Year In Review

Alright it is New Year's Eve and since I didn't write a Christmas letter this year I have been asked to write a year in review. So here we go!

The year started off on a somber note when my grandma passed away on January 24th. She was my role model. She was always loving, caring and strong in her faith. Even in her death she was graceful and beautiful.

Scott has spent his year working. If he wasn't underway on work-ups for deployment he was working his part-time job. He is a supervisor for Elite, the security company that works all the Padre and Charger games. Scott loves baseball so it really isn't work for him. In May Scott came down with Bells Palsey. He has battled it since then. While he has had a good amount of recovery it looks like he will not have a full recovery. He is now deployed and will hopefully return home before his 40th birthday.

I am still working at the girl's school, Christ Lutheran School. I am the kindergarten and first grade aide. I love my job! The work itself is fun and easy. As well I get to see the girls during the day. I did give up my position as Girl Scout leader for Sami's troop this year. But now I am the Family Readiness Leader for Scott's ship. It is a hard job but worth it. This year marked 15 years of marriage for Scott and I. I can't believe the time has gone by so quickly!

Samantha just turned ten and is in fourth grade. She continues to keep her grades high and enjoys reading. Her girl scout troop is getting ready to go on their first camp out next month. She is counting down the days until Tiger Cruise. She can't wait to fly to Hawaii and join her dad onboard the Tarawa for a week. Sam is quickly becoming a young woman. She helps out around the house and as I type is helping her Grandma cook dinner.

Meaghan is six and in first grade. She loves her teacher and friends but is at school to socialize not work. However when she puts her mind to it she is very good at her school work. This year she joined a Brownie troop and really loves it. She is one of a kind. She is witty and way too smart for her own good! Life is her way or the highway. She is so stubborn she even sleeps with her arms crossed!

We had a good time this summer spending a week in Mammoth with my sister and John and my parents. We spent my birthday at Bodie exploring the ghost town. We really enjoyed our time there and hope to make another trip this summer.

I know I will soon be writing my 2008 year in review. Time goes by so fast. I wish you all a wonderful 2008!

Lions, Tigers, but no Bears, oh my!

Today we went to the Wild Animal Park. It is a beautiful time of the year to go, if you don't mind the Santa Ana's. It has changed a lot since we were last there. The new Safari Tour seems to get you closer to the animals but you have to pay extra to ride it. The best part of the day was seeing a squirrel run in front of the rhinos to get to the food. Scott you would have loved it! Only we would see a squirrel amongst the wild animals. I was a bit on edge at the lion camp. The one lion keep staring at me the entire time we stood there. At one point Sami stood in front of me because it started to bother her too. I'm sure the lion was thinking, "Ah, an appetizer before dinner!". The gorillas were anti-social. The elephants, well, their elephants. Although there were quite a few new baby elephants. And of course the meercats were a big hit. The one rhino was the last of his kind and they said the females have no interest in him. Talk about hard knocks! The giraffes were tall, 18 feet tall to be exact. Oh, and as we were leaving I was buzzed twice by a crane. All in all it was a good day, however I do think that the zoo is a much better place to visit. Besides, it's World Famous!

Christmas 2007

Wow the New Year is upon us. I hope everyone had a Christmas full of fun and great memories. We were very lucky to have Scott home for Christmas. It has been a wonderful holiday season having him home but tomorrow he must return to the ship. I know it has been hard for him. Nobody wants to come home because your mom is sick. However she seems in good spirits and we hope that the treatments are working. My parents came over and spent Christmas here with us. My Dad and I made an outstanding dinner. The girls are now taking turns staying over at Grandma's and just enjoying the rest of their vacation. They got new bikes for Christmas and living in San Diego they have had ample opportunities to ride them. And when it gets too cold and dark outside they retire to Sami's room to play air hockey. Now can I tell you how excited Scott and I are about the air hockey game? We could play for hours! It's sometimes hard to remember it isn't our toy. I will miss having him home but at least I still have to good opponents here with me. Scott will be going back to the Tarawa so his new "old" address is:

MM2 (SW) Robert S. Moore

Eng. Dept. MP2 Div.

Uss Tarawa LHA-1

FPO AP 96622-1600

Email: moorer@lha1.navy.mil

Oh, Mattie- we got an 98% on "our" mission! They also get a language grade on it for which she received 100%!

San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo

The best thing about 4th grade is California history! Or at least in my opinion. I am a huge California history buff!!! This weekend was full with Christmas parties and what not. Rosie, our little girl kitty, spent the weekend in and out of the vets. Luckily she will soon be a happy kitty again. Okay who am I kidding? I don't think she is or ever was happy. But by far the best part of this weekend was finishing our mission project. And as any parent knows it really was "our" project. Sami is a very creative girl. Give her paper and tape and she will make you the Taj Mahal. She wanted to do the Carmel Mission as did two other kids. They had to draw for it and she won. Being that she is the only kid in her class born near that mission I think it is perfect that she gets to do the report on it. By Friday her church was built and the report almost done. We have done some alteration though. We added to the church and the report. It is amazing how the details completely escaped her this time around. I hope she is as excited to turn in the mission as Scott and I are. I can't wait to see "our" grade! April, any ideas on which mission we should start building for Meaghan? I think we proved that it wasn't Mission Impossible like Scott and Dad thought it would be.

She's a big girl now!

Today was a big day for Samantha. Today she got her military ID. You have to be 10 before you can get it. She has waited for this day for at least a year! She can now buy things at the exchange without an adult. She can go to the rec center and check out equipment. And all the other great perks that come with the ID. I have not seen her so excited in a while. Well, there was the day at Disneyland when she saw Miley Cyrus! Anyway, she went into the office with her Dad and not even 10 minutes later returned showing off her new ID. She promptly put it in her wallet and displayed it with great pride. Of course now Meaghan is miffed because now Sami can do things she can't. Only 3 1/4 more years Meaghan!

You Say It's Your Birthday!

Well I don't know when it happened but Samantha turned 10 today! Wow! That was a quick ten years! She took all her girlfriends to get manicures and then went out to dinner to celebrate her birthday. The day has been full of phone calls, cards, gifts and well wishes. Oh how much fun it is to be 10. She was really glad that her Dad was her to celebrate with her. We still don't know when he will have to go back but are hoping for some time after Christmas. Exactly ten years ago I was going in for an emergency c-section. I was scared not because of the surgery but because I was about to be a mom. Looking back at it I wish I could do it all again. Samantha- I know that growing up isn't easy and that sometimes we butt heads. However I hope you know how much joy you bring to our lives. I couldn't have asked for a better first born. I am so proud of all of your accomplishments and look forward to watching you grow into a beautiful young lady. Happy Birthday Goose!