The Christmas Letter

I am going to try something new this year. Instead of putting a christmas letter in with my cards I am going to post it on my blog and then anyone who is interested can just read it.

So this is what is new this year with all of us:

Colin- The biggest thing to happen to Colin this year is that he joined a new Law Firm. He is now a Personal Injury Attorney aka: Ambulance Chaser, and A LOT happier. He loves the Attorneys there, they have a lot of common interests, and best of all- NO HOURLY BILLING!!! Which means he can spend time on work without keeping track of his time and who has to pay for it. Yes, he gets teased a lot by pretty much everyone, but now if you know of anyone who is wrongfully injured in the state of Nevada, have them call Colin. Colin is the mission leader in our ward here which means early meetings on Sunday and weekly meeting with the missionaries. He really seems to enjoy it, but I am looking forward to later church next year since his calling means I have to get the kids ready by myself each Sunday...

Jaime- I AM the biggest thing to happen this year. I am due to deliver a baby boy at the beginning of January, and with the four of them this close- you better believe that my stomach remembers, my belly is HUGE! I am literally counting the days until I deliver. Not that it will necessarily be easier later, I just want to be able to bend over again. Three little kids require a lot of bending! Toys, clothes, etc.. My one creative outlet this year has been making hair clips, headbands, and pacifier clips. It has honestly kept me sane by having something that is mine to do and not a total waste of time.. I have a store that sells them for me here, but my best clients are my friends with babies and my mom who buys them for shower gifts.

Noah- Noah is in preschool again this year- he wasn't 5 until December so he missed the cutoff for Kindergarten, but he is doing well in preschool. They actually seem to do a lot of what the kindergartens are doing, site reading, etc.. and I have been very pleased with his progress. His biggest obstacle is the whole behavior thing. As my sister said, "Noah is a good boy, he is just Exhausting!" and he is good boy- most of the time. He is a great helper to me, and does it because he loves me and wants to help me out. So, it makes it a lot easier to forgive the other stuff- the teasing, etc.. He really surprised us this year out on the soccer field. Man, the kid is fast! Plus he understands defense- which at their age is HUGE! He cannot throw his weight around (being so skinny) but his dribbling has improved and he is great at turning the ball. He really likes to cut off other players and take the ball away- usually to go on and score. His high this year was 6 goals in one game! We DO have to work on sportsmanship though- which if you knew Jaime back in highschool, will come as no surprise. He also learned to waterski this summer up at the Lake House (see first posting ever) and snowski last christmas. He is a little champ.

Elliot- Elliot has grown up so much this year! Shortly after she turned two, she decided to potty train herself. She has not been as successful as Noah was, and we have recently reverted to Pullups at night (the whole bending to change sheets thing..), but overall she is doing well. She learned to swim and was totally independent by mid July- which is a HUGE relief when there are so many little ones.. She is a little mommy and copies everything I do and say. Noah gets tired of it really fast. But she and Rowan have started playing together and I often hear them laughing in the other room . Her language has improved a lot this year and she can definitely stand up for herself. She is very athletic and has the cutest little muscular body. We will probably start her in gymnastics soon. She is dying to start preschool like Noah as well. It is difficult to remember that she will not be three until March.

Rowan- "Ro Ro" as she gets called, had a big year as well. She got teeth, learned to crawl, is pretty good at swimming with water wings, and finally started to walk in early October. It was driving me crazy not having her walk. Now, she gets to be a big sister! She will not like that one bit, as she is a total momma's girl. Maybe she will switch allegience to dad like Ellie did once the baby is here. She was the best baby; but now as a toddler, has a tendency to hit anyone who doesn't do what she wants. We are working on it, but really with two older sibblings this close, it is her only defense. She is starting to talk and one thing I can say for our children is that they are Loud and very verbal. We anticipate that Rowan will pass up Ellie in size within the next year- she is growing more like Noah did.

Overall, it has been a very busy and exhausting year- and as perfect strangers at the grocery store often tell me, it is only going to get worse! Sometimes I am a little short of civil with the unsolicited advice, but I try to just smile and say, "I know!". This Christmas will be the first without going to one of the grandparent's homes, and I am excited and a little sad as well. It will be nice to not pack Christmas, and have Santa come to our own house. We wish all of you a Merry Christmas and and hope you watch our blog for the newest Bringhurst to make an appearance! We love you all!

Love,
Colin, Jaime, Noah, Elliot, Rowan, and baby boy