Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Where has the year gone???

This time last year, when we moved back to Washington, we thought we would be in our new house by now.  But, here we sit in our apartment...still.  We finally got rid of our 2 lots that we decided not to build on and found a new one.  We are in the process of rebidding everything since it's been longer than three months and have to wait 30 days to get something taken care of with an easement on one side of the new property.  We were going to wait until March 1 to start because by then we would be safe from super cold weather.  But the longer we are in this apartment the crazier I get and I am not sure how much more of that Mark can take from me!  Plus we are hoping to have visitors (Kristen??) this summer and want to have some place to have them stay.  So, we may get started before March, but at this point I'm not holding my breath.

Here is a quick update of everyone since it's been a while:
Brett - finished up cross country and has decided to not do any winter sports this year.  He continues to take weight training for zero-hour and will begin training for Track soon.  He has taken up dessert making on Sunday afternoons and likes to try new recipes.  The Chocolate Macaroon cake he made this last week was good but he said he will NEVER make it again.  It took a lot of effort and he thought for that much effort it should have been divine.  It was good, but not better than any other chocolate cake we have made.

Erin - has enjoyed her break from swimming but will begin again soon.  Try outs for the competition team are on December 18.  She should have no problem making the team.  She is our resident "blonde" and has many moments that keep us laughing.  She is super fun to be around and enjoys hanging out with her friends.  One of her favorite things to do is check the school district Parent Portal and see if her GPA is higher than Brett's.

Kehli - still loves her dance class and is getting ready for the winter performance next weekend.  She is proud of herself that she isn't too shy to move up from the back row and even gets to be the "T" (when two girls pick her up under the arms and carry her forward) during on of the songs.  Big accomplishment for Kehli!!  She was sad that Girls on the Run wasn't available this fall and is hoping that  they will offer it in the Spring.  She is signed up for basketball and will begin that after the first of the year.

Kendall - has discovered reading and is always kind enough to pick out a book or two for me (I am not a reader, but she is determined to help me love it).  She was taking guitar lessons but told me, "I don't think guitar is the talent for me."  She really enjoys going to Activity Days at church and was sad to learn that she only gets to go twice in two months because of Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I'm sure it is nice for the leaders to have a break!

Evan - cannot wait to go back to Quincy for Christmas break so he can ride his dirtbike again.  He will be in heaven when we finally do get moved and there is space for him to ride every day.  He told Santa that he wanted his own 4-wheeler and a 3-wheeler.  Glad he's not asking for much!  Evan will also start basketball in January and is hoping that he gets on the same team as his friend Kyle.  He loves to learn Spanish and isn't afraid to try and speak to people.  If we are at the store and someone look likes they may be Spanish he blurts out "Hola Amigo."  Occasionally he will ask their name and how old they are as well.  He's definitely not shy.

Adam - is totally potty trained.  He picked it up the quickest of any of the other kids and can even sleep through the night with no accidents.  That makes me so happy!!  I can't believe that he will be three next month.  He loves going to the Nursery at church and playing in the kids room at the gym.  I guess he is a pretty social kid.  He still doesn't talk very much but that's probably because the other kids still do EVERYTHING for him.  I think that's just part of being the youngest.

Mark - plugs along at work and is really looking forward to getting started on the house.  He loves the process of building and likes the busyness of it all.  He has decided to sell his motorcycle because he didn't ride it very much this whole year.  I think it's because there is another bike he has his eye on...we will see!

Me - I'm just trying to stay sane amid the chaos of this apartment.  I do love to watch the kids play with each other because I know if we were in a house they would all just find their own space to be in and wouldn't interact near as much as they do now.  I will miss that.  I think that's the only thing I will miss!  I have discovered a Group Power class at the gym that I enjoy going to 2-3 times per week.  It's a great release for me.  I'd love to get back into running...maybe one day when I'm not so lazy.  I got my hair done again.  This time I used the same base color and red highlights, but we added some lighter ones as well so it didn't end up so dark.  Everyone liked it better and the only non-compliment I got was, "Why is your hair purple?" This picture doesn't show it too much, but the red highlights are pretty vibrant.  They will fade with time.
Christmas is just about done.  I only have three more presents to get.  Mark will pick one of them up when he goes up to Quincy early and the other two will come next week.  I love online shopping!!  Everything else is wrapped and ready to go.  This weekend we will do our holiday baking and goodie plate delivering.  Then we can relax for two weeks before Christmas.  We are excited to visit with Brad (Mark's brother) again over Christmas.  The picture below is from an annual Christmas party that I have attended since we moved to Kennewick.  The first one I went to was in 2002 or 2003 - I can't remember.  I dressed up as Bjork in her famous swan dress at the Academy Awards in 2001.  If I can figure out how to get a picture off of my phone and put it on this blog I will add it.  It was a pain to make but turned out pretty good.