Belle, Bear & Berry

I feel like I am between two worlds.... Facebook and blogger. But in many way blogger is for me - facebook is for others.

Here is my annual Christmas letter

As I sat to write our annual letter I struggled... Looking back, there didn't seem to be a 2008 defining moment. A defining trip* A defining* well, anything. I was a little perplexed. I felt like we were busy, constantly. So where were the big moments with the trumpets blazing*. Where were the pictures of the beautiful ocean waters? The serene valleys? The mountains climbed? The summits reached? Did a year go by and we have nothing to say?

They are there. Oh yes, they are there. In all the little things. Our ocean waters, may have been lakes, pools and the occasional long bath, but they were there. Many days and nights were spent in serene valleys*. making a sand castle, taking a bike ride, playing in the sun in our own back yard, snuggled in bed reading stories, in quiet contemplation around campfires. Mountains were climbed * with cheers for every goal attempted and yes, some were made. A lesson on skates without falling, Knowing that if you do fall, you can get up again, the perfect cartwheel, the exhilaration of skiing down a hill. There were other valleys too; the not so serene ones that don*t seem to have a place in an annual letter and yet, without those valleys, perhaps the mountains would not seem so grand. The summits wouldn*t be reached with such joy! Learning to read! Learning that so much of life is not in our control, but we can control how we handle what we are given. Knowing who to call when you think the day could not get any darker and being that person for someone else. Being able to honestly say *I understand*.

So, perhaps our card doesn*t have any amazing pictures. Just us. What I hope you see are the smiles of kids who know that that their parents think that each one of them is a precious gift from God. Every day that we get up to play, learn or just enjoy life is a defining moment. Moments that I am honored and blessed to be a part of.