2019 Christmas Letter
Well, it's hard to believe we're at the end of 2019. This year was a full year like the others, but seemed to go faster than most. Ashlyn graduated high school this May!! She graduated at the top of her class with many honors. She's a freshman at Truman State University in Kirksville, MO. She is majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Art/Graphic Design. She was awarded a big Amazon Scholarship and is going to school debt free. She will also intern at Amazon in Seattle this summer for 12 weeks. We are very proud of her and look forward to her texts and phone calls each week. In between her classes and keeping us in the loop, Ashlyn enjoys a few on campus clubs and organizations as well as hanging out with her new friends.
Joshua is a sophomore at Park Hill High School and continues to excel in all of his classes. He finished Varsity Swim in the fall and is enjoying Speech and Debate tournaments already. He will start college visits in the fall with Washington University and Truman at the top of his list. Joshua was a lifeguard this past summer at our neighborhood pool and plans to teach swimming lessons next summer. He turned 16 and has been driving this year too! In between student government activities and working on payroll and financial stuff for The Maids, Joshua still loves watching his Marvel and DC tv shows and movies in his spare time.
Caleb is a freshman at LEAD Innovation Studio. He's loving this new style of learning and new friends he has made there. He LOVES working at Chik-fil-A after school each day and on Saturdays. He volunteered this past summer at our church again with his friend Roger doing maintenance on the buildings and the lawn there before his new job at CFA. Caleb still spends alot of his free time enjoying his Worlds of Fun season pass, roller skating, shoe shopping, and hanging out with his friends.
Jonathan is in 7th grade at Plaza Middle School and is doing great there. He continues to be the comedian of our family and is still shorter than Deanna. He stays busy hanging out with friends playing video games and watching movies at home. Jonathan loves missing school, especially for vacations and enjoyed a 3 1/2 week European cruise with John and Caleb in April. When we mentioned the possibility of living out of the country to our kids this fall, Jonathan was the first one to get excited and was ready to go. We think he will shoot up in 2020 and join his brothers in towering over Ashlyn and Deanna.
John and Deanna hired a general manager for our cleaning business in January. John stepped out of most of his duties in April and Deanna did in August. It has been a weird transition of early retirement and uncertainty of what we should do next. John continues to serve on a few boards at our church as well as on a couple business mentoring groups. He continues to travel back and forth to El Salvador with a ministry called Partners Worldwide a couple times a year as well. He has made some good contacts recently with a couple new global organizations that he is excited about and are working on a couple possibilities for next year. Deanna still serves at our church in a couple different ministries and stays busy with the boys schedule. She moved her mom closer to us in June and is enjoying spending more time with her now that she is closer. Laughing with her book group and close friends are also ways she enjoys her spare time.
Our family took many adventures this year! Joshua, Ashlyn and Deanna took on Washington DC and saw just about every historic monument available to see there in the short time they visited. The boys and Deanna spent Spring vacation in Sunny Arizona visiting family. John, Caleb and Jonathan took a Transatlantic cruise together for 3 weeks and enjoyed Europe. They visited Coppenhagen, London, France, and Belgium. When they returned, Ashlyn and Deanna enjoyed New York City and Niagra Falls. Then, Ashlyn and John took another cruise, this time through the Baltic Sea. They saw Coppenhagen, Saint Petersburg, Estonia, Denmark, and London. John and Deanna got a couple's trip in to Myrtle Beach before school schedules started celebrating their 21st Anniversary.
We are looking forward to 2020 and what adventures might await us then! We would love to hear from you here. Let us know what you have been up to in a comment.
With Love,
John, Deanna, Ashlyn, Joshua, Caleb and Jonathan
Joshua is a sophomore at Park Hill High School and continues to excel in all of his classes. He finished Varsity Swim in the fall and is enjoying Speech and Debate tournaments already. He will start college visits in the fall with Washington University and Truman at the top of his list. Joshua was a lifeguard this past summer at our neighborhood pool and plans to teach swimming lessons next summer. He turned 16 and has been driving this year too! In between student government activities and working on payroll and financial stuff for The Maids, Joshua still loves watching his Marvel and DC tv shows and movies in his spare time.
Caleb is a freshman at LEAD Innovation Studio. He's loving this new style of learning and new friends he has made there. He LOVES working at Chik-fil-A after school each day and on Saturdays. He volunteered this past summer at our church again with his friend Roger doing maintenance on the buildings and the lawn there before his new job at CFA. Caleb still spends alot of his free time enjoying his Worlds of Fun season pass, roller skating, shoe shopping, and hanging out with his friends.
Jonathan is in 7th grade at Plaza Middle School and is doing great there. He continues to be the comedian of our family and is still shorter than Deanna. He stays busy hanging out with friends playing video games and watching movies at home. Jonathan loves missing school, especially for vacations and enjoyed a 3 1/2 week European cruise with John and Caleb in April. When we mentioned the possibility of living out of the country to our kids this fall, Jonathan was the first one to get excited and was ready to go. We think he will shoot up in 2020 and join his brothers in towering over Ashlyn and Deanna.
John and Deanna hired a general manager for our cleaning business in January. John stepped out of most of his duties in April and Deanna did in August. It has been a weird transition of early retirement and uncertainty of what we should do next. John continues to serve on a few boards at our church as well as on a couple business mentoring groups. He continues to travel back and forth to El Salvador with a ministry called Partners Worldwide a couple times a year as well. He has made some good contacts recently with a couple new global organizations that he is excited about and are working on a couple possibilities for next year. Deanna still serves at our church in a couple different ministries and stays busy with the boys schedule. She moved her mom closer to us in June and is enjoying spending more time with her now that she is closer. Laughing with her book group and close friends are also ways she enjoys her spare time.
Our family took many adventures this year! Joshua, Ashlyn and Deanna took on Washington DC and saw just about every historic monument available to see there in the short time they visited. The boys and Deanna spent Spring vacation in Sunny Arizona visiting family. John, Caleb and Jonathan took a Transatlantic cruise together for 3 weeks and enjoyed Europe. They visited Coppenhagen, London, France, and Belgium. When they returned, Ashlyn and Deanna enjoyed New York City and Niagra Falls. Then, Ashlyn and John took another cruise, this time through the Baltic Sea. They saw Coppenhagen, Saint Petersburg, Estonia, Denmark, and London. John and Deanna got a couple's trip in to Myrtle Beach before school schedules started celebrating their 21st Anniversary.
We are looking forward to 2020 and what adventures might await us then! We would love to hear from you here. Let us know what you have been up to in a comment.
John, Deanna, Ashlyn, Joshua, Caleb and Jonathan
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