To our Dear Family and Friends,
Merry Christmas! I thought you might like an update about each one of us. Since many of you live far away, we figure this is the best way to keep you posted.
Sheldon: Sheldon continues to work from home for Allied Insurance as a commercial claims manager. Work is keeping him busy, and we often forget that he's hidden just up the stairs. He has been dedicated to doing the Crossfit workouts for a year and a half now. It is really paying off. He is feeling and looking GREAT (I can say that, being his wife)! I enjoy hearing about the intense workouts he does each day (and he even convinces me to do them sometimes)! As a hobby, Sheldon still enjoys photography. He takes so many beautiful photos! I feel blessed to have so many cherished moments captured to share with others. At church Sheldon also plays guitar on the worship team. And most importantly, he's the best dad and husband ever!
Jamie: I am busier than ever trying to keep up with the 3 kids and keeping the home in working order. I am homeschooling and am thankful to be using my teaching degree to educate our kids. Despite busyness, I still enjoy searching for healthy recipes to cook for the family. The little things I'm up to are: vegetable gardening, doing crossfit workouts (when I have time), and reading novels for pleasure. Reading fiction is a new hobby to me as in the past I have read mostly for information. I have also enjoyed helping with our church women's mentoring ministry, and the friendship that has come from it. Life is crazy, but God is GOOD!As a couple, we host a Bible study in our home, and are thankful for our wonderful church family. We are looking forward to a getaway to Bonneville Hot Springs for our 9 year anniversary this month!
Braden just turned 8. He is learning so much! In addition to all he's doing at home, he is taking an engineering class for homeschool kids through the school district once a week. We are also part of a homeschool co-op that offers classes on Friday mornings. In January he began taking piano lessons from Sheldon's mom and has really taken off! His idea of success is playing his songs fast and memorized! He learned how to play the first page of Fur Elise by sight/ear in just a couple weeks, and for some reason will only play it for a select few. His mind is busier than ever inventing machines. Candy and arcade machines with coin slots are his specialty. This year he has even started using his electrical skills to add lights to his box machines and motors to his Lego machines. It's always fun to see what he will come up with next. He loves swimming, and is looking forward to trying a new sport this upcoming winter: basketball!
Ashlyn turned 5 in October, and she is full of personality! Whatever she does, she does with ALL her might! She is quite the outdoors gal and loves critters of all kinds. She spent most of her summer looking for bugs, frogs, and snakes to capture; and loved swimming in our backyard kid pool. She also began piano lessons from Sheldon's mom in January and has learned so much. It's incredible to hear someone her age play piano so well! Ashlyn also has a very creative side and loves to draw, make crafts, and come up with her very own cardboard box and Duplo Lego inventions. She also enjoys writing/drawing in her journal and doing her math problems for our home pre-K! I am thankful that she is a very capable helper around the house. This girl does not get bored; she's quite the busy body.
There's so much more I could write. We are so blessed and thank God for his goodness! Hopefully you'll take time to browse the rest of our posts from this year so we can share some of our highlight moments with you!
Sheldon & Jamie,
Braden, Ashlyn, & Elise
