So much has happened in our family in the last few years that if may be difficult to capture it in a short post, but I will try.
David has been home for over two years since working in the Bakken oilfields of North Dakota. It is so good to have him home and we shake our heads wondering how we managed for those years. This fall he started his own subcontracting company and keeps very busy building and remodeling houses. He is starting to pass on his woodworking expertise to Jalen and it is great fun to watch them create together.
This summer I restarted my reading therapy studio and in September I opened a second office in Kalispell. I had taken a break from it to focus on family needs and decided it was time to get back in the saddle. It was sad to say goodbye to my humanities classes at the hybrid school that I taught at for the last two years and I continuously toy with ideas of how to blend my reading therapy with history, literature, and writing classes. I'm excited about the future of The Reading Cottage.
The last year has been a whirl of excitement for Brooke. She graduated from high school in May, worked at a local coffee shop/restaurant and headed for Walla Walla University in September. She is majoring in public relations and minoring in theology and the history of the Christian church. She is thoroughly enjoying it so far.
Jalen is a freshman in high school and does a combination of home school and hybrid school. He is making the transitional class work very well, but lives to spend time with his downhill skis and his horse. He just went on a 10 day trip to California with friends. He enjoyed seeing the sights, but couldn't wait to get back to his snow.
So that is our life in a nutshell....Merry Christmas to all! - Nanette