Ellery Grade 2	Heath Grade 1	Sydney Kindergarten

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December 25, 2012
Merry Christmas from Dennis and Stephany

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This year Ellery came down to help get everything ready for Thanksgiving dinner.
Her preparations included decorating an artistic children's table. Good job, Ellery!

Brooks had his tonsils out on November 6, 2012. They were so big they were seriously effecting his quality of life. He did great with the surgery.
 
In Devon's words: "Brooks did great! He was seriously so excited for his surgery... he never once got scared. That smile... it never left his face the whole time they were prepping him for surgery. He was so brave and so cute! They all loved him because he was so excited. After the surgery, the smile was gone but he was still a trooper and because of that, we got to come home only about an hour and half after surgery. Now he's happily on the couch watching movies with his Ami Lorilee who flew into town just for him!"

He attends Holy Cross Preschool in the afternoons and continues at his much loved
Miss Melissa's Gym and Swim at Life Time Fitness two mornings a week.

Audra Smith, daughter of Nathan and Lisa Smith, and Takenori Justice were married on October 13, 2012 at the Pickering Barn in Issaquah, Washington. Over 450 guests attended the wedding including many friends and family of the bride and groom.

Justin Robertson and Shannon Harcourt were married September 26, 2012 in Anchorage, Alaska.
His cousins, Colin and Aden Smith, were there to share his big day with him.

Brooks wanted a Super Heroes party featuring himself as Spider Man so that's what he got! Devon made an awesome cake with individual super heroes. Miss Melissa came in on her day off especially to do Brooks' party at Lifetime Fitness and a great time was had by family and friends.

What a beautiful experience we had on Waldo Lake! The lake was so smooth and glassy and that coupled with its amazing depth clarity (Waldo is one of the purest lakes in the world) made it literally feel like we were flying instead of paddling our kayaks!

Ellery is in second grade and Sydney is in kindergarten at River Grove Elementary in Lake Oswego.

Ellery and Sydney were joined by their mom Kim and grandparents Dennis Heath and Stephany Smith at the Oregon State Fair this year. The highlight this year wasn't the rides or the food or the pig judging but the fact the Kim's car wouldn't start when it was time to leave! However Les Schwab came to the rescue to salvage a fun day for everyone.

Heath is in first grade at Holy Cross. Holy Cross is a small private neighborhood school only two blocks from their house so Devon will be able to walk Heath to school.
 Bowen will be attending his special ed preschool classes at Beals Elementary.

This trip Dennis had to work so Stephany and the girls camped without him. We had a great camping spot next to the playground and the Nature Center. The girls took full adventure of the Nature Center and Ellery earned her next level badge in the Junior Ranger Program and Sydney earned her Beaver Buddy Badge! Both girls amazingly hiked clear to the top of a very large sand dune during an evening ranger program. Not having the truck we had to hike everywhere and it became a very long day when Ellery left her back pack at the swimming hole and had to hike back herself to get it while we waited on the trail for her. Sydney decided to lean up against a tree while we were waiting and take a nap!

Dennis had to work again this week so Stephany and the girls camped him without this trip as well (Stephany did get a little more tired than usual for sure!). We had some great bike rides with Sydney sans training wheels and, as always, enjoyed exploring Fort Stevens and Battery Russell and the wreck of the Peter Iredale on the beach. A highlight of this trip was a visit to Fort Clatsop, the replica of the fort where the Lewis and Clark Expedition stayed in 1805. On the way home we stopped at our favorite rest stop on Hwy 26 but no tables were available in the shade. Ellery suggested we picnic in the side at the side of the RV so we did!

Ellery was excited to catch the pig judging this year after missing it last year. In addition to the usual animal exhibits, rides and food the girls enjoyed touring some RVs this year. They especially like the ones set up with bunk beds.

 Kim and Aden and the girls stayed in a teepee and Dennis and Stephany stayed in their RV for this vacation. The pool was definitely the main draw but miniature golf was also fun. It was a good thing we were on vacation because the dining room service at breakfast was on vacation mode as well!

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The weather was definitely wet and stormy! We didn't see any whales at the Whale Watch Center either but a good time was had by all. Ellery and Sydney thought it was great because they got to watch DVDs and had two breakfasts at the Pig and Pancake!