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| Christmas 2007 |
| Happy Holidays!
Dear family and friends, Here we are right in the middle of another holiday season. Where does the time go? This holiday season...stop and enjoy what life has to offer� good memories that we make with our families and friends. This year Brendan celebrated his 3rd birthday. We had his party at The Little Gym where he and his friends got to play ball, run, exercise, play parachute, and enjoy some pizza and cake. It was a lot of fun and a lot easier then to have a party at the house. Whew! Brendan is growing into quite an adventurous boy. This year he started preschool full day, 2 days a week where he does music & movement, computer room, and Spanish. He loves his teacher and enjoys doing many projects and fun activities. He especially likes all the songs and books she shares with them. We also began �The Adventures of Potty Training� this summer and are still �working on things.� Brendan is working really hard at becoming a �big boy� with ups and downs in his success. Here are a few milestones for this year: can spell his name, read a few words (mom, dad, dog, cat), can recite his name, address, & telephone number. Brendan is 3 1/2 feet tall & 29 lbs. This year Brendan is really looking forward to Christmas and Santa Claus coming. Out of the mouths of babes...Here�s a �taste� of life with our little Brendan... Lynne: We�re going to see Santa Claus. (while putting on his coat & hat) Brendan: Ok. I�m gonna tell him what I want but I don�t want to wear this hat. Lynne: Well it�s cold out and you need to keep warm. Let�s go. Brendan: Ok. But when we get to the North Pole can I take it off? This year I have quite an active group of 3rd graders with 2 teaching assistants in my room for 2 students that require a 1 to 1 assistance. My district also began a new reading program (Literacy Collaborative) which has proven to be both challenging and time consuming. I�m still teaching computer club 1 day a week and also an English Language Arts Review class to prepare kids to take the state test in January. Sean celebrated his 10th year at Jericho this fall. He, along with others celebrating their years of achievement, were honored at a ceremony hosted by the School Board and Superintendent. He is still teaching Chemistry and Forensics and he will coach girls softball this Spring. This June we finally started on the den which has been on our �To Do list� for the last few years. We totally gutted the room and started from scratch with new sheet rock and a ceilings. We chose 2 colors for the walls, a deep pretzel brown on the bottom and a cappuccino color on top which is separated by a white chair rail. We also decided to give Brendan a �big boy� room. We painted 2 colors for the walls again, a medium brown on the top and a denim blue on the bottom separated by a white chair rail. On top of the chair rail are removable train decals from Pottery Barn Kids to add to his �train & denim plaid� theme. We of course hit a few snags along the way but in the end both rooms really came out great! Sean did most of the work himself so he was quite happy that both rooms were finally done. This summer we managed to spend a week in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in Amish country. The highlight of our trip was a visit to Dutch Wonderland Amusement Park. We all enjoyed the rides, the water park, and meeting �Duke� the dragon mascot. We also rode on a real steam engine and visited the famous �Choo-Choo Barn� to view an amazing train layout. We couldn�t resist visiting the Thomas the Train store as well where Brendan picked out a few accessories for his new room. We visited a real Amish farm and went on an Amish buggy ride too! We then spent a few days with my parents at their house in PA too. The remainder of the summer was spent doing some day trips and swimming in the pool. We also bought yearly passes to the Aquarium, which we frequently visited. Both our families are doing great. As usual they are enjoying their time with Brendan. Here�s wishing you a Merry Christmas, and a happy, healthy and blessed New Year! Please enjoy the collage of photos on the back! We�d love to hear from you! All our love, Lynne, Sean & Brendan |