A Little Fishy

Aubriella made it clear to Zac and I from the beginning of August that she wanted to be enrolled in gymnastics. However, being that Zac is going to school full time there was no way we could afford to enroll her in that this year. We get a Y membership for very very cheap this year. Also, we are able to enroll our kids into lessons for about half of the normal cost of the class. Thank you YMCA for helping us out this year! As an alternative we offered to her to take up swimming lessons. She started lessons in November. She is all smiles during her entire lesson. Her teachers have been so kind in leaving comments like: Briel is just my favorite! She swims very well and learns very quickly. Beautiful and talented young lady. Keep up the good work. Great student to have.

I do not list the comments to boast about Aubri but rather just enjoy that she can shine in her own setting with others. Sometimes I think she falls into that typical middle child mold and it is such a blessing to see her enjoy herself and see others enjoy her outside of the home. Swimming has become a great outlet for her while she gains confidence in herself and works on a strength of hers. She has recently asked to take a month off because it's just too cold to go outside after she has been swimming!

We have currently enrolled her and Micah into Tumbling Tots on Tuesdays. She has her class from 9:00-9:45 and Micah has his from 10:00-10:45. Although she enjoys it I think it is not as challenging for her as swimming was. Aubri said she plans to return to swimming nextmonth. Being that she is not in preschool and Micah is not in anything, Tumbling Tots is a nice compromise to get them out of the house and interacting with people their own age in a structured setting.

Christmas in Minnesota and South Dakota

Christmas went well during our trip back to the cold land. It was actually pretty warm and we were welcomed by many loving friends and family members. We stayed with the Cornelius Family for the first part of the trip and then switched about every other night from my dad's, to Zac's mom's, to my mom's, then to Zac's grandparent's house. It was fun, but of course, somewhat exhausting at the same time. Sleeping habits are yet to return to normal since our return to Colorado. Sleeping with the entire family in one room and then transitioning back to individual bedrooms has proven difficult. Micah especially has come up with the genuine fear of a shark in his room.

During our visit we were able to visit our old neighborhood and be reminded again how good God has been to us by selling our house and business so quickly. Many of the same houses are still on the market from the time we put ours on. We were able to visit with all of our old neighbors at a neighborhood gathering which was such a delight. Especially when we were able to hold the six month old twin babies again!

In the beginning of the trip I wasn't feeling too well, resulting in me not bringing the camera around to take pictures. Unfortunately, it ended up to be a trend for the rest of the trip. We barely got any pictures but we enjoyed seeing so many relatives and friends.

We have included the few pictures we took. I'm so bummed we didn't get more, what was I thinking?

Preparing For Minnesota

This Friday, December 18th (Sara's BD), we will begin our journey back to Minnesota to hang with friends and family for Christmas. We're doing our best to figure out how to keep the kids (and the parents) sane on the 20+ hour road trip each way. When we moved to Colorado we drove it in one shot, but we'll split each trip into two days this time around. We'll stay in Omaha, NE on the way there, and we'll make a couple stops on the way home: one in Sioux Falls, SD, and also in Kearney, NE. I'm not overly excited about the driving part, but will be nice to see eveyone once we get there.

School has been pretty laid back since Thanksgiving. It's been kind of a nice break. I'm incredibly thankful to find a little work through this season and some of which will continue into the New Year. I've been helping out the local FASTFRAME with some framing lately. It's been fun to get to know the owners a bit more and offer the assistance when I'm needed. I've also been leading people in worship on Sundays at a church called Summit Church in Castle Rock. They've offered me a weekly position there starting in January. This is a great opportunity for the time being, but it will most likely not be where I end up long term.

Hopefully we'll get to see most of you who read this blog over the next couple weeks. Here's a family pic that was taken on Thanksgiving morning. Have a Merry Christmas!