Merry Christmas from the Yoder's!

12/24/10

OK, so usually I send out a photo card to everyone. Then last year, the resulting price of postage nearly caused some swear words. So I figured an email/blog greeting was the way to go from then on, except for immediate family members/old ladies I know who don't have computers. So here's our official newsy Christmas greeting!

2010 has been a busy and eventful year for us.

Mark is working as a physician's assistant (PA) at Premier Pediatrics here in Cedar City. He is well liked by patients and we're always hearing good things about him from other health care providers around town. He sees most of the sick kids who come into the clinic and takes a turn being on call one week a month, taking phone calls after hours and rounding on newborns in the hospital. He has been working on a lot of home improvement/yard projects for us and is very handy. He went snowboarding yesterday with his brothers and still enjoys that very much as well as his beloved video games. He's the best dad in the world to our kids.

Melissa keeps up a steady stream of cooking/cleaning/blogging/crafting/child wrangling/shuttling to ballet lessons. She started selling some of her jewelry at a local consignment shop (as well as on desertraindesigns.etsy.com) and seems to erase any downtime she has with new projects. She is on a quest to finish painting and decorating the house this next year. She loves taking pictures and compulsively shares everything on the family blog. Kids shenanigans included--you'll have to tune in for "Mess of the Day by Luke" especially.

Madelyn had a big year of firsts--kindergarten and dance lessons, she lost four teeth, finally got over 35 pounds and is reading and writing like a pro. We signed her up for swim lessons during the summer, which she hated passionately. She loves going to the pool, just not being told what to do! (She is still ever so slightly high-strung....) She is very friendly and outgoing and is a great big sister. She just turned six this week.

Luke (15 months) started out the year as a small but adorable blob who then learned to roll over, sit up, army crawl, crawl, walk, run and now scale chairs and tables. He does not like holding still, defies the straps in grocery carts, his high chair and his stroller, and does daily extensive research for a book he's working on called "How to Dismantle a Room in 30 Seconds or Less". He is curious and endlessly busy. He is a sweet boy who loves his mama, shrieks happily when his daddy comes home, and loves playing with his sister.

 

 We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and coming new year!

 

 Love, the Yoder family

xoxoxo