Merry Christmas 2012

December is here again!

Once again December has rolled around before we knew it.  And once again it has been a wild and crazy year for our clan.  Of course our Decembers have been bitter sweet since Wendy’s death 20 years ago, but God gives us strength and joy in the midst of our grief.

I mentioned last year that Mom’s doctors did not think she had much more time on earth.  She did make it through Christmas.  Bri and Bridget drove up to my sisters house on Christmas Eve.  They had made a few turn arounds to drive around closed roads because of snowstorms, so the trip from Santa Barbara was longer than they expected. They visited some that night and some on Christmas day then drove on to Norman to visit with Libby.  They were still at Libby’s on the 29th, when we all got the news that their Nonny had passed away. We had a wonderful service for her in her Methodist Church in Channing on January 3, with the Baptist preacher presiding. Our cousin Jim (Booger) Skelton did a wonderful job of telling the story of her family and her life. Her kids and grandkids are still missing her and now Facebook is filling up with pictures from her many photo albums. This picture is one none of us had ever seen, but she told Sandy about it, so when Sandy was looking for a picture for the funeral brochure, she ran across it with the title “Me with my big ole feet sticking out.” It just had to be the one to use.                                                                                                                                                                       Terry and I did make it to Otis Spears’ 98th birthday last year.  We had hopes of making it for his 99th this Saturday, the 8th, but Terry burned his hand pretty bad the other morning so now he has to have therapy called debridement thru next Wednesday. So I guess we will have to go later. Here is a picture of Otis last year. Not bad, huh?  

The grandkids pictured above are growing and going in all directions. 

Libby’s Family  All but Cohen are certified in Scuba.  He will be too when he gets to be old enough.   Pacey entered middle school this year, so Cohen is the only one in elementary school now. He is a second grader already.  He had a bad morning last February. The family dog at his Dad’s house decided to take a chunk out of his leg. He ended up missing about 6 weeks of school to allow his skin graft to heal. His teacher came to Libby’s house a couple of days a week to keep him caught up on his school work. All four sets of grandparents got to trade off in keeping Cohen occupied (and try to keep Mr. ADD off his feet) while parents went to work. He does have ADD, but the side effects of the meds were worse than the ADD.  Other methods of dealing with it will have to be employed. He got to go back to school about April 2nd, but did not get to go back to playing soccer until this fall. He has a pretty ugly scar, but it could have been so much worse, and it seems that scars are cool amongst boys.                                                                                                Pacey is a girl after Grammy’s heart because she chose the flute as her instrument for the school band. She has started running in cross country as her sport, and really loves it.  She loves those 5 K runs. She is still the one of the most organized and focused kids I know.                       Tyler is in high school and seems to be adapting well.  Seems it was just yesterday he was a little boy and now here he is planning where to go to college and deciding what kind of engineering he wants to study.                           

Leah is an eighth grader, so I guess there will be two in high school next year. She is doing really well including some AP classes in math. She plays ice hockey, for real!

Heather’s daughter Cameron stuck with it at the International Baccalaureate school in Orlando. She plays the clarinet like her Grandpa and Aunt Libby. She does excellent work for the most part, but with her ADHD she needs help remembering what her assignments are and needs a lot of encouragement (nagging?) to get them done. She even had several projects to do over the summer.  She has a lot of musical talent and loves all things musical, so her mom and dad have her enrolled in a music school where she plays piano, and guitar as well as sings.

Bri and Bridget

Remember how Bri took a cut in pay last year to take a full time job at maps.com and dropped her other job that paid well? It looks like that move is paying off. Her new title at the beginning of the new year: GIS Cartographer, Production Specialist. She came home for her 10-year class reunion this summer.  I cannot believe it has been that long! Bridget just received her Masters degree and is well on her way to the Doctorate. Bri and Bridget are still enjoying Santa Barbara and will use this Christmas holiday to go to Maui while they are still on the west coast and the tickets are cheaper than flying home. I’m hoping they will stay in California long enough for us to get at least one more visit out there.

Our Travels

This year we made several trips. Our trip to Orlando for Christmas last year went really well.  We were ahead of the storms all the way there and back. It was pretty foggy the morning we left Mobile, but I think that happens there a lot.   We went to England, Scotland and Wales in April. We had very nice weather.  Of course it rained some, but we had sunshine too. I wanted to spend more time in Wales since some of my ancestors were chased out of there for being in Cromwell’s army.  Anyway all of the British Isles are beautiful!

This fall we went with a group on a coach (I always want to say bus.) We rode across Tennessee at just the right time to see all those beautiful fall colors. We stopped in Memphis coming and going to see Beale Street, Graceland, Mud Island, and as the picture shows, the grounds of St. Jude’s children’s hospital. 

We stayed in Gatlinburg, were entertained several times in Pigeon Forge and visited the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina for a whole day, and still did not see it all.Terry did sign up for another year of working for UOP full time.  He says he will really retire this year, but who knows? I think he hates to lose that connection with people that speak engineering.  Terry and I stay busy with our various organizations.  I also became a regular member of a bunco group I had been subbing for.  It is a fun evening once a month with a fun group of ladies. I’m trying to find ways to lighten my load for League of Women Voters. This election year really was busy for me. My joining Terry at the YMCA for exercise has turned out to be a good move. I haven’t lost any weight, but I think my stamina has improved.  I don’t have to rest quite as long between laps in swimming and am able to do 1.6 miles in 23 minutes on the elliptical without stirring up sciatica pains.Usually I try to write a little bit about what I have learned in my Bible studies for the year and usually try to pick a theme of some Christmas words such as peace, joy, hope, rejoice, etc.  Last year I mixed in the word “trust” even though it may not be too Christmasy.  I found that this year has had me returning more and more to that word and idea of “trust.”  Our women’s Bible study group has been studying the life of Moses and have found that he grew to trust God more and more. His trust of God’s leading is really the picture of his life.  Also, I was given a devotional book for Christmas last year called, “Jesus Calling.”   It also dwells on seeking His presence, being thankful for His blessings, and among other things, TRUSTING Him in every part of our lives. I’ve begun to post the reading for each day on Facebook to share with those who care to read it. It is too good to keep all to myself. So sticking with the TRUST theme this year, my prayer for you, as well as for me, will be, “May you grow to trust the Lord more and more every day.”

Wishing y’all a Merry Christmas and a new year that is prosperous in every way!