Kuefler Family: 2009-02-01

Dear Family and Friends,

Well, Nick quit his job of 8 years at the computer chip factory, we sold all our worldly belongings, pulled the kids out of school, and are moving to a commune in Bountiful BC to grow organic food, raise animals, and live in peace with the universe. Ok, maybe not . . . changed our minds once we realized there were no PVR’s to simultaneously record Canucks hockey, ER, Heroes, Weeds, Dora, SYTYCD and Amazing Race. Anyway we wanted to start this letter with something more interesting than the obligatory "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!" (Doh! It still got in!).

For those of you saying "but Nick and Tina, your Christmas letter is the most exciting part of my family's Christmas celebration and we look forward to it with joyful glee and anticipation" - please get a life! OK . . . this section's for you . . . the usual facts/stats about kids, animals, etc. - You are welcome to skip this section and jump to the "with love" part if you want.

Kuefler family 2008 facts and stats (read in a monotone gives you the full effect).

Nick – Nick started off this year with a trip to Las Vegas to celebrate his 30^th (Vince is still trying to financially recover from that trip). Nick has taken a few work related trips as well; to Houston and a 3 week stint in India (he still has the cough to remind him of his time spent there). His layover in London turned out to be the highlight of his trip when he walked into a casino and found himself watching the final table of the European Poker Tour (where he got his picture taken his with poker icon Daniel Negraneau). During his visit to India Nick traveled to Agra to see the Taj Mahal which came in really handy when Lucas was doing his Structures Project and the Taj was his structure of choice. I have to give Nick full props for taking Lucas, Carter and Saylor on a 2 week road trip this summer, covering 2 provinces and giving Lincoln and I a little time to bond on our own (he is one amazing Dad – they got to do a lot of things I would have said “heck no” to). Nick got his fix of baseball this year playing with the Green Jays and coaching Lucas’ Tadpole team.

Tina – I thought I’d test my patience this spring when I took on the coaching role of Carter’s t-ball team, (like I wasn’t repeating myself enough at home I thought I’d try the ultimate test of patience by taking on thirteen 5 year olds on a dirt field) GO ASTROS!!! I took a short leave of absence from hockey but I am back full swing for my 4^th season with the Raging Daisies. I had the opportunity to “recharge” this October with a weekend away at the Kingfisher Resort and Spa in Courtenay. There is now a new measurement of intoxication around Glenayre, it’s called “Kingfisher Drunk”. I have taken on a total of 5 daycare kids since September, now the kids outnumber me 9:1!!

Lucas – has become quite the athlete this year…taking on baseball, swimming, hip hop and soccer. This summer he played on the All-Star baseball team and has decided he is going to become a back catcher! He danced in two competitions this year and got a first and second place ribbon. Not only is Lucas taking his sports seriously he is taking on school work with as much enthusiasm! He recently joined the Greek Mythology group at school and is learning all about Zeus and his clan of Greek Gods and Goddesses. Lucas celebrated his 8^th birthday with a Fear Factor theme, we had a couple dry heaves, some tears and a lot of laughs! The kids all walked away with their own limited edition Got Worms? t-shirt courtesy of Lulu Prints .

Carter – Grade One seems to agree with our Carter Farter, he has embraced everything that a full day of school provides…lunch lady, recess, spelling tests, home reading, lunch lady, hot dog day, pizza day and book orders. Carter also completed 5 levels of skating since last September (surpassing his big brother). He enjoyed having his Mom as his t-ball coach when he reaped the benefits of calling dibs on last batter and Coach Murray (soccer coach) just informed me that Carter has “excellent form” when kicking the soccer ball! This summer Carter over went a complete makeover…he got his golden locks chopped off…but he’s still pretty darn cute! He’s also lost a couple of his teeth recently which he was extremely excited about since most of his friends will all be wishing for their two front teeth this Christmas!

Saylor – is now a thriving 3 year old with the attitude of a raging hormonal teenager, Say-Say (her preferred moniker) completed 10 exciting weeks of ballet this spring/summer. I’ll tell you, I didn’t have “happy feet” after doing “criss cross apple sauce” for the 17^th time at 38 weeks pregnant! Saylor is officially a pre-schooler; she is in Ms. Linda’s class every Tuesday and Thursday morning from 9:30am-11:30am. I am relying on Say to become my little hockey player (fingers crossed), she laced up the skates for the first time last month and was surprisingly good so I’ve registered her in Snow Bunnies in January. She’s into all things girlie; Hannah Montana, Barbie, Polly Pockets, lip gloss and playing dress-up. (I contribute all of this to Avery Larmour who seems to bring out the girl in Saylor – Thanks Ave).

Lincoln – Our newest addition, or as we like to call him; Kuefler 4.0 (aka: Lincoln Idan Nicholas Kuefler) finally completed development and made his debut on June 4^th at 12:44pm. He weighed in at 9lbs 14 oz and was our longest Kuefler yet measuring in at 22 1/4 inches. He has had several upgrades since his debut…he rolls, sits and has started crawling (inch-worm like). He can say Da-Da, Ma-Ma and has sprouted 2 teeth! This little guy had been a great addition to our ever growing family!

Treeko – our beloved hamster kicked the bucket in April and joined Cookie (Buteaus neglected hamster) in Rodent Heaven. After an extensive investigation (C.S.I style) it is believed the bag of food was much too close to Treeko’s cage and therefore was gnawed open and the contents spilled over into the cage which were then eaten in excess…ultimately he ate himself to death. He will be missed by all. (Anyone needing a cage with accessories and ½ bag of mostly fresh food call me).

This January we had a British Invasion. The Sumner/Willets family moved in next door and we haven’t yet convinced them that they were better off in the UK, so yeah for us! Thanks to them, we now say “biscuits” instead of cookies, “fringe” for bangs, “crisps” for chips and “takin’ the mickey out” (not sure why we say that one yet??) All the same we hope they have a fantastic first Christmas in Canada! The Buteau Family decided to test our friendship this summer/fall by renovating their kitchen and living room…which meant our Tuesday Night dinner went on hiatus for 15 weeks! Good thing Papa Pip’s chicken and rice sauce is one of our favorite meals or this friendship could have dissolved quickly!! We celebrated the nuptials of Scott and Lori Barrick this year along with the births of Tyler Bailey, James McKeever, Elizabeth Marshall and Chloe Snow. A special thanks to all of you that came out to visit us in 2008, we hope to see you all again in the New Year!

Ok . . . now before you go to sleep we do wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year in 2009! And to see our family photos from the past year visit our BLOG www.kueflerfamily.blogspot.com

With Love,

Nick, Tina, Lucas, Carter, Saylor, Lincoln, Dancer, Prancer etc…