Merry Christmas!

Christmas 2006


Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope this letter finds all of you happy and well.

2006 was a good year for our family. One major event was the July sale of Daryl’s company, XXXXXXs, to Gore, (maker of Gore-tex) a Fortune 500 biotechnology company located in Flagstaff, Arizona. He continues to teach and do research as a Professor at the University of Michigan and to perform as CEO at his other company, XXXXX.

We have embarked on a major home renovation and addition project. Many months were spent on the planning and design phase with the architects. Currently we are completing the bidding process, which will result in both a final budget and the selection of a contractor to complete the work.

Our family did some traveling this year. We spent almost 2 weeks traveling 1000 miles through Ontario and Quebec provinces. We spent a week in a Baie St. Paul, a small town in eastern Quebec, north of Maine. Since none of us speak French, and most Quebecois do not speak English, it was an interesting and sometimes frustrating experience. The region boasts amazing scenery, both mountainous and water oriented. Located on the St. Lawrence seaway, we were able to go whale watching and sea kayaking as well as hiking, bicycling and horseback riding.

In November we spent a week in Chicago having a city vacation where we enjoyed museums, shopping and a performance by the Blue Man Group. We celebrated Thanksgiving with Paula’s aunt, who lives in Chicago.

We will be traveling to Phoenix on Christmas day. We plan to enjoy time with old friends, some hiking and sightseeing, and the sunshine.

D. is in the 9th grade this year. In September he was confirmed in the Catholic churh, which was a proud moment for all of us. He played running back and corner back on the football team. Although the team didn’t have a winning season, Dillon scored numerous touchdowns and was a vital member of the defense. He is currently playing basketball.

J.’s soccer career ended this year when her team disbanded, so she has taken up horseback riding as her new sport. She also continues to play both the piano and flute. She is in 7th grade and is an excellent student. This past summer she attended Inkstains, a creative writing camp at Eastern Michigan University.

L. is now our lone soccer player, and he is both dedicated to his sport and a talented player. He is in the 5th grade, and doing extremely well in school. He has just begun playing the clarinet and continues to play the piano.

I. has also begun horseback riding lessons and she is passionate about both horses and riding. She is in the 4th grade. She continues to play the piano and to fill her role as our household fashionista.

T. has really blossomed in the past year. She is handling the transition from half day kindergarten to full day first grade extremely well. She has gained a lot of self-confidence and maturity. She is a real math whiz and enjoys doing math problems just for fun. She is now reading well enough that she can read a book on her own.
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K. is enjoying being at home with his mom and little sister. Astute and observant, he has a terrific vocabulary ,and we are often amazed by the things he has to say. He loves to be outdoors, enjoys playing with dinosaurs and helping with cooking.

A. has gone through a tremendous transformation in the past year, from a baby with few opinions of her own to an extremely particular little girl who is not shy about sharing her feelings. To say that she loves reading would be a huge understatement. Her adoration for books is so great that we have dubbed her “the librarian.”

After several months of watching Isabel and Jasmine with envy, Paula has also taken up horseback riding, and is enjoying the challenges of a new sport. She continues to be a member of a women’s book club, and continues with running as her primary fitness activity.

We hope you all had a terrific year and a blessed holiday season. We wish many more blessings upon you for the New Year!

A great way to contact Paula is email: pxxxx@xxxx. I look forward to hearing from you!


Love,

Paula, Daryl, D., J., L., I., T., K. and A.