CHRISTMAS LETTER 2011

Chirstmas 2011
Dear Family and Friends,

May we all continue to grow this advent season in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus' personal love for each one of us and really celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ this December 25th! And if anyone says Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas to you...........remind them that Holiday means "holy day".

Well Charlie's man cave is all finished and we love it! We indeed will be having the Burns Christmas party this year with my siblings and their families. Charlie also hired the Smith's to finish the landscaping and patio in the backyard. I love our home and of course I have so many treasured memories since I was born and raised in this house. I feel blessed that I have a husband who loves our home as much as I do.

In February Charlie and I went to Mexico for a week. It sure does help to break up the long winter and he always finds us a great deal! In November we went to Las Vegas. We don't gamble but it’s fun to see the sights. I met a homeless man by the name of Frank. I was very touched by him and will continue to remember him in my prayers.

Charlie's mom is now in an Adult Foster Care home. It was quite an adjustment but she could no longer care for herself. She has good and bad days and it's a relief to know she's no longer alone.

In June I met up with two of my college roommates Patti and Ping (Sue) to go to our other roommates (Kim) son's wedding in Indiana. It was so fun to reminisce, it was either, “I remember that,” or “I don't remember that!” In June Karen Harwerth and I met in Missouri to visit with Bob and Nancy Walker. They live on a lake and we had a great time! My sister Linda and I went to Traverse City in September to see our childhood friends, Sandy and Carol (Bellant). We had such a wonderful time telling stories and laughing. Friends are truly a gift from God!

Let me give you an update on my sibling’s families. Linda and Chuck's oldest Catherine ended up doing very well her senior year in the public school system. She was awarded a scholarship from the Clinton County Republican party for an essay she had submitted. She is now at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids and really loves it. She is double majoring in International Business and German.

Jim continues to be the aspiring theologian. He recently discovered G.K. Chesterton, a convert to Catholicism and an apologist. Jim reads anything he can get his hands by Chesterton. He also has taken up running and often during the warmer weather he will either run or bike to Church so he can attend daily mass (he lives in the country).

Anna was confirmed this year and I was her sponsor. She chose St.Therese of the Little Flower for her confirmation name. Anna often sings with her dad at church or an occasional wedding. She is also the president of their Home School Right to Life group which Jim is also a member of. They are planning a trip to D.C. on January 22 to protest the killing of the unborn. It's so encouraging to see the amount of youth who are Prolife.

Matthew is a boy scout and really enjoys it. He and his dad went to camp this summer. He and little sister Maria continue to butt heads but mom thinks they both thrive on teasing each other. He is very disciplined about getting his school work done in the morning so that he can have his time on the computer :)

Markus is quite the reader and has an excellent memory. He enjoys sharing in detail the things he reads about. This amazes me because I so do not have the ability to remember and explain what I have read. Mom says he's more of an indoor boy, though he is also a boy scout. He continues to "share" his computer time with Matt :(

Maria I'm told is quite the singer. But there is only one problem she won't sing for me! I have never heard her! She recently made her First Confession and will make her First Communion in April. She is still the little girl who likes to dress and play with her friends. Mom says the house is always peaceful if Maria or Matt is gone. Sound familiar moms and dads?

Kevin and Rhonda's oldest Jennifer is doing her student teaching this year. She was suppose to go to a nice rural school but days before found out she was assigned to the notorious Sexton High School in Lansing. We all knew that if anyone could deal with this very challenging atmosphere, Jennifer could. She recently got her review and was told by her field instructor that she had far surpassed her expectations. Way to go Jen! She has a real heart for these kids.
Rachel is still working full time and going to school and reports she has no life! Most of life in like that …the holy family lived a very simple life. In the fall she will be transferring to Davenport to continue her degree in Accounting. When Charlie and I go on our trips she house sits for us. She doesn't like out cats but she loves Abby our dog.

Aaron is a freshman in High School and is on the basketball team. He still loves every kind of sport and has even taken up golf. He's also involved with St.Joseph’s youth group, maybe because his big sister, Jennifer helps out with the group?

Brenda and Chris took their family to Maine this past summer which they really all enjoyed! Katie is a junior this year. She is on the golf team and is involved in theater as a set mover and construction. She really enjoys working on the plays. She is all so involved in the youth group and likes to go on the retreats that they offer. She recently paid Charlie and me a compliment when she told us that we didn't seem old........I think it was a compliment.........?

Dominic is a freshman in high school and he really likes it. He loves anything army related. I recently gave him my dad's army duffle bag that had been in one of my closets for years. He is very good at playing the piano and has a natural ear for music. Another gift that I admire because I can't even keep a beat to a song!

Joey is now a sixth grader and is an exceptional student. He works very hard and is very conscientious of his grades. He is on the basketball team and this summer his baseball team took first place and his dad was the coach!

Kelly is in the third grade and really likes her teacher who happens to be my friend, Dorella Page- Hunter. This was her second year in soccer and she is still quite the player, always on the move! She is quite artistic and drew me a picture of Mary and Joseph that I have in a frame at work. I've gotten a lot of compliments on it. In school she saw a movie on Lourdes and told her mom that she’s thinking of being a nun or a mother :)

Johnny is a first grader and doesn't really care for school because he says it's boring! His favorite subjects are recess and gym class. I think those were my favorite subjects! He's still a charmer and the upper classmen go out of their way to give him attention and still call him little Joey. He recently saw a picture of my mom and said, “Hey she looks like Marge Simpson.”(He must have seen a commercial because that is not a show that his parents allow him to watch.) Remember in the 70’s when bee hives were in style? Well my mom had a huge bee hive!

My friend Nancy always says life is good. I struggle with that and maintain that God is good but life is often hard! My favorite professor, Fr .Francis Martin use to say that we are so stupid that if everything went our way we would want to settle down and make earth our home. It is the very trials in life that often put us on our knees and humbles us. We are on a short journey and it's our choice to either say YES to God and his plan for our life or to say N0. I happen to believe that His plan is the exact one that each of us needs to lead us too Eternity.

To live for Christ is to die to self but it is in dying that we truly live and become our fullest self. I will leave you with a quote from one of my spiritual friends, Catherine Doherty (1896-1985). "Christ desires to be born in the manger of our hearts. Are the doors of those hearts of ours wide open to receive the shepherds, the Magi, the stray visitors.... in a word, humanity? Are they open to receive one another as Christ would receive those around us in our daily life? Or do we think it enough to make a manger of our hearts so that we might hold Christ unto ourselves exclusively? If so, that was not what he was born for, and he might bypass the manger of our hearts."

Open your hearts to Christ you will not be disappointed! In Christ Love, Lisa and Charlie!