Merry Christmas from Jake!

Our 2008 Christmas Letter... Jake-Style

Howdy Y’all!

This is Jake. I’m taking over the Christmas letter because I don’t get enough credit. I do a lot more than bark, dig holes and get out of the yard. The main thing I did this year was attack the neighbor’s cat. And if you want to be really technical about it, that was on New Year’s Eve; so it really falls under the category of 2007. It was a rather expensive venture for my family, so I’ve been confined to the backyard – and I mean confined – ever since. Bob got a trip to the vet clinic, I got a shock collar and my family celebrated New Year’s on a cruise to Mexico and Honduras with Granpa Weldon, Aunt M’Lys & Aunt A’Lise. The seas were pretty rough. I think they hit a deer! They swam with the dolphins in Cozumel. Slug bug! Slug bug! Slug Bug! Slug Bug! Biggs challenged Abbie & Kait to a no-sugar diet for 30 days, then celebrated with an all-you-can-eat trip to Nestle’s. D’Lyn painted the Fishin’ Hut. Dresser took Biggs & D’Lyn to Costa Rica. They rode 4-wheelers and did the zip line through the rainforest. Superman! D’Lyn took Abbie & Kait to see Hannah Montana at the Houston Rodeo. Biggs coached the Jinx, Abbie’s softball team. He helped coach Kait’s team, the Diamond Magic. Kait took ballet, Abbie took Spanish, and both girls took piano. D’Lyn drove everywhere. We miss Great Grandpa Jack and his jelly bean jar. The Pattons spent a weekend with us at the Creek. Kait drank an entire Coca-Cola and talked non-stop. I chased cats and boats up and down the Creek. The girls did flips off the dock. Kait got eaten up by fire ants while taking bluebonnet pictures. Conversation with Abbie: Did you take a shower? Yes. No. But I used Germ-Ex all over. The Baehrens, Venettes, Lamys, Bennetts and Owens joined us for weekends at the Creek. Abbie went to horse camp. We visited Sea Center Texas.

We rejoiced when the Waxahachie Biggses welcomed baby Kelton into the family! D’Lyn took the girls on a huge road trip. Abbie rode in the Snyder Rodeo’s Grand Entry. D’Lyn & the girls went to Ruidoso, NM, for a Lloyd family reunion and panned for gold, raced go-karts and went on a midnight bear hunt with Cousin Angie. In Sonora, they stayed with the Owen family and toured the caverns, got a personal tour of the Indian paint rocks from Fred & Kay Campbell, and bottle-fed baby fawns. News from Kait: I think my right foot was born before my left foot because my right foot is bigger. The Babcocks came for a visit. Abbie and Kait both started learning to ride poles. Watching Uncle Max trying to get Simon to trot is a hoot! Abbie caught lots of redfish. Kait declared herself to be “Bait Girl.” D’Lyn caught her first keeper redfish on a Zebco 404. Bzzzzzz…. The girls love going to the beach in the mornings. Biggs got the truck stuck on the beach. Tropical Storm/ Hurricane/ Thunderstorm Edouard interrupted our Creek vacation and gave us practice in hurricane preparedness. We stayed up way too late watching the Olympics. Abbie started 2nd grade. Kaitlyn started Kindergarten. Abbie played soccer with the Sidekicks; Kait played with the Express. Hurricane Gustav gave us another level of preparedness. All that paid off when Hurricane Ike hit. We were without electricity for 36 hours and lost a pine tree in the front yard that we didn’t like. I forgot to test my shock collar while the electricity was off. John & D’Lyn discovered Facebook. Kait celebrated her 6th birthday with a Webkinz party. Tip from Kait: Never go potty in your dream because you go potty in real life, too! D’Lyn and our neighbor Mary made 9 Poodle Skirts for the Keith Elementary Sock Hop. The Biggs Bunch cheered the Rice Owls on to a winning season and can’t wait to watch them play in the Texas Bowl! Mike & Gudren came to visit. Abbie & Kait loved NASA. Kait turns cartwheels constantly. Abbie celebrated her 8th birthday with a party at the zoo. Team Tiara raised $125,000, contributing to the $7.9 million raised in the DFW Breast Cancer 3-Day. The Sidekicks won first place in the Girls’ 7-8 Tournament! Biggs caught a 30-inch Speckled Trout in East Matagorda Bay. It snowed in Houston – and Sargent!

We hope you had a great 2008 and are wishing you an even
better 2009! May God Bless You!
Love, Jake & Co.

To walk in or donate to the 3-Day: www.the3day.org/goto/tiaras