Christmas Newsletter-Part One (by Dana)

Merry Christmas to all! Where in the world did 2006 go? It was a fun year--especially since we started off the year welcoming a new member to the family. Little Bro. was born on January 25^th. He is the delight of his brothers, sisters and parents. We couldn’t have asked for a better baby.

Middle Sis. is a small person with a strong will, and is not afraid to use it. We can partly thank our two older boys for that. I don’t think they realized how well she would learn from them. I think that will come in handy when she turns sixteen. She is also at that stage where you have to be careful what you say around her for fear of it being repeated. But with some guidance, she is an excellent helper in the kitchen, cleaning, and doing things the big people do. She holds the record in our family for calls to poison control… at three times (in one summer).

Middle Bro. completed his first season in t-ball this year. I think he was more in to the social aspect of it, rather than the actual game. I am just grateful that everyone wears a helmet if they have a bat in their hand (too bad the little boy sitting behind Middle Bro. when he decided to practice swing too close to his team wasn’t wearing one!).
Luckily, we made it through the season without anyone getting seriously hurt.  Middle Bro. is our resident comedian, enthusiastic about everything (except vegetables and going to bed), and has a smile that lights up a room, a bona fide Mr. Personality. His new best bud is his Uncle Kim who recently moved here from Arizona. He also started his first year in school. He is an ambitious student which keeps Mom on her toes.

Have you ever gone to sleep at night and wake up the next morning to find that your child has grown an inch or two? That describes Big Bro. He completed his second season of baseball. This year was coach pitch which brought a new level of excitement to the game for him. I also introduced him to biking. Baseball practice was about two miles from our home where a bike trail passes. So being the crazy dad that I am, every week, he and I ventured down the road on our bikes to practice. We also put in a 6 mile trip over the summer with his cousin. Kori wasn’t too happy with me for that one. She thought it was a little far for the boys’ first ride. I on the other hand didn’t think it was such a big deal. For fun, Big Bro. likes to make up math games to solve. He is very interested in the game of chess. I will have to sharpen my skills.

Big Sis. is the best big sister a sibling could have. She is a natural leader. The secret to large families and some semblance of peace is that you recruit the older ones to help out. And she is a five star recruit. She has also been putting in a lot of time into dance. She is learning ballet, tap, and jazz. She has an awesome instructor who is very encouraging to the young women. You won’t find Big Sis standing around the house. She practices her dance steps any chance she gets. She has also started piano. She is progressing well. I just know from here there will only be more to add to the agenda of things to do.