Merry Christmas 2014

Dear Family and Friends,

Merry Christmas!  We love this time of year when we celebrate the birth of our Savior.   We also love taking the time to reconnect with all of you. Thank you for all the cards, newsletters, e-mails, and Facebook updates.  Here is what our family has been up to this year.

This year has been a busy one for us.   In the spring our family visited Olympic National park and the Hoh Rainforest.  Over the summer we took several trips down to Utah and Idaho to visit family.  In June Jared accepted a new neurosurgery job and we spent the rest of the summer packing and getting our house ready to sell.  In the fall we visited Mt. St Helen's and beautiful Mount Rainier National Park.  In October Jared went down to Texas to start work while Mary stayed in Washington until after Audrey was born in November.  Jared flew back up for Audrey's birth, then after a few weeks of visiting family in Idaho and Utah we all joined Jared down in our new home in Texas.

Jared has worked really hard this year getting our house all fixed up and ready to sell.  His hard work really paid off since the house sold in less than 2 days.  He likes new job in Waco and is excited to be working with Dr. O'Grady again (he worked with him for 4 years in Washington).  Jared is a great dad and he loves reading to the kids every night, especially now that they are old enough to enjoy some of his favorite books  (Candy Shop War, Fablehaven, and Harry Potter).

Moving, homeschooling, teaching Primary, and being pregnant have kept Mary pretty busy this year so she hasn't had time (or energy) for much else.  When she does get free time she enjoys book group, date nights with Jared, and visiting family.

Abby turned 8 and was baptized this year.  She also learned to ride a 2 wheeler.  She continues to excel at the piano and is already starting to pass her mom up.  She also loves art, swimming, gymnastics, and playing LEGOs and with her Gotz doll.  Probably Abby's greatest love is reading, and we have a hard time keeping her in books since she reads several each day.

Maddy turned 7 and lost her first tooth this year.  She finished up kindergarten and is now enjoying doing first grade at home with mom.  She works hard at home school and has a real talent for art, reading, and math. She also does well in her swimming and gymnastics classes.  Her favorite thing is playing LEGOs and dolls with her sister and brother.

Nathan (5) enjoyed being in public school kindergarten and is excited to start homeschooling with Mom now that we are in Texas.  He is a great reader and enjoys reading the Magic Tree House series.  He loves knights, pirates, Harry Potter, and Star Wars.  Nathan started piano this year and he is doing really well.  He has also made a lot of progress in his gymnastic and swimming lessons.

Audrey was born on November 7th.  She is a very sweet, cuddly baby.  She just started smiling and we feel very blessed to have her in our family.

 Thomas would have been 2 this year.  We love him and think of him often.

We hope all of you have peace and joy this Christmas season.

Love,

The Collett Family