Christmas 2009: Wet, not White

Here is the letter I emailed this morning.

Dear Friends and Family, This is our second Christmas Season in Oregon. What a change! Last year was so white!!! This year is mild and rainy. The kids are hoping for a change, and I'm hoping the snow comes across America to find us here. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Our new address here in Oregon is 9645 SE Wessex Way Happy Valley, OR 97086 We have already been blessed with cards from the Gazillos and some other friends who know where we live. How we enjoyed the visit on November 1 from Karen and Tony, Scott's aunt and uncle who live in New Jersey and stopped by on their way back from San Diego. We really wish they weren't so far away! We also wish the girls were closer, but they are currently working and living in the Bay Area, close to where we used to live. We miss having them around and really enjoyed the visit from Kathy at Thanksgiving. What a lovely time! Ariel turned 21 on December 7. Can you believe it? Steve is a senior and looking at local colleges. He is very interested in electrical engineering and music. OIT is one of his possible choices, but he is still making up his mind. He helps out with the music at church and continues playing in both bands. This year, he is also in the singing group at school. He did a great job in XC until the stress fracture took over, but he's all healed now and doing very well. Joey, a sophomore, also participated in XC with Steve and got his letter. He is enjoying basketball and plans to participate in track, too, as he did last year. He continues with bass guitar in Jazz band and tuba in the advanced band. He helps out in the youth group worship and joins other worship teams as needed. Patrick, in grade 8, is doing some new things this year. Basketball is the newest. After finishing the soccer season, he decided to give a second new sport a whirl. Why not? Patrick loves to be with his friends, so we see him less and less these days. He continues to play drums for band and guitar in the youth group. Mike, our 6th grader, just pours himself into his efforts and it really shows! He is doing a really great job on the trombone and piano and has really great times in school, both in class and out. He loves basketball!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Goooooo Mike! Scott is playing the guitar to help the worship team every other Sunday. It is great that he can bless us at home, too, as he practices the worship songs. His job is going well, and he has been sent to help the plants in Wyoming and Utah with their computer security issues. He enjoys Oregon and doesn't think it's very cold at all. I spend many hours in the car with my boys in so many different sports. I enjoy their company and really cherish this time with them. It's great living close to cousins and grandparents. The kids enjoy chances to make memories with them. I enjoy a couple of hours in the morning with my mom once in a while and look forward to that time very much. Trixie turned 1 this year and we enjoy her company continuously. She has maxed out at 8 pounds, and is a fun furball. I hope this caught you up with our family. We are enjoying Christmas and our free tree from Grandma and Grandpa. We are thanking God for all His many blessings - especially our friends who love us. Our biggest Christmas hugs, Christine with Scott, Steve, Joey, Patrick, and Mike

The Road is Slippery and White

Now that we live in Oregon, we get to experience our first white Christmas and be snowed in until we are sick of it. For one day? Try 12. By the time Christmas came, the white thing had completely lost it's wonder. Sorry songwriters. The white Christmas is only fun if it just begins at Christmas. Maybe we can take the chains off our tires before we get to day 14.

I'm so ready for the mad, hectic life of a basketball mom with 4 boys involved in the basketball program at various levels.

We are so stoked that we have found Damascus Christian School. We have become another set of parents that loves it! All four of our boys are in it, along with cousins, and their parents who coach the girls bball team. GO EAGLES! :-) I am so glad for this chance to attempt a bit of organizing at home while the boys make new friends in school.

Steve is in 11th grade, famous in this small school for his mad piano skills, plays for the jazz band, still plays french horn in regular band, and is in his first year of bball. I am so glad he is willing to try something new at age 17. :-) He had a great time with the xc team, too. 7 guys mentored by a godly coach. It is a change from his school of thousands (Acalanes) and xc team of about a hundred. Steve is planning to spend a month ministering with CSB this summer. That should be a great time for him to reconnect in the Bay Area, especially with his friends from Brigade.

Joey is doing many of the same things, but with different instruments. He plays bass and tuba. He joins Steve and Pat in ministering to the youth group, too. He is adapting well to high school after homeschooling and is downright good at bball. Since he is 15, he would like to joing Steve as a junior counselor in CA this year. Hopefully, that will work out for him.

Patrick is in 7th grade and making lots of new friends. He plays drums and guitar, keeping the beat in jazz and regular band, as well as youth group. He is the varsity basketball cameraman, videotaping all the games for the coach. He seems to enjoy this responsibility and the chance to earn a little cash. Friends are plenteous for Pat and he revels in their company.

Mike is in 5th grade for his second year ever of "regular" school. He likes getting good grades, playing any game that has airplane flying in it, making paper airplanes, drawing airplanes--you get the picture. We have not yet found him a piano teacher and are hoping for an opening with Steve's teacher soon. He plays trombone in jazz and intermediate bands and just finished a great bball season where he learned a lot and improved like crazy.

Trixie entered our family at the end of October. She is a doxie-doodle. She has learned to go outside and make yellow snow and such and we are very proud of her! We are also glad she doesn't shed and is so easy to wash. She weighs less than 6 lbs and loves to sit in my lap and watch movies with me.

Scott started working here in Portland in June while the rest of us finished moving. He even worked two jobs for a while, since his old job has an office right up here next to his new one. He gave them as smooth a transition as possible, then left. His new job is challenging, but not insane. He is not expected to work 16 or more hours per day. Instead, he is given the normal 8 hour load. We are glad for him and suspect he is glad for himself. :-)

Our girls have decided to work and earn their way through college. Both of them are working mostly now, and grateful for all work they can get. Ariel just turned 20 and manages a Starbucks in Portland. She is looking for a place right next to it, so she can dump her troublesome car and concentrate on saving.

Kathy (18)is living in Crockett and between jobs. We hope she finds one soon. We miss her.

Whatever you are doing, wherever you are, we hope you are enjoying the spiritual blessings of knowing Christ as your Lord and Saviour.

All our love,
Christine and clan

Kathy is 18!

Another Adult in the House

We had a beautiful day. Kathy stayed home from school and spent time with us. I got to take her out to lunch. I enjoyed her company and felt so blessed to have the opportunity to spend so much time with my precious daughter.

When we came home, the siblings had all pitched in to make the house shine. What a delight greeted me as I opened the door. Big sister Ariel made an amazing cake (3 layers) and decorated with baloons and confetti to spare. We had all kinds of unhealthy snacks and were, as usual, too full to eat cake. We have been enjoying it today, though--YUM!

Kathy received presents from everyone and little homemade cards from certain small brothers. She is set to enter a adulthood, or is she?

Have I communicated Christ's love to her enough that she will grow up understanding Him? That is the one thing that can make her adulthood meaningful and rich. I am praying that she will make the adult decision to completely follow the Lord. She has been made for a purpose. May she find the delight of fulfilling that reason for her creation.

I love her and cherish her, perhaps all the more because I lost her twin sister. That makes her far more than twice as important to me. I thank God for these first 18 years and hope the next ones will be blessed by Him.

What's up with the Westons?

Some amazing stuff happened this year--

Christine's awesome friend, Rachel, moved to Texas. This has been a major adjustment/grief! The kids stopped homeschooling and enrolled in school.

Kathy graduated from 8th grade, became a lifeguard, earned the prestigious golden guard award, started High School, began basketball, and continues to get a 4.0 GPA+