Hello from the Crosiers!
Well it appears that the New Year is come and gone. I imagine everyone is recovering from a busy though enjoyable Christmas. In the meantime, here's an update from the Santa Barbara area.
Another year has passed by so very quickly. Though I don’t feel like it’s gone in vain as I have enjoyed journaling, recording voices and video taping this year. We started it at the home we loved in Lake Arrowhead and have ended it in Santa Barbara, California once again. The start of the year was a furious whirlwind of repairs, painting, drywalling, rotted beams, contractors, decorating, and more. But the Lord blessed us during this overwhelming time with generous friends and wonderful business professionals to help solve our concerns and make the sale of our home a success. Davy finished Kindergarten in excellence and then we finally joined Scott in Santa Barbara so that he no longer needed to continue his 6 months of coming home on weekends. It was a daunting journey that started each Friday night, and ended in the mountains on Saturday morning. The kids, who wanted to see Daddy all week, were patient with him to get major projects done, and then enjoyed him on Sunday. Though we kept the Sabbath and didn’t work then, the time went quickly with church and by mid afternoon Scott began his journey back down the mountain. In June our moving truck left, just shy of 3 years in paradise, for another beautiful place. Davy thought everyone in the central coast remembered him in Santa Barbara after a few people told him what he was like as a baby and toddler, and JD and Laura loved the parks that we visited weekly like we promised we would. We hare happy here, though we’ll always have memories of our mountain home!
And now the holiday season has come and gone. Laura has new clothes from Christmas and it's fun to watch her truly enjoy dressing up. It is innate in her and not prompted by us which is a wonder to see unfold. She'll put on everyone's shoes and clog around the house, and loves to put on jackets, hats and more. She has a new doll and has of course undressed it many times now and brought it to us for redressing only to do it again. But she's also making some progress, though small, out of the "mine!" phase and into not taking from JD who lets us know without fail each time.
J.D. is taking after Davy in imagination play, including pretending we're in the Mystery Machine ever time we drive somewhere and saying "Rikes!" He's excellent at clean-up and even better at play to cause the need to clean up. He and Laura team up there! Jeremiah is in tune with his name’s “bullfrog” history and my love for frogs, and loves to flick his tongue as an unconscious habit. He’s begun sounding letters out and reading small words like ‘on’ and ‘not’ and thinks homework is cool with Davy while Davy thinks homework is no longer so cool…
Davy and JD love some new Rescue Heroes that they got for Christmas. Though, our oldest is learning or attempting to learn what to do when JD and Laura touch a different button or grab a guy that he has set up. In Davy’s mind it's all a scene with details while Laura and JD see toys Davy's not playing with free for the taking. In the end though it all works out. It’s fun to watch Davy imagine at a new level, though he’ll talk about how to play and never really play. While with me or others, he’ll say, “I’m a spy but you don’t know.” “And then you ome and discover my hide out.” “And then you hear something….and you ask me “What was that?” And I say, “What was that?” and then… Imagination play takes up his entire day and sometimes my ears need more quiet than I admit. In the end, Davy’s an excellent reader, is determined to choose the right and can clearly identify right from wrong, and has reached a superlative stage of loving us more than this movie or even, gasp, more than play dates with his friends! Now that’s true love…
Scott is pondering career paths with his recent interviews and ‘what he'd like to do when he grows up.’ He is enjoying a break from Seminary which he teaches at 6:30 each morning to the High School members of the church before school each day. Winter Break is loved by students and teachers alike. He is also on break at the two colleges at which he teaches GIS. So we have more of Daddy right now, which is going into teaching Davy to ride the bike Santa brought him since I don't seem to do it like Daddy, according to Davy. Otherwise he paddles the Pacific Ocean weekly and plays with his Suzuki at times.
As for me, I am surrounded by household chores but I make sure the children are very involved in that. Sorting silverware into the drawers, pairing socks, scurry time before Daddy gets home and more. My joy in a week is putting Little House on the Prairie into our DVD player from Netflix and watching it while folding laundry or so. I am on Season 5 of 7 and loving every moment of it. I loved this show as a child and can remember seeing many episodes on their original air dates. I remember calling my Dad pa once because I wanted to be Laura Ingalls, though that didn't go over too well. In the end, I have my own little Laura, with that namesake on purpose and that's enough joy for me! My current roles include doll dressing, mastering difficult Transformers, acting out light saber duels and creating bedtime stories nightly. And like always, I want to spend more time scrapbooking, organizing my journal and perfecting talents like learning to play the piano. Why is it our time is always taken in day to day activities and not in what we really want to do… However, I am becoming quite fit and have reached some fitness goals I had this last year and am setting new loftier ones. Now that’s a great joy!
In my genealogy, Dad and Mom learned this year how much easier it is for me to research with them alive. I’m so glad to have a close relationship with them! I need to get info I've gathered from them into my files soon and have been talking with Scott about one night per week that is mine for genealogy or scrap booking or journaling or such. On my Mom's side (Coggeshall) I found a Rolodex recently with contact information for her side and I will make some phone calls soon to see who's still alive and living where. I have wanted that for awhile and am so glad to have found it. It was odd to look through the cards and see a mix of Tahoe, cheerleading, family and more. A flood of memories came back from my youth, most of them good.
Lastly, Scott and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary on January 27th of this year, which was wonderful. We are grateful to look back over 10 years and be glad with where we are and envision what the next ten will hold. We have a wonderful marriage and we are thankful to have teachings from the Lord through the scriptures and His church to make it so!
Most of all, my greatest blessings were prevalent this Christmas season. I have the family I've always wanted, and love where I live and how my life is progressing. I can see that progress in my character and spirituality even over this last year for which I am grateful. Most of all, I am grateful for a very loving Savior who atoned for my sins and gave me an example on how to live and who to be. I have had some special experiences recently in the quiet of my heart that reaffirm that He is very aware of me and near and that I am not just one of His many children floundering down here on earth but more. May we all do more than love Him but actually become more like him.
Happy New Year!
Brenda Crosier
Santa Barbara, CA
(805) 275-2345
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