Christmas Letter

thought you might like to see the Christmas letter we are sending out, mostly by email but snail-mailing a few also.  Love you lots,
 
Dear Family and Friends,

Another year; another adventure!  It occurred to Bob the other day that we are coming up on tying the second longest that we have ever lived in one place (Los Osos being the longest - 9 years - and Hawaii the second - 5 years).  Five Christmases in one town; four in the same house!

The enclosed picture shows the clan.  The occasion was the wedding.  In May, Sara graduated from Covenant College (all the kids except Philip were able to be there) and a week later, she married Philip Walton Smith.  After a short honeymoon, they settled in here in Huntsville where Philip is doing an apprenticeship at a funeral home and taking classes to get his license in Alabama to be a funeral director.  Sara found a job in August at a day care.  It’s different, and fun, for us to have children in town after they are married!

My parents are in the back of the picture.  They are both in good health and enjoy getting together with us when the clan gathers.  Along with being here for the wedding, they also were here at Thanksgiving when the whole family gathered again.  Bob and I made a trip up to Dayton to see them in October.  Bob’s parents were not able to travel to the wedding or for Thanksgiving but we visited them for July 4th.  (We also managed two baseball games – Giants at Dodgers and Oakland Athletics at Giants as well as time in San Francisco and with good friends in the Bay Area.)

Rick and Tracy with Seth (6) and Riley (4) are on the right.  They are still in Huntersville, NC, where they bought a house on the same street where they were renting.  Rick is teaching a full schedule of classes and is the Athletic Director at South Lake Christian School.  Also in May Rick graduated from Covenant College with his Masters of Education.  Tracy is teaching part-time this year at South Lake – grammar and composition to Junior Highers.  (History repeats itself sometimes!)  She is also very involved in the children’s and women’s ministries at their church and is the varsity cheerleading coach.  I wonder where she learned to be so busy?

Robert and Elizabeth with Morgan (3 in January) are on the lower left.  They are still in Montgomery where they bought a house in March in the older part of town.  Robert works in the Habeas Corpus Branch of the 11th Circuit Federal Defenders’ Office.  Elizabeth is working on her masters and substitutes occasionally at Morgan’s pre-school at their church, Trinity Presbyterian.  They are both active in their church with missions and Bible studies.  Bob and I spent Labor Day weekend in Gulf Shores, AL, with them in a rented house that we are not sure is still sanding after Hurricane Ivan went through a week later.

David and Sarah are in the upper left.  Sarah continues to teach 5th grade at Central Christian School in St. Louis, while David finishes his last year at Covenant Seminary.  Over the summer, they were in Chattanooga while David did a summer internship at the church where he and Sarah, Robert and Elizabeth, and Sara had been active while they were in college.  In late December, David was offered a year’s internship at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Montgomery starting in June after he graduates.  Three out of four kids and families in Alabama with Mom and Dad!  A few years ago who would have imagined?!?!

 For Bob and Sally it has been an exciting and ever changing year.  Through it all, God has been always present to help us see His faithfulness as He grows us to be what He wants us to be.   Bob’s job as Headmaster has shifted emphases a bit as the school was able to purchase land for a new campus.  Lately most of his time has been taken up with the fund-raising, people-meeting, etc., that goes with building a multi-million dollar campus that will contain both the church and the school.  I continue at my job at the church as a secretary/bookkeeper, but still only working about 30 hours a week.  We are both involved in church:  Bob is preaching about once a month and occasionally teaching adult Sunday school, and I sing in the choir and teach a once a month Bible study.  I still knit, and I think that probably everyone who gets a present from us cringes a bit wondering what color dishcloth I have knit this time!  We still love to travel (In January we are going to Niagara Falls!) and try to use Bob’s out-of-town preaching opportunities to take get-aways.  In April we went to New York City with the school band to listen to them play at Carnegie Hall.  We had a great time and the band was very good.  In June we took a week’s trip to visit 4 baseball parks – Kansas City, Chicago (Cubs), Cleveland, and Baltimore.  We spent an extra day in Baltimore, specifically in historical Fell’s Point.  It was a lot of fun.  In October, after several months of Bob searching the internet, we bought another sailboat.  Sunago is a 22 foot Starwind with a small cabin, where we have actually managed to spend one night this fall!  Sailing here on the Tennessee River is different from the sailing we did on our boat in California but it, along with riding in my red convertible Mustang that Bob bought me in April, have provided us with relaxing times, which especially Bob needs.  One highlight of the year was when some good friends from Los Osos came for the wedding and ended up moving here by the end of the summer!  God does some funny things!  At the wedding we were blessed by having several sets of friends from out of town attend.  In fact, throughout the year we managed to see at least one set of friends from each place that we have lived over the years.

 We pray that this Christmas season has found you healthy and truly blessed by the gift that God sent to men in the form of His Son.

 Bob, Sally, and Shere Khan