Well, we got moved into our new house on December 8th and had 2 weeks to unpack, decorate, finish finals (for Michelle), start a new school, and Christmas shop! All this and I was sick with Acute Bronchitis and on some heafty medication! We did it though! 
What a blessing to have such a wonderful family! We were so blessed to have BJ, Wendy, Lilyanah, and Ethne here this year! It had been 5 long Christmases without them! Thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to join us and get some extra needed sleep in BJ's case! 
It was very also wonderful to be able to visit with Dad and Ann! They have blessed our children so much this year and I know they enjoyed the visit as much as we did. 
Our house was such a blessing! We were able to have BJ, Wendy, Lilyanah, Ethne, Mom, Granddad, Eve, Steve, Kyra, Tim, Julia, and our special friend, Kristina (who is family in our hearts) here with us. We were also excited that Max got to join us for one night of the season! He is a great little boy! We had so much fun playing games and fellowshiping for 4 days! Can you image 16 people celebrating the birth of Christ and Santa Claus together?! I have to admit I was under the weather most of the season and so Warren picked up a lot of slack and was an incredible host! 
This year we have learned some very hard lessons about the value of family! We lost some incredible men to disease and miss them terribly. We tried really hard to embrace the joys of the season, but there was a tremendous void without Howie and Jacky. There is also always a void where Mimi should be. Our joy comes from knowing they were all with us in spirit and looking down on all of us. They were probably all laughing and saying,"they have lost their minds to all be staying together like that!" 
We also were very saddened that Jim was not with us this year. He is stationed in Iraq. We sure do miss him and pray that he is staying safe. We learn from him each year that the freedom we have is possible because of the the sevicemen that defend us throughout the year! We do not like that he is gone, but we are grateful for his and all the other servicemen's willingness to go. 
I want to also say how blessed we were this year to have our friend Kristina with us! She has had a really rough year and it warmed our hearts so much to be able to open our home to her! If there is ever a lesson that I learned from my wonderful grandparents it is to always open your home and share with others the blessings and love that we have in our family! It is our prayer that she will have a much better year in 2008 and she will continue to spend Christmas with us in the future. 
I will let Warren post about the exciting New Year's gift he has gotten. Let's just say, "I love him and am so honored to have an incredible husband that loves and supports me!"
Michelle
What a blessing to have such a wonderful family! We were so blessed to have BJ, Wendy, Lilyanah, and Ethne here this year! It had been 5 long Christmases without them! Thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to join us and get some extra needed sleep in BJ's case! It was very also wonderful to be able to visit with Dad and Ann! They have blessed our children so much this year and I know they enjoyed the visit as much as we did. Our house was such a blessing! We were able to have BJ, Wendy, Lilyanah, Ethne, Mom, Granddad, Eve, Steve, Kyra, Tim, Julia, and our special friend, Kristina (who is family in our hearts) here with us. We were also excited that Max got to join us for one night of the season! He is a great little boy! We had so much fun playing games and fellowshiping for 4 days! Can you image 16 people celebrating the birth of Christ and Santa Claus together?! I have to admit I was under the weather most of the season and so Warren picked up a lot of slack and was an incredible host! This year we have learned some very hard lessons about the value of family! We lost some incredible men to disease and miss them terribly. We tried really hard to embrace the joys of the season, but there was a tremendous void without Howie and Jacky. There is also always a void where Mimi should be. Our joy comes from knowing they were all with us in spirit and looking down on all of us. They were probably all laughing and saying,"they have lost their minds to all be staying together like that!" We also were very saddened that Jim was not with us this year. He is stationed in Iraq. We sure do miss him and pray that he is staying safe. We learn from him each year that the freedom we have is possible because of the the sevicemen that defend us throughout the year! We do not like that he is gone, but we are grateful for his and all the other servicemen's willingness to go. I want to also say how blessed we were this year to have our friend Kristina with us! She has had a really rough year and it warmed our hearts so much to be able to open our home to her! If there is ever a lesson that I learned from my wonderful grandparents it is to always open your home and share with others the blessings and love that we have in our family! It is our prayer that she will have a much better year in 2008 and she will continue to spend Christmas with us in the future. I will let Warren post about the exciting New Year's gift he has gotten. Let's just say, "I love him and am so honored to have an incredible husband that loves and supports me!"Michelle
