December 2012
Dear family and friends,
The time has come once again to celebrate the Christmas season and reflect on the blessings we have received over the past year. It seems like Christmas came a bit early to our house this year. Our tree is up and our house is decorated, and it is only December 2.
The past year has brought many blessings to our family. Toby has continued his teaching job in Vancouver and is loving it. Toby is on his fifth year of teaching and is excited that his orchestra program continues to grow each year. Sometimes he feels like he is living the dream but never wakes up. He also excited that our own kids are now old enough for him to teach violin and cello to each day.
Juliette continues teaching online for Ashford University, as well as teaching ESL classes part time at nearby Marylhurst University. She gets to help out in Ben and Nate’s classes at school one morning a week and loves it. Juliette continues running and is looking forward to running the Hood to Coast Relay race next August. She did not run any races this year. In her free time, she dabbles in playing the guitar and ukulele.
Benjamin, 6, is now in first grade and is doing well. This school year he has played soccer and basketball, and he has loved both sports. He has many friends at his school and is doing well both socially and academically. Ben’s hobbies include doing legos and drawing (he is an amazing artist). Ben and Nate both continue to take an advanced gymnastics class at the Little Gym.
Nathan, now 5, started all-day kindergarten this fall and is loving it. While he may be one of the shortest kids in his class, he is also one of the brightest and most enthusiastic. Nate loves reading, bike riding, and doing legos, and he also loves playing with his sister. Nate played soccer for the first time this fall and had a great season. Nate also loves dancing and hopes to start back in ballet next summer.
Mary is now 3 and a half (she corrects you if you call her three), and she is one
tough cookie. She started preschool this fall and looks forward to it the two mornings a week that she goes. This summer she learned her letters and sounds, and she is now reaading Bob books. She loves Barbies, princesses, and Care Bears. She takes a dance class at the Little Gym where she learns ballet, tap, and gymnastics. She and Nate got to watch the Nutcracker for the first time this year and loved it.
We enjoyed two trips to California this year. In May we drove down to see Toby’s sister Elizabeth graduate from college and Juliette’s brother Rob graduate from college. Then in July we enjoyed a longer vacation and spent time visiting Toby’s dad in Shell Beach and camping with family at Sequoia National Park. We also visited Seattle one weekend in June.
This summer we did a lot of projects on our house. We replaced our dining room carpet with laminate flooring, and also painted every room and hallway inside our house. Since our walls were all previously white, having more color in the house has made a big difference. Next year we’ll work on painting outdoors. In other news, Toby was called to be the executive secretary for our ward, while Juliette is still serving as a ward missionary. Our biggest frustration of the year was having to put so much money into repairing our cars, but at least we don’t have car payments. Soon enough we will have to buy newer vehicles, but we are postponing it as long as we can.
We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy new year. May the Lord bless you and your family with peace and joy throughout the new year.
Love,
Toby, Juliette, Ben, Nate, and Mary Weston
