Happy New Year from the Coxes
Whoaa, dude! Did another year just fly by or was that Socrates at the mall? I know I’m reaching here, but I feel like the character Ox when he was giving a history report in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure: Everything is different, but the same. Things are more moderner than before. Bigger, and yet smaller; it’s computers. San Dimas High School football rules!
Different, but the same. We revisited many of our regular stops – the California Coast (Santa Monica Pier, Carpinteria and the Oceano Dunes for some ATV and dune buggy riding), Lake Tahoe (Most Excellent!), a stay-cation at the Luxor (the pyramid one, dude), Utah for a Woolley Family Reunion and keeping our pool guy busy. With the frequency at which he has to replenish the pool chemicals you might think our kids dine on chlorine tablets. This would explain a lot.
We even went to our standard campsite – Valley of Fire. We did two trips: one for a ‘real’ overnight camp and the other we call ‘fake camping’. That’s when you get all the perks of hanging around the campfire: eating unhealthy food, exploring nature as a family. And then you leave before you smell too much like smoke or before you have a horrible night’s rest while trying to sleep on rocks.
Jean and Bob were also reminded of what real heat and humidity feel like when they celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary (on their 11th anniversary) by going on a week-long Caribbean cruise out of Tampa, FL.
Things are more moderner than before. Bigger, and yet smaller. We have these little people we call kids. They keep getting bigger and more moderner, but they’re still our kids.
Danny. This big guy is 10 and in the 5th grade. He participated in things that rule like soccer, baseball and is currently hooping it up to close out the year. School is good; he continues to excel, kind of like how Socrates would if he was still around. Ask him about his Orville Wright report, complete with mustache and historical facts. He enjoyed BMX at the outdoor track in Truckee this summer, playing football with Aaron and his friends in the backyard and shooting his dad in the desert with air soft guns. Don’t worry – getting shot at is one of the least of Bob’s worries. In the meantime, he fears the future food bill.
Rachel. Or Ragiel, as was transcribed on her Las Vegas Springs Preserve Annual Pass (Dad’s handwriting is atrocious; but in his defense, who would name their kid ‘Ragiel’?) Our lovely lady turned nine and entered the 4th grade. She too is an excellent student and when it comes to grades she really loves the first letter of the alphabet. Rachel hit the tennis courts, played basketball and tickled the ivory all year long – she even played the piano a couple of times during primary music time at church. Skills to pay the bills. Rachel also participated in her first, all-girl pinewood derby this year.
Aaron. Our coppertop is currently in the 1st grade and is an all-around all-star. He’s a bookworm like his older siblings and often reads himself to sleep (takes about five minutes). Aaron scored goals like Messi on the soccer pitch, did handstands and cartwheels like Ozzie Smith while playing defense on the baseball diamond and swam crazy laps like Michael Phelps on the local swim team. He started piano this year and looks forward to becoming a cub scout in 2013.
Seth. Sefy will turn four in January. He’s our creative thinker who pairs words together and weaves stories that push the limits of human imagination. For better or worse he mimics a lot of the sayings his older siblings throw around (“You’re totally not hearing me, Dad!” “What the heck!?!”) Seth participated in gymnastics this year and will start preschool this next year. He nearly became the first Cox kid to break a bone, but settled for a greenstick fracture after falling off his bed ladder. We had hoped that with all of the gymnastics Seth would have landed a double back flip in pike position. Maybe next week.
Ruby. ‘Baby Tiny’ is two and is still as light as a bird. She’s really picked up momentum with her English. This is a two-edged sword because we usually understand what she’s saying, but oftentimes have to turn down her requests for ‘more candy’ or ‘see iPad’. Ruby was accident prone this year (that’s bogus, dude) – splitting her forehead open on the end of a garden hose and always seeming to find the opening in the trampoline safety net. She may be as light as a bird, but has yet to learn how to fly.
Jean. Crushes it all day. In addition to keeping the peace and managing things on the home front she works a few hours every week staying fresh on the latest in developing content management websites. Jean, along with her parents, two of her siblings and Bob participated in her first triathlon at Lake Mead by swimming a mile in 30 minutes. Jean has continued the annual tradition of a girls-only weekend with her college friends – this year was San Francisco; 2013 is in Phoenix. She currently works with the 12 and 13 year-old girls at church.
Bob. Pops celebrated his fifth year of employment with the Las Vegas Valley Water District. That’s an eternity for a military brat who was raised to have the chronic moving bug. While he didn’t pick up any additional state high points (still at 58%), he enjoyed getting to visit three new countries: Belize, the Cayman Islands and Honduras. He was a little bummed that Jean vetoed his proposal to purchase a corny tourist shirt during their trip. Can you Belize it? Earlier in the year, Bob was released as a counselor in the bishopric and called to be the Cubmaster.
2012 was another fantastic year for us. We are blessed to have each of you as friends and family. We are most thankful for this special season when we get to reconnect with many of you and celebrate Christ’s birth. We wish all of you a safe holiday season and a prosperous new year.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Love,
The Coxes
Bob, Jean, Danny, Rachel, Aaron, Seth and Ruby
P.S. Cox Family Annual Newsletters rule! It’s computers, dude.
