Christmas Letter 2008

December 2008/January 2009

Greetings of the Season, Dear Friends and Family!

We’re still writing from Colorado, and it’s hard to imagine a place we’d rather be. The sun, the mountains…with some more of you and a large body of water, it’d be perfect. We’re excited that the kids can do a bit more on their own, and last summer we enjoyed some hikes and swims at Bear Creek Lake Park. A few weeks ago, we even went to so far as to purchase a four-pack of ski tickets for Scott and me to use. It’s been a years since we’ve really threaded the slopes, so this little toe-dip back in is pretty exciting.

We feel blessed that 2008 was rich with visits to and from family. We greeted the New Year in balmy Fargo celebrating my cousin’s nuptials. The youngest guest at the wedding was my sister’s one-month-old baby, Kacie Clair, sweet girl! Then both sets of grandparents visited Denver in February, March, and April, able to help us celebrate Olivia’s big, first birthday and Zach’s Spiderman cupcake third. In July, we drove back to MN for Olivia and Kacie’s joint baptism at the church where my grandma served coffee for 30 years. The kids (and we ‘rents) enjoyed time at the lake, and Zach caught his first fish. We should have just kept the car packed because in August we headed up to Montana to see Scott’s uncle, grandma and parents. Again, Zach was thrilled to operate the hay-baler. We welcomed Nana and Pop back to Denver as they headed west in October and back through in November. The kids love all the time they get to be spoiled by grandparents!

It seems impossible, but Zach is going to be four in March. He continues to amaze us with his learning. He must be the smartest child on the planet! He played in a fall soccer league and started at a new T/Th morning preschool up the hill from us. Trucks and outdoor play remain high on his list of favorite things, but he enjoys “projrecks” like painting and making potato stamps. It’s hard to find him happier than when he gets to spend time “working” with Daddy, but he sure does love to play with Olivia and celebrate her new words, “She said ‘bus!’ Mama, she said ‘bus!’”

As you’d imagine, Olivia remains fascinated with her big brother and everything he does. She started a morning daycare program one day a week, and I love to read her report cards, which usually mention cars and trucks. She’s at “that active stage,” and every once in a while we can spy the little horns sprouting out of her bean. It’s been a big year for Olivia, as she learned to walk, or rather run, at about 14 months. She’s definitely our climber, and has so far focused most of her energy into the physical development, though recently she’s started speaking two-word sentences. We know, too soon, we’ll be wishing she were a little less verbose. We’ll enjoy it all as it comes!

And what of the parents? Scott continues to find (not enough) time for his two-wheeled pursuits. The big rides this year were the Triple By-Pass (120 road miles over 3 mtn. passes) and the Breck 67 (67 miles of beautiful but grueling off-road terrain), which he finished like a champ. His job with Square D takes him to Phoenix almost every month, but not for too long. We’ve set up a great babysitting exchange with some neighbors, so we even get some date nights in.

I remain entertained by and committed to book club, shuttling kids, and various crafty projects. I ran the Bolder Boulder 10K with some friends in May and tried to play some softball until I had a season-ending ankle sprain. As I managed to procrastinate on this letter long enough to take us into the new year, I can share that I “plunged” into 2009 via the Evergreen Polar Plunge! What a fantastic cleansing moment it was. We’re thankful that Scott is still employed and I’m able to stay home with the kiddoes.

Though our house doesn’t have lavish guest bedrooms, we always welcome visitors and would love to show off our haunts and hikes. In the mean time, you can keep up (sort of) with our daily stuff via our blog: http://thewallacesonline.blogspot.com. Please keep in touch!

Much love to you,
Kjirsten, Scott, Zach & Olivia