Family Christmas Letter 2009

December 2009

Dear Friends & Family,

This year has been a very eventful year. There has been so much going on that it’s hard to know where to start so we’ll start with the youngest of our family…

Ryne is Superbaby this year, he has grown by leaps and pounds. He surpassed all of his siblings in growth spurts and weight gains. Went through clothes faster than we could change them out. Started crawling at 6 months and stepping by 9 and has been walking for the last month. He has now mastered climbing up and sliding down the stairs and is the wiggliest & strongest (more powerful than a locomotive) kid of them all when it comes to changing him. We just about have to hog tie him down in order to do it and often have to tag team him in order to finish it. But he’s the joy of our lives, laughs and giggles and has now learned to wave and clap much to everyone’s delight. I can’t believe my baby will be 1 this month…*sniff*J

Lance has also had numerous achievements this year. He is now potty trained and started a pre-school class this fall. He’s not technically old enough to go to the regular pre-school but has been enjoying the “Play n Art” class at the community center twice a week. His interests are centered on trains, planes and automobiles along with whatever Daddy is doing. He turned 3 in October and is technically out of the “not so terrible” two’s.

Mackenzie is 6 yrs. old. She has started piano this year and has enjoyed it immensely. We don’t even have to remind her to practice! She made the AB Honor roll her first semester of 1st grade and loves doing her homework and is still the first one up in the mornings and ready for school. Something “must” be wrong with this child. She also enjoys art and our refrigerator is covered with her masterpieces. I think I will soon need a bigger fridge!

At almost 9, Kristen is growing taller and skinnier every day it seems. I have to take in even the “slim” jeans. Thank goodness for those inside elastic bands or I’d never get all of her clothes taken in. She’d have to survive with safety pins. She loves to dance and sing and is also enjoying her piano lessons. She and Mackenzie have been taking a Dance Combo class at the community center and have learned many hip hop, tap, ballet and modern moves. She also made the AB Honor roll this semester but was disappointed that she didn’t get all A’s. Oh well, it will give her something to work towards next semester.

Brendan, our oldest is 10 and in 5th grade. It’s hard to imagine I’ll have a “middle schooler” next year. He still enjoys anything that has to do with transportation, science or space. He loves “facts” and pores over fact books and loves watching “Mythbusters, How they do it” shows and even the Discover channel. He has earned both brown belt levels this year in karate and hopes to be able to pass his black belt test in January or February. Brendan loves Cub Scouts and working on the many badges and activities. He is also taking piano and entertains us with “Chopstix” and “Heart and Soul” just a *few* too many times. As for grades, we’re just ecstatic that he *passed* all his classes.

As for Cindy, that’s me, this has been a busy year and I have been through the entire spectrum of emotions. The year started out frustrating with trying to get probate going on my mother’s estate, there were issues with the tenants, then there were issues with the house. Finally after a several months I was able to list my family home and after much heartache, I sold the house that had been in my family for 27 years. I miss my mother terribly, but I know that this will be but a short time without her and that I will be able to spend eternity with her. This year brought me much joy watching my children grow and learn and accomplish so many things. I decided to try my hand at making a piñata for Lance’s birthday. My mother used to make them for our birthdays when I was young and I thought it would be a neat tradition to continue. It actually looked pretty good and lasted a few rounds, I was shocked! It finally fell off the rope and the kids torn it apart. It was hard seeing all my hard work strewn about the yard but oh the memories! On a different note, I have also been experiencing a lot of anxiety, sadness and fear for my brother Mark who is currently serving in the Army National Guard and is stationed in Iraq, but along with those emotions comes pride. I am so incredibly proud of him and for his willingness to serve our great country and fight to protect our freedoms and those of others. May God bless our military and keep them safe.

Eric has been busy too, just on a different level. He has enjoyed 13 wonderful years at Caesars Palace and he is looking forward to his new position in Banquets at the Red Rock Resort and Spa in Las Vegas, where we know he will be kept busy. This last summer we bought a trampoline so that was his project for a few days. And of course he took the boat out as often as he could. Eric’s parents invited us up to Salt Lake City last May to attend a Dave Ramsey Live Seminar. Since then it has changed our lives financially. We are excited to say that in February, with the exception of our house, we will be “DEBT FREE”! Even with all this he has still found time to improve his golf swing, he keeps saying that he needs more practice and asks to go as often as he can. My thoughts on the subject...we won’t go there.

We hope this Christmas season finds all of you well and happy. We love you all and wish you the best for the New Year.

The Ball Family
Eric, Cindy, Brendan, Kristen, Mackenzie, Lance & Ryne

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Every year for Halloween we load everyone up and head up to our Church's parking lot for our annual "Trunk or Treat" and "Chilli cookoff".

We park our cars in a giant semi circle with the trunks facing inward and the kids go round and round till all the candy is gone. In the center are tables and chairs set up with all the Chilli and cornbread that folks have brought. There are awards for the best Chilli, cornbread, costumes and trunks. And we generally have a good time along with bringing home literally a TON of candy and goodies, due to the fact that we have 4 kids going around....next year I think I'll just bring a wheelbarrow!

Here's a few pics of the kids in their costumes...sorry I didn't take any more, just got too busy handing out treats or taking Lance around.



I'm not sure what Brendan thinks he can get out of this Jack 'O Lantern but he's prepared anyway!



















Kristen wanted to be "Pocahontas", but I wasn't willing to shell out $40 for a costume, so I found some "Indian" print fabric and fringe and made it myself...shocker I know...but it actually turned out pretty well, I think.












Ever the princess, Mackenzie wanted to be Ariel...the mermaid. Again, I wasn't about to pay the horrible prices, so found some scale like shimmery fabric and made the skirt...fin and all. The top was just from the dollar store and "voila"...a mermaid. I might just have to take another picture tomorrow...cause this one just doesn't do the skirt justice.




Lance received some Pirate costume stuff for his birthday and with a little coaching from Brendan on how a Pirate says,..."Aaaaargh", he was game. So thankful for that thoughtful gift cause I really had NO IDEA what he was going to be for Halloween....Thanks Melissa!








This is a special one.
And deserves a little explanation...when I was little, probably more like Lance's age I had a Tiger costume. I remember wearing it for a few years and how my mom painted the whiskers on my cheeks and made my nose like a cat. I LOVED that costume and was very sad when I grew out of it. I remember the last year that I wore it, it was so tight on me, everything was stretched to the point of almost breaking the seams and I had to walk very carefully to each door.
So needless to say when I saw this costume a few years ago in an after Halloween sale at something like 70% off making it only a few dollars I COULDN'T pass it up. I figured some child of mine would be able to wear it. Lots of fond memories.

HERE WE GO!!!

Look at me!!!!!


And Ryne's not quite 9 months old yet! He's been practicing this new trick for the last couple of weeks. Boy am I in for it!

I thought I'd have most of the summer before I had to really worry about him being mobile but when he started crawling in June at 6 mo. that took care of that.

He's definitely on the way to break all the records, Brendan was my earliest walker...he started stepping at 10 months and walking at 11.

Well Ryne definitely had to be different. In ALL ways, shapes and forms!!!

I'm not encouraging it...but well...Way to Go Chubby!

My Brother Mark

Today my thoughts have wandered almost half way around the world. My brother Mark called me this morning to let me know that he had safely arrived in Baghdad, Iraq. Unfortunately I was in the shower and missed the call. He is serving in the Army National Guard and has been deployed to Iraq for about a year. He's a Combat Medic and has earned the rank of Specialist (same level as a Corporal).

We have been continually praying for his safety. My kids have never failed to remember him in their prayers and I am so very thankful for their faith.

He is supposed to be stationed in a relatively safe area, but with what's going on over there, who knows what that means.

I am so very grateful for the internet. It makes keeping in contact with him so much easier and faster. Lately I've only been able to see him every couple of years and only talked to him a few times more than that, but since our mother passed away we've been in able to contact each other regularly. It's amazing how much more I miss him now that he is so far away.

God bless our soldiers and keep them safe.

UNBELIEVABLE!!!

WOW! I can't believe it's been 6 months since my last post! I actually have been busy, but mostly I've just had a lot on my mind...not to mention Eric got me hooked on Facebook so there you go.
My life has been more a mess of emotions than anything else. I've been trying to sell my mother's house and in the mean time I have found out that that it was not worth nearly what I had hoped, with the economy the way it is, it was understandable, but it's the condition that it's in that was so troubling. It may end up just going back to the bank and I have to walk away from it with just paying the lawyers bills. All well, such is life. And as such it must go on.... and that includes posting on my blog. So I'll try to do better. That's all I can say.

Oh and of course there's the rest of my "life" that I deal with 24/7. The kids are out of school for the summer...hooray for 9 month school! I would MUCH rather deal with 3 months of having them all at home than having them in school when its 110 degrees out! Not to mention the homework and being taxi mom.

Brendan just tested for his High Brown belt in karate today! Such an accomplishment...we're very proud of him...the next level is black. I'll try to post some pictures of him.

Kristen is growing taller everyday...I swear that girl is all legs! She's progressing wonderfully on the piano and is also now taking voice lessons.

Mackenzie is also taking piano and voice lessons and it's amazing to hear her play when she is not quite 6 yrs yet. She wants to do EVERYTHING the older ones do and refuses to be left out.

Lance is such a handsome little guy...he's just following in the others footsteps. Loves to help, as long as it's "his" idea.

Ryne is up on his hands and knees and starting to crawl! He's barely 7 months! And of course everything within his reach goes straight to his mouth. I'm in for it I know. Guess it's a good reason to keep the floors clean. He's our big chunk, and we all lovingly call him Chubby. He's already over 20 lbs but has the length to go with it. He coos and loudly lets us know where he is and what he wants. And of course the kids run to do his bidding.

I know this must sound like an annual Christmas letter...Christmas in July...there's nothing better!

Lance vs. Truck

This is one of Lance's favorite things to do...he gives Daddy a push off to work.













Sometimes he gets there a little early and just keeps digging in until Eric is finally ready to go.

Note the pants...guess we gotta feed the boy or get a belt!








"Ok Mom, now that Dad is gone lets go to the PARK!"

"Fine, where ever you want to go is alright with me as long as we just GET OUTTA HERE...I'LL EVEN GO SHOPPING WITH YA! LET'S GO!!!"

Kids

Here's some recent pictures. Lance is of course on his favorite spot.

Here's the proof...Ryne really does have blue eyes.

My kids are hams...they just kept saying, "take another picture!" So what can I do. They're just too cute.!

Yes it's Pinewood Derby season.
This year Eric decided to make the trophies.
And of course Brendan has to help.







Here are some of the trophies that he's made.
He always makes enough for all the boys to get one. I like the "Wall-E" one myself.




But the ones that have parts that move are really cool too!

Ryne 5 weeks old

Here's some pictures of our little "squeak".

This is his "Vegas look"...Thank you, thank you very much.


Don't know if you can see it but he does have blue eyes. Kind of a steel gray blue color. So Eric finally got one.






Here's his fighter's stance. He has to do this often when the kids are around. Gotta protect the do!

Then there's the pensive look. Just thinking whether to take a nap, eat or poop. Aaaah the life of a babe!

Here's our beautiful new kitchen. It's been basically finished for a while now, these last corner cabinets were added when Ryne was born. Thank you Thank you to Art and Eric for all their hard work!

Now I just have to work at keeping it clean and beautiful! Not an easy task.

Just the boys

Just some pics of the boys.

This is Lance's favorite place to be and Brendan loves to "tote" him around on his shoulders.














One day I had to take a phone call, so I put Ryne in his vibrating chair and left the room for "just a second". When I returned this is how I found my boys. Scared me for a minute then when I saw that "all was well" I snapped the picture.
















Can you tell that they're related.

Our Christmas Letter 2008

December 2008

Dear Family & Friends,

As usual we’re a little late this year with our Christmas Cards, but our family is doing great! We had our 5th and final baby boy on the 15th of this month. We now have our Basket Ball Team. Pun is intended. His name is Ryne Javen Ball. He was 7 lbs 9 oz and 20” long. He has blond hair and we HOPE blue eyes. This is Eric’s last chance to have a blue eyed baby. With Cindy’s Mexican blood, it sort of dominates the genes. It’s looking good so far, but only time will tell. The kids keep us busy, but I don’t have to tell you that.

Our oldest, Brendan is 9yrs. He loves his science and math classes in school. He is a high blue belt in karate (3 belts away from black). He loves golf, it got too expensive, so Eric bought a Wii game for Christmas with a golf game. It keeps him busy. He has also learned how to crochet.

Kristen is 7, she’ll be 8 on Valentine’s Day and baptized in March. (We’ll do the baby blessing then as well). She loves reading and is so smart…she takes after Cindy…she didn’t get it from Eric. Hee Hee. She loves to play the piano and sings all the time. She definitely got that from Eric!

Mackenzie is 5 and a ball of fire. She doesn’t like vegetables or potatoes, and it’s rare to find something that she likes to eat. She loves to sing and take care of her 2 younger brothers. She says kindergarten is “boring”. Secretly we think she’s enjoying it since she’s always the first one ready in the mornings.

Lance is 2 and isn’t so terrible. He is learning so many phrases, its fun to see him put together sentences. We are working on, as he calls it “potty choo-choo- training”. It’s going alright and hopefully we should have it licked in a few weeks. Cross your fingers. He loves to tease us and make us laugh. He is also in charge of putting the “plug” in Ryne’s mouth. Whenever Ryne makes a “squeek” he thinks he needs to have his pacifier.

Ryne…is too cute and so far is a great baby and very tolerant of all the noise (he doesn’t have much choice). Brendan calls Lance “PIP” and he calls Ryne “SQUEEK” because that is all Ryne knows how to do.

Cindy is very busy…as you can tell…with 5 kids. She has her hands full, but loves “almost” every minute of it. Her mother passed away last November, and that has been difficult for her, but she did spend the last 12 hours of her life holding her hand and being right next to her. She will cherish that moment forever.

Eric hasn’t changed too much. He still works at Caesars Palace as the beverage manager for banquets. He’s a Mormon who doesn’t drink, so they put him in charge of the booze. He doesn’t skim the profits. Little do they know he sneaks the occasional Dr. Pepper. His big project this year was the complete remodel of our kitchen. With the help of both Dads…Cindy’s and his…we were able to rip out everything except the walls and wood on the floor. We bumped the window wall out 2 feet (We had “real” air conditioning for a couple of days) and rebuilt our kitchen using cabinets that came from a good friends’ home. He was doing the same thing and his old cabinets (our new) were oak fronts will solid oak trim all the way around. We had plenty to work with and with a lot of cutting and pasting, we were able to have a completely new kitchen. Ours was in such bad shape with the drawers falling apart and the cracks in the cupboards and the cockroach city it really needed to be replaced. We finished most of it within a month but the final touches to the inside were finished the week Ryne was born. Massive undertaking. It wasn’t fun not having a kitchen for 4 weeks in the summer with a 6 month pregnant woman. But…we absolutely love it now! It was completely worth it.

We hope you are doing well.
Eric and Cindy are on Face book. And our email address is ecball@cox.net . We love to hear from everyone so keep in touch.

Thank you to all for your love and support. It would be nice if we could be as diligent in doing the cards. It’s always in our minds, but Christmas and the holidays are gone before we get a chance. This year was more hectic because of the baby. We didn’t even do our organ open house this year. We have a full size church organ in our home…and we do an open house with the sounds of the holidays every year. We just couldn’t pull it together this year to do it.

We hope that all of you had a wonderful holiday season and best wishes for an even better New Year.
Lots of love,
The Ball Family
Eric, Cindy, Brendan, Kristen, Mackenzie, Lance and Ryne

On December 15, 2008 we received a double present. Our precious little Ryne was born and also it snowed. It was a most glorious day. I know many of you may not like snow or get tired of it. But for us in Desert land it's WONDERFUL.

So when we do get enough that "sticks" we take advantage of the experience.
Brendan made this "mini" snowman. His name was Jack Jr. after the full size "Jack" of 2003. I'll have to find a picture of him...didn't have digital back then.

It was a very wet snow and not much of it but Brendan just HAD to get his snow gear on and go out in it.

The next day, since most of it had melted in town,we decided to drive out on the Red Rock Loup and take some family pictures. And yes, Ryne was with us, although he mostly stayed in the nice warm car.