2017 christmas card

In case we missed sending you a Christmas card this year, here is a digital version!

2017 Highlights

~Hatching chicks from eggs. We loved watching our eggs wiggle, crack, hatch, and spending the next 3 weeks playing with our 6 chicks: Minnie, Tallulah, Curry, Garrett, Julie and Odell.

~In February, we spent a week in Florida with Mickey Mouse and Harry Potter, drank our weight in Butter Beer, visited our old apartments, enjoyed having Ashli’s parents vacationing with us, searched for (and found) alligators, and splashed in the ocean.

~This summer we explored cliffs in Door County and caves in Madison (both with Ashli’s mom), the big cities of Chicago and Milwaukee, and landscaped our yard.

Ky: (11) won yet another flag football championship, and played on another flag football team in the fall, started 6th grade where he and Kade are in separate classes for the first time, switched from the violin to the trumpet, continues to love drawing and is becoming quite good at it, is playing on a school basketball team, loved the following movies: Spider-Man Homecoming, Thor: Ragnarok, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Cars 3, Dead Men Tell No Tales, and Coco.

Kade: (11) also won another flag football championship, played on another team in the fall, is playing basketball, likes being in a different 6th grade class than Ky, switched from the cello to the clarinet (which he only played for 7 weeks before he was able to switch to the saxophone), likes to cheer for the Florida Gators, Carolina Panthers, New York Yankees, and the Golden State Warriors.

Krew: (6) also won a flag football championship, and played on another flag football team this fall (I sense a trend here), learned to read in about 2 days and is now reading really well, took his first swimming lessons where he went from being scared to put his face in the water, to fearlessly jumping off the side over and over in just a few days. He makes videos for his two YouTube channels where he teaches people interesting facts and how to draw, started Kindergarten, continues to be fascinated with birds, can tell you all about them, and loves the real ostrich egg he got for his birthday.

Everly: (3) Her favorite highlights of the year include meeting Anna, Elsa and Minnie Mouse, and the 3 glorious months of summer when Krew was home to play with her all day every day. She loves all things pink and purple, princesses, babies, puppies, any little girls she meets, and Krew. She is in a tap and ballet class where she beams the entire time, and dances nonstop at home. She’s super proud to show everyone she meets her “pizza feet” (1st position).

Bart: continues to enjoy working in family practice, and even had the opportunity to mentor a few students this year. He was recently put back into the bishopric at church and is still deciding how he feels about it :).He’s enjoyed taking pictures and videos with his new drone, and still enjoys learning to play his guitars whenever he has some free time.

Ashli: loved taking a trip with Bart to California in April, especially the morning she spent at Disneyland by herself, and that afternoon in the park just the two of them. After years of buying cleats, bats, and balls, buying ballet shoes and leotards for the first time was like a dream come true. Although she wishes she had time for other hobbies, she was busy facilitating everything mentioned above, and she knows that all too soon she’ll have too much time for hobbies, so she’s trying to enjoy living the dream right now!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from our family to yours!