the big drive from Las Vegas to our new home in Conyers, Georgia. That, in and of itself, was an adventure. We then have spent the past couple of months getting used to: a new community, ward, schools, stores, trees, bugs of all kinds, humidity, cold, and roads that go every direction and change names unexpectedly :-).
Our family has been extremely blessed this year and we are very grateful to have the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives and to be able to once again celebrate the birth of our Savior at this wonderful time of year.
We hope that this letter finds all of you happy and healthy, and we wish you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS from our family to yours!
Now here is what everyone has been waiting for.....the BRAG LETTER :-)!!
FRANK
Frank has not had much time for resting this year! After getting released as Bishop in January (after 5 1/2 years of service), he immediately got a promotion at work. For six months he jumped three time zones each week so he could work in Atlanta and then be home on the weekends (something he wouldn't recommend...it is rough on the body). Finally, the family was able to join him in July. He actually got a second promotion in May, which necessitated the move. He now serves as Chief of Staff for his IRS Division at the headquarters in downtown Atlanta. They keep him very busy...but he is loving it! In addition to keeping the kids entertained out in the woods behind our house, Frank currently also serves as the Ward Mission Leader.
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SHAYNE
Shayne has also been extremely busy this year. The first half of the year was pretty crazy trying to take care of 6 kids (without Frank’s patient disciplining skills around :-) while at the same time putting on Stake Girls’ Camp (which was the week before we left for Georgia, but it turned out to be a great experience!). The second half of the year was spent exploring a new world on the other side of the continent. Shayne currently volunteers at the elementary school and has two callings at church: Sunday School Teacher (14-16 year olds) and Wolf Den Leader. She also discovered blogging...her new creative outlet!!
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CODY - age 22 - at BYU
Cody is still at BYU working on his degree in Information Systems. Cody is an extremely hard-working young man. Not only is he taking a fully-loaded schedule at school, but he is also working 2 jobs at the same time (AND he does it all with a cheerful attitude!). Cody does database management for the David O. McKay School of Education, plus he has his own website creation/database management business on the side. He was honored recently when a department at BYU purchased a computer program from him that he had written. In spite of the hectic schedule, Cody manages to get excellent grades and has an academic scholarship from BYU.
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LIZ - age 16 - Sophomore
Liz is a Sophomore in High School this year...Heritage HS, that is. She left the Las Vegas HS Wildcats to take on new adventures across the country...never an easy feat for a teenager. It was difficult for her to leave all of her friends and establish new friendships...but she has done amazingly well and already has more friends than we can keep track of. Liz played on the JV Volleyball team and is active in Chorus at school. Liz also had some great milestones this year: she got braces, became old enough to drive, and old enough to date! And her parents got some gray hairs! :-) Liz is our resident vocalist and is often heard around the house singing.
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MEGAN - age 14 - 8th Grade
The move to Georgia has been a great one for Megan. She has really come into a new sense of self at her current Middle School. After just two months of being there, she was voted in as the Student Council President. Megan also has found a group of good friends that she enjoys hanging out with and recently had a wild sleepover for her birthday! :-) Megan is still getting straight A’s, is in all advanced classes and was recently accepted into the gifted program at school. Megan is a walking encyclopedia and is an avid collector of dictionaries! :-)
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MIKAYLA - age 12 - 7th Grade
Mikayla has matured a lot this year, and now that she is 12, she gets to go to Young Women activities with Megan and Liz. She’s also learning new beauty techniques from Liz—she’s got great hair that naturally falls in ringlets when it dries. But Mikayla is still our outdoor girl too. She loves to be out in the forest and was the first to spot the coyotes lurking around in the backyard. Mikayla is the most likely to be found out shooting baskets, going for a bike ride, or asking to ride the four-wheelers. She is the one in the family that loves animals the most.
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PJ - age 11 - 5th Grade
Earlier this year PJ got smacked in the face with a fast-pitch baseball...and had subsequent surgery. Ever since then, for some reason, he hasn’t been that into sports. He has really come into his own academically this year. He was recently accepted into the gifted program at school and has found great pleasure in getting straight A’s. PJ has also amazed us with his love for science this year. He had a great 4th grade teacher that helped him be excited about the sciences. For his 11th birthday, PJ wanted a microscope more than anything else. PJ no longer watches “kid fare” on TV, he ONLY watches the Science Channel & the Discovery Channel. PJ recently earned his Webelo & advanced to Boy Scouts, where he really enjoys the campouts.
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ASHLEY - Age 9 - 4th Grade
Ashley has made great strides academically this year. Ashley was awarded the “Most Improved Student Award” at the end of 3rd Grade and has already received the same award for the first quarter of 4th Grade. Ashley has an amazing attitude and tries hard at everything she does. She has really enjoyed our new yard where she can run and be free and have adventures in the forest. Ashley is our “Social Butterfly.” She can instantly find friends in any situation. She has no social fear and we all envy her abilities in that regard. As I’m writing this, we are awaiting the arrival of one of her church friends.
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DONOVAN - age 8 - 3rd Grade
Donovan is really enjoying school this year. He has a REALLY nice teacher, which makes him love going to school. He is doing so well that he was the “Stallion of the Month” for his class the first two months of 3rd Grade. Donovan is also enjoying the freedom of the forest and the adventures to be found there. However, he now has a little bit of apprehension going into the forest after he was stung multiple times by a swarm of yellow jackets (he and Ashley were digging a hole near their nest). Donovan is a master Lego-builder and our resident Wii expert.
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To find out what has been going on with our family all year, check out our family blog:
