Farewell 2019

2019 has come to an end!  To finish off the year, I'm going to post the rest of our family pictures from our Bear Lake family reunion this summer.  I'm realizing that I never posted them back then and since that's what we used for our Christmas card this year, it's seems especially apropos to add our newsletter to the post as well!

Since we didn't send out a card last year, I'm assuming everyone has forgotten who we are.  Here's a brief snapshot to jog your memory:

Ethan (16) -- living that Sonic back-of-the-house life while also keeping up his grades, going to early morning seminary, creating peace at home, overusing the word "allegedly," and basically burning the candle at both ends.

(UPDATE note -- he has since quit his job at Sonic and has spent much of his holiday break convincing the rest of us [or at least me] to participate in an ACT off with him.  You know, like a dance off, but with the ACT instead.  Hahahaha.)

Grace (15) -- living her best high school freshman life, spending several hours each day socializing each day.  She continues to be the Tom Sawyer of the family as well as the Pied Piper of Hamlin and is the epitome of "work smarter, not harder."  She also makes life a whole lot more fun.

Sophie (12) -- living that preteen, dance team, yearbook life with sparkle and pizzaz.  Some of her favorite activities include: singing loudly, dancing, hanging out with friends, and remembering she has homework at 10 o'clock at night.

Jane (10) -- living that tweenager, TikTok dancing, velvet scrunchie wearing life.  Our resident empath feels her feelings deeply and slays us on the regular with her talented impersonations and expressive facial expressions.

Alex (8) -- living that LEGO obsessed, Diary of a Wimpy Kid reading life.  His fear of natural disasters has ironically led him to the "I Survived..." series, where he has now survived the Joplin Tornado of 2011, the Great Chicago Fire, and the Great Molasses Flood (aka The Boston Molassacre).

Isaac (4) -- living his BEST life 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  Turkey-turkey sandwiches, Roblox, sneaking on screens, snuggling with Mom, and Hot Wheels make his world go 'round.

(UPDATE note -- apparently Hot Wheels were a passing phase.  And while he still sneaks on screens aplenty, he is also very fond of browbeating me into making "deals" with him where he gets to play on my phone and I get...? Nothing really.  Hahahaha.)

Scott (age is just a number) -- living that HR dream life.  His special talents include doing lots and lots of dishes, humoring his wife, and playing a mean game of Bananagrams.  In his spare time, he continues to root for the Detroit Lions (along with all other Detroit sports teams), Michigan football, and BYU.

Jessica (I'm not 40 yet) -- living that blogging, 40-before-40 goal achieving, wannabe runner life.  Finding humor amidst chaos continues to be her greatest talent.  She's also really good at tuning out the world while reading.  And writing Christmas cards.  

We hope this season finds you happy and well.

Much love and Merry Christmas!!!

And that's a wrap on 2019 -- So long, farewell!!