Wow! This year seems to have flown by in alot of ways. The kids are getting older and busier, but we are having fun as we go! This year we have enjoyed many friends coming to visit us in Temple, TX. We love having a 5 bedroom house that has plenty of room for guests! My parents, Todd’s mom, and Miss Kelly are our most frequent visitors, while other friends come when they can.
This summer we had the opportunity to attend youth camp with our church. We traveled to Orange Beach, Alabama for Student Life Camp. While we were there, we got to know some people from church and experienced camp on the BEACH! It was a very different experience than what we have been used to in the past, but it was fun staying in condo’s on the beach and eating good food. Todd and I enjoyed a special treat when our good friends, Greg and Carrie Skaggs traveled from Troy to visit us one afternoon. That just blessed my heart that they would not pass up an opportunity to see us when we were that close to them.
We made our annual visits to Oklahoma in July, November and December. We were also able to attend the OU vs Baylor game in Waco again this year. This is always a fun game to go to and it’s a great place for the kids to get autographs from the OU players. This year Kelly and I planned our trip to the OU vs Texas game in October. It was a fun surprise for Todd, Blaine, and Briley to receive tickets (from Uncle Stacy) to the game as well. Kenzie gladly spent the day with a friend and the rest of us piled into Kelly’s car at 3:30A.M. to travel to Dallas. Yes, you read that right! 3:30 A.M.!!! As a bonus to our day, Game Day was at the Cotton Bowl so we HAD to drive up to experience it! I must admit, I hated getting up that early (especially since Kelly’s rule of “No talking before 7:00″ was not abided byby certain male persons) but it was fun to experience Game Day. But the best part was watching Blaine enjoy it so much! That made it worth it for me!
Blaine just turned 17 years old (Dec. 22) and is a junior in high school. He is 5’8”, weighs 150, and wears a size 11 shoe. Blaine loves all sports and especially loves to play football, basketball, and baseball. He is very bright and learns fast. Everything is black and white to him, there is not much gray. He plans to study engineering in college. He has always wanted to take things apart to see how they work. I have been telling him that he would make a great lawyer because he loves to “debate.” He has a strong desire to prove his point and he really, really wants you to see things his way. He would also make a great sports analysis, as he gives his opinions to the commentators and officials as we watch sports on TV. Haha!
Briley just turned 15 years old (Dec. 2) and is a freshman in high school. He is 6’1” (and growing), weighs 230 pounds, and wears a size 14 shoe. Briley loves sports as well, playing football, basketball, track and baseball. He is very smart and is a deep thinker. He asks lots of questions about life and makes decisions for himself. He does his own thing and doesn’t care what people think about him. He does not follow the crowd just because that’s the “thing” to do. Briley loves life and is a party waiting to happen! He is so funny! He brings much laughter and joy to our family! Briley has a tender heart and cares about people. He makes friends quickly. Briley has not yet decided on what he wants to study in college. For a long time we thought he would be a missionary, so we’ll see.
Kenzie is 13 (April 30) and is in 8th grade. She is 5’4” and wears a size 9 shoe. Kenzie has been playing volleyball since 4th grade and loves it. She is a setter in volleyball and is very serious about it. She has also participated in cheerleadering (7th and 8th grades) but is not serious about it. She just wants to be with her friends, so she cheers with them. In high school, she plans to play volleyball and sing in choir. What?! She’s gonna be in high school next year?!!! Can it really be? Yes, I’m sad to say it is true. Kenzie is smart and works hard at school. She really only enjoys school because her friends are there. She is a quiet person but makes friends easily. Life for her is all about her friends (and pedicures).
We keep busy with the kids activities but wouldn’t have it any other way. Time is going by too fast! We are beginning to face the facts that Blaine needs to be looking at colleges and we will soon have one less child at home. Wow! That is such a S.A.D. thought!
So, as we tuck 2011 away in our memory bank, we look forward to all that God has planned for 2012. We know that God is constantly at work around us and our desire is to be in the center of His will. We pray that each of you will grow in your relationship with Christ and lost souls will come to know the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
