Archived
Newsletters
|
Greetings!
What a year it has been for us! This has been an extremely busy year. Laurel and I went full time with our business, Kaden started school, I am training for the P.F. Chang Marathon and Laurel is planning on walk/running the half marathon. In addition to these large events, we took the boys to visit the ocean at San Diego for the first time this spring and I was able to climb Mount Rainier in Washington with my dad in June.
As you most likely know by now, I have started a family blog-site that you may keep up to date with us on a weekly basis. Some weeks are slower than others and I promise not to bore you with useless postings! This website will be updated as well on a monthly or quarterly period with photos and videos. This newsletter will come out only to elaborate further on our year and that we may only touch on in our Christmas letter. So be sure to visit the blog-site often and this one every now and then to view photos and videos.
Enjoy! 
|
Kaden started Kindergarten this year!
Even though we’ve given it a lot of thought, we haven’t decided on one route for schooling – homeschooling, private schooling,public education or even online which is now offered at the elementary level. Rather, we have a mixed philosophy. I was a preschool teacher for a long time and I see benefits in some time spent in school along with lots of quality time spent at home. We’ve been fortunate enough to have a situation that has allowed us to keep Kaden and August home with us while they were young. But they are also looking forward to the time to be in school, make new friends, and learn new things.
...for more click here
"Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out."
|
Concerning getting on with the Police Department, the biggest news is no news. I still hope to get on with the Police Department here in Maricopa. So many factors came into play with the slow down of hiring officers such as the housing bust, economy, a city in its infancy, etc. The lack of city funds puts me perpetually at the top of the list waiting for hire. There was an interesting article written in the New York Times about our city that gives a good idea of where the city stands at the moment. What the article lacks is the positives that will come in the future. Click here to read the article.
In the mean time I am volunteering several hours a week with the department and enjoy it immensely.
Click here to hear the good news about how well our business Mountain View Resourcing is doing.
|
You can watch cheese age!!: The first cheese to be watched by millions age was named Wedgenald. There is a fun story there.
http://cheddarvision.tv/
Great health food website:
http://www.whfoods.org/
See space through the Hubble:
http://hubblesite.org/
Optical Illusions:
http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/
Run in a race and share it with people :
http://www.athlinks.com/
"True happiness, peace, and purpose happened in my life when I started giving
of myself as much as I gave to myself."
Susan Loken, our running coach
|
This has been a year of growth, fun, new experiences, and learning new things for the boys. It’s a lot of fun to watch their interests and their talents begin to emerge. Personality traits have begun to show themselves. And now that August is old enough to play, it’s been fun to see them really begin to enjoy playing together, along with dealing with the ever-present issues of sharing and teasing each other.
...for more click here
>>top
|
This spring we got a new Bassett Hound!
Staying with our philosophy, we adopted him from a local Bassett Rescue Organization (AzBHR). His name is Emmett and he is 8 years young. What is interesting about Emmett is that he was one day away from being put to sleep. The shelter that he originally came from puts 150 dogs down a day!!
Click here to hear all about Emmett and view some pictures.
>>top |
 |
|
"We may pass violets looking for roses. We may pass contentment looking for victory."
Another year has passed and what a year this has been! Wow! I know for me and my family we get caught up in the chaos and become consumed with frustration, fear, and weariness. Imagine, we thought the world was moving at light speed before this year! Now it is all we can do to try and wrap our minds around everything; from politics and the economy to something closer to home, jobs and well, homes. If our leaders confess that there is no clear path and consequences to any decision are unclear then we have really entered the great unknown.
...for more click here. top<<
|
We have a philosophy where we like to stay active in life. Our interests help drive us but are not the focus of our lives. We don't get bent out of shape if we do not start or finish them. The only question we ask ourselves at the end of each week, month, or year is did we produce fruit or waste the time given to us? Even if we only accomplished a few items on our list during the week, with this “accountability,” we find that we achieve more in our lives than without it. This year was no exception.
(click on any item)
Running
Involvement in the community
Hobbies
Climbing
Blog
>>top
|
This year I began teaching Kaden how to play the piano. I took a year of piano lessons when I was a kid and taught myself the rest. So I was a little at a loss as to where to begin. I decided to go with a color-coded note system. I am very pleased with the results. The color coding made it possible for him to begin playing recognizable melodies almost immediately, which was really fun for him. As we have started each new song, I’ve introduced new concepts like how the notes are counted, what a rest is, the treble clef and bass clef, etc.
...for more click here >>top
|
 |
|
|
|
Disclaimer - Obviously I am fully accountable concerning my own writing.
All other links/materials that I reference may/may not hold views that I agree with entirely. Therefore use your own judgement when viewing this materiel. That said, I am still accountable to an extent, so if there is a gross offense, please inform me so I may review the discrepancy more carefully . |
|