Christmas Letter 2008

This is the letter I sent out with our Christmas cards this year. I am sorry if I some how missed you on our list. I sent out so many, my brain turned to mush. But if I did miss you, for which I apologize profusley send me an email so I can make sure I get you next year! We hope you all had a great Christmas and are looking forward to a wonderful New Year!

December 2008
Dear Family and Friends,
2008 has been an amazing year. We started things off with a bang with the birth of our baby girl. Alexandra Catherine White was born on a snowy Monday, January 28th, at 11:27 pm. She weighed in at 8 pounds 12 ounces (for those keeping track that is just shy of DOUBLE her brother’s birth weight) and 21 inches long. Alex was born healthy and happy and has, by the grace of God, mostly remained that way. She is now 10 months old and pretty much crazy. She insists on putting EVERYTHING in her mouth and will climb anything (stairs, toy boxes, laundry baskets) that she sees. She has been crawling for almost 4 months now and is taking more steps everyday. Near as I can tell, She is going to make Nathan look mellow……I am in so much trouble.
Nathan, aside from becoming a big brother, started preschool this fall and amazes me everyday. The preschool he is at starts off with teaching them to write their names right away. So at 4 years old, Nathan can write his first name. He also has mastered his months of the year and days of the week. He is eager to learn to read, and can identify most of his letters by sight and can tell you what sound they make. I am a strong believer that if you teach a child to read, the rest will all come so much more easily. Nathan still has a love of all things trains, and to his Dad’s delight Star Wars. He has his own lightsaber (okay 3 of them) and after many nights on his uncle’s (30 yr old) Star Wars sheets, he got a brand new set of his very own from Pottery Barn Kids.
Greg and I are still making each other crazy after 8 years of marriage and neither of us would change a thing. We are so happy that we can watch our children grow and learn everyday. We have been blessed with fantastic family, amazing friends and so much love. We are truly blessed.
This year brought us the usual challenges, with a few that we never planned on. My mom had her hands full with my Aunt Mary Ann, who, as it turned out needed major heart surgery. We are so glad that she has recovered so well, and that her time in SLC, lead her to an extraordinary relationship with Nathan. She started out in April not being able to hold Alex on her lap and now she bends down and picks her up. Thank you modern medicine. Greg’s Grandpa and Grandma have given us more than one stress filled moment this year……..but all seems to be good now.
The coming year is already full of excitement and wonder. My brother Pete and his wife KeAnne are due with twins in June. Greg has booked his yearly adventure to Alaska for July, and I intend to take a break this fall and will try to escape on a girl’s only trip. I am sure that Nathan and Alex will provide us with a lot of laughs and love, for it seems everyday is more entertaining than the next.
We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Healthy and Happy 2009. We are going to take everyday that we are given and make it wonderful. We hope that you are able to do the same!
Greg, Joey, Nathan and Alexandra White