2008 In Review - Eventually...

Until we got moved to the new house, I never had that feeling of "ending" something old and "beginning" something new. Like "ending" the old year and "beginning" the new year. And, of course, once we started getting moved and "beginning" the "new" year, well... here we are a month later. Happy New Year! :-)

And so that I can finally send out our "Christmas" letter/picture (that I had ready at the beginning of December, by the way!!), I must FINALLY type up this year in review. Sometimes, it's just a drag to be so task-oriented...

Really, I think I can sum up our whole year with this statement - we sold our house and we moved. I think that consumed our lives this year. And so that I can remember something besides the glitz and glamour of moving to a new house (*choke*), from the recesses of my mind (and a few past blog posts - yay for blogging!) I'll try to sum up 2008 in as brief a photo-less post as possible. However, I don't promise a limit to web links... :-)

Bit started her last year of middle school this year *gulp*. She stepped out of her comfort zone and selected a drama class for one of her electives. She's not a little actress (she's laid back and matter of fact), but she's enjoyed stretching a bit. She's still very much geared toward music and was thrilled to be selected for a national honor choir again this year - traveling to DC to prepare and sing in March. She was very excited to put her glasses aside in lieu of contacts. And she finally grew a few inches. She was glad to have to go shopping for some new clothes... No boys in the picture yet, but she has some good boy-friends. She's happy with that and so are we!

Bear survived her first time on an airplane as we took she and Bit to Washington DC this summer for Dad's business convention. There was quite a bit of tears and gnashing of teeth, but when we finally took off all was well. She's ready to go again as she is also selected to sing in the OAKE National Honor Choir (150 selected nationally) and the event is actually at the same hotel we were at this summer. She grudgingly re-took her place as the "little sister" when Bit passed her by in height. Celebrating her last year in elementary school, her class took the traditional trip to Sky Ranch and Mom had the privilege of chaperoning. Bear still hung out with Mom afterwards, so all went well.

Little Buddy got braces. Mom became a serious toothbrush police. Little Buddy probably got his teeth brushed more in the last 6 months than the 6 years prior. However, since moving to the new house, he has done a remarkable job of getting those pearly whites (and silvers) clean. In fact, since moving to the new house Little Buddy has worked hard on a lot of stuff. Could it be the incentive to roam and play outside more than ever before? With friends his own age just across the street? It took a bit of restriction for him to get that he couldn't go to the creek without us or take off somewhere that we hadn't discussed. But, sitting in the house while everyone else was out riding bikes was torture enough for him to realize he needed to stick to the limits we set. He likes to challenge limits... Oh, that boy!

Little Girl started losing teeth this year. Once she got going, we were afraid she wasn't going to stop. She can be very determined about completing tasks... She kept us in good with the doctors with eye surgery and a broken wrist. And even with a broken wrist she was still soccering and dancing. Given her way, she'd add gymnastics to that and pick up piano again. However, living between two little friends from school now is keeping her quite busy as they ride bikes and play at each others' houses whenever possible.

Mom and Dad took a trip to Napa Valley in May and endured a bit of wine tasting. As soon as we returned from the trip to DC in June with the older two girls, we decided the time was right to put the house on the market. See "House Story #1" and "House Story #2". The wonderful part of putting the house on the market (packing some unnecessary things...), moving to a rent house (not unpacking everything) and moving to a new house (repacking and unpacking again) is that you have numerous opportunities to get rid of stuff. Unbelievably I have some empty shelves in my kitchen (that is actually a bit smaller than my previous kitchen) and I LOVE it! We've moved to a bigger house, but with less stuff. I have discovered that I REALLY don't like "stuff". So, this whole moving and moving experience has really been great. Goodwill knows us by name now... So, for a play-by-play of our moving experience, just click on the "New House" link to the right over there somewhere. I'll keep updating it as I get curtains and stuff made. Maybe... I'm sure it will be more than you wanted to know, but Grandma likes the updates and pictures.

Oh, and I almost forgot Heidi! She got to experience her first snow in March and she was hilarious to watch. She celebrated her 2nd birthday with a teaser field trip to her new backyard. When we actually moved, the poor thing had to sit and watch the rain and ice for a couple of days before she could really enjoy her new space. She was so confused, but adjusted very quickly to her new surroundings. She's still a Daddy's girl, although she'll snuggle up to anyone that will let her close enough.

If you're over our way anytime, stop on by. If we don't answer the door, holler over the fence. We may be out back working on something. We've got a lot of plans for this backyard of ours! :-)