Merry Christmas everyone! Another year has passed and Alex and I are celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on December 20th! We are expecting the best gift ever to commemorate the occasion. “He” will be here in February, Lord willing. “Junior” hasn’t been named yet, although we’ve received enough suggestions to name him a thousand times! We’re rolling around some ideas: How ‘bout Buford, Goober, Gomer, Bubba, or Nacho? We’ll think about it….
This last year has been eventful. Yes, we finally moved into the house in March. It’s so nice. Actually, it’s like paradise compared to that little apartment we lived at in Fullerton… boxes lining the walls for lack of room. I still have mucho square feet of dirt in the back yard. Only now there’s a bunch of weeds to beautify it a bit. I guess I need to do something with that next year. On the bright side, the mud could be really fun in the winter. Maybe we should keep it for Bubba!
Alex is still working at the counseling clinic…and loving it. She has recently reduced her hours and will be taking 4 months off beginning the first of the year. She works well with the kids who are struggling because of poor circumstances and/or bad life decisions. She feels a little overextended at times with parents who are asking for advice. Sometimes it’s hard to know the best answer having not been a parent yet. Now we’ll be learning first hand.
I (Justin) am finishing my credential in Multiple Subject this year. I will be completely done, finito, hasta-la-vista in June of ’04. I had to switch districts in order to make it happen (student teaching obstacles). I teach all subjects now to 7th graders and an elective course on Life Skills to 8th graders. What a wonderful, “wordy” age! They’re generally pretty good and I like teaching them. By the way, I am looking for guest speakers in my Life Skills class. If you can imagine back to the uncertainty in your life at age 13, that is the focus of the class – social skills, money, investing, borrowing, credit, dealing with strong emotions, depression, effects of alcohol/drugs, being successful in school, getting a job, keeping a job, personal values, future education --- basically all the stuff that is RELEVANT to life.
Travels took us all the way to Wyoming this year. Actually, my bro’ – Drew -- got married to a great gal in Cody. On the way we camped, hiked, and rode the rapids on the Snake River. It was a 2-week road trip stopping in Vegas, Hoover Dam, Zion, Yellowstone, and Craters of the Moon! Before that, I spent a week with Drew in Kalispell over spring break to brief him on the nuptial proceduresJ. We also went to Alex’s family reunion/grandpa’s birthday in Tucson in July. Wow, is it HOT, and the rain and lightning are something else! During the summer I helped out with a few kids’ camps – one on the coast that my friend Chris directs. I got the chance to “attempt” surfing and sea kayaking! I also cooked hundreds of pancakes one morning for a bunch of high school kids at Bass Lake. I think I could work at IHOP now!
Well that’s all for now. Alex and I are really excited about the future. We also have 2 nephews and 1 niece who are coming into this world at the same time along with Nacho. It will be a privilege to guide them, and watch them grow together. Please visit us at our house if you haven’t already.
