Christmas Letter 2010

Dearest Family and Friends,

Has the year flown by for you as fast as it did for us? I still can’t believe that the Christmas season is upon us already! A lot can happen in a year, even if it does race past us at lightening speed.

Jaxen started off the end of last year with a bang. He ended up in the hospital with a ruptured appendix. We celebrated New Year’s in the hospital in the visitors lounge. Jaxen is in third grade this year, and doing fantastic. He is in PACE, which is a gifted program at the school. He does really well in all subjects. He loves to read. He reads in the van, in bed, on the bowl, you name it. . He finished up the Percy Jackson series this year and is on book four of Harry Potter. He likes to pop in smaller chapter books (like Magic Tree House) in between. He is playing soccer this year again, and although his team is not undefeated by any means, he is doing really well and it is really fun to watch him do something he loves and excels at. He plays soccer at school as well during recess, but has recently picked up the game of 4-square and football, which are his new recess passions.

Ember is in first grade and loving the fact that she can finally read! She is really into Junie B. Jones right now and anything relating to dogs, cats, or animals. She is also doing well in school. She is still my artsy one and you can find her any given day after school sitting at the table drawing or writing notes. Ember is also playing soccer this year, and boy has she come out of her shell. She is a very assertive player and not afraid to get hit or get in front of the ball. She has had a few times this season where she was hit pretty hard, shook it off, and kept playing. She is one of the stronger girls on the team, and I am hoping that she will want to play soccer next year. At school, she enjoys the monkey bars and is working on perfecting them going backward.

Owen is three years old this year. He loves to build puzzles, play board games, and be chased around by a monster (his mom). He enjoys dress up (Darth Vader and Spiderman) and likes to dress up to play monster with his mom. He loves Woody and Buzz and his birthday was Toy Story themed. He likes to sleep anywhere that isn’t his bed, and his mom wonders why he even has one sometimes. Not having one would save space. He is really good and playing by himself and has a wonderful (and sometimes silly) imagination. He is my smiley face. He likes to do things for himself and is much more talkative (although sometimes squeally) about what he wants! Potty training was accomplished this year! YES!

Kaysen is still our little monster. He turned one this year in July. We have decided that he is one of our dirtiest and grossest kids. He likes to get into stuff. He loves to play outside and shoots for the door when ever it is left open or doesn’t get shut all the way. He likes to help clean, even toilets, even without being asked, even when his mom has told him no 20 times before. If the bathroom door is left open, he knows it, and he is in there with the toilet brush cleaning like crazy. I know what his chore will be when he is 8. We all know by then he won’t be so interested. He likes to say “uh-uh (no)” and “ow”, and can sign “more” and “please”. He loves to feed himself, and would rather starve than eat off your fork or be fed. He likes to unload the dishwasher and has already broken one plate “helping” and given his mom a scare with a knife. So, unloading the dishwasher now occurs after the kids are asleep, or during nap time.

Shaunton is still working at Salt River. He took the PE this year, and we will hear back sometime before Christmas, keep your fingers crossed. He is the assistant coach for Jaxen and Ember’s teams, which keeps him too busy for his own sports during the Fall season. He still works out/runs daily. He ran a five miler this year up at Second Mesa.

This year I volunteered in the kids’ classes. I made quilts for Jaxen and Ember for their birthdays. I made Owen and Kaysen blankets for them for their birthdays. I am currently working on a quilt for Ember’s class to auction off for a school fundraiser coming up in April. I finished about a years worth of scrapbooking that I had put off while completing said blankets and quilts.

This year we have been working on some upgrades for the house. We figured with the economy the way it was, we weren’t moving any time soon, so we might as well fix up our home because we like where we live now. We put in some triple pain windows a few months back, and now we are getting our backyard landscaping done. It will be done by the end of next week; we are excited about having grass and being able to enjoy a beautiful backyard.

Well, there you have it, the Davis’s year in 2000 words or less (just don’t count). We have been doing well. We have been blessed this year. We are thankful for our family and friends and for all of the love and support. We truly are thankful for this time of year when we can think about our Savior and his birth and what it means for us. We hope that each of you take time to think of the meaning of Christmas and what it means to you and your family.

Take care and may God bless you.

Love,

Shaunton, Monique, Jaxen, Ember, Owen, and Kaysen