Hello family and friends:
Looks like 2021 is coming to an end! I hope this letter finds you enjoying the holidays and being excited about what next year brings.I'm still working for TI, my team is working on some content evolution that will be fun to be part of probably the next few years. We are likely going back to work more next year which I think will be good. Still not much work travel being planned.
For volunteer work this year I'm managing the web site for high school PTSA and middle school PTA, co-leading Cadette Girl Scout troop, and the patches chair for the Allen Band. This year has been back to more normal with more in person meetings and activities. I've been volunteering with PTAs and
Girl Scouts for years, but this was really the first year I got to volunteer with the band. It's a lot of fun getting to volunteer and be around the kids. I helped with fitting uniforms, volunteering at games and Kasey and I helped change out part of the band uniforms unbuttoning and buttoning probably hundreds of buttons.
Greg is still stay at home dad helping get the kids everywhere and in charge of shopping and cooking. He has picked up a new hobby that we are both enjoying. He is part of some groups and goes some weeks lining (what we call waiting in line early at places like Specs to see what rare bourbons they have for sale). We've enjoyed trying several different bourbons and learning more about them.
We went a few places this year. We started out the year going to Miami to watch A&M play in the Orange Bowl. A few friends went as well, and we ended up getting a suite for the game so it was just us. We got to eat some good food and definitely saw some interesting people watching. The kids weren't overly impressed with the attire.
For spring break we found crazy cheap airline flights to Hawaii so we went to the Big Island. We had a pretty low key week. We enjoyed exploring in the mornings, we ate some good food, enjoyed local breweries including our favorite Kona Brewery. We also took a boat ride where we got to swim with lots of dolphins, and we got to swim with manta rays. Overall a great trip.
In May after the kids got out of school we all went on trips. The boys went on high adventure Boy Scout trip to Sea Base. They stayed on a sail boat off the coast of Florida for a week and helped work the boat. While they were gone Kasey and I went to Universal Studios for 3 days. Last time we took the kids Kasey was pretty young and had not read all of the Harry Potter books. Kasey also rode all of the big roller coasters with me. We also got to test run the new VelociCoaster before it had officially opened (one of the best roller coasters I've been on).
We also went as a family to Orange Beach over 4th of July. We usually avoid traveling over the 4th but did this year. We enjoyed hanging out at the beach, going to our favorite go cart place and having some good dinners. On 4th of July we went out on the beach and got to see fire works in multiple directions. Fun times.
During football season we went to College Station for most of the games, and Greg and I went to Colorado with some friends to see the game. We stayed downtown in Denver so we were able to walk most places. As usual we had good food, and the Aggies won but just barely.
Kasey is now 13 and in 7th grade - she's now in middle school. She had been telling me for close to a year that she was turning 13. As of September this year Kasey is taller than me. I'm now officially the shortest person in our house. Kasey is taking hip hop, in Symphonic 1 band at the middle school and still in Girl Scouts. In band Kasey made All City band and was able to participate in a day workshop with a visiting conductor. In Girl Scouts Kasey has been working on her silver award where she and another girl scout prepared and taught art classes at a local 55+ independent living place. She was also selected to be part of a Girl Scout older girl leadership group - 40 girls interviewed, 20 were selected. This group is focused on product sales (cookies ;)), and they will do something each quarter of the next year. In November they had a lock in with the girls and then led a cookie rally with a few hundred younger girls. Several kids in Kasey's grade are in Cotillion this year. The girls are taller than most of the boys but it's fun to hear them talk about it in the car. Kasey still enjoys watching YouTube and playing Roblox, and she's gotten into the new Spiderman movies too. Kasey has started enjoying reading more - she usually gets a few books each time and sometimes reads through them really quickly. She has made some new friends in middle school that she texts with a lot. Kasey mainly wears jeans to school and likes wearing black shirts mostly.
Landon is now 15 1/2, and a Sophomore in high school - he's at the main high school campus. Landon is almost as tall Greg now. He's still in high school band. This year the band went to Area marching competition and qualified as one of the 10 finalists. I got to volunteer at several of the football games this season - it's fun and kids are good kids and have fun at the games. Landon still enjoys hanging out with some of the older students that also play mellophone. Most of his closer friends are also in band. Landon went on his first high adventure boy scout trip with Greg to Sea Base. He also completed and was awarded his Eagle Scout rank - we are really proud. We enjoyed celebrating with friends and family in August. Landon also got his driving this permit and is driving us around town a good bit. He's started going to a gym multiple times a week with a friend, and even looking to buy some clothes to care a little more what he looks like. Landon really enjoys playing online games and watching YouTube. We enjoy watching all of the MCU and Star Wars series on Disney+
We hope that everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May God Bless you this
coming year.
We hope that everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May God Bless you this
coming year.