Happy New Year!!!

Aww, January 7th already? Well let me first say, Happy New Year to you all! I hope you had a wonderful Holiday break! I got my Christmas cards out this year but didn't get around to a Christmas letter like I usually do. I told myself it was fine not to do one and frankly, with how the year ended up I didn't feel "up to it" if you know what I mean. But now I'm feeling guilty because we did have a lot of milestone events happen in 2008 and now I'm feeling like I should have just made the time and written an update letter to go along with our cards.

So, with that said - let this serve as my Christmas letter for 2008. :))

While 2008 was a tumultuous year for many - it was also a good year. To quote Charles Dickens "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times" I feel that pretty much sums up 2008. So, onto some of the Best of Times of 2008.......

Jackson - 8 years old

Jack started the 2nd grade and is doing GREAT! This may be his best year yet for school and we couldn't be more proud! He is really learning and maturing and continues to amaze us daily. His visits with the Vice Principal are fewer and fewer ;) and his teacher said if she had a classroom of Jackson's, she would be blessed. Hmmm, wonder if she says that to all of the parents?? :) Jack also started Cub Scouts and loves it! While I'm not sure if we'll ever make it to Eagle Scout (WE meaning Don and I, we both have no doubt that Jack could go all the way to Eagle, but I'm not sure if Don and I have it in us to go that far!) - Jack seems to really enjoy his time with his scouting buddies and that is all that matters. Jackson did get 2nd prize in selling popcorn for Cub Scouts this year (and that was 2nd prize out of MANY boys!) We were both very proud but Don was especially beaming at his son the "salesman"! And the best part, Jack sold EVERY box all by himself! Over $500 worth - that's a LOT of popcorn! Don just walked him door to door and Jack did everything else. And as we all learned, selling it is just half the battle - the hardest part is delivering it to all of those people who bought it from you. But Jack LOVED it! So I guess we can add salesman to Jack's many career choices - doctor, builder, developer....and by the way, those aren't choices to pick from - those are ALL what Jack says he will be when he grows up. I have no doubt that he will do just what he says he will.

Jack still loves building things and his imagination continues to grow - he is crazy about legos, lincoln logs and anything that he can build with. And the things that he builds simply amaze us. I'm not sure if this is normal for an 8 year old but I've never seen anything like it before. I wish I could get inside that little mind of his and see what goes on in there!

Elle - 6 years old

Elle had a VERY big year! And she is actually the reason that I started feeling guilty for not writing a Christmas letter this year. I felt she had the most news of all and thought she would like for me to share it with everyone. She started Kindergarten and lost her very first tooth - not on the same day though! I'm not sure which she would say was more exciting for her if you asked but I'm guessing it was the tooth! She could not wait to lose a tooth and was getting annoyed at everyone around her who was losing them before her. Macy has two loose teeth and the thought of her little sister loosing a tooth before her was just about enough to send Elle over the edge. Luckily we didn't have to deal with that as Elle's tooth came out first. (Macy still has yet to lose either tooth.)

Elle is doing great in Kindergarten. Her teacher says she is so sweet. Hmmm, Elle? Wonder is she says that to all of the parents? :) Actually I have to admit Elle is very sweet and getting sweeter and sweeter and a lot of the attitude that she used to give us is thankfully disappearing. Mostly. Elle is growing into a very confident and beautiful little girl. She is my artist. She loves to draw, paint, write - anything creative! She writes me love letters daily and each one sweeter than the one before. I'm not sure how her teacher feels about her using all of the paper, envelopes, tape and staplers that she uses to make my daily love letters, but I sure enjoy it! She still makes us laugh constantly but mostly we love to listen to her laugh - she has the best laugh I've ever heard. It's infectious and it shows all over her face. I love getting to know the little lady she is becoming.

Elle also joined the Daisy's this year (that's Girl Scouts for Kindergarteners.) We have a small troop made up mostly of parents whom this is their first time in Daisy's so we're not that organized but the few meetings we've had the girls seem to really enjoy. So far it's not as time consuming as Cub Scouts seems to be, so we aren't dreading it yet. :))

Macy - 4 years old

And then there is Macy. We call her Miss Thoughtful. She is always thinking of others - going to get you something before you ever ask for it, hugging and patting you if she thinks you are sad, giving up her chair if you don't have a seat. Things that most people, let alone 4 year olds, don't think of. She is very perceptive to the needs of others. She is also hilarious! She has a very mature sense of humor for her age. She is a trickster - you never know where she will be hiding and it cracks her up to jump out and scare the dickens out of you! You can't help but laugh too when you see her laughing so hard. She is a lot of fun to be around.

Macy started PreK this year. She has the same teachers that Elle had last year in PreK and loves them as much as Elle did. She loves to play alone but is becoming more social this year. If you ask her who her friend is, she will name just about everyone in the class. She doesn't stick to one person like her sister does. And speaking of sisters - Macy loves her big sister and tries to do everything like she does. Macy is big on writing love letters to us all, like Elle does. Only Macy writes them to everyone in our family - not just to me - she even writes them to our dogs. She is very fair and doesn't want anyone left out. That's our Miss Thoughtful.

Both girls are still in dance. They both love performing - last year I wasn't so sure about Macy performing onstage but she did great at her recital! This year is the "big" recital - full costumes, big auditorium, etc. We can't wait!

Don, along with his business, is recovering from the hit the economy took this year. He bought a lot of property in 2007, developed it and planned on selling it in 2008 but it didn't go exactly as planned. He is a go-getter though and doesn't stay down for long. He's already moved onto the next phase - buying and selling distressed properties. While it didn't go as we had planned, I've learned that life seldom does and to just be prepared and ready to roll with the punches.

Our biggest news is that we celebrated our 10th anniversary this year and celebrate we did! We took a trip to Hawaii and renewed our vows in the exact same spot where we were married 10 years prior. It was a magical trip - one that we will surely remember for the rest of our lives. What was most special was that not only did we return to the place where we first said I do, but that we got to bring along our three beautiful children. What a difference 10 years make! We were also blessed to be surrounded by our family and friends this time around. It was amazing being so far away and having everyone there with us. And it was great to just visit and hang out with everyone in such a relaxing setting - instead of a rushed holiday gathering like we usually do these days. I will treasure our vow renewal ceremony forever - it was beautiful and spiritual and meant so much to me. We feel very honored to have so many of our family and friends break away from their busy lives and schedules to join us on such a special occasion. It was definitely the highlight of the year.

And me - well, as most of you know I decided to start a business this past month. It's been slow to take off - well, it has only been a month! But today I got my first "paid" order! Thanks Sonya for the referral. I am going to start really marketing my company this year. I even started a blog for it today - just to get a website going quickly. I will get a real website soon as I get a chance. But for now, this will just be somewhere I can display my work and hopefully get some referrals out of it. I love creating and I'm enjoying having something that I do just for me. I can't figure out how to link that blog to this blog so until then, if you want to view the other blog go to this link. I won't be "blogging" on that website much, if at all, but I will display my work as I create more cards. http://customcreationsbymila.blogspot.com/

So, that is it for the McClain family. We had some struggles this year, as many did. But we are thankful for the time spent with our family, the roof over our head and the food on our table. I know not everyone is as fortunate and I hope that 2009 will bring good things for many people. I wish for all of you peace, love and most importantly - time with your loved ones. As we are coming up on the 2 year mark of losing my dear cousin Jeff, I have learned that nothing else matters but time with your loved ones.

Happy 2009 and God Bless you all.........

Much love, Mila