Christmas Letter 2008

Family and Friends,

It was another year of bliss in the Brown household. This year we thought we would try something new and put our yearly Christmas letter on our sporadically updated blog. We try to keep it up to date as things happen but end up forgetting about it. Even now my rhythm is now being interrupted by having to get Carter some Gatorade. Shows are now over and I have to get the kids to bed so we can get our required one hour of peace and quiet which is usually spent cleaning up the house before we fall in to bed exhausted.

So its two days later and I’m back at it. Let’s go all the way back to January where I (Sheldon) started the downhill journey by turning 40. Not much more to say about that except that I was pleasantly surprised a few days later by a gathering of friends and family to celebrate. I continue to compete in cycling and put a few miles in on my bike usually early in the morning before work. I have continued to work at the church supporting the computer system but have been blessed to find someone to take over my role on a more full time basis. This has allowed me to take on a role as a small group leader. I continue to work at SRP where I have been working for the past 18 years. It is amazing to me that I am still there after all these years. God is good.

February saw our little genius, Cameron, turn 5. Cameron was attending pre-school 5 days a week and has since graduated to kindergarten. He is an awesome student as he is always eager to learn. His fun times are spent learning by either reading and playing computer games. He gets his exercise by riding his bike, going to the park and most fun of all karate. This year Cameron made it to green belt. He is quite a puncher and kicker. Cameron also graduated to AWANA’s SPARKS program. He absolutely loves it. The program challenges him to memorize and read. It’s right up Cam’s alley.

Fast forward to March when Shannon and I were blessed to be able to celebrate our 10^th anniversary (a little early) by taking a cruise to the Caribbean. It was an awesome 10 days of sitting on the beach, sleeping in and scuba diving. There was a little excitement on the second day as Shannon and her friend Rebecca decided to do a little shopping on one of the islands that we had docked at. Shockingly, time got away from them and before they knew it the ship was getting ready to leave. If you have ever been on a cruise you know that the ship does not wait for you if you’re late. It’s your responsibility to get on the ship on time. I heard there was a little running involved when the gang plank was removed from the ship. It took a team of Bedwell's to take care of the 3 kids while we were away. Grammie, Aunt Kathy and Aunt Florence ( there was even a rumor of Uncle Dale getting in on the action). We are blessed to have them all. They were a little tired when we got home. While the boys were excited to see us, Addison was a little cautious and took a few minutes to warm up to us again. It was even better to be back.

April had a little excitement for us as our little Peanut, Addison, fell and hit her head on the hard floor and ended up being rushed to the hospital. It was the most helpless feeling as we watched her become unresponsive while the paramedics tended to her. After all was said and done God watched over her and us and all was well. She is the busy little girl that she has always been. She loves to do whatever the boys are doing. She gets right in there and mixes it up with the boys and their friends. She is one tough little girl that can take care of herself. Just ask Carter and Cameron when she is mad she cuts loose on them and they run. It’s quite a scene to watch.

Carter is our little athlete. He loves to go on bike rides with his new bike that he got for his birthday just a few days ago. He is also a soccer star in the making (right up until a train goes by and distracts every kid on the field from playing). Carter has a million questions. He is about the most inquisitive little boy I have ever known. This year Carter started AWANA’s Cubbie program. His best friend Josh goes so that’s all that matters.

June saw us taking the kids to swimming lessons. They are all quite adept in the water. We had to keep a close watch on Addison as she would swim out when you weren’t looking. Cameron and Carter absolutely love the water. We would go to the Olympic size swimming pool and they would both swim the entire length on their own.

June was also a time for us to spend in Mexico with our good friends, the Mahon’s. They did give us a scare when they were six hours late in arriving as the result of witnessing a car accident. We spent a few days at the beach building sand castles and swimming in the ocean. It was awesome time. We can hardly wait to go back.

As you know Shannon is a stay at home mom. It’s somewhat of a strange term because she is hardly at home. She is constantly running around taking the kiddos all over the place running errands. Shopping is her love. In fact, I think she set a new record for most hours spent shopping (16) on black Friday. The worst part of that day was that as soon as Shannon got home and got in bed, Addison woke up sick and was up until 4 in the morning. Needless to say it was a long day on Saturday. She is awesome. What more needs to be said?

It has been a great year having fun, learning how to be better parents and husband and wife. We have enjoyed building relationships with our family and friends. God has blessed us to have such amazing relationships with both. We thank God for all of you and can hardly wait to continue to build those relationships in 2009.

God has taught us a lot about life this past year and while it hasn’t been easy it sure has been worth it. We look forward to what He has in store for us in 2009. God bless you one and all, for He is the reason for the season.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy New Year!

Sheldon, Shannon, Cameron, Carter and Addison