Caleb
This year has been filled with various fun and excitement. I have enjoyed all of the activities, including a family reunion and trips to Hinkle Family Fun Center. I've also enjoyed time with family and trips to Utah. This year has been very exciting, and many parts make me ecstatic. I'd like everyone to know how much I've loved this year. Things couldn't be much better, I think. So I'd like to tell everyone this: Merry Christmas and a happy new year!
Spencer
This year I have done a lot of projects and started holding the Aaronic Priesthood and have become more organized. I have done a lot with Lego Technic making machines and have gotten lots better at building with it. I have also made some new friends. I have enjoyed reading more and do it quite often. Thats all I can think of to share. Merry Christmas.
Andrew
I have done lots of things this year. This summer I went to the national model train show celebrating the 150th anniversary of the golden spike ceremony. We built our models of New Mexico trains and the landscape to bring to the show. I also saw the Big Boy steam train 4014 with Spencer and Dad in Wyoming on its way to Utah. I also went with my family to the Eagle Nest Lake in northern New Mexico. This was a fun reunion with cousins and grandma. I finished my Eagle Scout Rank this fall and will do my board of review in a few weeks. I have been working on my N-scale model railroad this year. Have a merry Christmas.
Ruth
This year has been a lot of firsts: I bought my first car, I went on a summer trip without my parents for the first time, and I went on my first date! I’ve had a lot of fun this year with friends and family, and even though this year has brought its share of challenges (finals, stressful AP classes, and car insurance) it’s also been full of fun (going to girl’s camp as a youth camp leader, hanging out with friends, being a part of our stake’s youth committee, and spending a week at EFY). I’m thankful for all the good times this year has brought! I hope 2020 will be just as full of fun! Merry Christmas!
Becky
This past year has been full of activities with the family. It is a busy time of life for us. The kids all have their hobbies and things they enjoy and are busy with school and church activities. Sometimes it is hard for me to keep up with them all. One things I have learned to appreciate this year is family time. I am thankful for extended family and relationships we can build there too. Family is so important to us as we help one another through a busy life. I am thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and how it gives me hope and strength to deal with the day to day activities of life. We are blessed to have such a good life. I wish all my family and friends a happy Christmas.
Neal
I had a good year working, spending time with family and friends, and helping the children with their activities. I helped to organize the family reunion at Eagle Nest Lake. Over the course of a week, we caught fish, rode bikes, played in the lake, watched an Independence Day parade and fireworks, and cooked in dutch ovens. There were crafts and games for the children, plus a campfire with marshmallows. I enjoyed seeing a couple of Shakespeare plays with Becky and Ruth: “Romeo and Juliet” and “Love’s Labour’s Lost”. They were performed in an outdoor amphitheater on some pleasant evenings in June. The boys all joined a youth model railroad club and built their own segments of a modular layout. They decorated the segments to look like a local ballast quarry, which they toured. I helped them make wooden covers for their modules so that we could transport them easily. We showed the club layout twice in Albuquerque and once in Salt Lake City. Andrew and his high school marching band competed in two shows that drew bands from most of New Mexico and one town in Texas. I was able to watch both events, and the band won a medal in each. I went with Andrew and Spencer on many Scout adventures. We pitched tents on snow, helped build a 45-foot-long bridge at a Scout camp, caught fish, served refreshments to runners in a 50 km race (including our Scoutmaster), played on white sand dunes, and rode mountain bikes. I began bicycle commuting to work about half-time this year. I joined a group of local cyclists for a long ride on Labor Day and made some new friends. I plan to ride with the group as time allows. I am grateful to God for His blessings on our family and friends. He can’t make our lives easy because then we would not accomplish our purpose, but He is with us to support us. I especially felt His help at the funerals for my grandma and father. The hardest part of the year was speaking at my father’s funeral and dedicating his grave, but I was glad to do my part to honor him. He lived a great life and set an example for me. It is wonderful to celebrate Jesus Christ this month and remember that he prepared the way for us all to return to our Father in Heaven.
