The Mod Quad

Dear Friends and Family,

Here's a quick update on what our family has been up to this year.

C is currently in the second grade. She absolutely adores her teacher, and it appears the feelings are mutual. Her teacher is a great advocate for C and has been very helpful to us in trying to get extra assistance that will help her succeed both socially and academically. We are so proud of her and the progress she has been making. C is very artistic and has great vision. What to us is just boxes and bottles in the recycle bin, she sees nativity scenes and bird houses. It never ceases to amaze us what projects she is able to dream up and bring to life.

M is excited to be at the big kid school this year where she is in morning kindergarten. She loves school and her teacher, who somehow manages to exude calmness amidst a bunch of boisterous five year olds. M also played soccer this fall. Once she scored her first goal she was hooked! She is a great player and is so much fun to watch – she plays more aggressively than many of the other kids her age, plus she's bigger than most of them too. Her coach had to remind her that she can't go bowling over everyone around her and she eventually struck just the right balance. She is looking forward to doing soccer again in the spring.

This fall we found that there is a horse riding scout troop that meets literally right around the corner from our house. So the girls are now officially part of the boy scout organization, even though the rest of the scouts in their troop are all girls too. They are loving learning how to ride the horses, and enjoy helping to feed and groom them also. I've never spent much time around horses, so I'm having fun with the interaction and learning a lot as well.

This summer we ended up taking a last minute road trip. My youngest brother's wife died suddenly and unexpectedly in July, so the very next day the girls and I hopped in the van and drove to Utah. P joined us a few days later. While the circumstances were sad, it was still nice to spend time with so many family members that we don't often see. From Utah we drove to Arizona for the second funeral, and Nikki's final resting place. The girls were so good during both services and while logging so many hours in the car that we decided to reward them by stopping at Disneyland on the way home. Although I never would have chosen to visit Disneyland during the peak tourist season, we still had a great time – spending two days at Disneyland and one day at California Adventure.

I did lose my job this year as anticipated. My last day of work was in late May, which is when the office closed, although I got paid thru late July – so as far as losing a job goes, I fared better than many others. I have yet to find a new part time job that meets our family's needs, but for now it's nice to be home when M gets out of school at 10:45am, and it also allows me to volunteer in both classrooms every week, which I haven't been able to do in the past. It was also nice to not have to worry about taking time off when I had to leave so quickly this summer. So far I am enjoying my freedom, but I would like to go back to work if I can find the right fit.

P continues to keep as busy as ever. Although cars aren't selling real well right now, he still has restaurant repairs, scouting trips, planning church activities and never ending paperwork to occupy his time.

We look forward to the new year and hope for great things. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and that 2011 brings the best for you!

Love,

P, Me, C & M