Dear Friends and family,
Happy New Year!
We hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas, filled with peace and joy. We did!
This year has been one of growth and learning for us. Too many things have transpired to express in one letter, but we want to share with you the highlights of our lives in 2010.
Scott: This year Scott was called as the ward’s Employment Specialist. He helps network in finding better work situations for the unemployed and under-employed. He has enjoyed being able to help others in this area. This year Scott made several new discoveries in his garden. One: raised bed gardens work best in
Laura: This year Scott and Laura both became very involved in SalemHarvest.org, a non profit organization dedicated to ending hunger. We would go to a designated site: a home or farm, and then we would harvest all the fruit. We then would donate 50% to the food bank and other local charities, and then we would get to take home the other 50% free to our own families. We picked hundreds of pounds of cherries, blueberries, apples, pears and cauliflower. This Summer Laura trained 2 hours a day to compete in her first triathlon. She swam 500 yards, biked 12 miles, and ran 3.5 miles. This training inspired her to make many lifestyle changes in her eating habits which resulted in loosing about 15 pounds. Ask her anytime about the benefits of green smoothies and eating 50 to 80% low-fat, raw vegan. The other big change for Laura was when she got called to be the new Primary President. Laura’s biggest challenge is now juggling being wife, mother, homeschooler, teacher of a boys science/history class and being in charge of primary. *phew!* All the extra work is forcing Laura to prioritize her time better. *On a funny note, since I’ve been trying to write this letter for weeks, leaving a document open but always getting distracted by otherwork before finishing it, Dorathy thought she’d help me out by typing it out for me. This is what she wrote: “I would like to write this year’s Christmas letter, but I haven’t the time. Goodbye!” We all got a good laugh!
Christopher: Turned 12 this year and received the priesthood. He is now a deacon at church and passing the sacrament! He loves being in Young Men’s and enjoys all the privileges of being the eldest child. Christopher attends Middle School every morning for choir and band, and then walks home for homeschool. Christopher’s newest passion is music. He plays clarinet, the piano, an elaborate synthesizer, and has been begging for a guitar as well. Christopher is active in Scouts, Boys clubs, church, and piano lessons. He spends his free time reading books, and has become quite the expert at babysitting his little sisters. Christopher enjoys politics, history, and science. He is a philosopher at heart and loves to think about and discuss big ideas and current events.
Dorathy: Is now 9 years old and acting so grown up. She plans out each day with precision. She loves food, cooking, organizing things, drawing, and writing stories. Her favorite books are the Harry Potter series. Dorathy keeps more books in her bed than anyone I know. She can’t bear to be parted from them. “You never know when I might feel like reading one again!” she says. She’s a repeat reader. She finds a book she likes and then she reads it over and over until she can quote passages by heart to the entire family. She loves Gail Carson Levine books and the Percy Jackson series.
Courtney: Is enjoying life at 7 yrs old. She is always eagerly watching the older siblings trying to do all that they do. Courtney is passionate about all living things. She is our resident naturalist. When given the choice to bring us a book to read, she always finds us one about birds or ocean critters! Courtney loves Japanese things, her favorite movie is “My Neighbor Totoro”. She wishes she could speak Japanese. She still loves gymnastics and can often be found in odd places: the higher the better. If we had a good tree house, she’d go live in it! All Courtney wanted for Christmas this year was her two front teeth…and she’s getting them! She even sang to song for an audience this year!
Angel: is a very introspective 4 year old. Her imagination has blossomed, and she enjoys pretend games of all kinds. She is our happy family helper. She is on the “Sunshine Committee.” She is always giving hugs and kisses and helping everyone feel happy. She loves to tell stories and jokes, and enjoys performing for an audience. She has performed solos at 2 talent shows. Her favorite activity is building “forts” and playing pretend “camping” with Courtney. For this game, all she wants is a flashlight, a blanket, and an apple to “roast” on a fork. Precious!
Julianna: Is the life of the family at 2 and if she isn’t at the center of it all, she forces the issue! She has the whole family wrapped around her capable fingers, and it is good for us to be reminded occasionally that she isn’t a baby anymore! She loves cats and dogs and enjoys playing with our Beagle, Lucy. She knows her numbers, colors, and abc’s, but her way of talking is difficult for anyone but her Mom to understand since she doesn’t use most consonants at the beginning of her words.
*The Highlight of the year was getting a visit from Scott’s family in June and July. We enjoyed every second of the family visits, and we’d like to extend to invitation to all of you to come visit us anytime!
*We also got to spend a week camping in the
We love each and everyone one of you and wish you many delightful 2011 moments to come! May the love of our Savior spread joy in your hearts and help us all to have the Christmas Spirit all year round!
Love, the Dotsons:
Scott, Laura, Christopher, Dorathy, Courtney, Angel, & Julianna.
