Merry Christmas!

I'm sure by now there is virtually no one left who is still reading my blog, considering I've done such a terrible job updating it as of late. I had a burst of inspiration and created a new header a couple of weeks ago, but that was as far as I went--I never actually got around to writing anything. My 2012 resolution should definitely be to improve my blogging.

Since I failed to chronicle so much of our year here on the Chatter, I thought I would at least post our Christmas letter--it summarizes the events of 2011 rather nicely. Many of you have probably already received and read this, so please disregard if you're already on the Luce Family mailing list. For the rest of you, please accept our heartfelt wishes for a wonderful holiday season!

(click the above image to enlarge)

December 17, 2011

Dearest Friends and Family,

Once again I have completely procrastinated writing our annual Christmas greetings, so I hope this letter is actually reaching you all before the holiday! Hopefully all of your presents are wrapped and cookies are baked and everyone is now just enjoying wonderful food, time with family, a few days vacation, and the joy of the Christmas miracle

To avoid the normal monotony of our usual December letter, I thought this year I'd instead summarize the events of 2011 with month-by-month highlights. Here's what we were up to in the last 365 days!

January—We enjoyed tons of snow plus a wonderful visit from my brother. My favorite band (Old 97's) came to town and we saw a great show at the Bottleneck. I traveled to Topeka 2-3 days a week to spend time with my mom.

February—Although the outcome wasn't to our liking, we watched our Steelers play in the Super Bowl with a gathering of friends in our basement. For Valentine's Day, Chad took me to yet another 97's show on a fun weekend trip to St. Louis. We had tons more snow, which resulted in a fantastic day of sledding with our nephews Miles and Quinn. We made our first visit to EastLake Community Church, which would later become our new church home.

March—With the help of my brother, we threw a big 65^th birthday party for my mom with about 40 guests. Our Jayhawks made it to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament before losing to VCU.

April—Our sweet girl Hope had a benign tumor removed from her chest and another benign growth removed from her mouth. My dad and his wife Mim visited us from Ohio. I started volunteering in the kid's wing at our church.

May—Our little man Celtic was diagnosed with the same aggressive cancer that took his brother, and he passed away about 3½ weeks later at the end of the month. Although we were heartbroken, his passing was made so much easier by our preparedness. I stayed busy with photography, shooting portrait sessions, special events and adoptable dogs from a small local rescue. Chad started volunteering on the setup team at church, and we officially became members.

June—I spent several days hanging out with my college friend Kati when she visited Lawrence for her son's basketball camp. Chad and I celebrated our 17^th wedding anniversary. I did lots of walking with my friend Faith and organized a walking group at church.

July—We visited our friends Jake and Amber in Kearney, Nebraska for the 4^th of July. We helped my mom move from Topeka to Lawrence, and I was thrilled to be able to spend more time with her. My brother visited, as did my friend Emily and her sister. I shot another friend's family portraits and we saw another 97's show at Crossroads in Kansas City.

August—I walked in my sixth 60 mile 3-Day for the Cure, this time in Chicago with my friend Amber. We celebrated Hope's 11^th birthday, and continued to be amazed that her deafness hasn't slowed her down. I started volunteering with my mom on Mondays at the food pantry where I volunteer some Saturdays.

September—Fresco turned five, and about that time we had a visit from my friend Michele, who currently lives in Africa. Chad and I went back to Chicago for a small vacation because I loved the city so much the previous month. I did a couple more volunteer photography gigs.

October—I shot three more portrait sessions and another special event—I think it's about time for me to start charging money! Dad and Mim visited again, and Chad and I started hosting a weekly church study group.

November—I co-hosted my third baby shower of the year, and I shot another family photo session. Chad celebrated 8 years at Westar Energy, and we celebrated with our friend Ted for his 40^th birthday. I took a Western Caribbean cruise with 7 girlfriends to celebrate my friend Leigh Ann's 30^th birthday, while Chad took a golf trip to Florida with his friend Dante and got his first eagle!

December—Chad finished his second year on the Lawrence Sustainability Advisory Board and also completed the first year of his term on the Chamber of Commerce Board. He played what seemed like his 40th round of golf for the year today—December 17!

We hope that your 2011 was full of joy and full of blessings as well. May your holiday season be filled with reminders of the true meaning of Christmas!

Much love to all,

Kim (and Chad)