Monday, December 15, 2008

Christmas Letter 2009



December 2008

We wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New 2009 Year.



Dan keeps busy as a counselor in the Stake YM presidency. He enjoys going to the YM activities and working with the youth as well as spending time with Jace and Kurtis. After 20 years with the same company, Dan has a new employer. EDS was purchased by HP in August. The good news is that he still has a job. He is now part of EDS, An HP Company. The changes and cutbacks have been challenging, but Dan has risen to the challenge and continues to do a great job in all he does. Dan and Tina got to go to Utah together for their 25th wedding anniversary this summer. It has been a great 25 years.

Tina has started to substitute for PISD part time. She is mostly subbing in the Elementary school and at Plano East. It is very interesting to teach Juniors and Seniors one day and then teach Kindergarteners or 1st graders the next day. Tina is now working with the Girls Activity Days and the Ward Activity Committee. Volley Ball is still her favorite sport and she likes it when she gets to play 2ce a week.

Andrew is now in Cary, North Carolina. He has been on his mission for 14 months. He is working hard and is seeing other’s lives change for the good because of the Gospel. Here is a sample of one of his experiences: “So this week was pretty good, but Jessica (10 year old that has been waiting to be baptized for 3 weeks) didn't get baptized. She actually got in a car wreck on the way to the baptism. What happened was they were driving down Cary Parkway going to the church. They went through an intersection and a guy ran a red light and hit them right in between the front door and the back door on their van. He bent the door by Jessica and broke her femur. They said it would be a while before she would be out of the cast. Femurs are hard to heal, apparently. But that would be a crazy story if it had happened, but it didn’t. She was baptized on Tuesday by the Bishop and confirmed on the same day by Brother Guavera. It was really good. Her mom even made her a dress.” Andrew is now a trainer. He is also preparing the husband of a Plano East graduate for baptism on Dec. 27th. He should have a White Christmas!

Jace, is a Senior and is really enjoying his senior year. He is in the PALS program (Peer Assisted Leadership) and has done a lot of service through his class. He is also in AP 3-D Art. He loves to work with clay and make sculptures, especially if he can put in car parts. He was also a co-captain on the Cross Country team. He is very active in our ward and is the 1st assistant in the Priest Quorum. With all of this he still finds time to spend with the family and be a good influence on Kurtis, Jessica, and Tiara.

Kurtis is a Freshman. He is also on the Cross Country team and has enjoyed running with Jace. Kurtis is in Sign Language and is enjoying that very much. He is also in art. Kurtis started Seminary this year. He has had a very long schedule. He would leave at 5 to 6 in the morning and return at 5pm in the evening only to leave at 5:20 to go to his second cross country workout of the day. He would get home for the evening at 7:30 pm. Luckily this schedule only lasted for a few months. He did a great job in adjusting to the long school day. He continues to be a good example to those around him. Kurtis has discovered that he likes to write stories. He has been busily writing every chance he gets. It could be a result of all the Heimerdinger tapes he has listened to.

Jessica, is in the 4th grade. She is in the Environmental Club and in the 4th-5th grade school choir, as well as Girls Activity Days. She is working very hard and is earning good grades. She participated in the History Fair and won first Place at Hickey Elementary. She did go on to District, but didn’t place there. She did her project on “Nastia Liukin: Never Give Up”. The theme was “The Individual in History”. Nastia is our neighbor, so Jessica was able to do the project because Nastia became a local as well as a national hero this last summer when she won 5 medals in women’s gymnastics at the summer ’08 Olympics. Jessica is still working hard on her gymnastics. When Jessica wants to do something, she works hard and “Never Gives Up” like her hero, Nastia.

Tiara, is in 1st grade and is doing a great job. Her reading is really improving. She is learning and growing constantly. She lost her first tooth on Thanksgiving Day by drinking Root Beer. The tooth just “popped out”. Tiara’s favorite subject in school is art. She is constantly drawing. She is a great example to her friends at school. Tiara has a great sense of humor and entertains those her age as well as adults. We love her tidbits of wisdom.

Charlie, our Dachshund, is now 5 years old. He is doing well and still loves to run and play. He entertains us quite well. He also lets us know when anyone comes to the house. It is his job and he does it well. He was also very good at sniffing out the mice when they moved into the house this spring. He was great at helping us move them back out of our house.

Shelby is our Russian Tortoise. She has been with us since last Christmas. She is thriving and growing quite well. She loves Romaine lettuce the best. She is quietly entertaining.

Christi and Ryan are still in Lancaster, Wisconsin where Ryan is a Lawyer. They welcomed Logan Daniel Dalton to their family this summer. He is a cute chunky big boy. His sisters, Kaitlyn , and Emily love him very much. We love it when we are able to see them. We were able to visit them this summer and then Tina got to go help Christi when Logan was a month old.

Julia and Cody now live in Princeton, Texas, which is 25 minutes from Parker. It is great having them so close. Cooper Alwyn Conger joined their family in the spring. He is a big boy and is a very happy baby. He is growing quickly. He loves to come to Grandpa and Grammy’s house. He gets loads of attention. He gives out great hugs and kisses.

Merry Christmas from the Dan and Tina Wilson and Family

2 comments:

Christi said...

nice letter mom! I love that you posted it. I even learned a few things.
Love you
See you soon!

Unknown said...

Hello Tina! The picures are beautiful. Your family is awesome. The Elders said 'Hello'. I hope to hear from you soon. donann@me.com