King’s 2007 Christmas Letter
Acrobat PDF version including photos
Merry Christmas to you and your family! Newsworthy events from our year here:
Jan. Art takes Sierra and Hannah practice driving on slippery back roads after a snowstorm. Taylor takes his Dad to the Portland Auto Show.
Feb Art takes four children to Montana to ski with Grandpa Frank and celebrate his 92nd birthday. Sierra’s basketball team goes all the way to the championship game after a 16-7 regular season. Caleb plays the national anthem on his violin for some of these basketball games.
Mar
Rylee and Willa quarrel over dolls. Rylee is told she must ask permission before playing with her sister’s dolls. Later Ronda and Rylee are home all alone; Rylee picks up a plastic toy telephone; "Willa, this is Rylee. Can I please play with your Polly Pockets?" {a pause} "OK, thank you." Rylee hangs up the phone, and whispers to herself, "She said I could play with her Polly Pockets." Peaceful play and a clear conscience.Apr All the children come home and surprise their Mom for her 50th birthday.
June Hannah graduates from 8th grade. Art, Ken Rose, and six children take a wonderful backpacking weekend on Mt. Saint Helens. Elissa graduates with an accounting degree from Walla Walla College. We watch and cheer as David completes the Couer d'Alene Iron Man in 14 hours and 18 minutes. Bethani flies to Wisconsin to work at Camp Wakonda.
July Caleb goes along in a U-haul truck with David and Elissa as they move to Loma Linda. David prepares to start Dental School at LLU and Elissa starts a job at the University. Art and Ronda take a honeymoon trip to Steens Mountain in the far corner of Oregon. Willa, Theron and Taylor learn to ride the unicycle.
Aug Art’s Mom falls and breaks her tailbone, followed by a long and very painful recovery. Art, Taylor and Rylee go to Bozeman for a week to help out.
Sep School starts with Hannah and Sierra in 9th and 11th grade at PAA, Bethani at Walla Walla and Brenden at Montana State. Our five younger children are home schooling.
Oct Art, Sierra and Hannah attend a youth conference weekend at Wildhorse Canyon. Art and his brother Larry escort Mom to Washington DC to visit Mom’s brother Harry Johnson.
Nov Theron gets eye glasses and new vista’s appear. Hannah gets a Driver’s Permit. Thanksgiving joys include a visit from Weston & Michelle Davis and family.
Wrap-up We bring in a Christmas tree and the house fills up with Christmas delights. We can’t wait to celebrate the Birthday of Jesus and have all our children home together. We feel so abundantly blessed. We wish to you a very very
Merry Christmas!
With Love from all of us: Art & Ronda, David & Elissa, Brenden (20), Bethani (20), Sierra (17), Hannah (15), Taylor (13), Caleb (11), Theron (10), Willa (8), Rylee (3)
Favorite Books of 2007
Children’s Read-aloud: A Day No Pigs Would Die by Peck, Little Britches by Moody
Art:
Letters to Gabriel by Santorum,
Apollo by Murray
Ronda: Curate of Glaston by MacDonald, Hannah’s Hope and Sara’s Song by Kinsgbury
David:
Dental Anatomy & Morphology by Fuller
Bethani:
The Alchemist by Coelho
Sierra:
Ishbane Conspiracy by Alcorn
Hannah:
Atonement Child by Rivers
Taylor:
Grasshopper Trap by McManus
Caleb:
Listen for the Whippoorwill by Jackson
Theron:
Pirates Past Noon by Osborne
Willa:
Happy Hollisters Series by West