A Christmas Letter of Many Firsts…

Dear Friends and Family,

We decided to modernize this year and do a blog post instead of a Christmas letter.

Merry Christmas!

Love,
Brian, Rachel and Anna

What have you been reading lately?:
This year, Brian and I read the entire Harry Potter series. They were
great – impossible to put down. We had to wait from hold number
600-and-something to read the last book because we’re tightwads and
didn’t want to buy it. Now we can’t wait to watch the movies.

What is the latest home improvement project?:
Well, Brian and Austin installed our woodstove late this summer and it
works GREAT! With a fire in there, the furnace only runs from about
4AM when the fire dies until I build a fire in the morning!
We started deconstructing the garage last November and to date, it has
a new loft, insulation and sheetrock. The mudding process is well on
its way. We still need to finish mudding, sand, texture, paint, put
up railing (on the stairs and loft), fix a few water problems and
build a floor. I think this calls for a work party! Woo-hoo!!!

How many children have you given birth to this year?:
Rachel – 1 (April 17, 2007)
Brian – 0 (but he let Rachel crush his hand in hers)

Where was your favorite vacation this year?:
We took a trip to the coast this November that was spectacular! It
was a long trip (Sunday-Wednesday), cozy, beautiful and fun too! We
rented a cabin for $45/night… nice! Sorry folks, they’re rented out
forever in advance, but you can watch the yurt and cabin website for
somebody to cancel! I think that’s how we got ours. (We rented it in
Spring 2007)

What did you do this summer?:
I don’t remember. Seriously. I had a newborn; I don’t have to
remember. From April 17 through June sometime I didn’t sleep. Ahh,
some of the fog is clearing. In July, we went to Grandma and Grandpa
Hooge’s 50th wedding anniversary! We love you Grandma and Grandpa!
We all stayed in a beach house and ate lots of food and visited.
We grew tiny corn and giant sunflowers. Watched the Blue Angels from
out roof. Went to a hoedown.

How much ice cream did you consume?:
Gallons and gallons!

What flavor?:
Almost exclusively Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Has any of your family moved recently? Where to?:
Yes! My parents (that’d be the Chapmans) moved this spring to
Molalla, leaving their home of a decade and a half in Oregon City for
a broken down country mansion. Well, mostly. It’s a nice old house
that is looking nicer and nicer with my parents hard work with a
stunning view of pasturelands.
And Neal and Hollye moved from New York, New York to Los Angeles,
California. Neal got a really sweet job doing cool nerdy stuff. But
really, LA?

Are you planning on moving? Where to?:
We are wanting to adopt – that means another bedroom. We have been
considering Prineville, OR, Grand Coulee, WA, the Hillsboro area and
the moon. Lately, we’ve been researching whether it would be
financially a good idea to buy acreage and put a manufactured home on
it until we can afford a ‘real’ house. So far, the moon is the most
feasible option.
– Show quoted text –

Most recently watched movies:
The Myth – a Jackie Chan movie
National Treasure
Hopefully we’ll watch the newest Harry Potter movie (now on DVD –
haven’t seen it yet) soon!

How much wood could a husband chop if your husband could chop wood?:
An amazing amount. Honey, you’re my hero! He’s chopped so much icky,
sticky, gnarled spruce!

Number of psycho pets owned? Names?:
2.
Razzie the squirrel-anteater flaming tongue of death and
‘Lucy’ aka Shreds, the declawed but ferocious furry feline

Home projects completed?:
Completed!? You’ve got to be kidding me. Let’s see. I re-papered
the drawers and cabinets in the kitchen. We planted some dwarf fruit
trees. We replanted the front yard. We built some garden boxes. We
planted garlic (to harvest next year). We put up a Christmas tree!

How many times have you rearranged the living room this year?:
At least three times. I was very pregnant early in the year, so I
don’t think we moved anything then. Sande came out and beautified our
living room into a stylish den. But… there was less room for
visiting and babies crawling, so we rearranged it to a more
comfortable but less stylin’ arrangement. Then we bought a Christmas
tree. Yep – moved stuff again!

Do you have a crush on somebody?:
Yeah – I’ve got it bad for him!

Last time you kissed somebody:
This morning. (Sorry babe, I don’t really want to give you my cold!)

Music you’re listening to:
Fire crackling in the hearth. (Earlier it was the beautiful sound of
my baby howling at the top of her lungs. Strange how it actually was
a beautiful sound the first time I heard it the night she was born…)

What are the latest feats of your child(ren)?:
This year, Anna has learned how to:
focus her eyes
recognize her mommy and daddy
hold up her head
eat from a spoon
drink from a cup
pick things up
suck on her toes
sit up
lean without falling
roll over (both ways!)
stand holding onto something
get onto her hands and knees
crawl
make all sorts of strange noises
pick things up between her pointer finger and thumb
teach her parents to jump at her beck and call
bounce in her bounceroo
avoid a kleenex headed for her nose with various acrobatics

What do you wish you could do?:
Rachel:
Right now? Breathe through my nose, find a real price quote on
manufactured homes, eat a pound of chocolate without getting sick,
sleep off this dumb cold and visit Lydia, Hollie, Lara and a whole
crew of others. Adopt our kids.
Brian:
Build a house.

How many vehicles have you acquired this year?:
One. A white Mazda pickup truck with a canopy.

How many chocolate boxes have you received this year?:
I’m not sure. I know Brian gave me one for Valentine’s Day and he
brought one home for me the other day from work.

What do you want for Christmas?:
A downpayment on a house
A bike trailer for Anna
Dinner at our house
Hugs
Brian and Anna snuggled on the couch with me
Our future kids to be safe and cared for… and with us!

What one important thing have you learned this year?:
Brian – That babies are mass amplifiers. The total mass of spit up, poop, and
drool secreted and expelled from a baby is greater than the mass of
milk and food taken in by as much as a factor of 10. I have theorized
that inside the baby is a quantum singularity allowing access to a
another dimension from which aliens are sending all of their waste
material to our dimension. That’s my theory.

What SERIOUS thing(s) have you learned this year?
Brian:
To be the person I would like to be all I really need is to find the
motivation to do what I already know to do.
That communion with God happens as we seek Him through His word.
That spontaneity and liveliness in my spiritual life come from being
disciplined in spiritual things. (Reading the bible, prayer, worship,
scripture memorization)

Rachel:
I’ve learned that sleep-deprivation won’t kill you.
That 4AM feedings CAN be sweet and special
That people were right when they said I wouldn’t understand until I was a parent myself.
That stuffed-up noses are a blessing in disguise, because now I can’t smell poopy diapers.
That babies stuffed up noses are not happy things at all.
That friends can brighten the darkest day and make a good one even better.

Any thoughts on Christmas?
Brian:
It really struck me the other night as I was changing Anna that Jesus
came as a baby and He was helpless just like Anna is. He babbled, He
drooled, He spit up on Joseph’s pants, He messed His diaper. That
amazes me and makes me feel closer to Him, because He was so human, so
approachable. It’s like God wanted to get the message across that He
wants us to come to Him, so He sent His son in the most approachable,
vulnerable form possible: a baby.

January – December 2007

January 2007 it was snowing!

February 2007 and I needed to give the ol’ tummy some breathin’ room:

March 2007 I was having a baby shower for Anna!

April 2007… Anna entered the world:

May 2007 – The family gets to know the newest addition:

June 2007 – Mama gets quality time:

July 2007 – Aunt Melissa enjoys Anna at the 4th of July party:

August 2007 – Anna reads with Papa:

September 2007 – Look, I can stand!

October 2007 – The family is growing! (Well, Anna is growing:-)

Anna in a punch bowl

November 2007 – Grandma Chapman gets some love on Thanksgiving:

Beach trip!

December 2007 – I’m a big girl!