2012 in Review

This past year has been an adventure … though when is it not for our family?

Family trip to Sunset Crater, Flagstaff, AZ.

We are enjoying our new house.  We’ve been here 1 ½ years and only have a few more boxes to unpack!    The girls helped Stephanie drive to CA this summer to visit Grandma Susie and our cousins there.  It was a fun visit.  We played at the beach, at the Children’s Discovery Museum and were weirded out at the Mystery Spot.  We have also visited Flagstaff a few times to visit Sunset Crater and the volcanic cinders, the Lowell Observatory and some ancient Indian ruins.  We made one visit south this year when we went to Kartchner Caverns this summer – it was NOT the Batcave, Batman!  We have visited the Gilbert LDS temple site which is under construction.  We look forward to its completion in 2013!  Tori and Kyler took part in a temple walk with church youth and walked to the new temple in one morning – it was about 10 miles…whew!

Visiting the ruins near Flagstaff, AZ.

Tori, Jerry, Jerika, Kyler, Stephanie & Gideon - Aug 2012

New LDS temple in Gilbert.  Under construction and to be done in 2013!

Quadding with our friends the Jamisons!

Jerry – Is still the Varsity Scout Coach over the 14-15 year old boys.  In the spring he took his scouts to the annual Mountain Man Rendezvous.  In the fall he joined some friends on a dirt bike trip down in Mexico.  He enjoyed taking Tori to see a STYX concert, which she loved.  He has enjoyed taking his sons quadding at the dunes out at Yuma.  This year, for the first time, he went quadding at the cinders in Flagstaff near the Sunset volcanic crater.  He convinced Stephanie to go quadding for a day date out in the desert and she actually had a good time.  Stephanie’s favorite dates though are still to go see live shows at the Hale Theater.  With our new property, Jerry has taken up a new past time... scroll down to see.

    

Duuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnnnnes!!!!!!!!!

2nd from left - Jerry - with friends for Mexico dirt bike trip.

Jerry, quadding at the cinders in Flagstaff, AZ.

Jerry's new past time.

Stephanie – Has enjoyed teaching preschool again this year.  Stephanie was excited about being asked to be on a district committee to draft a vision and mission statement for the district’s gifted education program.  She enjoyed her trip to the Timpanogas Storytelling Festival with Becky, Jerika & Tori.  She has enjoyed her mother’s visits to sunny AZ – together they enjoyed the Phoenix symphony and the Broadway show Le Miserables.  For the first part of 2012, her sister Diana lived with her while working at an internship.  It was such a blast having Diana live with us!  Stephanie also got to make jam from her own apricot trees this year and applesauce from her neighbors’ trees – yes, apricots and apples DO grow in AZ!   We have 10 citrus trees and we look forward to sweet and yummy lemonade and OJ each year!

Jerry and Stephanie riding quads in the desert.

Mt. Timpanogas Storytelling Festival - Becky, Jerika, Stephanie & Tori.

Jerika, 19 – Started her 2nd year at BYU.  She is majoring in Physics (she built a heater block and a plasma speaker out of nothing but cardboard and Duct Tape!! Okay just kidding about the cardboard), and she wants to minor in music.  She began her teaching classes this year and volunteered with an elementary school’s science club, which she loved.  She participated and won a T-shirt for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).  She has such a fun and witty sense of humor.  Her BYU apartment is a converted basement … that has a 2nd basement … that is a 1950’s bomb shelter! (Blast from the Past!) She loves being home for summer and the holidays.  She and Stephanie’s sister Becky had some fun adventures together in Provo, including Krispy Kreme Donut runs, screaming while they take left hand turns across traffic, and Hogwarts Lego building. 

 

Jerika riding the neighbor's horse.

Tori, 17 – Senior.  She has had great teachers this year and is enjoying her college composition class, her painting class and AP Government class.  In 11th grade she studied video productions and editing.  She enjoys using these skills on projects in her regular classes.  (For extra credit in her physics class she created a music parody of the song Dancing Queen... Physics Queen!)  She worked for a short time as a contracted video editor for a local company.  She loved Especially For Youth and Girls camp.  She enjoys playing the piano, reading and taking voice lessons.  Being inspired by the STYX concert, she played a STYX song for her piano recital!  She loves playing with her Uncle Eric’s daughter Nora (2) and painting Nora’s toenails.  Nora loves it! She calls them “Tori Toes.”  Tori gave a recent Family Home Evening lesson and tried to rein in the conversation, “We’ll discuss the fourth dimension at a later time.”

Tori and Nora hunting for Easter eggs.

Tori - Spring Prom.

Tori at STYX concert with her dad.

Kyler, 14 – Freshman and adjusting to high school life.  He achieved the rank of Life Scout this past year.  He enjoys dirt biking and quadding with his dad.  He now has braces and so has left his trumpet packed up.  Instead of band, he enrolled in a fine metals class and has enjoyed technical sketching and soldering, etc.  We’ve loved the things he has made for his family for Christmas.  He has grown about 6 inches in the last 1 ½ years!  Jerry must have been slipping Miracle Grow into his food.  He enjoys playing the piano and looks forward to taking up archery.  To celebrate Kyler’s birthday we went to ASU and saw a model of the Mars Rover, touched meteorites, etc.  It was all kinds of nerdy fun.

 

Kyler, Jr high baseball team.

Stephanie, Jerry, Kyler & Gideon with model of Mars Rover.

Gideon, 9 – Fourth grade.  He has enjoyed playing soccer, his favorite position being the keeper.  He also really likes baseball, his favorite position being catcher.  He also enjoyed the afterschool robotics club.  He is an avid reader and likes the Percy Jackson series.  He enjoys Cub Scouts,  Legos and computer games.  On hot days he loves riding his bike through the big puddle that forms at the end of the street on irrigation days.  He was excited about our garden this year.  He loved finding a new zucchini to harvest every few days!  We now have a year’s supply of zucchini puree ready to be converted to zucchini bread – Gideon’s favorite way to eat his vegetables.  Gideon also began playing the string bass this year in beginning orchestra.  You can barely see him when he plays his instrument.  Gideon loved riding the neighbor’s horses with Jerika. You know you have a nine year old son when you have to brush the army men off the Christmas tree before hanging the ornaments.  

  

Gideon and friend Ryan, builders at Lowe's!

Gideon, baseball catcher!

Gideon, Zucchini grower!

Gideon loved riding the neighbor's pony.

Gideon, soccer goal keeper!

 

Grandma Vickie, ??  - Jerry’s mom has lived “in our backyard” apartment for over a year now.  We have really enjoyed having her close.  She enjoyed a visit from her granddaughter and great-grandbabies this past spring and this fall she was set apart as a Family Search missionary, providing tech support to those who seek help on their family history from familysearch.org.  She loves her mission and she is one TECH SAVVY Grandma!

Grandma Vickie - Missionary!

We are grateful for family and our Savior, especially at this Christmas season. We hope our letter finds you well and happy.  Merry Christmas!   

Love,  the Newitts

Jerika, Gideon, Tori & Kyler July 2012