December 14, 2008
Dear Family & Friends,
Hello! I hope this letter finds you all doing wonderful and excited about the upcoming holiday. I have decided to give this whole “Christmas letter” thing a try, and see how it goes. However, due to the ever rising postage rates, I have decided to post this on my blog instead of mailing it to everyone. When you have a family as large as the Patrick clan, you can easily rack up $20-$30 just in postage!!
Adam is still working at Turtle Top in New Paris, and we are very thankful that the company is still doing pretty well during these rough times. We have many friends who have lost jobs, so we praise the Lord on a daily basis for His provision and protection. Adam enjoys running in his spare time, and in September ran in his first marathon. He loved it and hopes to do another one soon.
Jodi keeps busy with the daily responsibilities of being a stay-at-home mommy. We have added a fourth little girl to the mix from 8-4 five days a week. It has been great to have a little one around, and also great to be able to send her home at the end of the day! In October Jodi had the awesome opportunity to go to Kenya with a team from our church. She spent 2 weeks at the AGC Baby Center in Ngata, Kenya. You can read more about her trip here. Jodi says that there will definitely be a 2nd trip, hopefully with Adam and the girls.
Abbie is 5 now and in pre-school at Woodview Elementary. She loves her teachers and has many new friends. Abbie likes to draw and is very close to reading on her own! She knows the entire alphabet and can write pretty much anything if we tell her what letters to write. She will attend Kindergarten in the fall. We talk a lot about her adoption story, and she thinks it’s pretty cool that she has brothers and sisters that she hasn’t met yet.
Adelle is 4 and enjoying her last year at home with Mom and Natalie before she heads off to Kindergarten next fall with her big sister. She is a dramatic little girl who loves to sing along with her High School Musical CD. Her sense of style is hilarious, and Mom has learned to let go of the vision of matching clothes! Some fights aren’t worth fighting! Adelle continues to have a huge vocabulary and surprises us everyday with the thoughts in her little head.
Natalie is, well, she is 2. Really, what more can I say?! She had always been my “easiest” child. Until she turned 18 months old! Now she has one speed –- fast. Too bad she’s so clumsy! Natalie loves doing whatever her big sisters are doing and is really going to miss them when they go to school. Right now Nat’s asthma is not bothering her and we’re praying that her 3rd winter may be a bit easier than her first two. So far so good!
We hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Enjoy time with family and friends, and remember why we celebrate this special season. We love you!
Love,
Adam, Jodi, Abbie, Adelle, and Natalie
