Our 2009 Year in Review

This year has been great for our family. We have been blessed with still having a great job and home. After a busy year in 2008 traveling for Noah’s sabbatical, we stayed a little closer to home. We had a fun year of camping. We camped at Pinecrest Lake for Memorial Day where we hiked 4 miles around the lake, rented a boat, and went horseback riding. In August we went to our annual Bladder Extrophy Support Team campout at Lake Tahoe to support our niece/cousin Kylee. This year was our 8^th year attending. For Labor day we went to the LDS Clark’s Fork Girl’s Camp which is located up the mountain from Pinecrest Lake and Sonora, CA. We helped close the camp for winter. We went with all of Noah’s family and were able to stay in cabins. After the camp was closed we went horseback riding, hiked around Pinecrest Lake again, and rented a party barge where we had a BBQ and fished. For the girls fall break, we went up the north coast and stayed in a cabin at Manchester Beach in Manchester, CA. We had fun beach-combing, hiking, and seeing new places near Mendocino and Fort Bragg. We love spending time along the north coast. Noah and Anissa were able to get away in September and spend a wonderful couple days at a bed and breakfast inn one block from the ocean in Carmel, CA. We also became concert goers again seeing Green Day, Franz Ferdinand, Rascal Flatts, and Darius Rucker. Noah celebrated 9 years working for Neil Anderson and Associates. Despite the economy and some downsizing in the company, Noah’s office was the most profitable this year. Financially the company is still in a hole because of the economy but is looking better right now that it did at this time last year. He still loves his job and the projects he get to work on. Noah is going on 3.5 years now as the 1^st counselor in the Young Men’s Presidency at church and was able to go on a backpacking/rafting trip this summer with the young men and had a blast. Noah coached Autumn and Ashlyn’s soccer teams this year. What a great but tiring experience it was. Anissa has been extremely busy this year making preparations for all our trips and holidays. She has been trading babysitting once a week so that she can help out in both Autumn’s and Ashlyn’s classes at school. The girls love having her in class (and so do the rest of their classmates). She is also the Art Docent for their class teaching them art once a month. It has been allowing her to use her creativity and love of teaching. She also has been able to host a preschool once a month for Aubrey. Anissa taught the 6 to 7 year old girls in Primary for part of the year and is still the Activity Day leader for the 8-11 year old girls in the ward. Ashlyn is eight and is a 3rd grader. She had a special year this year because her father was able to baptize her a member of the church. It was a special experience for her. Ashlyn played U9 soccer this year which is the first year they play with all the full rules. She won the award for Best Goalie on her team. She is really growing up and helps cook, do laundry, and take care of her sisters. She was excited that she learned how to ride her bike this year and wants to ride every chance she gets.Autumn is five and started Kindergarten this year. She loves school and has been really excelling in all subjects and won an award for her improvements. She took swim lessons again and is excited that she can swim all by herself now. Autumn played her first year of soccer this year even scoring some goals. She has really matured and grown up and loves to dress up and be “fancy”. Aubrey turned three and is still mommy’s little sidekick spending special alone time with her during school hours. She goes to preschool once a week and loves learning. Aubrey loves playing play-doh in the nursery at church and can’t wait to be a sunbeam next year. She loves music and loves to sing and dance. She is really growing up and thinks that she can do everything her older sisters can do.