Dearest Family and Friends:

Welcome, once again, to the Lacey Family’s digital Christmas Card.  As always, we begin our annual letter with the following two observations: 

First, and as sincerely as it can be said, we give thanks for all of you, our extraordinary group of family and friends.  We are deeply grateful for your love and support, for your laughter, for your stories, and for your joy.  We are appreciative for all the moments we spend with you each year, and look forward to many more in the years to come.

Second, we express our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who take the time to send us cards and letters this time of year.  We take great delight in the photos of you and your families, and in the accounts of your recent adventures.  Each year, our mantle is wonderfully crowded with colorful images of stars, trees, elves, and angels, and adorned with a host of smiling faces.  These cards, and the relationships they represent, are invaluable to us, and add immensely to our Christmas cheer.

And now, the annual recapitulation!

We turn first to our beloved Bix, who often gets only a mention here.  This summer was a challenging period for the old man.  For reasons still unknown, he experienced multiple and significant seizures, which in turn damaged his hearing and sight, and perhaps other functions.  The medication prescribed to prevent the seizures, in turn, left him in an extreme stupor, to the point where he could not walk in a straight line, or recognize his surroundings.  These were difficult days.  But they passed.  And we are beyond grateful to report that he ultimately adjusted to the medication, and has not had a seizure since beginning his regimen this summer.  Indeed, he once again is the cranky old pup that we have come to love and adore.  We are extraordinarily thankful for another Christmas with Bix, and look forward to a holiday spent shooing him away from the dinner table.  As you may have noted, we decided to feature him in this year’s cover photo.  He is as handsome as ever, and has elevated the nap to performance art, as illustrated above.

Aside from a few bumps and bruises, the rest of us have been in excellent health and spirits.

The family took a trip to Orlando this year and did all the non-Disney stuff, to include SeaWorld, LegoLand, a water park or two, and lots of time at the hotel pool.  To Aaron and Andie’s amazement, the vacation was, well, pretty great.  The twins were champs in all the parks, rarely wandering off and keeping up despite brutal heat and humidity.  The kids generally got along, no one got sick or hurt, and only once did someone poop their pants.  Sorry, only twice did someone poop their pants – but neither time in a pool!  So yeah, it was a great vacation.          

All three of the kids played soccer this year, with the result that we spent many a weekend running from one field to another.  On occasion, where game times overlapped, the extended family had to jump in just so we could make every contest.  Without diminishing the boys’ play, we note that Ella was an absolute joy to watch on the field.  She has always been our standout athlete, but until this year, we did not know how she would do in an organized setting.  It was as if she had been playing for years.  From the get-go, she had great field vision, an instinct for being in the right place at the right time, a natural tendency to follow-through, laser focus, and most importantly, a true love for the game.    

The twins started kindergarten in the fall, both in the same class and, at least on the first day, sitting next to one another.  Overall, things have gone well, though both “Lacey twins” have had the pleasure of meeting the principal at least once.  The term “spirited” has been thrown around a few times.  And sure, it would be great if the twins were “domesticated” or could be “trusted” with a “cafeteria fork.”  On the other hand, you want your kids to be able to fend for themselves.  And we are confident that when the apocalypse rolls around, these two will fare well.     

August also has had a solid year with school and soccer and such.  We would write more, but he discovered this website in November, and has opted to write his own entry.  We are delighted.  So without further ado, here is August’s own account of his personal highlights:

Hi, this is august here and I will be talking a little about myself now, I’ve been “a good boy” this year doing many, many fun things and getting good grades.  Anyway, enough talking, here we go! 

The little rascal of the family, I’m almost nine, and a brave kid.  I’m known for my sneakiness and lack of turning off video games (I love them).  As in last year’s card, I’m still doing my old routine of sneaking down and getting things, but now I’m more likely to have my kindle or be asleep.

This summer, I went to many, various camps, including some “stay-away” camps with many friends. I have been spending hours and hours with my friends and I am a third grader at PEGS (gifted program).

I’ve had a great year this year and, well, I love being me.  

Strong work, son.

Finally, in October, Aaron and Andie celebrated ten years hitched.  Aaron suggested that they travel to Baton Rouge to mark their anniversary by watching LSU play Mizzou in Tiger Stadium.  It certainly seemed that this was fate’s intention, given that the anniversary and the game were scheduled on precisely the same day.  This suggestion, however, was not met with enthusiasm.  Heeding the wise words of his now-departed grandfather (“The secret to my marriage was doing whatever your Granny told me to do”), Aaron abandoned the football game, and instead surprised Andie by taking her to the Red Bull Air Race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which also occurred on the exact same day as the anniversary (well played, fate).  It just goes to show that the old adage really is true: nothing says I love you like a beer, a brat, and a bunch of badass pilots.    

Aaron has been on a real poetry kick of late, so to celebrate he and Andie's ten-year anniversary, he wrote ten poems for the occasion.  We've posted them here, if you'd like to take a look (they lean much more towards the humurous than the sentimental).  Also, we leave you this year with our first annual Christmas poem, in this case dedicated to the little moments that pass in a flash, but mean so much.  We hope you have many such moments this holiday season, and in the months and years to come.

Warmest regards,

The Laceys