CHRISTMAS 2007, HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008!

Once again the smell of pine boughs, the sight of flashing lights and the sound of jolly tunes brings us to the Christmas season. Our thoughts turn to the true meaning of the season, the Savior of the World, and His birth so long ago. Our lives are filled with numerous blessings because of the gift of the Son of God. Come with us on a journey through the last four seasons to feel of the gifts and miracles we have enjoyed this year.

After living with pot-holed snowy roads, freezing temperatures and dirty cars the highlight of our WINTER came in February with a trip to Florida. Our eyes popped to see perfectly paved roads, temperatures in the high 70’s and clean cars. No trip to Orlando could be complete without a stop at Walt Disney World. Our family enjoyed the rollercoasters, the shows and the parades. Hailey remembers well the Peter Pan boat ride, Peter Pan & Wendy characters and Minnie Mouse’s house. Rachel loved the rides more than Hailey. At the airport on the return trip Rachel attempted to climb onto the airport “Transporters,” thinking they were another ride. (It was one of Julie’s most enjoyable vacations and she is secretly planning to go again; she just has to convince Jon.) We’re thankful for a trip without whining or fighting.

One fun event during SPRING was Hailey’s dance recital. To our delight Hailey didn’t experience any stage-fright this time and showed off her releve’ and skipping abilities. She still doesn’t like to be the center of attention but we’re proud of her effort. Our family also discovered that Rachel is allergic to peanuts and Hailey is allergic to tree nuts. Julie now tries to attend a monthly allergy support group and has been able to help others navigate the new world of food allergies. We’re thankful for our healthy bodies and the blessing of having a great allergist.

Our SUMMER began with Hailey’s rainbow birthday party (4 yrs) complete with Hailey’s favorites: a large rainbow umbrella, a rainbow shirt and rainbow band-aids. Hailey loved having friends from the neighborhood, church and the library come to her party. The rest of the summer included especially busy Saturdays with both Julie and Jon playing softball and Jon’s mountain biking adventures on the Potawatomi Trail. The Potawatomi is the “granddaddy of mountain biking trails in southeastern Michigan”. The sandy hills, exposed roots and steep climbs just about defeated him on multiple occasions, but each time he came home to tell the tale.

At the end of July we all flew to Seattle to visit “Gram and Opa” for a huge Stafford family reunion. Then we drove down to Sacramento to see “Grandma Rose and Grandpa” on the Plummer side. After all that travel, Hailey (and Julie) looks forward to more visits from family at our house. (Hint, hint.) We’re thankful for the family and friends that bless our lives.

No Michigan FALL could be complete without a trip to the local apple orchard and pumpkin patch. Hailey enjoyed checking out the pumpkins and Rachel attempted to pick apples off the trees. (We were only paying for pumpkins though.) It was also a season of baking as we learned that Rachel’s allergies were expanded to include eggs. Julie practiced making eggless: pancakes, carrot cake, chocolate cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin pie, sweet potato casserole, scrambled tofu and French toast (all were a success except the last one). Julie’s scrambled tofu with yellow food coloring was by far the most creative and surprisingly tasty. Since the weather was cooler and we could feel winter coming on, Jon worked aggressively to strip and refinish the deck. About half-way through the project, Jon determined that he would rather not do it again for a long time. The next deck we own will likely be a composite maintenance-free deck that doesn’t require 4 weekends to make it look new again. We’re thankful for Jon’s perseverance in completing the project.

At the start of another WINTER Rachel will celebrate her 2nd birthday. Her vocabulary has grown this year; some of her parents’ favorites are ba-na-NA, ankyoo, and O-kaaay. Our family will enjoy the gifts we find underneath the tree on the 25th and have thankful hearts as we look back over the year. We wish you a happy holiday season and hope the next year brings more wonderful seasons to you.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Plummers!

The Plummer clan,
Jon, Julie, Hailey & Rachel
Jon’s e-mail: plummer@byu.edu
Julie's e-mail: babe@byu.edu
Web site: http://plummerfamily.com/jon