Happy Holidays . . . From Vivian

Dear Friends and Family,

It’s that annual time of year again where I sneak in to our home office (looks like an extra bedroom to me) and hammer out the family holiday letter. As you can see, my reading and writing skills have advanced to a college graduate level, so I guess you could say kindergarten is going well. Now, I am cheating a bit by typing this. My handwriting is still a work in progress, but I figured I should leave at least one area to improve in 2011!

Kindergarten has been awesome! I love the teachers and all the activities we do. I’ve made tons of new friends with my outgoing and friendly nature. I take the exact same lunch every day, and it covers all the five major food groups: peanut butter, jelly, bread, chips, and Capri Sun. I could also live on Little Caesar’s pizza without complaint. Mom & Dad would probably really worry about my diet, but I also love lots of fruits. I get along great with my parents, but occasionally they say I already sound like a teenager trapped in a five year old body. Whatever!!!!

I discovered the old show Punky Brewster on DVD this year at my Mom’s suggestion and give it a big thumbs up. I played a ton of tennis, basketball, and tee ball with my sports-fanatic Dad nearby. I even watched the occasional Duke basketball game with him, just to flip on the cute switch and butter him up for the next toy purchase. I have also become a whiz at crafts, which lets me spend a lot of time with Mom while she works on her crafts and projects. Whether it’s swimming in Grandma’s pool, taking a nature center hike with Nana & Papa, or just riding my bike . . . I’m happiest when things are in motion!

Mom didn’t have to travel nearly as much this year in her job, so that was nice. She continues to work for Oce onsite at The Dow Chemical Company. Mom needed to satisfy her creative side, so she learned to sew and became addicted to fabric stores. Every town we go to now, we have to check out the fabric store. For example, we went up to Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City, home of those big cool water slides, and as soon as we arrive, our first visit is . . . the town fabric store. On the plus side, I get all kinds of cool homemade things to wear and also the scraps from Mom’s “reject pile.” What can I say, not every kid gets to wear a pajama shirt with some kind of animal sewn on slightly crooked on it! Mom even went further and branched out, opening her own Etsy shop (on-line). She called her on-line business “Hottie-Mottie”, which I like because Mott is my middle name and my Mom’s maiden name. Dad is still teaching and coaching, no new addictions to report there. Although I am slowly trying to turn him into a Justin Bieber fan.

I feel very fortunate to have such terrific family and friends to count on like all of you. I certainly am looking forward to continue growing and trying new things. Mom, Dad, and I would like to wish all of you best wishes for a great holiday and Happy New Year!

Love,

V