Our 2012 Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas!

            We hope this letter finds you happy and healthy.  This year has been a true blessing for us and we have so much to be thankful for!

Like our now one-year-old son, we’ve been quite active this year.  We took a few major trips and several small getaways this year.  In the beginning of the year, we took a family ski trip to our favorite mountain destination – Snowmass.  We stayed at a huge ski in, ski-out townhome with Beth’s parents and enjoyed nearly a week of blue sky, perfect skiing weather (while Grandma graciously babysat Kyle!).  We definitely plan to come back… perhaps when Kyle is old enough to enjoy the skiing, too!  (Our condo was far from baby-friendly with a busy crawler so Grandma had her hands full!). 

The Lord took Beth’s grandpa this past spring which landed (pun intended) us back in Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Kyle’s first airplane ride was a success and we all had such a wonderful time seeing all of our relatives.  Cousins Jack and Caroline met Kyle for the first time as did Great-Grandma and all of Beth’s extended Wisconsin family. 

In April, we celebrated Kyle’s 1^st Birthday (which actually fell on Easter this year—how special!).  We had nearly 50 people at our house including both sets of grandparents and tons of friends!  Thank you to everyone who celebrated with us.  It’s sure hard to believe how fast that first year went by! 

In May, Beth found herself doing several business trips to both coasts, but somehow has failed 3 times now in seeing the Space Shuttle in the Air & Space Museum in D.C.  The entire family did, however, benefit from her work trips by getting to spend a week on the California coast enjoying Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and 4 days at Disneyland.  Kim & my brother even drove up from San Diego to see us! Truly a magical trip—we never knew that ‘It’s A Small World’ could be such fun as it was through the eyes of our child.  Disney was definitely the highlight of our year—we will definitely be back! 

In July, we took a week-long vacation to Gull Lake in northern Minnesota with Dave’s entire family.  Kyle enjoyed Grandpa Bob’s big boat and tubing for the first time.  And Dave managed to get pulled over on Jet Ski by the water police.  [And to think that Beth was the one driving quite recklessly!] 

We filled the rest of the summer with tons and tons of hiking, swimming, and other outdoorsy activities.  Kyle is a huge fan of his hiking carrier and we don’t tend to get any complaining from our dogs.  Nearly 8 years here in this great state and we are still amazed by all of God’s beauty that surrounds us.  We can’t imagine living anywhere else!

We spent several weeks this fall up in the mountains.  Once in Breckenridge with a gathering of Dave’s Florida (and now Washington!) friends and another driving all over the state in hunt of the beautiful aspens.  We hiked in Glenwood Springs, Aspen, Snowmass, Crested Butte and drove through the Ohio, McClure, Kenosha, Kebler, and Boreas Passes.  Kyle rode a chairlift for the first time—he was far less nervous than Mommy!

In October, we drove the 7 hours to Moab, Utah with Dave’s brother and family to enjoy 4 days biking and hiking.  Dave competed in the Moab Half Marathon while Mommy and Kyle were his biggest cheerleaders. What beautiful vistas they have in Canyonlands and Arches National Park!  We had such an amazing time with Brian’s family—it makes us wish they lived out in Colorado.

Kyle started walking this summer and is now running and climbing everywhere and everything.  He’s saying quite a few things and signing the rest.  His favorite words at the moment are “nana” (banana) and “more.” He’s truly the easiest going kid on the planet (quite a blessing if you know his two parents well enough!)  He absolutely loves books, gymnastics, throwing balls, and going for hikes. 

David is still working on the space shuttle replacement, Orion, at Lockheed Martin.  He loves his job (most of the time), but constantly aches to be at home more.  He did several races this year including 2 half marathons and several triathlons.  He is actively training for next year’s big goal:  the Ironman 70.3 in Kona (Big Island, Hawaii).  There, it’s on paper, so everyone help him keep to it!

Beth remains part-time at Lockheed.  She works 3 days a week and finds it to be a perfect balance.  I don’t think you will ever convince her to go back to full-time.  She stays home with Kyle Mondays and Fridays and has found a love for meal planning, enjoying play-dates with the K-man, and keeping the house “in check.”                                                                                                                                                             

Last (but certainly not least), our dogs have had a year of adjustment.  With Kyle mobile, there are very few “safe” spots in the house anymore.  Kidding aside, they have adapted really well to him.  Belle is extremely patient and tolerant while Sequoia will often enjoy a game of chase now and then.  Belle has started to show her age more and Sequoia has become much more affectionate in her adolescence.  The dogs continue to enjoy a peaceful evening after Kyle has retired for the night (and of course, they still enjoy snuggles on our comfy bed!).

Phew, what a year it has been! 

We hope your year has also been rich in God’s blessings!  We would love for you to follow our daily lives via our In Our Shoes blog at www.moonshoe.blogspot.com. God’s best to you this Christmas in the New Year to come!

Love from the Shoemakers-- Dave, Beth, Kyle (1) Belle (10), and Sequoia (4)