Jill continued serving as Primary President this year. She have achieved the pinnacle of success in the Primary ... everything went smoothly this year including the annual Primary Program for Sacrament Meeting. In all the years I've enjoyed Primary Programs, 2011's was THE BEST. And just so you know I'm not just being the "supportive husband-who-says-everything-nice-about-his-wife" ... I was not alone in the sentiment that it was THE BEST Primary Program ever. The Primary Presidency and the music leader had little papers passed out to the congregation to collect feedback. About 80% of the feedback literally said it was THE BEST Primary Program they've ever seen. And this is coming from a ward that is mostly made of empty-nesters - people who've "been there, done that" It doesn't surprise me. Jill has the Golden Touch. Everything she sets her mind to turns to "gold" She has also spent some of her time teaching dance to Camille and her little friends. They did a concert in May and then again in December - a couple of weeks ago. The feedback from that event was very positive! And then there is Jill's cooking ... the ward; the city; the kid's school teachers; me ... we all collectively put on dozens of pounds because of her exceptional cooking! Our kitchen becomes a goodie factory this time of year ... home-made bread, chocolate ganache cookies, tart cookies, granola, lemon bread, Santa cookies, peanut butter cookies and on and on and on. I've said it before and I'll continue to say it often ... JILL IS A MODERN MARVEL.
Don - I work most days. I continue to work in the IT management field. I've been in my current assignment for almost 3 years now. Next year may bring a new work assignment. Outside of work ... I served as Executive Secretary for the bishop up until a few months ago. When we lost your 11-year-old Boy Scout leader, we needed a replacement. After several attempts to fill the calling, it became apparent that it was me who needed to fill it. So I've been back in Scouts again for a few months. Knowing that I was destined to be in Scouts for a while, I became determined to get all the training completed. I spent two weekends "camping" and attending Woodbadge in October and November. I also signed up to coach Ben's basketball team. It's been fun getting back on the wood floor and it's been even more fun to watch these boys excitedly play ball. In October, I played in my 2nd US Class Championship chess tournament. Last year I was in the un-rated section and took 2nd place. This year I was in the Class C division and ended up with 4 wins and only 1 loss and tied for 2nd place again! I keep a chess blog about these adventures and you can read all about it here. My other little achievement was finishing reading the Jack Aubry / Stephen Maturin book series (21 books). I started this series last year and finally finished it this year. My book reviews of this series as well as my other book reviews are found on this blog.
Emma started band this year ... playing the clarinet. She went from squeaking to 'accomplished musician' in a matter of months! We attended her Christmas concert a few weeks ago. Personally, I went expecting to endure the painful sounds, but was shocked and surprised to be entertained. Emma performed flawlessly and we were all impressed (Jill and her mom attended as well) with the quality of the performance. She also performed for our Stake Nativity display. She and her friend played a clarinet duet of Silent Night - simply beautiful. I posted a video of this in a previous post. Of course, Emma entered Middle School this year. This was a big step-up in the world for Emma. As much as she dis-liked 5th grade, she absolutely loves 6th grade. Her academic performance has been exceptional; her sociability continues to blossom and we've enjoyed every moment watching her turn into a young woman (which is happening faster than we want it to!)
Ben continued working on Tae Kwon Do up through the end of summer. He progressed all the way up to brown belt. We've taken a break from TKD for now and he is focusing on basketball for the next few months. He is a natural athlete. A bunch of guys play touch football every Saturday. Ben and I have been playing in those games for the last several weeks. Ben's natural talent shines in these games. He regularly catches the big kicks and passes and has even played quarterback a few times. Ben is a great help around the house. He helps Jill quite a bit and is usually very kind to his brother and sisters. He continues to do well in Cub Scouts. He is only a couple of months away from going into Webelos! But even more importantly, he's got the Pinewood Derby coming up in January!
Erick is our big first grader. He started off not really enjoying going back to school for so many hours every day, but he's adjusted and now he loves it. He has grown leaps and bounds with his reading. He breezes through just about any book his teacher sends home. His handwriting has gone from nearly illegible to quite nice! In fact, the other day, I saw an assignment sitting on the kitchen counter. I thought it was Ben's work when in fact it was Erick's! He still loves playing video games - Mario Kart, Super Mario Bros and Pac-Man. He still loves alligators and dinosaurs. He has such a tender and sweet heart and he often comes up to me or Jill just to say "I love you." We love our little Ericky!
Camille is our firework. This is her last year in pre-school. As such, she is queen of the roost! She has the best pre-school teachers and is beginning to read. I love watching kids beginning to learn to read and then seeing them become so proficient. As I said above, Camille performs in dance class that Jill teaches. Millie is our little ballerina. She loves to perform - be it singing or dancing or acting. She is a wonderful friend and includes her friends in everything. She is a spiritual giant wherever she goes ... she takes her Book of Mormon everywhere and she is often quick to talk about keeping the commandments and doing what is right. We love our Millie so much!
We wish you all a Merry Christmas and may 2012 be a Happy and Prosperous New Year!
Love, The Putnams
