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.