Christmas 2015
Christmas 2014
Grace was part of the all important 6th grade play and was outstanding in her dancing and role.
Shannon guided the family to Florida for Easter. What a fabulous idea!!
It was standing room only in the Florida church we attended for Easter Sunday mass.
Then it started kicking into high gear with Daniel getting confirmed and graduating from grade school.
Shannon and Susie soon followed with their high school graduation.
Susie was so excited to graduate and have her parents come all the way from China to celebrate with her.
Now Shannon's grandparents didn't cross the pacific ocean to attend graduation but they did travel from the east coast.
May was a month filled with all types of emotions and it was quite the roller coaster ride. It settled down a bit before Jim and Daniel left for their big high adventure at Philmont Scout ranch. It was a two week back country backpack trip that was a tremendous experience for the both of them. Daniel came back slim and strong and Jim lost a bunch of weight but also came back with a bum right foot.
This trip covered over 80 miles in the Southern Rockies. This picture above was taken at 11,000 feet above sea level. It was about the 4th or 5th day of the trip.
This picture is on the last day of hiking. At this point Jim hadn't shaved in 12 days and was being called old man with all the gray in his beard. Neither of the guys had taken a shower and even with all that, it was an amazing trek.
This is a typical campsite that the group would set up everyday. A normal day started at 6 am with everyone getting up and preparing breakfast, taking down camp and setting out on the trail by 7:30 am the latest.
The views from the trail could be absolutely stunning. We would walk on switchbacks many days and the valley and mountain tops are amazing out there.
Then within a blink of an eye, we were moving Susie into her dorm room at Indiana University. IU is huge!!! Susie has done well there and has made a ton of new friends. She is still dancing and working hard at the business college.
Before we could catch our breath it was Shannon's turn to move in to Wash U. Even though it is just a few towns over it seems like she is a world away from us.
The above picture was the opening convocation to the semester at Wash U. Shannon is in that sea of freshman someplace!
Deb won't let Shannon forget that she is a proud Mom!
Shannon has somehow avoided running into her Dad on campus unless she needs something. Then all of a sudden she doesn't mind being taken out to lunch or brought to Target for a quick shopping trip. Shannon's odyssey has been a wonderful experience and she loved all her classes and finished with a 3.7 GPA. Not bad for such a tough academic school!
The first week of August wasn't just about college and moving in the the girls. It also included Daniel deciding to play football for the first time. Daniel was on the freshman football team and played all three parts of the game, offense, defense and special teams.
It was a small program with about 20 boys on the entire team. They asked Daniel to play mostly outside linebacker on defense, slot receiver on offense and he was the kick returner and punt returner for most of the season. Football lasted from August to November and was a great experience for Daniel.
There he is all the way on the left side of the picture getting ready to run a route.
Daneil is now starting a weightlifting program this winter followed by his desire to be on the track & field team this spring. Here he is from last spring as an 8th grader participating in a meet. He came in first for discus and 3nd in shot put during this meet.
He also placed 1st in the long jump.
He is slowly figuring out his classes and hopefully finished on a high note before Christmas break. Still he is a good looking boy!
You all know our beautiful daughter below, the one and only amazing Grace!
Grace is the last one at Holy Infant school with her mom. She is in 7th grade and has her mom for both math and English class this year. Having a 7th grade filled with your daughter and all her friends can be challenging but both Deb and Grace are doing well. Grace continues to play soccer year round and has recently begun playing basketball year round as well. She loves being active and hanging around the fields with her close friends.
The fall just flew by this year, Jim continues to be one of the coaches for Grace's soccer team as well as the Scoutmaster for Daniel's Boy Scout troop. He continues to travel at least 2-3 trips a month for WU and seems to be gone more than he is home. The good news is that everyone is doing well and we are ready for 2016!
The weather here has been crazy like most parts of the country. It is supposed to be winter but that seems to be slowly coming around. Basketball season has started and Jim is once again coaching Grace's CYC team while helping out with the feeder/select team as well. What has come as a surprise is Daniel decided not to tryout for his high school team but instead he and his buddies are playing in a recreation league and Jim drew the short straw and is helping those knuckleheads out as well.
Life is moving fast and we are doing our best to keep up. Deb and I hope that all of you have a blessed and safe New Year! And we can't forget our faithful dog Cocoa.
and we shouldn't forget a Christmas past from a long time ago
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