2010 year in reveiw

This year in an attempt to be more eco-friendly (& due to the fact my printer is out of ink), I decided to write our Christmas letter on our blog.

As I look back on 2010, I am struck by two things 1. how quickly the year has flown by and 2. how extremely blessed we are. It has been a wonderful year. Here is the rundown:

One of the bigger highlights of our year happened back in April, when we flew back to Mount Joy, PA for my grandpa's 90th birthday and my grandparents 69th wedding anniversary. The focus of the trip was the birthday/anniversary party, where the entire family (my grandparents, their 6 kids, the 13 grandkids, 18 great grandkids, 2 great-great grandkids & all the spouses) was present. We even managed to squeeze together for one big group shot:
Here's a picture of my dad's branch of the family tree: And a shot of just our family:

This year we were able to spend two separate long weekends with this great group of friends:
We went camping this summer in Naches, WA and spent Thanksgiving together in Allyn, WA. We are hoping to make the camping trip an annual occasion. Both trips were very relaxing and full of good memories.

In May, my best friend, Kara and her husband, Kacey welcomed a son, Owen Mark Cerdena. In June, I was able to go visit the Cerdena's and spoil little Owen. This November, Owen was baptized and I was honored to be his Godmother.

The kids are keeping us busy. The boys are busy with school and sports, and Becca is just plain BUSY. This fall for the first time, ALL three kids started school (Corbin- 2nd grade, Trent & Becca preschool)


CORBIN:

This year Corbin played Basketball, Baseball and Soccer. In September, Corbin turned eight and started second grade. He is loving school, especially recess where he loves to play wall ball and tether ball. Corbin is a silly, fun loving boy who is quickly turning into a young man.

TRENT:

Trent played his first season of T-ball this spring, soccer in the summer, and he is excited to try basketball this winter. He loves to do everything his brother does. He is currently working on reading and tying his shoes (trying to keep up with Corbin). Trent is in his second year of preschool going four mornings a week. He loves his classmates and his teachers. In September, Trent turned five, which makes him the oldest in his class, a fact he is very proud of.

BECCA:

Miss Becca, also know is Miss Mischief, is definitely keeping us on our toes. She has an enormous personality bottled into her pint size two-year old body. Becca turned two in August and put her diaper wearing days behind her at the same time. This fall, Becca started a Two & You class at Trent's preschool. Every Thursday, Becca and I go to school together. She LOVES it! We are slowly working on being kind to our classmates and learning basic classroom etiquette. At this point, getting through class without causing harm to anyone is considered a success! Becca loves singing and is constantly serenading us. Becca has grown so much this year, we are enjoying our feisty little two year old.

MARK & MEGAN:

Both Mark & I are doing well and continue to work with the same companies (Mark with TPI and I'm with CCS). Mark got an elk this hunting season, filling our freezer with meat. This year I enjoyed two solo trips to Seattle to visit my girlfriends, and I escape our crazy house regularly to go to card making classes.

ZOEY:

Zoey, our crazy pup and ever present watch dog, has turned into a semi-mellow adult dog. Zoey still has her hyper moments when we have visitors or the kids play with her, but as a whole she has become pretty mellow. She continues to be the perfect dog for our family. The kids adore her and she adores them.

Over the past couple years, we began to feel like we were out growing our house. So this spring, we braved the slow housing market and attempted to sell. Unfortunately it wasn't the right time, and once school started in the fall, we decided to take the house off the market to avoid a mid-school year move. We hope to try again next spring/summer.

This holiday season as we count our many blessings, we ask that you keep our brother-in-law Jim in your prayers. He is currently fighting tonsil cancer and should finish his chemo and radiation treatments Christmas week. We pray that in 2011 we can celebrate Jim being cancer free.

May the Joy, Peace, & Love of Jesus be yours this Christmas. From our family to you:

Love,
Mark, Megan, Corbin, Trent & Becca