2008 Christmas Letter
We did send out a Christmas letter this year, but I wanted to post it to the web site anyway. Who knows, maybe somebody who isn’t on our holiday mailing list would like to know what we were up to this year? If you’re not on our Christmas card list, and would like to be, please let me know! The “online version” is now enhanced with links back to blog posts that give more details. Click “Continue Reading” to read the 2008 Christmas Letter.
Happy Holidays from the Wilson Family! Our family is doing very well. Did you vote this year? Our family was up bright and early on November 4th to do our civic duty! Michael and Chrissy were a little split on their decisions, but we were both happy to have the decision to make.
The best news from this year is that Gavin arrived to brighten our home. Gavin James Wilson was born on July 22nd, 2008, by Caesarian section at Community Hospital in Munster, IN. Special thanks to all the family and friends that came by to see Gavin, both in the hospital and at home. Our apologies to anyone who was taken in by the April Fool’s joke on our web site; there were actually no plans to name Gavin “James Tiberius (Kirk) Wilson”. On October 19th, Gavin was baptized at St. James the Less Catholic Church in Highland, IN. Gavin recently started eating solid food (mush) in November. He hasn’t started sleeping through the night regularly yet, but we’re optimistic that this will occur soon.
Chrissy took a year off of work to stay at home with Gavin. Because she has tenure, the school district will save her position as a third grade teacher. Her child-care leave started in August, and she is now very busy as a full-time stay-at-home mom of two (and a very good one!). Chrissy started classes for a Master’s Degree in Administration in May. She’ll graduate shortly after she goes back to work next Fall. Chrissy also joined a social group for stay-at-home mothers and their children called the MOMS Club. On top of all that, she is still an avid scrapbooker!
Michael is still working full-time at the University of Chicago as the Manager of Data Quality. He is also serving his fourth term on the Board of Directors at LakeNet, a not-for-profit organization that helps entities in Northwest Indiana gain a web presence. There were no teaching slots open at Indiana University this year, but Michael looks forward to doing that again next year if possible. In February, Michael took a week-long training program for Microsoft .NET programming. Michael also enjoys updating the web site with family news, personal views and photos of our kids.
Aiden has a good year as well. In April, we moved him into his own room (and out of the nursery). We got him a bedroom set with bunk beds, so he’s got a “Big Boy Bed” now. Aiden got his first haircut on June 19th, an important milestone for any little boy. He turned two years old on August 29th, and we threw him a sports-themed party in the backyard, complete with an impressive White Sox cake. Also, he got his first pet: a betta fish name “Fish”. A few weeks later, it miraculously changed colors after an emergency visit to Petco. Aiden started speech therapy this year through First Steps of Indiana, since he hasn’t started speaking yet. In December, he was evaluated for further therapy at St. Xavier University.
In April, Michael and Chrissy took Aiden to his first Botcon, the annual Transformers Convention, in Cincinnati, Ohio. There, Aiden met the voice actors for the Transformers Animated cartoon: Tara Strong (Sari), David Kaye (Optimus Prime) and Bumper Robinson (Bumblebee). The Newport Aquarium was just over the Ohio River from our hotel, so we took Aiden there in between Botcon seminars. A shark snuck up behind Aiden while he wasn’t looking. That was scary! We’re looking forward to next year’s Botcon, which should coincide with the new Transformers Movie sequel.
Michael and Chrissy saw Cirque du Soleil, “Kooza”, at the United Center in Chicago in early June for Michael’s birthday. Michael got a Nintendo Wii for his 35th birthday and a Wii Fit shortly after that. Unfortunately, only a few pounds have been lost on the Wii Fit so far. Aiden got a taste of Big City fireworks when we spent some time with the Seraphines in Chicago on the 4th of July. There was both fear and awe from him during the display. We also did the annual fairground visits this year: the Lake and Porter County Fairs in August, the Blueberry Festival in September, and the (disappointing) Popcorn Festival a week after that. Summer ended with a huge flood, as the Little Calumet River overran its banks on September 15th. Luckily, we were not affected, but there was flooding nearby for days and many towns in Northwest Indiana were named as disaster areas.
In October, Aiden dressed up in a lion suit for Halloween. His trick-or-treat run was only a few houses on our block, but he seemed more interested in staying close to home. To prepare for Halloween, Aiden helped Mommy and Daddy carve pumpkins, but he thought they were gross inside. Aiden and Michael saw animals and took a ride on the Moo-Choo at the County Line Apple Orchard this year. We also went to Scheeringa Farms in October, and Aiden really enjoyed the petting zoo. In November, the whole family went to the George Carden Circus at the Hammond Civic Center. Aiden and Michael got to ride an elephant before the show started! Aiden really enjoyed the animals and the clown acts. We also celebrated Chrissy’s 30th birthday this year with a trip to Chicago and dinner at the Chicago Chop House. The steak was fantastic, but it was a pricey meal!
Have a happy holidays and a great new year!
Merry Christmas from the Wilsons:
Michael, Chrissy, Aiden and Gavin (and Xiao-Ai and Te-Amo and Sukiyo and “Fish”)
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