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Our Christmas/New Year's card this year features highlights from 2008. Since some recipients may not know the stories behind the photos, here's a quick recap of this crazy year:
Upward Basketball:Both kids participated in the Upward league last winter. It was a fun experience for all involved. Highlights are
here,
here and
here.
New birth:Ryan was baptized in January! We were so excited to see him make this commitment. Details are
here.
Old mom:I turned the big 4-0 this year. In spite of being sick the week of my birthday, we still managed to have a little fun—and sneak in an Austin trip—to mark the occasion. Photos and stories are
here.
New heights:The photo of Katie rock-climbing is from the Fourth of July. More pix from that outing are
here. We also did some real "mountain climbing" this year when we visited Hot Springs, as you can see
here. While we sometimes reminisce about our long-gone toddlers, we love that the kids are old enough to participate in more vigorous activities now.
Snow fun:We had a couple of "snow days" this year. We had one night of snow, and then there was a drive home in snow. The real fun came when we had enough snow accumulated to create some pals in our yard. (We might've gotten a little carried away.) Snow photos are
here. And then there was
our other "snow day" when my school district closed after a wind storm because of massive power outages.
Traditions:Regular readers know that we Dubs have a ton of random traditions. One such tradition is heading to Baskin-Robbins after certain school programs. Katie's picture is from our post-choir festival celebration. We seem to have a thing about going out for food after performances! Photos are
here.
Successes:On the card, Ryan is celebrating his success in
our family Easter egg hunt. (He found the "bad egg.") On other fronts, though, the kids celebrated success in school (spelling bees and the like) and at home (pwning me in Guitar Hero). Brett successfully completed volume 2 of
Classic Home Video Games, and it was fun to collect a couple of royalty checks from his first book. Of course, he really enjoyed getting to meet other gamers at
local signings and
other events. As a family we also marked Brett's parents'
golden anniversary. The celebration, though
tinged with sadness, was another of our successes this year.
Swimming:We have loved having our own pool, and that's where you could find us for most of the summer. This year, however, we started our swimming season just a tad earlier than usual. We also hosted our 12th annual swimming party for Ryan's birthday. Who would've guessed the silly little rubber duckies I threw in the pool would be turned into projectiles? Swimming photos are
here.
Vacations:We didn't plan any big trips this year, but we did manage to sneak in some time in Hot Springs, Arkansas. We also spent more than a couple of summer days at Six Flags, and on one crazy Saturday, we took a day trip to the Fort Worth Stockyards. The kids and I had a "big day in Big D," and for yet another mini-vacation, a friend and I headed west to celebrate a football buddy's 40th. These vacations are chronicled
here.
Summer camp:Katie attended Camp Impact in June, and then Ryan and I were at Camp Cornerstone in July. Both camps are on the Oklahoma Christian University campus, and both were rewarding! From my stint as a dorm mom at Ryan's middle school camp, I could tell how much fun the campers get to have and how much they learn. Some photos from our OC experiences can be found
here.
New dog:Frisco came to live with us this summer! She was a stray when she stole Brett's heart. The dog is flat-out crazy, but she's found a home with us. The story of how she came into our lives and some photos of her exploits are
here. Unfortunately, soon after Frisco arrived,
KitKat departed. ChaCha's still here, though, so we have the matching set of black-and-white pets.
Hook 'em:For the 23rd year in a row, I had season tickets for Texas Longhorn football. The games and tailgates kept me entertained all fall (except for that one November night). The Texas-OU game and the State Fair were especially fun. (The BCS might not remember it, but Texas won, 45-35.) Ryan and Katie got to go to two games with me this year, and as always, their presence made those weekends extra special. Football and tailgating photos and a couple of rants are
here. You'll also find all the times we spelled TEXAS with food at that link!
Holidays:The photo depicts Ryan and Katie's Halloween costumes, but on this site are accounts of other holidays, too: New Year's, Valentine's Day, Mardi Gras, Easter, Mother's and Father's days, Memorial Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. The holiday collection is
here.
School:Ryan is now in seventh grade (middle school) and Katie is in fifth (elementary). Ryan's pre-AP classes have been challenging, and because of that advanced curriculum, he's brought home some interesting projects, from pirate Potato Heads to Newton cars. Ryan plays trumpet in band, and Katie is loving her involvement in her school's choir. Meanwhile, I'm still teaching high school journalism and English. Some photos and stories from our school days are
here.
Storage:So why do we have a picture of a bunch of boxes on our Christmas card? Home may be where the heart is, but storage is where a bunch of our stuff is! We began
Project GOOD (Get Out of Dodge) this year and put our house on the market in August. In September, we had a buyer who was in a hurry to get into our abode, so we were on the fast track to find a new place. We fell in love with a bigger house, had a contract on it, and started moving our junk into storage to prepare for our closing date. And then we waited. And waited. And waited. We ended up having to cancel both contracts (on the house we were selling and the one we wanted to buy) because our buyers had some financing issues. Bummer. Our house is back on the market, our stuff is still in storage, and we pray that God will give us some peace while we're living in our mostly empty house. We are so very thankful to have this problem (our stuff has its own house!), but we're ready to know what's next.
So there you have it: our year in review. All of these events and many others have made 2008 memorable, and we are blessed beyond belief. May you and yours enjoy a blessed 2009!
(This shot's from the local paper.)
(So is this one.)
(This one I took. Several trees in front of our grandstand cast some pretty stark shadows!)
Nana always cooks up an amazing feast that includes the requisite black-eyed peas.
It was delish! It was also special because the whole family (except for Cara and Jeff) could be together. Erumi was even able to join us!
The evens proved that volume covers up a lot of mistakes! (Not that I'm bitter.)
While bummed about our lame songs, we odds were quite entertained by the other team's efforts.
Too funny! As I said on Facebook, you know it was a good New Year's Eve when you're still giggling the next morning!
but he did get in some quality time with Baxter!
It's 2009!
And Guesstures!
Some of us also played cards,
while others played Yahtzee.
At midnight, we celebrated with sparkling grape juice (which the kids enjoyed just a little TOO much) and black-eyed peas.
It was a fun way to ring in the new year!
Between spring break '07 and the start of this school year, I lost 38 pounds. Since August, though, my weight's pretty much stayed the same. I've been happy with that, especially considering all the tailgating and birthdays and holidays that have come and gone. In low-carb land, there's talk of finding your equilibrium, the quantity of carbs you can eat while maintaining your weight. Well, I've found my equilibrium! I've managed to find the combination of diet and exercise to keep from gaining the weight back. But you're supposed to find your equilibrium AFTER you've met your goal. I'm not even close to that number! I can no longer be content with maintenance.
Nana and Papa hosted their New Year's Day lunch Tuesday afternoon, and as always, Nana's meal was OUTSTANDING! (And I'm not just saying that because this was my last carb-y meal for a while.)
After we ate, Ryan and Katie tried out the noisemakers we'd bought at Target.
The poppers were good and loud, and the confetti added a nice touch to the driveway—and provided some good exercise for Katie when she cleaned it all up! (Ryan paid her 50 cents so he wouldn't have to help pick up the mess!)
By the time they'd popped and played, they were pooped!
The humans weren't the only ones worn out from all the hoopla!
We celebrated New Year's Eve with some friends from church. Our hosts were DYN-O-MITE! There was plenty of food and fun to go around.
We enjoyed games of Taboo and spoons, but the night's Thriller came during a round of Mad Gab with My Kojak Sun. And who will ever forget Wild Bill Hickok?
While the adults laughed themselves silly over Oak Abe Abe, the kids watched football, saw a guy jump his motorcycle over a football field, played outside, and made TONS of noise before midnight...
...and after!
Together we all made a toast to a great '08...
And enjoyed some black-eyed peas for good luck.
Thanks, TNT, for a great night! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
