December 2017
Dear Family and Friends,
We have enjoyed a good year. The kids are all excelling in their activities and at school. They are all growing and changing so much. We have enjoyed many family outings of camping, hiking and biking. We enjoy spending time as a family. Lately the kids have been cooking more and Ruth and Andrew are getting to be pretty good cooks. This year we thought it would be fun to let the kids contribute to this letter. We asked each of them to write a paragraph about the year. We hope you enjoy what they have to say.
Ruth (age 14, 9th grade): I started high school this year in August and am enjoying it so far. I’m busy learning French (J’adore etudier francais!) and how to interview people and write journalistically. I’ve been looking forward to reading the Odyssey and other books in English later in the school year. I love books as a principle, except for textbooks of all sorts. I’m writing multiple books of my own at the moment. I also have a lot of fun reading about ancient cultures on my own. I recently made a basic study of string theory and dimensions for the development of a book I am in the process of writing. I’m also laboriously working my way through Les Miserables so that I can see the musical next spring. I’ve been enjoying being in young women’s and I have had a lot of fun activities, like girl’s camp and a YW retreat up in the mountains. I enjoy early morning seminary. I had tons of fun visiting family in the summer. I’m enjoying living in Albuquerque and have made a lot of friends in the past year.
Andrew (age 12, 7th grade): I am Andrew and this year of 2017 I have liked 4 categories of things. First is model railroading, which I enjoy very much. I have built cars, repaired locomotives, built track designs, and organized my things. Lately I have gone to Mr. Hovey’s house (our model train club leader) to run his trains on a completed layout. My second favorite thing to do is biking on roads and mountains. I have done a 14-mile mountain biking trip and a 33-mile road bike trip. My third thing is Lego. I like Lego cars and Lego scenes on Lego boards. My last thing I enjoy are the Scout campouts that I go on with my dad. We have gone on many: one was 16° F in the morning. We went in a lava tunnel on that trip. I have also done merit badges and ranks. These are the things I have enjoyed this year in every-day free time. This summer we went on a family vacation to Utah to see grandparents and cousins. We also went camping with the Hubbard family.
Spencer (age 10, 5th grade): I like art and riding bikes. I have a fun teacher this year who also likes art and is creative, just like me. I am in a model train club that meets every month on the second Saturday. I had a fun time during the summer. I like Legos and think they are great and creative because you can build anything. Then there are Lego trains, which I like even though I don’t have any, except a small mine train. I like making things with Lego that can connect to battery powered remote control motors. And that is all from Spencer.
Caleb (age 7, 2nd grade): I love puppies and hamsters. I like to go hiking on the old volcanoes (just West of Albuquerque). My favorite subject at school is POP time (gifted pull out period). I cannot wait until I get baptized! Our trip to Utah was awesome. We camped for four days and played with grandparents and cousins. I love bikes very much because they are fun exercise and a great way to spend time. I like my siblings because they are someone to play with during non-school days. I like it when we go to Hinkle family fun center because I like miniature golf and games. I loved this year very much.
Becky: I have worked a lot on family history this year. I have helped my sister work on names that my dad was researching when he died. He had a huge list of things that he was just starting or in the middle of. We have worked through those names and now I am trying to find ones on my own. I love that there is a temple to go to only a few miles away. I try to go often. I volunteer at the elementary school library once a week. I enjoy working with the kids and books. In the church I teach the 4-year-olds in Primary and do Activity Days, for girls 8–11 year old, we do activities twice a month. I enjoy participating in a book club and singing in the ward choir. I have made many friends through those activities. I like to do sewing projects; I made a quilt and other smaller projects this year. I enjoy working on large puzzles and making a pretty picture out of chaos. I enjoyed our big vacation to Utah this year. We enjoyed camping with the Hubbard family and visiting with the Hancock’s, too. Over all, this has been a good year. I am thankful for my wonderful family, my home and most especially my Savior. I am thankful we have this time of year to remember him and to celebrate his birth with our families.
Neal: I am grateful for Caleb's enthusiasm. He generously gives big hugs. He sings in a strong voice and dances to jazz music. This fall, he reached out to the boys in our neighborhood and got them out of their houses to ride bikes with him. He likes to remember the birthdays of children in his school class. He imagines other worlds, draws maps of the continents and cities, and invents languages for the people there. He recently wrote a story set in one of his worlds. Spencer is gentle and loving. He likes to take care of animals. He made terrariums for snails and stink bugs this summer and fed them from the compost pile. I love to see his excitement for family activities. He runs and jumps like an antelope when we go somewhere fun. I am grateful that Andrew can do many hard things. He is learning to play the trombone in concert and jazz bands. He slithered through a lava tube cave and found the lonely bat living there. He is refinishing our picnic table for a Scout project and has learned to use a belt sander. He caught several rainbow trout big enough for a meal. Ruth is friendly and helpful. She is a great support to me and Becky by making dinner, tending the boys when we are away, cleaning, and willingly following our family rules. She is developing her talents for creative writing, singing, and making friends. She is blossoming spiritually by praying, studying scriptures on her own and with the family, attending seminary, singing with the ward choir. I am happy to spend time with my family and have good employment this Christmas. I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ, being part of a great church congregation, and being close to the Albuquerque temple. I am blessed by your friendship.
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