2010 - The Year of CHANGE

With our annual Christmas card, we typically have tried to include some sort of summary of the year’s events, but as the holidays approached we realized we needed to spend some time thinking through it more versus just whipping something together.  Plus we needed some more time to come up with a creative way to describe the year that was, 2010.  It might sound a little boring, and maybe a bit cliche, but in looking back there was one word that continued to come to mind when thinking of 2010, CHANGE.  Granted, change is happening constantly - it’s the one thing you can count on...but for us, this was truly a year of change.  To help describe it, we converted CHANGE into an acronym and thought of 6 words that describe our year.  

Cherish - We use the word cherish to describe some key changes this year because it marked some milestones in our lives; After over 10yrs, Mike and Daptiv parted ways this summer.  He described it in more detail here.  At the same time, after a number of year focused solely on the kids, Steph got back into the working world doing recruiting for a company called Another Source, and loves it!  Maddie (9) and Kenzie (5) are changing all the time and getting bigger every day.  Hard to think that Maddie will be 10 next year!  Great memories and experiences that we will cherish for sure.

Hope - Hope filled our lives a lot again this year.  From a phyical perspective, Hope Church and School continues to be a big part of our lives.  Mike is Chariman of the School Board and Steph helped with Sunday School and a number of other things (too many to count.)  Emotionally, we felt a lot of Hope this summer as Mike went through job transition.  We had a ton of support from friends and family as he started his journey to find something new.  There was no doubt that Hope filled our family day in and day out this past year.

Adventure - Our year was filled with adventures as well.  Mike, along with two friends, headed to the western outskirts of Vancouver Island to Bamfield BC for a open water fishing trip.  8+ hours of travel, 3 on a windy, dirty, bumpy road made for quite a trip...Oh, and they brought back lots of salmon and halibut that filled the freezer.  Our big family adventure was to Disneyland in August.  Our summer was wrapping up quick and on a whim we decided to book a trip to the happiest place on earth.  5 days at the park, where we also stayed at the Grand Californian hotel...right next to California Adventure.  The kids had bunk beds, and we loved every minute of it!  We are always on the lookout for fun family adventures.

New - No cars, houses or boats..Not even new pets.  When we think of new we really think of new situations and new relationships.  Having Mike at home this summer to hang-out with the family more was something totally new.  Sure we had vacations, but it was a treat to have the entire family together.  Meeting new friends, personally and professionally  was also a big part of our year.  Through school and church, as well as through professional networking, new relationships were formed.  Finally, when we think of new, we think of new perspectives and understanding what is really important to us and how good we have it.  So, while it’s easy to get caught up in new “things” - we are most happy with the new situations, experiences and perspectives that 2010 brought us.

Growth - With change comes a lot of opportunity to grow in many different ways.  One growth area for us was when we had good friends (Landskovs) move away.  We had grown very close to them, so that was a tough transition...but thank goodness for Skype and Facebook for the ability to stay in touch.  Our girls are growing like crazy as well.  Kenzie is about 3 inches taller than Maddie was at the same age, so she is sprouting up quick.  Maddie is playing all kinds of sports; softball, soccer and basketball and loves to learn new things.  

Exciting - There was a lot of excitement this year..probably more than we would have liked.  Much of the excitement revolved around Mike’s job change, but the exciting part was the variety of conversations he had with so many different people and companies.  It was exciting to see the various relationships being established and the opportunities that presented themselves.  It was also exciting to have family visit during the summer, during the fall and now during the holidays.  We always enjoy having family in town to visit and become tourists in our home town and hit all the great spots.

So, there you have it.  2010 was a year for change.  Sometimes change can be scary, uncertain, and even difficult, but with it all we felt blessed to be surrounded by amazing friends and family that brought us through it all.  We wish everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Getting Involved Early

Last weekend a long time friend Tracy Dart, and her team of walkers, set out on the Susan G. Komen 3 Day walk here in Seattle in support of Breast Cancer research.  Their team collectively raised over 40K dollars through dontations, sponsorships, etc!  Tracy is a 2-time survivor of Breast Cancer at just the age of 35.  Being a long time friend, and someone our age, this has hit home as we have see her attack this head on and be a huge advocate for a cure.

So, when the opportunity came up to support Tracy and her team, we decided to help..and we being the entire family.  During the fundraising phase over the summer, Maddie and Kenzie overheard details about the situation and wanted to lend a hand.  They used their skills and interest in making beaded bracelets to make a slew of pink bracelets to sell at our family garage sale.  Using materials we bought for them they, along with some friends, spent the time to make the bracelets for the sale.  The first go around generated over $100!  Later, at another fundraising event, they raised another $100.  It might not seem like a lot, but for these girls it was a fortune.  More importantly they felt like they were really helping and contributing.

Fast forward to last Saturday while Team Tracy was pounding the pavement on Day 2 of their walk.  We made the drive up to Everett to be at a cheering station for the team.  However, the station wasnt just for them, it was for the thousands of people walking.  Walker after walker came by, with smiles on their face (despite the pain of being on mile 30 of 60), genuinely appreciative that we would take the time to be there.  Right in the mix were our two girls, cheering, clapping and encouraging them to keep going.  It was right after I took this picutre that it hit me...

Here are our two little girls, cheering on these people that are raising money for a cure to one of the worst diseases out there facing women, breast cancer...this is for THEM.  It is because of what these walkers are doing TODAY that will give our two girls hope for a cure in the future.  While I am hopeful that a cure will be found a lot sooner, the reality is it that it likely wont be for sometime, and who will benefit from the things happening now? ...these two little girls!

Clearly I hope they can avoid this all together, but I know by getting them exposed this now, they will continue to aware...they will continue to support...the will continue to have hope.  Plus, if at some point in their life they become directly impacted by this disease, they will know that they can fight through it.  So, we are excited that they are getting involved at this early age and taking an interest in supporting the efforts that they will benefit from in the future.

Time flies when you're having fun!

Hard to believe that the last post here was "Goodbye June, Hello July"...and next week Oct will be here.  Where does the time go?  It has been a busy few months, and we will do our best to recap all the highlights from the last few months.

July - Friends and Family
Like we have the last few years, we headed to Maggie Lake for the 4th of July.  We are always amazed at the amount of fireworks that this community puts together...the show goes on for hours, both on the 4th as well as the 3rd.  We had visits from The Lakewood Jensens (technicall that was June, but oh well) as well as the Willow Glen Perrys.  Always enjoy hanging out with family, and getting the cousins together.  Lastly we had the chance to spend a few days with our friends the Landskovs at their cabin.  Unfortunately, they moved back to Colorado in June, but made a trip back this way for some time at their cabin.  We had an awesome time!  Maddie found a new hobby...Kayaking!

August - Travel Adventures
In August we had a handful of trips.  Mike joined two friends on a fishing adventure to Vancouver Island.  It was a kind of fishing that he had never really done before, out on the open ocean.  They caught Salmon, and our favorite Halibut.  The "catch" filled the freezer and we are experimenting with all kinds of fish receipes.  After coming back from that trip he then headed down to San Francisco for a conference.  With his job situation it was a great networking opportunity.  Only regret was that Steph didnt come down with him as he got to stay at the Ritz Carlton at Half Moon bay...right on the ocean..right on the golf course.  However as a family we wrapped up summer by heading down to Disneyland for 5 days.  It was a spur of the moment trip as we found great airfare.  The weather was awesome, there were hardly any crowds, and we did EVERYTHING while we were there.  It was a great way to wrap things up.

September - Back to School
After a busy labor day weekend, and celebrating birthdays, the kids headed back to school.  Kenzie started Kindergarten, while Maddie is now a big 4th grader.  Both at Hope, and both now full time..and both wearing uniforms!  Kenzie loves every part of school, and Maddie is as sharp as a tack. 

We also just wrapped up a visit from our relatives from Nebraska who came out to Seattle for the UW vs Nebrasksa football game.  We had an awesome time with her cousins and their kids, all who stayed at our house.  Little crazy, but the girls loved playing together, and we loved catching up.  A tradition we always have is to go on the Duck boats...the kids love..and we love it.  Always seem to learn something new about the town we live in!

Aside from all of this, we continue to fill our days with Soccer, School and Work.  Mike updated his blog about his new opportunity with MangoSpring.  It is part time right now, but we hope that with some of his help it will move forward and become full time by the end of the year.  Steph is working part time doing recruiting/interviewing for AnotherSource.  She loves the flexibilty, the opportunity to engage with people, and the team she is on.  He boss, Marcie was just honored as one of the "40 under 40" by the Puget Sound Business Journal.

Well, that's it in a nutshell..Time flies when you're having fun, and we have been having a lot of fun for sure!

Goodbye June - Hello July!

Wow...time flies when you are having fun.  Seemed like just the other day the kids got out of school and we had the whole month of June in front of us.  Now we are past the 4th of July, summer has officially kicked into high gear and we are just a few weeks away from August!  Yikes!

June marked the end of a couple things.  First, another awesome school year.  Maddie finished the year with straight A's all 4 quarters.  Steph and I are thankful for both Maddie's desire to learn and for her awesome teachers at Hope.  We are also puzzled on where she gets it!!  Kenzie officially graduated from Pre-School and is ready as ever for Kindergarten.  She has a huge heart and love helping out whenever and whereever she can.  Prediction for Kenzie's profession was a teacher and we can believe it.  The other end, was Mike's 10 year long run with Daptiv.  He bloged about it on his new blog (http://mikejensen.posterous.com/) and is taking it all in stride. Daptiv was a great place for him to get a ton of experience and he is excited about finding that next challenge.  It couldnt have come at a better time with the summer in front of us and opportunity to be with all the girls a little more.  He is actively networking and meeting a lot of great people so we are excited about what might be next.

In June we also went on a group camping trip with a bunch of friends.  The same group where we have always had some kind of "run in" on our adventures.  One time it was a huge rainstorm the day we arrived...the next time it was an ER trip after a knife/carving incident.  This time, no major injuries, but the weather got us again.  First night was great...second night was OK...but the next morning..the morning we were packing up and heading home..DOWNPOUR!  Either way, it was a ton of fun with great friends.  Later in June we also had the chance to hang out with the Lakewood Jensens who were up for their annual NW visit.  We packed the days with fun times, and the kids loved every minute of it.  I think all the cousins were up early every morning asking what was next.  Our highlight was probably the Lincoln Park trip where the kids played on the ZIP line, worked on a little curve ball with Ben and enjoyed the swing set.  Always great to see and hang out with family and the cousins!

As we moved into July, we hit July 4th weekend.  Fingers were crossed that we would get some great weather for a change, but that was about 3 days late (just wrapped up some 90 degree heat).  Either way we made the best of our time.  Friday night we had dinner with Jenn and Tracy who were staying down at Hood Canal.  It was a great time to catch up and make some smores. Saturday was the big Tahuya Parade.  A parade where anyone that really wants to, can be in the parade.  Usually some great "floats" that make us all chuckle. 

There are hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream, etc...An all American experience.  It was great to have the Doerrs and the Millers there with us...so along with all our family we had almost an entire block of chairs saved on the parade route. 

That night was a prelude to the Fireworks show for the 4th.  When the 4th came, it was GO TIME....The folks on Maggie Lake spare no expense and really do it right.  2 1/2 hours of non-stop fireworks...and BIG stuff..no roman candles and sparklers...big stuff like Lake Union stuff.  Anyway, it was a great show, and a great time.  The girls even got a chance to get in the water...Weather didnt stop them!

Whew...so here we are.  Post West Seattle Summer Fest (aka Sidewalk sale) and in mid-July.  More family coming to town in the next couple weeks and then we are on the home stretch for back to school in August.  Let's not get there too fast!

Watch out Golden...Here come the Landskovs

We knew this day was coming, but goodbye is never easy.  Today we said our final goodbye to the Landskov family, great friends that are moving to Golden, CO.  We have grown close to these guys over the years, especially since Luke and KK are 1 week apart.  They have developed a special little bond while growing up together.  So, aside from the Moms and Dads struggling and sheding a tear (or two), it was tough to see KK start to cry as she said bye to her little buddy.  We plan to stay in close contact with the Landskov, and although this goodbye was tough, we are anxious to see them again soon.   We snapped this quick photo before we took off

Good luck Landskovs...we love you guys!

Memorial Day Weekend

Better late than never, but wanted to recap our memorial day weekend trip to the cabin.  We got a little later of a start since Maddie had a softball game on Friday, but it actually worked out well.  We grabbed the early morning ferry and were up to the cabin by mid morning.  It was a a mini-garage sale weekend, so while the crew was in the garage trying to move some high quality merchandise, I decided to take advantage of no rain, and headed out onto the lake to fish.  My "vessel" of choice was the paddle boat.

I was surprised that no one else was out there, and the fish must have been hungry, because they were biting!

Then later in the afternoon, Steph, Maddie KK and I headed back out in the boat...and luckily the fish were still biting.  By catching some fish, we had the opportunity to feed the resident eagles..yes feed the eagles.  You have to check out the video below where the eagle swooped down to gobble up the fish we threw out there.  This was actually the 2nd of 3 times we were able to do this.  It was awesome to witness, and something we will never forget.  The kids are still talking about it.




We wrapped up the only sunny day we had with a fire at the fire pit...Good times!

The San Francisco Treat

Last week, we took advantage of a business trip to San Francisco to pack up the family for a short mini-vacation.  While Mike was in meetings for a conference, Steph and the girls toured the great town of San Francisco with rides on the cable cars, a stroll on fisherman's wharf, a visit to the wax museum, etc.  They had 1 1/2 days to wander the town and see the sights.  Luckily the weather held out...it was actually nicer in Seattle the few days we were there.

After the conference was over, we all packed up and headed down to San Jose to visit The Perrys.  It just so happened to be Haas' 3rd birthday party, so we couldnt resist the opportunity to stop in and celebrate.  Stacey and Ryan threw a great "Garbage" themed party for about a dozen other kids... garbage was littered in the backyard, kids picked it all up (ok, most if it) there was a garbage truck cake and garbage bag races.  One of the highlights for Maddie was that she was able to read the stinky story to all the kids...she did an awesome job, and many of the parents were wondering if she could do story time next weekend too!  We had an awesome time (like always) and cant wait for the next time we can get together.

Maddie Turns 9!

This past weekend we celebrated Maddie's 9th birthday.  Like everyone knows, these birthdays are not just one day, rather they stretch out over many day..but hey, isn't that how you'd want it too!  Things going rolling on Friday when she brought home her report card.....straight A's for the 3rd straight QTR!!!!  Nice Job Kid.

We kicked things off on Saturday evening with a visit to old faithful, The Spaghetti Factory.  Maddie has always loved this place (just like her mommy and auntie) so we got all the grandparents, and even great grandparent down there to celebrate.

On Sunday, we had a bowling party with Maddie and 15 other 8/9 year old girls!!  Wow.  The girls did great, and a fun time with it all.  2hr of bowling, homemade cupcakes from mom and sherbert ice cream...doesnt get any better than that!

Sunday night we met up with our friends; Jenn and Glenn and their two boys Owen and Ian.  It was like 70 degrees so we headed to the beach.  Although it technically wasnt another celebration of just her birthday, we had a great time playing on the swings, slides, and the whale.

Finally, on Monday, her actual birthday, Maddie had fun filled day.  It started with a class field trip to the aquarium, planned I'm sure just for her birthday :-)...then later a ride on the Water Taxi to another favorite spot of hers, Red Robin.  I think she likes all the attention and people singing to her!

We are very blessed to have such a great little girl.  She has always been positive and we love that about her and love celebrating her birthday.  Happy Birthday Binks!

Spring Break Recap

Last week we had that chance to get a few days out of town with our good friends the Doerrs.  In a last minute thought, I got a hold of Roslyn Properties and they had this house for rent at Suncadia.  4 bedroom, 3 bathrooms, game room, etc.  Sounds like the perfect option for us.  As luck would have it, the weather decided to act up.  The night before we left, about 4 in of snow fell in the mountains, and in the morning tractions tires were required to get over the pass.  We had to google what a "traction tire" is to see if we had them and if we needed to get some chains.  As we pulled away from West Seattle, we had decided to make a pit stop in North Bend, and good thing, because I-90 had just closed!  oh boy, here we go.  By the time we got to North Bend, the pass had re-opened, and the snow had stopped...but as we looked over to the west a storm was looming so we decided to get going.

Our drive over the pass was pretty uneventful, with the exception of having to stop to fix our windshield wiper, which was literally barely hanging on.  We rolled into Suncadia and found the house.  It was exactly what we expected, and started to settle in.

A little light snow started to fall so we decided to head into town for some "supplies"...and by the time we got back to the house, there was a legit 1-2 inches of snow on the ground.  The kids immediately threw on their snow gear (which was a last minute add to the list) and headed out to the golf course.  The house was about 20 yds from the 4th hole, and a nice small slope..the whole 4th fairway was quickly covered and the kids got to work on their snowman!

By the AM, we had a good 4-5 inches on the ground, with some steady flurries....The kids headed outside right after breakfast and we played for HOURS.  By early afternoon, the sun came out and we had a giant snowball fight before all the snow started melting away.  With the sun out we headed out on a drive up to Lake Cle Elum and along the way we came across a heard of Elk feeding on the hillside.  Our car missed them on the way up, but we snapped a few pics on the way back...pretty cool to see.

For dinner that night we headed to one of our long time favorite spots, Village Pizza in Roslyn.  We used to always go there when we went rafting on the Yakima river.  They are famous for having Trivial Pursuit cards all over, and more importantly honey for the pizza crust.  We wrapped up the day by checking out the Suncadia lodge, which was also pretty cool.  By that time, almost all the snow was gone, and the views were pretty amazing.  This is a shot of the Cle Elum river from the back side of the Suncadia lodge...I started to get the itch to grab a fly rod and go fishing!

The next morning we had to up and out pretty early, but we had a small little delay when the power went out about 7am.  We headed into town for a nice small town breakfast, then packed up and headed out.  On the way home we stopped by Snoqualmie falls for a quick visit.  Unfortunately there had been an incident with a lot of search and recovery activity, so we couldn't see a lot, but we got a couple pics of the amazing falls.  An awesome couple days with great friend and family for Spring break.

Easter Beach Trip

This weekend we set off on our annual trip to Gearhart, OR for Easter.  Always a great time to get away, visit the coast, see friends, and of celebrate Easter.  With the coast, you never quite know what kind of weather you will run into...could be sunny (one time it was like 80), could be (likely is) rainy, and for the first time this year, it was COLD.  By Maddie's account it hailed 11 different times! Here is a look at the kind of storms that rolled in often.

 I actually threw a hail ball at Maddie!  Even with all the cold and hail and rain, we made our typical walk into "town" for coffee and goodies.

After a visit into Seaside to the arcade for some skee ball, we figured we HAD to make a trip to the beach some how, some way...so we drove onto it. There are a couple spots where cars are allowed, so we tried our luck and made it to the beach..luckily we didnt get stuck :-)

Like always, a great trip.  This is fun area to come to and the kids love it...wish we could actually come down here more.  Actually, there is a nice 5 bd, 2 bath house for sale right across from where we stay...just a cool 1.6M..anyone???

HAPPY EASTER!!!

Softball Season Starts

Today marked the first day of softball season.  This will be Maddie's third year, and she is super excited about the new season.  Rob McAllister and I are coaching again and looking forward to another awesome season.  This year the girls move out of what I call "T-ball" mode and start actually playing the game...outs, counting runs, pitching, etc.  For many of the girls this is their 3rd year so they are ready to take this step.  In general, at this age,  I think they are all ready to start being a bit more competitive.

We have a great group of girls and families this year as well.  There are 6 returning from last years team, 4 from another team, and then 5 new girls.  A great mix I would say!  There are two notable new girls on the team..The first is from a family where we got to know them when we went through birthing classes with Maddie...now 9 yrs later, the two of them are on the same team.  The other, is a friend from Maddie's Pre-school class at Hope.  With Kindergarten, they went to a different school just down the street, but a few years later, here we are.

We will post pictures throughout the year, as well as give an update on what the team name is once all the girls vote...this was their homework assignment after practice today :-)

Birthday Recap

Kenzie wrapped up a full week of birthday celebrations.  Starting with sharing with friends on Thursday, moving to her Doll Doctor party on Saturday, and wrapping up with family party on Sunday at the Spaghetti factory.  She (and we) had a lot of fun turning five.  We caught a few pics of her blowing out all of her various birthday candles

Happy Birthday Kenzie!

Today little Makenzie turned the big #5.  From the moment she got up, she was excited about her day.  What may have been the most exciting for her, was that she singing the "5...5 dollar" Subway theme song to match up with her birthday.

The day was packed...from a birthday breakfast, to her shining star day at school, to an afternoon with the Nana's at Bellevue Square, to her birthday dinner with friends...we got it all in.  Her birthday doesnt stop here...she is looking forward to festivities on both Saturday and Sunday, so this is technically her birthday week!  We will post more pics and updates from all her activities.

Happy Birthday to our little ball of fire...aka...KK!

80's Recap

Realized that we had not updated the blog since the 80's event last weekend so here it goes. The day started early, we were at the grocery store by 10, then to the gym by 11. We got all the big stuff setup before squeezing in a bball game for Maddie. After getting back from that the gym had been fully transformed into an 80's HS dance scene with balloon arches, game area, band setup, etc. We were able to get home, get our "Costumes" on and get back up for things to start rolling. It was awesome to see all the outfits that people put together. Here are a couple pics to give you a taste of it.

 

 

 

Overall the event was a great success, fun was had by ALL, and we raised a bunch of money for the school. It is always rewarding to be part of these kind of things. Thanks to everyone that helped make it happen!  From donations, to giving, to helping, etc...It was a Great event!

The Final Countdown

One week from tonight, we roll back the clock for the 80's "Hope School Rocks" fundraiser. This song seemed fitting for many reasons. If you havent got your tickets yet, let us know, this is going to be a great event!!!



If the embedded video doesnt come through, here is the YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jK-NcRmVcw

Moving Downstairs

Well, for the last few months Maddie has been asking about the possibility of moving from the top bunk, sharing a bedroom with KK, to the spare bedroom downstairs. Over Christmas she got new bedding, pillows, etc. and last night out of the blue she asked again if she could sleep downstairs...and after thinking about we said OK. Hard to know who had a tougher time with...Maddie, sleeping by herself...KK, now sleeping by herself...or Mommy, having her little girls sleeping separately :-) We are on night #2 and it it already a bit easier...Kenzie likes the idea that she has her own big room...Maddie is planning how to move lamps around, etc...while Mom and Dad just get more exercise walking up and down the stairs. We expect a few bumps here and there, but we are starting into a new phase. We'll keep you posted.

Back in the swing of things

No, we are not talking about golf swings (although that sounds pretty nice right now), rather the day to day routines around here.  After the hustle and bustle that was the Holidays, in a wierd sort of way, it is kind of nice to get back to "normal."  Dont get me wrong, having family around, visiting with friends, parties, presents, no work, etc...is ALL GOOD.  It can just get a bit hectic.  Oh well, it is what it is.  Like every year, we were blessed with a great Christmas and awesome New Year.  This year did lack the "surprise" of last year with all the snow...and the kids (and us) were bummed we didnt get to see any around this year.  We did our best to make up for it by heading up to the Hyak Sledding hill for some sledding with the Doerrs.  As always a ton of fun, but it was almost a bust as they just havent had enough snow yet to really get the hill going.  Luckily, they opened it up after about an hour there...In fact the kids were the "test sledders" for the park ranger.  So, we can take some credit for opening up the hill for the hundreds of people that were waiting as well.



Our biggest "happenings" right now are 1) Maddie playing basketball and 2) Steph helping put on the Hope School Rocks Fundraiser.  As for Basketball, Maddie is really enjoying playing ball.  As Steph says, you can tell she is "passionate" about it as she is playing super hard.  Nothing against Soccer, even Maddie says she still like Soccer, but Hoops might be here thing.  She especially likes to shoot...a lot!  So we are working on passing a bit more. 



The other big activity going on is the Hope School Rocks fundraiser. Steph graciously agreed to be the "leader" of the event. It is shaping up to be a great time..80's themed with a live band, catered food, dancing, etc. A lot of people are helping out and it is going to be "Totally Awesome" for sure. The ultimate goal is to raise money for the school and what Hope is doing for kids and families. If you are interesting in attending, donating, or even helping...give us a shout!

The Last Decade

In our last post we took a look at 2009, and while that in itself is packed, as we move into a new decade, we thought it would be fun to look back on the last decade. This is getting tougher and tougher to do as we get older (remember stuff), but here it goes.


1) The Y2K non-event - Not much to say here other than all the planning and preparation for the end of the world didn't happen...nothing blew up or malfunctioned. We just partied like it was 1999!

2) Madison - In 2001 we became parents with the birth of Madison Lynn. Her Auntie quickly gave her the nickname "Binks", and she has been a true blessing to us. She loves everything she does, and you can tell by the smile on her face all the time.

3) 9/11 - A day we will never forget, Steph was at home with Maddie and I was on the way to work when all everything started to unfold. I vividly recall our CEO at the time, calling a meeting and telling everyone to go home to be their families.

4) Boston trip - After Ryan and Stacey moved back to Boston, we took a great family trip to visit. Besides touring Boston, going to a Red Sox game, etc we all made it out to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. We wrapped that up with a trip to the "Big Apple" - our first time in NYC.

5) Kenzie - In 2005 we welcomed another daughter into the world, Makenzie Channer. She is our wild one, but also our little baby. We'll never forget the family photo shoot only 3 days after she was born...we still have those pics hanging on our walls.

6) Disneyland - Over the decade we were lucky to make a few trips to Disneyland. One of the first was when a good chunk of the family met in Long Beach for Thanksgiving and then went to the Magic Kingdom. We have made it down there a couple other times as well, once as a surprise for Stacey's birthday, as well as for Sheryl's 60th. We always love visiting Mickey and Minnie.

7) Hawaii trip(s) - Speaking of family trips, we also made a couple visits to Maui...our favorite island. The first was a great trip with Stacey and Ryan when Maddie was just 2...I'll never forget Maddie saying "Push it Uncle, Push it" while Ryan was driving...and rocking out in the car. The second trip was a big family getaway where aunts, uncles, cousins, etc all met in Maui to spread Grandpa Chew's ashes over Pearl Harbor. It was a memorable moment where we laid him to rest at a place where he almost lost his own life as a young man.

8) Vegas - Early in the decade we went on our first trip to Vegas...We expereinced the steak and eggs at 1am, and also spent quality time on the Golf course while the ladies were at the pool....we also made our contributions to the Vegas economy. Later in the decade, along with 3 other couples, we pulled off a surprise 40th Birthday getaway. The kids were at Nana and Papa's and we headed out on a 3 day getaway full of fun, laughs and all the other stuff that happens in Vegas..and stays there :-)

9) Grandparents - On both sides of our families we lost a few of our grandparents. Although it has been sad to see them go, we know that they lived long lives and are in a much better place. They provided us with so many great memories over the years and we will cherish them forever.

10) Parents turning 60 - Both our parents hit the big 6-0 during this last decade. We spent time in San Diego, Disneyland as well as the Oregon coast celebrating these milestone birthdays. We are thankful for their health and the involvement in both our lives, as well as our kids. They love there Nana's and Papa's.

11) Nieces and nephews - In addition to our family growing by 2, both our sisters and brothers grew their families in this decade. Jeff and Amy had Ben and Lauren, while Ryan and Stacey had Haas and most recently Felton. Growing up, we enjoyed our cousins so much, so it is great that our girls have cousins that that they can grow up with as well.

12) Coming Home - The last notable event of the decade was that we moved from Renton back to West Seattle. We called Renton home after we first got married since it was a nice in-between for both our jobs. However, we always wanted to try and find a way back into West Seattle where we both grew up. Luckily we were able to make that happen shortly after Maddie was born. Since then we have returned to Hope Church, Maddie and KK attend Hope school and we love everything about the West Seattle community.

There you have it, 12 notable items from the last decade. As we look forward to the next decade it is interesting, and maybe even scary, to think about where we will be in another 10 years. Maddie will be in college, Kenzie in High School, we will turn 40, our parents retired...and we have no idea what else God has in store for us. We will take it as it comes.

Happy New Year!