1995 Christmas Letter from
16715 Gannon Ave W
Rosemount MN 55068
WHAT!? Another address change? Yes, but it's a good change. God has blessed us with being able to move into a house of our very own on May 23rd! We've gone from handing a ton of money to a landlord to handing a ton of money to a bank. Ah ... the privileges of home ownership! Seriously, it's a really nice place with lots of room for the youth group and VISITORS (hint, hint).
Dewey continues to be grateful for the honor of serving with the church here. There are so many things that are just so ... so ... so right about it. He's been through a kind of culture shock (The joke around here is that if he hears the word "paradigm" one more time, he's going to be sick in a major way. Every once in a while, Dewey's office mate will leave two ten-cent pieces on his desk just to see what happens.) that gets him feeling inadequate at times, but he could use a little humility! Of course, the other area of inadequacy is not having a landlord that's responsible for house maintenance. It's a good thing Debbie is so handy at fixing things.
Speaking of Debbie, she has officially said "goodbye" to selling Tupperware and "hello" to a few nights at home. She helps us cover the house payment by cleaning seven houses and still keeps ours looking good, too! As you can imagine, she loves thinking up ways to make the new house a home. But that's not all! Debbie teaches the 1st graders during our 2nd worship service each week and also takes a turn with one of the three worship-leading teams.
Angel is a 15-year-old sophomore doing absolutely GREAT in two or three college prep/college-level courses. (Academic scholarships, here we come!?) She's cheerleading for JV football and basketball, singing up a storm, and keeping a guy named Butch interested. In her spare time, she eats and sleeps.
Shonda is 12 and in 7th grade. She got to join the church's teen choir this fall and likes it a lot. She still likes hugs from Daddy and stuffed animals, but is showing a disturbing (for Daddy) interest in ... (how should I say it?) ... a certain young person of the male gender. Nothing serious, but changes are happening. She's our tender-hearted artist and is continuing to improve on the flute.
With the move to the new house, Curtis (turning 9 in January) had to switch schools, but one of the three 3rd-grade teachers at his new school is our preacher's wife. That helped make the change bearable. (Come to think of it, Curtis has been in a different school for each year of his scholastic career. What a trooper! Unless they change the division lines, this should be the last change until middle school.) We need to find a gymnastics program for Curtis. He can balance and flip like Bart Conner. Between that and his ability to design costumes for playing "street rat," we think C.E. is pretty talented.
Kelly will be 7 in February and is enjoying 1st grade. She's reading just great and shares Shonda's and Curtis' artistic flair. The big news today is that she has a tooth that's "wiggly." Kelly always has some "good news of the day" to share around the supper table.
Charky, a puppy of undefinable origins, is the newest addition to our family. We adopted him when he was flea-bit, ticked off, and swollen-bellied and he shows his gratitude for our graciousness by digging through the garbage when we're gone. Charky looks kind of like a small seal with ears and four legs. (Side chuckle: Angel had the idea of naming him "Kitty." Just picture it and laugh! "Here, Kitty!")
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As we contemplate our blessings, please know that you are counted in that list. We hope your Christmas is a special time for you ... filled with smiles, hugs, hot chocolate, and the warmth of life on this side of the manger.
In His grip,
