Although I obviously completely failed to chronicle the adventures our life in 2012, I did want to share our annual Christmas letter, which will at least give everyone a tiny snapshot of what has filled up our year. I've missed keeping a blog--not so much the writing itself, but having a journal of our life to look back on. I'd really love to restart the habit in 2013, but I'm not going to set any lofty goals. These days my brain is so scattered from wearing so many different hats--I can't focus from one minute to the next. Sitting down to put ideas on digital paper seems overwhelming to the point of impossible. But who knows what the year will bring? Maybe I'll be able to simplify a bit and focus enough to write from time to time. Either way, please enjoy our Christmas letter from 2012!
MERRY
CHRISTMAS!!!
December 16, 2012
Dearest family and friends,
Dearest family and friends,
I
hope this letter finds you all healthy, happy and more prepared for
the holiday than I am! As usual, I'm starting our Christmas letter
weeks after receiving our first holiday greeting in the mail.
I can only hope that this is at least reaching you by the 24th!
We've
had a good 2012 and managed to survive both of our 40th
birthdays, which turned out to be lots of fun and relatively
painless. We took a lovely vacation to Florida to celebrate our
friends Mike and Tiffany's wedding in April, went to Tulsa in June
for another wedding reception, and made a very quick trip to
Nashville in early November to see a special Old 97's show. We
enjoyed visits from my brother, my dad and his wife, and other out of
town guests. We loved seeing our Jayhawk basketball team make it to
the national title game and spent Saturdays this fall cheering on a
losing KU football team that was on the cusp of decency.
Our
pups are both doing well—we celebrated Hope's 12th b-day
in August, even though we've come to realize she's probably closer to
13 or 14. Since a Coonhound's life expectancy is only 12-13 years, we
are super thankful that she's still with us. She's a little arthritic
and has a bum shoulder that she limps on occasionally, but most of
the time she is FULL of goofiness and jumps around with far more
exuberance than her little brother. Fresco turned 6 in September and
is still the most loving and cuddly boy you'll ever meet!
Chad's
year has been relatively devoid of major change—he continues to
enjoy his job at Westar and continues to play lots of golf! He just
returned from his annual golf trip to Florida with his friend Dante,
where he played 36-46 holes of golf every day. A minor knee surgery
this summer didn't even slow down his obsession! He also continues to
serve on the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce board, and just last week
he finished up his term on the Lawrence Sustainability Advisory
Board. While he's thankful to be done with that commitment, he's
exchanging that “extra-curricular” leadership role with a much
bigger one at church starting in January. He'll be leading our set-up
and tear-down teams at EastLake—handling all the scheduling and
being at church from 6:30 until
almost 1 each Sunday. Although I know he'll want me to take this part
out of the letter, I'm super proud of him and amazed by his
willingness to work 6 days a week!
Things
at our church are obviously good, and we're very thankful to be part
of a church where growth and life change continue to happen. Although
I've stepped down from volunteering on our kids team regularly, I
took over leading our prayer team in March and
have been so blessed to serve our church family in this way. My other
volunteer passion, the food pantry at Heartland Community Health
Center, also expanded significantly in January of this year when I
became the volunteer coordinator there. I now spend 15-20 hours a
week shopping, stocking, sorting, scheduling and serving the people
who come in for assistance. I also try to be in Topeka one day a
week to hang out with my mom (she moved back there this summer), and
I continue to do lots of portrait sessions for friends just as a
hobby. I would love to someday start a photography business, but that
will have to happen later since right now I just don't have the time!
We
hope that your 2012 has been filled with an abundance of blessings
and happiness. May you enjoy peace, joy, the company of loved ones
and lots of relaxation this holiday season!
With
love,
Kim
(and Chad)
For
to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will
be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. --Isaiah 9:6
