I have no excuse! I am not sure why it has been almost two years since I posted on our family blog. I could have made time...but I have neglected to do that! Maybe 2022 will be a better year for me posting!
We stayed at my parents house in Omaha this past weekend. They are away at their winter spot in Texas, so we did not get to see them. I talked with my mom over the phone while we were at their house and found out that her memory is gone again. It is weird, she can remember certain things, yet forget other things altogether. She couldn't remember why we were in Omaha (even though we talked about it several times) and she couldn't remember what she had done the previous night. When I was hanging out in my dad's office I noticed she had a book shelf full of binders. These binders were all labeled and full of memories. Almost like scrapbooks from the past 10 plus years. There were letters, brochures, obituaries, vacation souvenirs, park passes to places they visited...just everything. I am glad that she has those things...because if she remembers she has those things, she can look back and maybe it will trigger some past memories. I am also glad we have those things, so the kids and I can look back at all of my parents' adventures. So.....that made me think...I should try my best to return to my blog. I know not very many people will read it, however, it will give my mom a better insight on what is going on with our little family and hopefully one day my kids will be able to look back at some of the memories that I have shared:)
So I will start off easy...here are a few pics (not in any particular order) from the past year and our 2021 year in review letter. I sent this out to family last month, so many have already read this. Enjoy!
Greetings Friends and Families,
I hope this Christmas letter finds you well! We have had an eventful 2021 with our crew, so I thought I would write a letter to keep everybody in the loop as to what we have been up to!
Sean: Sean started year eight at Hornady Ammunition. He has gotten into Precision Rifle long distance shooting, so has traveled quite a bit for different competitions. He also had a successful turkey hunt in Colorado and deer hunt in Missouri. He is working on mastering his recurve bow.
Julie: I have stayed busy with the kids. I started year sixteen with homeschooling. It starts at birth right?! I still teach three classes every week on Outschool- an online teaching platform. I also teach two National Archery in the Schools classes and have 39 students this year! I still have my side business of making shirts and decals lets me release a little bit of creativity! This fall I went on a girls trip with a few friends to Waco, Texas and visited the Magnolia properties.
Jocelyn: Jocelyn started her junior year of high school. She took 12 credit hours at our local community college, so she didn’t have any classes with me. Those classes have kept her extremely busy. She has enjoyed having a little freedom on her own, as she is now driving! She babysits for two different families and works part time teaching dance classes at her dance studio. She is still dancing and is taking seven classes. This year she will be in a small group dance with two others girls. In January she is taking classes to get her CNA license. This past summer she went on her second travel camp adventure with the Christian Resource Center. She went to the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, and Bryce Canyon.
Katelyn: Katelyn started her freshmen year of high school. She also still enjoys dancing and is in three senior classes this year. Kate is looking forward to dancing at the senior showcase this year in Minnesota. She also likes organizing and cleaning things—when it is her idea.:) I can always count on her knowing where things are at in our house. She is officially the second tallest in our family—she just passed me! She enjoys babysitting, hanging out with her friends, and baking things.
Easton: Easton is now in seventh grade. He enjoys playing football and air soft rifle with his friends. He is shooting archery this year for our NASP program and our club. This past year he enjoyed going fishing and hunting with Sean. He also learned to ski on water and on snow! He also tried out a new summer church camp called Timberlake. He had a great time there and made a few new friends.
Weston: Weston started 5th grade. He enjoys the same activities as Easton. In addition to those activities, he played soccer for the Y and really enjoyed that. Weston dabbled in snowboarding, but liked skiing better. Weston also went to church camp and had a great time. This fall he made the decision to get baptized!
Landon: Landon started Kindergarten this year. He is starting to really enjoy school and is learning how to read! He seems more interested in numbers though! Landon enjoys playing with his friends, swimming, riding his bike, and playing in the yard. He has started shooting in our kids league at our local archery range. This year Landon is attending a kids community Bible study with me. He absolutely loves it and counts down to going each week.
We had many adventures as a family this year! We traveled to Missouri three times to visit Sean’s family and to enjoy a little time at Bull Shoals lake. The kids learned to wake board and ski this summer. They also enjoyed tubing. We went to Silver Dollar City in Branson a few times as well.
Our big vacation this year was going to Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, and the Grand Tetons. It was a big trip for us, but absolutely fantastic! We saw so many amazing things along the way from waterfalls, to hot springs, bears, buffalo, moose, and elk! We can’t wait to visit again and do some more exploring!
We hope all of our friends and family has had a great year!
Merry Christmas!
Sean, Julie, Jocelyn, Katelyn, Easton, Weston, & Landon
