Merry Christmas from the Birdhouse!  

2015

As with each year, I have great plans of getting the perfect Christmas card sent out complete with pictures of our family.  Then, about now I realize that it's not happening.  That's why I'm grateful for social media and the ability to    reconnect with many friends and relatives that I ordinarily would not have.

2015 has been a wonderful, full year at the Birdhouse.  Two years ago we were blessed to have all of our children and grandchildren living here in Boise.  But with the only constant being change, here is where they all are now:

Richard and Jo 

Rich is working on a two year commitment with KPMG in London.  They live in "Lewisham" and the kids attend school with kids from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Jo has done a wonderful job of  structuring their overseas assignment with adventure and learning and she's gotten quite good at coordinating travel in the UK and Europe. It has been interesting to see where they are going next.
Cam-10, Eli-8, Miriam-6, Simon-4 & Baby Girl Bird due the end of March.

We were able to go over for a visit in October of 2014 and August of 2015 to see the little London Birds (and their parents:) and give them lots of hugs and love.     One of the places Gordon has always wanted to visit is France at Normandy.  It didn't disappoint.  France was a particular favorite of mine, from the rolling hills and villages of the countryside to the magic of Paris.

Ben and Laura (Catie, John & Melissa)

We are so excited they are still in Boise! We have the opportunity to do so much together and they are very good at having all of our attention trained on them.  John and Catie (twins) are 4 and Melissa is 1.  Ben continues to work for Deloitte in their tax department and Laura does some graphic design from home, in addition to being a stellar wife and mother. They are good at inviting us to their many outings and give us plenty of opportunities to hug and love the little kid-lets.

James and Suzanne
Grace-4, Abigail-2 & Baby Boy Bird due the end of March.

They moved to the East Bay area of San Francisco in June so that James can work in the Merger and Acquisition division of Deloitte.  They live in a lovely, quaint area with rolling hills and an average temperature of 85* and have have settled in nicely.  We were able to visit in September to get a Grace and Abigail fix (as well as their parents:).  While there, we also took in a Billy Joel concert.  Suzanne does a great job of finding new adventures & activities for the family 
and keeping in touch via Facetime. 

Scott and Clare
Their big event of their year was having a baby girl, 
Harper Louise Bird 7/01/15

They have adapted to parenthood beautifully and Harper is a happy little girl with a killer smile.  She has adorably chubby cheeks we love to kiss, and she changes each time we see her. We love to visit them.  Clare is able to stay home with her & they just finished a 6 month swimming class.  Scott is coming upon his 3rd year of Podiatry School and life is as busy as ever.  They love the arid climate of Glendale, AZ. and taking Harper along for hikes and adventures. 

Jessica and Preston Nygren

They divide their time between Rexburg, ID. and Dallas, TX.   Preston has 1 year left until graduation and Jessica graduated this year.  They have been saving up for a buy-in opportunity with his company, in addition to skiing, cruising, hiking and all other kinds of adventures.  Preston takes wonderful care of Jess and we love having him in the family.  They have an adorable Beagle puppy named Penny.  Jessica refers to her as our 11th grandchild.  
She and her mama were able to have a graduation get-away and soak in some sun and shopping.

It's easy to see that while we miss the four families that have moved away, it has been an opportunity to travel and see each one of them in their new homes.  In November, almost all of them came home for Thanksgiving and reminded us why we're glad we haven't sold this big old house yet.  We continue to be involved in the Young Single Adult Stake and it is fun, rewarding and interesting.  Gordon continues with his work at Boise Cascade and Julie with hers as a Real Estate Agent (although the best job is that of "Baca").

Here's wishing you all the beauty of this season with hope and redemption through that babe born in a manger, our Savior Jesus Christ.
All the best!
Gordon and Julie Bird and family