What an eventful year! There is so much to say that I am
actually starting this in July. The year began with a terrible tragedy. Max’s
close friend, only 13 years old, passed away in the middle of the night for no
reason. He went to bed perfectly healthy and just didn’t wake up. It was so
sudden and devastating. His death has been shaping the lives of everyone who
knew him throughout this year. We have learned to calm down about stuff that
just doesn’t matter. Who cares if my washing machine is broke or my windshield
had a golf ball thrown through it…..another kid needing stitches, losing our
dog, chicken or ugly snake. I mean, really? Anything that would normally send
someone over the edge has all of a sudden become meaningless. But what DOES
matter has become much more meaningful…..our children, our faith, our
principles and morals and the salvation of every soul we could possibly touch.
That being said, we have actually had an amazing year. When your mind has been
shifted from the meaningless to the meaningful, it can change your world!
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| He's dang cute and such a happy boy |
Two weeks later, Roy and I got possession of our new
house!! As I am typing this, we are STILL moving in! I am never doing this
again! It is so difficult to look passed the work, clean-up, painting, 2
mortgages, pregnancy.. etc, etc, so we can enjoy the benefits of our new home
and land. The kids will have to remind us because they certainly took advantage
of the move. The gifts are BEYOND measure. We had the biggest snow storm in
history while we were here. The kids were sledding and sliding and 4-wheeling
with sleds all over the place. We had the biggest flood in history that brought
“awe” moments on each kids face. The water came up to our 4 foot high mail box.
Thankfully, we sit on top of a hill so it would never reach the house. Our
neighbors are too good to be true….generous, kind, helpful and have taken a
liking to our kids. We affectionately call them Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The weather
was beautiful all Summer so we could play comfortably in the creeks, ponds and
land. Multiply these gifts by a thousand and this is where we live….12 acres of
it.
Selling our old house has been our Summer project. Roy
wanted it to be perfect before it went on the market and I wanted it gone a
year ago. I finally put my foot down at the end of June and we put it on the
market even though it was still under construction. In my opinion, I sincerely
thought that the first person that looked at it would want it because I had
fallen in love with it 16 years earlier. It was my dream home but my desire for
my dream land was even greater. I was right! 3 days after it went on the
market, our realtor called and said that someone was putting an offer on it and
wouldn’t you know, it was an excellent offer. Roy’s hard work had paid off.
Our school year is something new, different and
wonderful. One of our local Catholic Schools had shut down due to debt and low enrollment.
The homeschoolers have taken it over. The homeschoolers brought in about 140 students
and it is all being run by their parents. Now this is the way a school should
be run…..by parents…..people that have an invested interest in the social and
academic growth of these children. It would be an amazing dream if every
Catholic school could be run by groups of domestic churches who follow the
Magisterium of the church. This isn’t a pipe dream either. We are doing it at
Christ the King and I am so happy to be a part of it.
The kids in a nut shell:
Nick – He has been going to the local community college,
working, and socializing with friends. Roy swore Nick into the Army in
September and will be leaving for basic training on January 6th. I’m
not the least bit worried about him. I believe his relationship with his
girlfriend, Kaylee, has deepened his faith and has given me comfort that he
won’t be swayed into immorality when he leaves. I am proud of the direction he
is going in and pray that he finds the path that God wants him to be on. 
Mary Kate – She is still home and loving all the exact
same things that she has loved since she was 2…..Musicals, coloring on dry
erase boards, walking, and you! Yes, YOU!
It doesn’t matter who you are. She cares about you, loves you and wants
to know everything about you. And when you come for a visit, she will show you
her new room with all of her Special Olympic medals. She is still the kindest
and most caring person you will ever meet. 
Samantha – She is 14 years old and turning into quite a
beautiful lady. For a little while, she was having a teenager attitude but that
seemed to break after she started babysitting other people’s kids. She came
home after her first job and was kissing, smiling and playing with her brothers
and sisters! She knows now that we are normal. We are not so bad after all. Actually,
we are quite nice and fun. Boys are taking an interest in her which is totally
freaking out her dad, Nick and Max. It is so much fun to watch them react.
Samantha is eating up all of the attention (from her family, not the boys!)
Max – Is 13 years old and awesome in every way. He
searches for ways to make people smile and laugh. He wants everyone to believe
he is awesome so he does everything he can to prove it with his generosity,
mannerism, socializing and humor. It is working too. Everyone who has met Max
falls in love with him. He just needs to work on controlling himself when a boy
talks or looks at his sisterJ He
is living his dream on our new land. He always has some project or adventure
going. He is rebuilding a couple of old homes that were once on our property to
try to preserve their History. He fishes
and traps animals from his new canoe on our pond. He is building his first tree
house with Roy. And the best news….he is getting his homework done early so he
can run outside and tackle his current project. He is one happy boy. 
Theresa – She is 10 years old and we frequently make
little jokes that if you want to stop a bully, call Theresa. She tells people the
way it is. She doesn’t come crying to mommy when she gets her feelings hurt.
She goes straight to the person and has a “talk” with them in her most sincere
and charitable tone. She is good. I mean, she is really good. She is also our
little lawyer. No one can win a debate with her, except me. Yes, ME! She can’t
pull the wool over my eyes but she can over her dads and everyone else in the
family. You will lose almost every argument with her because she thinks before
she speaks, admits when she is wrong and thinks of solutions to get what she
wants. 
Ben – He is 8 years old and pure boy……dirty and stinky
from head to toe, always in trouble, hiding live animals around the house,
throwing chickens on our roof, eats like a cave man, etc, etc. His pose in the
Christmas picture was all too accurate. Setting him quietly on a step with an
innocent smile would be a LIE! BUT, he
still snuggles and holds my hair for comfort. He is kind and generous to other
people. Even though I have gotten dozens of phone calls from his school or
other parents, it is never because of any disrespect. He will be something
special when he grows up. He will either be putting in a lot of time at church or
just be doing a lot of time. We’ll see. 
Josie – She is 6 years old and cute as a button. She has
a cowlick smack dab in the front of her forehead which lead me to give her a perm to grow out her bangs. She is SO DARN CUTE with her curly red hair, perfectly round face and round and big blue eyes. Every story she and Ben tell me include big round eyes that light up when they talk. I wish I could capture that look on camera. Her job is to gather the eggs from the chicken coop and into her cute little Easter basket each morning. Sometimes she needs a reminder and she pretends to be put-out with the job while trying not to smile. She is too cute.
Andrew – Arrived on October 5th. The whole
family wanted a girl (probably thanks to Ben). The family is in love with him.
He’s got the same grumpy boy look that my other boys had but is able to fly me
over the moon with each little smile he gives me. What a gift. I never want to
stop having kids….(that’s your cue to stop asking….lol). Yes, Andrew is in the
picture. Look close!
This was the most eventful year we have ever had. We
don’t deserve to be so blessed and happy. I worry that the other shoe will drop
at any time and I hope I am prepared for it. I know that everything I have
belongs to God and not me. I pray that I will remember this when it is time for
God to take something or someone away. Until then, I will be happy with everything
I have been gifted with.
Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Love,
Roy & Katy, Nick, Mary Kate, Samantha, Max, Theresa,
Ben, Josie, Matthew and Andrew
Some of my favorite photo's
Some of my favorite photo's
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| I'll never forget that feeling in my gut when I saw Theresa swing on this vine before we bought the house. Priceless |
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| Max was surprised with a canoe for his birthday |
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| Our neighbor found a use for all of our shoe's that didn't have a buddy. Yes, we had that many. |
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| Again, our neighbor used his creative gifts to surprise our kids with a haunted trail on our land. We had a couple hundred people go through it just this year. I can't wait until next year! |
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| CW4 Roy L. Christy Jr. swears in his son into the Army Reserves. Again, priceless |
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