Dear Loved Ones,
2015
has been one of those years that you never forget, and as we also just had one
of those years in 2014, we’re looking forward to a super boring 2016. Here’s
the low down:
February-
We
were delighted and surprised to welcome our third boy into the family (the
gender was a surprise, not the fact that we had a baby. Being surprised by the
gender, by the way, is not as fun as everyone said it would be. I just
experienced a whole lot of anxiety over it.) We named our fourth child Bennion
Steve Anderson. Bennion comes from one of Bonnie’s pioneer ancestors, John
Bennion, who was a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ, and Steve is after my
father (also a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ, so there’s a pattern there).
Benny has been our easiest baby so far, he just smiles a lot and laughs at his
siblings. In the rare instance he does cry, it’s because he’s hungry, tired, or
poopy, and will literally go back to smiling and laughing as soon as he is fed,
napped or de-pooped. He’s recently figured out how to army crawl and frequently
ends up underneath the Christmas tree.
March-
I
received a phone call one day before classes began, informing me that I may or
may not be on a short list for a coordinating position. (Note: I am a religious
educator for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and have been
teaching teenagers in a released time seminary setting for the last 10 years. A
coordinator is an assignment within Church Education where you train early
morning seminary teachers and/or direct an Institute of Religion for young
single adults, and usually means you’ll be moving far, far away…)
A
few anxious days later I got the call inviting me to accept an assignment in
Urbana Illinois. I was given two days to report my decision. Bonnie and I
decided, in addition to praying and going to the temple, that we should seek
the counsel of our parents. Since I come from a clan of wanderers my dad and I
had a jolly ole time discussing the upcoming adventure. Since Bonnie has never
lived outside of Utah, our discussion with her mom was a bit more serious.
There were even tears… Which was understandable since Bonnie’s father had only
passed away a few months before and Lori really
loves us. But everyone knew this was what we were supposed to do so we
accepted.
May-
We
had 5 days to find a house. We only needed three. We actually sold our house in
Utah on the same day we signed the paper work for our new house in Illinois. We
totally appreciate the miracle of this occurrence as moving is not supposed to
be this seamless. We have found ourselves in a wonderful little neighborhood of
super nice people (seriously, we have a neighborhood directory and we’ve
already had a block party) in a great community with good schools, and a close-knit
ward family that welcomed us in the second we got here.
Bonnie
also turned 30 this month, so that’s something…
June-
Haken
turned 8 years old and on the 4th of July I got to baptize and
confirm my firstborn, which was pretty cool. He’s really just growing into a
responsible and caring young man. He’s also a bit bossy, but what can you
expect from the firstborn (am I right Ryan?)
Gracie
turned 3 years old and is the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen. She even
makes temper tantrums and power struggles adorable. She is a bit of a diva, but
I’m told all sisters are (I wouldn’t know). She’s also pretty tiny for her age so
we get lots of comments as people are impressed by our super smart and
coordinated 18 month old.
July-
We
packed up all our earthly belongings (well actually a moving company did which
is so much better than the Elder’s Quorum) and we trekked east, following the Mormon
trail in the opposite direction. We posted our exploits online with the
#reversepioneers, since that is how we felt. We arrived in Illinois on July 24th.
August-
I
turned 34, (note: at this writing it’s been three days since I played football
on Thanksgiving Day and I continue to be so sore, it’s debilitating. So, you
know, awesome.)
Haken
also started school, and has now seen three different elementary schools in as
many years. I’m glad he’s resilient.
Jack
(who turns 5 this month) also started preschool. He goes to the local Catholic
Church preschool, and has two wonderful and patient teachers. They’ve been
super accommodating with his diabetes and we’re grateful. Jack, who doesn’t
even realize he started over with new friends, because he considers everyone he
meets to be his friend, also started gymnastics this year. We figured he should
try it since he likes to do running summersaults down the hall and can perform
backflips off the diving board. (I didn’t teach him that, I’m too afraid.)
December-
Which
brings us to now. I think we are adjusting well, and I couldn’t be more proud
of Bonnie. I always knew she could thrive outside of Utah, and now she knows it
as well. We look forward to seeing what the Lord plans on doing through us in
our new home and opportunity, and can’t wait to hear about what He’s doing
through you. We love you, pray for you, and feel very blessed to be your
associates during this special time in Earth’s history.
Love,
Shad,
Bonnie, Haken, Jack, Gracie and Benny
