Life of Lisa: Merry Christmas 2012

Hello Friends & Family!!

Welcome to the Pederson's Christmas letter and thank you for taking a few moments to "catch up" on the happenings of our life.

This year has been filled with new experiences, creating memories, and growing in the Lord.

The first few months of 2012 brought unusual winter weather. We traveled to Fairmont, BC expecting to try snow-shoeing and cross-country skiing but, much to our surprise, there was almost no snow! We actually took a day-trip into Kimberley just to find a few flakes falling romantically in the town square. We enjoyed hiking, the mineral hot pools, and lots of time working puzzles and playing games as a family.

Laura & Anna starting attending a new church, Mountain Springs Calvary Chapel, and are really getting connected with the people there. They enjoy the preaching and are finding ways to volunteer and be part of the church family. You can check out Pastor Joel's sermons on youtube channel mountainspringscccom. Laura's year has been busy with her dog training business, house-sitting, and working full-time in Office Administration for a land development company here in Calgary while Anna continues to build her art career with oil paintings and watercolors. You can check out their websites at:
www.refinedcanines.ca and www.graceartistry.com

The view from our condo in Kelowna

In the Spring us girls worked on the City of Calgary census and enjoyed meeting all kinds of people while getting some exercise and a paycheck. Laura & I took a week off to spend some time in Kelowna with my sisters & their kids since I had to be there to work at the homeschool conference anyway. We had a very relaxing week by the lake enjoying the gorgeous view from the deck and hot tub.

From June - November, I worked 2 and 3 days a week at the homeschool store here in Calgary and really enjoyed meeting all the homeschool families as they sought help and advice in this important area of their lives. I'm taking the winter off and will be back at Canadian Home Education Resources in March; just in time for conference season.

Anna and her dog, Daphne

Bert

This summer was a big change for Anna & Emily as they served with Child Evangelism Fellowship organizing and running 5-day clubs all over Alberta. We were thankful that they could stay home and do most of their clubs in the Calgary area but they also had opportunities to travel for a few weeks as well. What a stretching and rewarding experience for the girls as they taught many children that Jesus loves them and has a plan for their lives. During their time in Vauxhall, they acquired a barn kitten who was in need of a home so they decided to bring him back here. His name is Bert and he is a super-cute fluff-ball of mischief! The timing for his arrival was perfect since two weeks later, our Calico cat, Cassie, was run over by a car and died. It was nice to still have a kitten to cuddle up to in our sadness.

History of the Horse at Calgary Stampede

Our summer was filled with the 100th Anniversary of the Calgary Stampede, having family out to visit, taking Emily out to Blue Bronna Wilderness Camp, enjoying the Broadway production of Mary Poppins, attending a dog show with my sister, and hosting our Japanese exchange student, Misaki.

Dropping Emily off for her one week pack-trip

While finding a new riding stable for her lessons and making a new friend in France, another highlight for Emily this fall was to meet her favourite author, Bryan Davis. This was a dream come true for her and she helped make the arrangements for him to come to Calgary. Unfortunately, we had some sad times in September as we said good-bye to my Auntie Terri who lost her battle with cancer. My Mom & Dad came out for her funeral and it was a beautiful day of honouring her and re-connecting with my cousins. We pray for the family often as they are missing their Mom and Grandma.

Emily enjoying an outdoor ride with Polly

We enjoyed a mini-reunion with my siblings and parents in Salmon Arm as we camped, swam, ate, walked, and swam some more. It was great to spend time together as my nieces and nephews are growing up so fast and I just don't see them often enough. What a great bunch of kids they are... and their parents are pretty good peeps, too! :-)

Family Reunion in Salmon Arm

In November we had the huge blessing of taking a vacation to southern California with the 5 of us and my parents. We did Disneyland, Hollywood, Balboa Park, and Coronado Bay. We had great weather for most of the trip, safe journeys, lots of fun, and made great memories as a family! Can't wait to plan our next trip... maybe Mexico? Or Jamaica? Or New York?

I hope you and your family are well and I'd love to hear from you when you have time to fire off an email. You can reach me at HappyAlbertan@gmail.com

May God richly bless you as you celebrate the birth of the Messiah this Christmas and walk close to Him in this New Year!

Love,
Kent, Lisa, Laura, Anna & Emily