Happy New Year!

We hope you are ringing 2010 in just the way you want to! We have had a great day with family in FL - cousins came to my parents' house for lunch, Mark and Mary came out and spent the evening, and family friends Lavaar and Peggy Sparkman came out and spent the evening. Food, fireworks, and fun! We loved it!

Merry Christmas!

We have enjoyed the whirlwind holiday season but pause today to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. We hope you have a great celebration, too!

Update on mothers

My mother is still in MRMC in Ocala with pnuemonia, staph, and sinusitis, but is planning on going home on Monday or Tuesday. Mom Emery is still out in Coppell, TX, with Dan and Lori, hoping to get over her sprained knee. Tough time to have these injuries. Hmmmm...

Both mothers having rough time

Sue's mother lost her footing while walking over a speed bump a couple of days ago and sprained her knee. She has delayed her trip home from Dallas while she heals a little. My mother has pneumonia and is in the hospital tonight. What a rough time for the family! Please pray for quick healing for both of them...

Good holiday weekend

Well, we had a lot of fun this holiday weekend. Thanksgiving, the Nutcracker ballet, the Planet 51 movie, and topping it off with a Mexican food feast - whew! It was great to have my parents at our house, and the kids all had a fun and busy weekend. Now we get down to the grind of school, work, and the various holiday activities that happen in December. Hope you're having lots of fun, too!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope that you have a chance to pause and take stock of all the blessings the Lord has given you during this holiday. We feel especially blessed and are thankful for our friends and family and for living in this great country. Woohoo!

Good time at the theater

We had fun last night at the Henry County Performing Arts Center - we saw "A Christmas Story" as put on by the Henry Players. It was good for Sue and I to see Cathy Belew, Stephanie Belew-whateverherlastnameisnow, and Mandy Stone interpret the play for the deaf people that were there, and we enjoyed being able to take Anne and Julie in place of our two oldest children. The play was well-done, though not as good as the movie, and we enjoyed going to the local Huddle House for some late-night dessert. Sue and the ladies were surprised when I picked up the bill! I'm just glad to have a wonderful family to share the Lord's blessings with...

Good time at the theater

We had fun last night at the Henry County Performing Arts Center - we saw "A Christmas Story" as put on by the Henry Players. It was good for Sue and I to see Cathy Belew, Stephanie Belew-whateverherlastnameisnow, and Mandy Stone interpret the play for the deaf people that were there, and we enjoyed being able to take Anne and Julie in place of our two oldest children. The play was well-done, though not as good as the movie, and we enjoyed going to the local Huddle House for some late-night dessert. Sue and the ladies were surprised when I picked up the bill! I'm just glad to have a wonderful family to share the Lord's blessings with...

Going Steady Anniversary!

Today is our 27th "going steady" anniversary! Wow! Sue and I have been dating a really long time :-) To celebrate we are planning on going out for a nice dinner tonight. Woohoo!

Survived w/o Sue (so far)

The kids and have done OK while Sue has been out of town.  Tonight I decided to change up dinner and serve pancakes - woohoo!  Sure will be glad to see her tonight...

Happy Birthday, Megan!

Our daughter turns 16 today! Woohoo! We're so proud of her - doing well in school, in church, and in life. She keeps us and her brothers hopping, and is loads of fun! We love you, Megan!

Sue and I took Stephen and Kevin to a preview of the High Museum's Leonardo da Vinci display today. It was very cool! To see the drawings of da Vinci with my own eyes was great! The boys enjoyed the statues they had on display, too, but I enjoyed seeing how da Vinci used lines to get the body proportions right and the fine detail he put even in his sketches. I encourage you to go see the display while it's in Atlanta!

Busy time at the Holly's

We're running in all sorts of directions now that it's October! Sue is training more at Sorenson and working more assignments, Jacob and Megan are doing all the high school things they can, Stephen and Kevin keep us hopping with birthday partys and soccer, and I keep doing things with scouts as well as work. It's an interesting time, so I decided to take the night off and sit in front of a fire in the firepit on the driveway :-) Very relaxing...

Good visit with Michael

My brother flew in to town for a meeting so we picked him up at the airport and took him to dinner! It was great to see him and hear about all their adventures out in OR. We dropped him off at his hotel and told him to have fun at his meeting tomorrow...

Good time in FL

We had a good Fall Breal this week.  After being with us for two weeks Mom Emery was ready to get back to the peace and quiet of Penney Farms, so we took her home, spent the day with her, and then spent a few days with my parents.  It was great to get some face-to-face time with them - we talked, I went to TOPS with Mom, we grilled, we went on the lake and to the beach, helped around the property, and goofed off, too.  We had a nice dinner with Mark and Mary and Marcela at Chili's last night.  I hated to leave this morning but our day-to-day lives need us back in Georgia. 

I feel like we've been running really hard the past couple of weeks - it was good to play some this week, but now it's "back to reality" time.  Fun, fun! 

Good visit with Mom Emery

We had as good a time as possible with Mom Emery at our house and in Arkansas the past couple of weeks.  We took her back to Penney Farms this weekend.  It was hard to leave her, but she was happy to be back in her quiet world agan: :-) 

Happy Birthday, Michael!

My brother celebrates another milestone along the path of life today.  I hope he and his family have a good celebration out there in Oregon...

Good first show

It was fun going to the high school football game tonight.   The boys, Mom Emery, and I all piled in the van to go see the first game where the band put on their halftime show.  The show was great!  The kids have a big sound with 120 in the band, and they played and marched very well.  The game was fun, too - we left when our team was up 30-0 - woohoo! 

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Today my parents celebrate many moons of marital bliss.  Woohoo! 

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today is my mother's birthday!  We hope you have a great day relaxing and celebrating, Mom! 

Memorial service went well

We drove out to Arkansas to go to Sue's sister' memorial service over this weekend.  It was very nice - both of Sue's brothers came, and we took Sue's mom with us.  It was amazing to have almost all of Sue's family together, and the service went well.  Sue's cousin Dawn officiated, Sue signed a song, Megan sang a song, and Sue's brothers and sister-in-law read different things.  The whole sevice was very nice.  Afterwards the family went out to dinner, then went to Sey's house to have dessert and hang out.  For being a sad occassion it was nice to gather as a family. 

Happy Birthday, Kevin!

Our youngest turns 8 today! We had a pirate birthday party for him this past Saturday and had a blast. Buried treasure that they had to hunt for, capture the flag, and roasting marshmallows over a campfire made it a lot of fun! Thanks to everyone that came and helped celebrate with us!

Sad day here

We received word today that Sue's sister Nancy killed herself today down in Costa Rica.   We are getting more details every hour and are all saddened by this.  Please for strength as our family weathers the waves this event will cause. 

Happy Birthday, Dad!

My father is 71 today - woohoo! He and my mother are out in OR visiting my brother and his family, so I'm sure they will have a great time celebrating. He said something about eating mexican food and drinking margaritas! Hopefully we'll get to do the videophone thing sometime today...

Good day at Six Flags

We had to drive two vehicles to get all 13 of us there, but we had a good time at Six Flags today. The rides were great when we finally got to them - we especially enjoyed the water rides due to the heat :-)

We stayed after to hear the Christian band Red in concert. They were good, even though I at that age where it's not easy to understand the words of these modern heavy rock bands. Sue even said I was getting old! Oh, well..

First day of school

All the kids go back to school today - woohoo! It's a short summer
but we get a week off in September, so that will be nice.

Jacob is a Senior this year, so it should be an action-packed
experience. Megan is a Sophomore and turns 16 in November, which
could lead to some excitement. Stephen will is in 5th grade, the top
of his school, and Kevin is in 2nd grade. Sue is heavily involved in
PTO, and the older kids will keep us hopping with their band
schedules. Looks like a fun time for all!

Our 22 Anniversary!

Sue and I have been married for 22 years as of today! We continue to have a great time (along with the normal ups and downs of life :-) We packed the kids off so we could have some alone-time and are having fun!

Good week with soccer coach

We had a good time hosting Susan Hall from northern Ireland at our house this week. She was one of the boys' soccer coaches at day-camp this week, and we had a great time with her at our house. She worked half-days, so Sue got to spend quite a bit of time with her. It was fun learning about her family and hearing her accent, and the boys really enjoyed having her at our house. Sue took her to one of the malls and we even took her to the high school band barbecue, so it was like having another member of the family!

Soccer coach at our house

We are honored to have one of the British soccer coaches from Stephen and Kevin's soccer day camp staying with us this week. We're looking forward to learning about her and sharing our family throughout the week. It should be fun!

Good week even though Jacob is gone

We had a good week - Mom Emery had fun at our house, and enjoyed riding home with Sue on Friday. Megan had a good week at FCA camp - she interpreted for our friend Megan M in the evenings but still learned from the camp. And today we got a surprise call from Jacob as he went over the 11,700 foot top of Mt. Phillips out at Philmont. What a great week!

Busy holiday weekend

We're all over the place with the family right now - Jacob is out in New Mexico hiking Philmont Scout Ranch, Megan just got back from FCA camp in St. Simon's Island, Sue is in FL taking her mother home, and I had a big time with Stephen and Kevin at Stone Mountain today. We did the 2nd and 3rd levels of the Sky Hike (very high on ropes! =:), then went and saw the Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen movie. Sue should get home in time for fireworks on the 4th, so it all works out. I hope Jacob is having a blast out there despite the rain forecast!

Sue and boys in FL

Sue took the little boys to see my parents in Florida, and she is spending some time with her friend Kathleen in SE Georgia. They relaxed on the beach, put our vacation pics in a scrapbook, and basically chilled out. The big kids have had to put up with me at home :-), so it's been fun.

Happy Father's Day to all!

Great vacation out west!

We had a great trip out west! We went to see the Grand Canyon, but along the way saw Santa Fe, a ghost ranch, Durango, CO, Mesa Verde, Zion National Park, Bryce National Park, then the Grand Canyon, and stopped at the Petrified Forest as we drove through the Painted Desert. It was a great roadtrip! We really enjoyed seeing Sue's brother and his family on our way out and on the way back - thanks for having us! The video is a 10-minute highlight slideshow - enjoy!

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

Today our first child turns 17 years old! He's doing great in school, leading in band and scouts, and has a bright future ahead of him. I'm extremely proud of his accomplishments so far and look forward to the things he will do in the future!

Another busy weekend

Whew! Sometimes I wonder when we are supposed to stop and smell the roses... Jacob went on a campout with the Troop, Megan spent the night at a friend's house then went to a play Saturday night, Sue and I had a "Fireproof" party with some of the deaf people from church last night, and tonight we are at the older kids' high school band concert. All through this Sue and I are suffering through sickness hoping we don't spread it to the kids or our friends and wishing we were in the bed under the covers.

Oh, well, we're now in the last two weeks of school, just before our vacation, and training is cranking up at work. Whee!

Happy Birthday, Stephen!

Stephen is 10 years old today! He's getting so big! And doing really well in school and at church. We had a party for him Saturday, but will be opening our presents with him this afternoon. Happy Birthday, son!

May Madness at our house

This month is crazy busy with two high school kids pulling in different directions as well as two birthdays. We celebrated Stephen's birthday today by going with him and a friend to see the new Star Trek movie (it was great!). My parents came up for the weekend, which helps make it extra special. We're planning our drive west to the Grand Canyon this summer and trying to fit in award ceremonies and friends' graduation parties all through the month. Sue loves all the activity, but I have to admit I get a little crabby about it :-) Life is good!

Happy Birthday, Benjamin!

Today is our nephew Benjamin's 1st birthday! We hope he is doing good out there in Oregon...

Happy Easter!

We hope you enjoy celebrating Jesus' resurrection today! Sue and Megan are feeling under the weather, but otherwise we are doing good.

Good Spring Break

Sue and the kids had a good Spring Break down in FL. They helped throw an 80th birthday party for her mother, went to see her sister, ate dinner with one of her life-long friends, and had a good time our relatives. Along the way her brother had to be in the hospital for a foot infection and she picked up some sort of cold that's wearing her out. But they're all home now, and everyone's happy to get to sleep in their own beds. Me and JoJo are very happy to have them home!

Happy Birthday, Mom Emery!

Sue and the kids are down in FL helping to put on an 80th birthday party for Mom Emery. Sue's brother Mark has an infected foot, which is dampening the festive spirit down there, but I know that things are going to work out just right. Mom, I hope you have a nice celebration of your 80th year on this planet. It's been a privelege to know you for many of those years, and I'm glad to see all the things the Lord has led you to do. Woohoo!

Update: From what I heard Mom had a really good time, so things went well. Please pray for Mark's foot infection to heal up and for everyone to continue to get along.

Good visit with Taylor

Taylor and her boyfriend Aaron came by for a visit this weekend (woohoo!), so we took them to stone Mountain so they could say they've been there and did most of the thing available. We did their "Sky Hike" rope course, which was a lot of fun - Kevin and Stephen even did the Super Challenge 3 stories up! It was lots of fun! We saw the 4D movie, rode the cable car to the top of the mountain, then walked down the mountainand rode the train back to where the van was parked. Our picnic lunch was delicious, and it was cool to be able to see our van from the top of the mountain. Taylor and Aaron seemed to enjoy it, and since we've got annual passes we're planning on going back several times this yea

Clone Wars sleepover

We had some of Stephen and Kevin's friends over to watch the season finale of Clone Wars and to sleep over tonight. It was a lot of fun! The boys enjoyed it, and the show was awesome! Jacob and Megan bugged out to be with their friends, and Sue hung out with her friend Deborah while I watched the show with the boys. Just another exciting weekend at the Holly's...

Spring season is looking busy

Hmmmm... We've got soccer cranked up again for Stephen and Kevin, Jacob and Megan are busy with church, FCA, school, and all the things teenagers do, I've started in a new position back at Atlanta Center, and Sue is busily keeping us all in line and doing what we need to do. Life is good!

Snow!

The kids are very excited - as we left church today it started snowing! It's coming down really heavy now, and Stephen and Kevin have had lots of fun out in the messy wet stuff falling from the sky. It's supposed to get down in the 20's tonight, so it's all going to be icy tomorrow. What fun!

Busy few weeks

Whew! We have been hitting it hard lately - "camping" on an aircraft carrier, a Youth retreat, sick little boys, a quick trip to FL, car repairs, and all the day-to-day stuff we do. It's enough to make us really appreciate a day where we can pause, catch our breath, and make some notes about what's been happening :-) Oh, and my job is changing, too. Well, at least our lives aren't boring and uneventful! We hope you are doing great, too...

Sue passed the CI!

She got the results late last night off the RID website, so it was a nice "present" for her birthday. She now has two national certifications with the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID): her Certificate of Transliterating (CT) and now her Certificate of Interpreting (CI). This is a major accomplishment, and something I am extremely proud of her for. Good job, Sue!

Happy Birthday, Sue!

Today Sue celebrates another birthday - woohoo! She has a busy day planned: Helping Megan with an FCA meeting, working an assignment at a local college, receiving our new dryer (no, that's not her birthday present :-), and then spending the evening with me and the kids. She's a busy woman, but she's also really special! I love you, Susan Holly!

Jacob's Eagle Ceremony

Well, my oldest son was honored tonight at Troop 165's first Eagle ceremony. His Scoutmaster Doug Clemens and Doug's wife Tammy did a whole lot to make it a success, and it showed. All the congratulatory letters from dignitaries around the country, the decorations, the people invited, and all the coordination was a lot of hard work, and Susan and I greatly appreciate it. We're extremely proud of our son, as are many other people, and we look forward to all that Jacob will do in the future. Good job, Jacob!

Happy New Year!

We rang in 2009 at home - Jacob was at a friend's house, and Sue and the other kids all watched Pirates of the Caribbean until 11:47pm, then came up to see the peach drop on TV. It was a fun and relaxing evening!

We hope 2009 finds you ready for more excitement than ever, and that you will be blessed as much or more than in 2008!