Christmas Letter December 2007

This year has been a wonderful year for our family. Our little family has experienced a lot and seen a lot of change. We moved 1 1/2 miles away from our A-frame rental home into a multi-level home on one acre. We are discovering how to manage weeds, build fences, plant grass, install a gas line, paint, carpet, exterminate mice, raise goats, plant trees, rototill, kill zuchini, attempt tomatoes, oh the list goes on an on. With the addition of our two goats, Torro and Kenneth, our family has more than doubled. Torro is an old goat who is onery and doesn't like to listen to me very well. The first time that I met torro in the corral at my house he looked at me and knew I was no match for him. He darted past me and ran out the gate that I had left open. I tried to catch him but I was wearing Gary's boots (as if that is a good excuse) and so couldn't run very fast. Gary ended up chasing him to our neighbor's house where the goat began to run with the horses. They were kicking and raring so much that when Gary reached to grab the goat he got kicked in the hand by a horse. It was his first wound of our new house, but definately not his last. Even after that experience we are considering babysitting horses in the future but that hasn't happened yet (much to my neice Megan's dissapointment). We are pretty happy to take care of ourselves and our little boy, it may be too much to ask to take care of a large animal like that. :) THis is a picture of Justin at the property at Sunridge. All the Hadley's have rediscovered it this past year and have had a fun time going up and clearing weeds and trees in hopes of getting a truck down there one day to camp.

Gary is still working at Questar Gas in the Operations Department, which means whenever there is a gas leak at a home or on a construction site he is the one who can go fix it. He is happy there and really enjoys his co-workers. He doesn't get in as much hunting time as he would like and so to compensate he will regularly call his friends and co-workers over to our house to check out the antelope we have hanging in our family room. ( it's downstairs at least). I think the whole reason we moved to where we did was for
Gary and his love for hunting. He can leave the house and go down the street for 1/2 hour or so and get his hunting fill for the day (even if he doesn't see anything he likes it). I am trying to break into the hunting world and this christmas took Dave and Elise shooting clay pidgeons. It was an adventure as I strutted my non-existant "stuff". :)
I am working at McKay-Dee Hosptial as a Health Educator and Student Coordinator, which means I'm a know-it-all who orients employees and students to our hosptial. :) I do this two days a week and then the other days I am able to be home with Justin. I like being a mom and am learning what a play group is. The thing I covet most right now is a season pass to the Tree House Museum in Ogden. My my how my prioroties have changed. This picture is of the Hall Christmas party and Justin is proud as he wears his Yankee hat that Santa gave him. Jerry and Joanne Hall had gone to New York this year, during one of the coldest bus rides they were on the ducked into a little Yankee shop to warm up. While in there they had a great idea to get Justin a yankee hat and an antenna ball for Gary. They knew Gary loved the Yankees! When they got home the news was broken to them that Gary loved the Dodgers and the only baseball words that Justin knew were "Yankees BOO! Dodgers Yay!!" Santa still gave the hat and antenna ball to us and everyone thought that was really funny!!



Justin turned two this year and as a two year old has had some major accomplishments in the past year. He is walking...wait scratch that, he is RUNNING, JUMPING, SKIPPING, everywhere. He likes to talk on the phone and responds really well when you ask him closed ended questions. "Yeah", "No", "Good". He amazes Gary and myself when he sings songs to us, when he asks us questions, or responds using small sentences. It is great being the parent of a genius! (Who in this pictures shows his love of tomatoes (rotton or not) and the fruit that causes extreme exema in my Justin...live and learn)

The Hadley family is doing well this year and seems to be relishing in its grandchildren. Mom and Dad are doing really well. Mom is still in remission and receives glowing reports from her doctor about her health, she is also looking super skinny lately due to her great eating habits (which I am jealous of). Dad is still as busy as ever working on projects and trying to convince me I need to have more of them. :)

We have exciting news at this year...we are PREGNANT!! We will be having a baby girl the first part of July and are very excited!! Hope to see you soon!!