FCC Christmas Pageant

The children in our church presented the Christmas Story during last Sunday morning's worship service.
(Yes, Bill & Brenda are also considered "children".)
Jamie was one of the wise men and he brought his gift of gold to the newborn King.

Cast members
Mary: Brenda
Joseph: Bill
Angels: Demi & Amy
Shepherds: Tyler, Case & Spencer
Wise Men/Three Kings: Mason, Aaron & Jamie

Christmas 2005 letter

Dear Family and Friends,

It’s hard to believe that another year has passed. Our hearts go out this holiday season to all of those who have been touched by the tragedy and disaster of hurricanes, earthquakes and war. We are certainly blessed to have our home and to know that our families are safe. We will not ever again take these things for granted.

The Brooks’ household has had a fairly uneventful year. We continue to be inspired by Jamie who, at 3 years old, fills our hearts with pride and love. He is growing and learning and becoming his own little self. He is a creative and energetic boy with a caring heart. This past year he has kept busy with gymnastics, Musikgarten, swimming lessons, Vacation Bible School, story time at the public library, playgroup and Awana. He has also started going to daycare/preschool 2 mornings per week. His favorite toy continues to be ANYTHING trains, especially Thomas the Tank Engine. His other favorite toys include construction trucks and race cars and he loves to work jigsaw puzzles. His best friend is Spencer. (Spencer has recently moved to Farmington, NM and Jamie is having a hard time understanding why Spencer doesn’t go to Awana anymore.) Other friends include Ryan, Ashley, Parker, Ryan, Aaron, Justin and Ryan. (Yes, there are three Ryan’s!) He loves baseball, soccer and football and we are looking forward to the upcoming summer when he will be old enough to participate in city leagues, if he so chooses. He also loves to sing (favorite song is “Old McDonald Had a Barn”), have stories read to him (his favorite books are “Racer Dogs” and “I Stink”) and watch videos (favorite videos are “Thomas the Tank Engine”, “Dora The Explorer” and “Bob The Builder”). He is also learning to master the potty, FINALLY!

We were able to take a couple of family trips this past year. We did Spring Break in Arizona and went to a Rockies game, the zoo and found the Maricopa Live Steamers Railroader Club where we got to ride miniature trains for an entire afternoon. We spent Father’s Day in Durango with Thomas the Tank Engine. In July, we spent a few days with Bill’s family in Salt Lake City and, then a week at our timeshare in Las Vegas, NV. It was too hot to really enjoy the time we spent in Las Vegas, but we did have fun riding the monorail and playing at Circus, Circus. In the future, we will be sure to not visit Las Vegas during the summer months. In October, we went to the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, NM.

Bill’s job as school counselor moved him from the high school to the middle school this year, which has been a welcome change. He is really enjoying his work with this age group and also enjoys not having to deal with registration, scholarships and college prep and graduation. He misses the students at the high school but continues to be the SEADS (Students Educating Against Drugs and Suicide) sponsor. For fun, Bill finds time to work in his shop on his scrollsaw, play Scrabble, play volleyball, play bass guitar in church and serve as church elder. This year, he is especially proud to be a Denver Broncos fan as they are having a great season!

Julie continues to enjoy her job as SAHM. Her symptoms with CFIDS and Fibromyalgia restrict her activity but she does manage to find some free time for scrapbooking, weekly Bible study, mom’s group and cruising. (She is a Cruiser wanna-be and the designated co-pilot to Emily’s P.T. Cruiser. She & Emily attended several P.T. Cruiser events this past year.) She also continues to play recreational volleyball and will become a home demonstrator for Stampin’ Up!© in January.

We will spend Christmas with Julie’s family in Albuquerque. We pray that you will also have the opportunity to share the joy of the season with those you love. We thank you for the love you have shown to us in the past year; it is the greatest of all gifts.

Love,
Bill, Julie & Jamie

A visit with Santa

Jamie had a good visit with Santa at the Villa Mall in Alamosa.
Jamie told Santa that he wants a really SUPER toy for Christmas.
(Whew, I think Santa can handle that request!)

The Puzzle Master

Jamie loves to work jigsaw puzzles! He is very good at figuring out where the pieces go and can work this 48 piece puzzle all by himself!

Stampin' Up!

Julie hosted a Stampin' Up! party and Bill volunteered to babysit the kids. I'm not sure he knew what he was getting into but the kids had a great time! Jamie was excited to have his friends and his cousin, Shelby, here for the evening. They played trains and did tumbling on the couch cushions. Julie and her friends learned more about rubber stamping and scrapbooking and had a great time also.

O Christmas Tree

We went to the mountains in search of the perfect Christmas tree. The weather was so nice. There is not much snow yet so our search was fairly easy. We saw three potential "keepers" and finally decided on this one.






Jamie was excited to help with the tree and used his toy saw to cut "lots of things".





It's hard to believe that we're already decorating for Christmas but we are looking forward to a fun holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We spent the holiday at home. After some quick, last minute cleaning, we enjoyed a relaxing day watching the Macy's parade on TV and then watching football.The Broncos played the Cowboys (and WON!) which made for extra celebration and thanksgiving.

The Hamilton's roasted the turkey while Julie prepared all of the necessary side dishes. After we all had our fill of yummy food, we watched "The Polar Express". We missed spending Thanksgiving with family but it was nice to be home and share it with good friends.

Paradise FOUND!

Jamie was invited to a birthday party at the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool (AKA The Hooper Pool).

We have lived in Alamosa for 17 years and had not yet discovered this SLV oasis. It is a natural hot artesian heated swimming pool that is open year round. It has a kiddie pool that goes from 1 foot to 2 feet in depth and is PERFECT for Jamie. He had so much fun playing in the water with the other kids and didn't have to cling on to either one of us. He felt completely comfortable and independent wading in the shallow water or floating on his swimming noodle. The water going into the pool is about 118 degrees but cools down to between 98 and 104. They also have a therapy pool where the water is 108. We all had a great time and will definitely spend more time there now that we know more about it.

A perfect day to climb a tree...

Jamie was having fun playing at the park with his friend, Parker, when they both decided that they'd try to climb this tree. I couldn't resist the photo op!

FCC Craft Show

Julie & Jamie were in Denver but Bill was at home in Alamosa putting on the 5th Annual Craft and Bake Sale at our church.
He really enjoys his scrollsaw hobby and looks forward to the holiday season when he can show off his masterpieces. This year he has done craft shows in La Jara, Albuquerque and Alamosa. His next show is Dec. 2 & 3 at the Villa Mall in Alamosa (not a real mall, just a strip mall).

Chuck E. Cheese

Julie & Jamie and Emily & Shelby went to Denver for a Colorado PT Cruiser Club meeting on Saturday.
We spent most of the time running errands and decided to reward the kids for their "good behavior" with a trip to Chuck E. Cheese. They had a great time!

Remembering Granddad

Julie and Jamie spent this past Veteran's Day weekend in Albuquerque. This was the one year anniversary of Julie's grandfather's death. Her cousin, Esteban, also came in from Los Angeles to be with family and remember.

Saturday, Julie & Esteban searched high and low (really, we even went to a casino) to find the USC vs. California football game on TV. We ended up at Hooters and had a great time watching the game and catching up. The Trojans won...still undefeated and still number ONE!

Later that night, we met at Gram's and were talking about different things when the subject turned to our family history. With Esteban's laptop and my Gram's wireless DSL (yes, my 89 year old grandmother has wireless DSL), we started digging. We came up with a few names that I'd not come up with yet which triggered Gram's memory with even more names and information. She then remembered an envelope of family history information that one of her nieces had put together and sent to her over 10 years ago. Wow, it was like hitting the jackpot! They had to kick me out and send me back to my mom's at midnight just so they could go to bed.

On Sunday, Owen & Shelby and Wanda joined us at Gram's for yummy roast & turkey dinner. We all went to the cemetery to place flowers on Granddad's and Everett's gravesites. I had not been to the cemetery since the funeral and had not yet seen the headstone that had been designed by Esteban. It was a beautiful autumn day and it was sweet to see Jamie & Shelby playing near the gravesite...almost as if they were playing in Granddad's lap. Granddad's memory and legacy will forever shape our lives.

Happy Halloween!

Jamie was so excited for Halloween. We thought he was going to be Thomas the Tank Engine but he changed his mind several times before deciding on Buzz Lightyear. (He went as Bob The Builder to the playgroup party.) We went to the Harvest Festival at the Waverly Church where Jamie and his best friend, Spencer, had a great time together. They played all of the games, including ring toss, bean bag throw, cake walk, field goal kick, free throw shooting and bowling.

Jamie & Spencer

We had so much fun at the festival that we got a late start on the trick-or-treating. We only made it to four houses for the boys to belt out their well rehearsed "Trick-or-treat!" As you can tell from the contents of the pumpkin, they were well rewarded at those four houses.

The LOOT!

Playgroup Halloween Party

Jamie's playgroup had a halloween costume party and we were able to get a group photo with 16 (out of 19) kids willing to show off their costumes. (It was an amazing accomplishment to get this many children to slow down long enough to pose for this shot!)

We are fortunate (and maybe a little insane) to have a large group of kids and moms that we get together with once a week for playtime and lunch. The halloween party was at Ryan & Justin's house and we had lasagne, fruit kabobs, breadsticks, waldorf salad and spider cupcakes for lunch. YUMMY!

Jamie had been planning to dress up as Thomas The Tank Engine and has been sleeping in his costume for almost a month now. He changed his mind at the last minute, though, and went as another of his favorite characters, Bob The Builder.

Jack-O-Lantern

Jamie is so proud of the jack-o-lantern he carved at daycare/preschool. His teacher said that he actually carved the left eye ALL BY HIMSELF and then told her where to cut everything else. He is looking forward to Halloween and dressing up in a costume to go trick-or-treating. He's been practicing saying "trick-or-treat" and "thank you" and is looking forward to lots of candy!

Cutting firewood in Rock Creek area

Another beautiful day in the SLV. It was so nice that we decided we could always use another load of firewood so we headed to the mountains. We packed sandwiches and snacks and met our friend, Geo, on the Rock Creek road. Geo is the chainsaw master and if it weren't for him, we'd have no firewood. I don't want to sound mean but Bill is extremely mechanically challenged and has a hard time when it comes to operating any type of machinery. Geo does the cutting while Bill loads the trucks, it's a good arrangement and works well for each of them.

Jamie was so excited to go to the mountains. He helped Bill load the truck for a little while but didn't like being around the chainsaw too much as it was noisy. The mountains are a good place for a little boy to find a lot of dirt to play in. We were smart enough to bring along his big dump truck, which he had a grand time filling with dirt, rocks, twigs, pine needles and whatever else he could find that would fit. He'd fill the dump truck, "drive" it a few feet and dump the load, then go back for more. It is amazing how long he can keep himself occupied with such a simple task!

One reason we LOVE the San Luis Valley...

The sandhill cranes migrate through the SLV each spring and fall. It is an awesome experience and we are so lucky that our house happens to be right along the migration track. Words cannot describe what it sounds like to hear the cranes as they fly overhead. I took this photo today, in the hay field to the south of our house. Today was a perfect autumn day in the SLV with a beautiful blue sky, snow topped peaks in the distance and the cranes in the field. Today was a picture postcard perfect day!

Cubbie!

Jamie has been attending weekly AWANA meetings with his friend, Spencer.
AWANA (Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed) is an international, Bible-centered children's and youth ministry that provides weekly programs for students in preschool through high school. They are learning the creation story and are memorizing short exerpts of Bible verses. Jamie came home with his vest last night and also his first patch for completing his first Lamb path. He is very proud of his accomplishment and SO ARE WE!!

Paul's Peloton

Just wanted to let you all know about our friend and the amazing thing that he is doing. Paul is a road-bike rider and has ridden in several long distance events. He is inspired by Lance Armstrong's riding success as well as Lance's dedication to cancer treatment & research. Each year, Austin, TX, holds "The Ride For The Roses" to benefit The Lance Armstrong Foundation. Paul has ridden in this 104 mile ride the past two years and this year decided to take it a step (actually 800 miles) further. He is riding his bike from his home in Red River, NM to Austin, TX and then will participate in "The Ride For The Roses". Today is Day 5 of his journey and he is in Roscoe, TX. He is promoting The Lance Armstrong Foundation and the town of Red River on his ride.

Paul is documenting his ride in his personal blog (http://paulspeloton.blogspot.com/) which gives a day by day description of his ride, the weather and the great people he's met along the way.

The mission statement for Paul's Peloton is "One person can make a difference". Sometimes it seems like we are overshadowed by corporations and politics and we may feel that our voice will never be heard. Paul is out to prove otherwise and I admire him greatly. He will certainly make a difference and give others hope to create change as well. I am honored to call Paul my friend and am amazed at his compassion, diligence and determination. Paul, you are my hero!
LIVESTRONG and Ride On!

First SNOW of the winter

We woke up Monday morning (October 10) to a light dusting of snow. Bill took these photos early in the morning, because it melted off quickly. It was a very wet snow and left lots of mud and fun puddles for playing in later in the day. As you can tell from the top photo, our aspen trees still have not dropped their leaves. The colors were an awesome contrast to the white snow. This is the BEST time of the year in Alamosa!
It is rare to get snow this early in October and the "old-timers" warn that this is just the beginning of what will be a long and cold winter. This is not so great news with the anticipated 60% increase in heating costs. We have a good supply of firewood and plan to make good use of the woodstove this winter.

Gymnastics

(top photos: Jamie doing back arch stretch, Jamie doing backwards roll & Jamie walking on balance beam)
Jamie has been enjoying his gymnastics class this semester. There are 6 kids in the class and Ms. Brandi is the best teacher he's had (this is his third gymnastics class). She makes everything age appropriate and, unlike previous teachers, is actually organized and prepared for each class. The kids are having fun and Ms. Brandi wants to continue the class past the original 6 weeks. She said that she just needs to have enough interest from participants...Ms. Brandi, you can count us IN!

(bottom photos: Jamie doing forward roll on balance beam, Jamie doing pull up on uneven bars & Jamie balancing on uneven bars)

Balloon Fiesta, cont.

Jamie had lots of fun at the Balloon Fiesta. He did enjoy the balloons but he was in little boy heaven when we found these piles of dirt on the west end of the field. I don't know what the actual purpose of the dirt piles was but, it sure made Jamie's day. He is such a dirt magnet and it was fun to watch as he ran and jumped and rolled in the dirt. He was covered from head to toe and even swallowed a couple of mouth fulls. All in all, a good day for a busy boy!

Dirt + Busy Boy = FUN!!!

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

We went to Albuquerque this past weekend for a friends' parents' 50th wedding anniversary. It also happened to be the first weekend of the Balloon Fiesta. We woke up at 4:30 am on Sunday and made our way to the park. We got there in time for the dawn patrol show, had breakfast and then enjoyed the many different colors and shapes filling the skies. The weather was perfect. We go almost every year and we have hundreds of photos but you just can't help yourself, it is so amazing that you have to take more photos each and every year.

Haircut - Before and After

Bill gave Jamie a haircut and it was an amazing transformation. Before the haircut, he was a cute little boy. Afterwards, he was a handsome little man. He couldn't get enough of himself, either, he kept admiring himself and talking to himself in the mirror.