Merry Christmas from our family!

Happy Holidays! Once again the Christmas season is upon us and here at the Arnold house we are decorating, baking , shopping and anxiously awaiting the celebration of the birth of our Lord. Hunter is 6 and enjoys kindergarten. He goes all day every other day. At conferences his teacher told us he was at a second grade reading level. We are very proud of him! She also told he has a really hard time sitting quietly in class. We’re working on that one. He will tell you he really likes school he just wishes there wasn’t so many rules! :-) Right now he is really into inventing things. His latest invention is the ‘Mouse Trap 3000’. Hunter brought his drawing to his dad and asked him if he could build it, explaining exactly how it all works. His imagination is endless! Brylie is 4 ½ and is in preschool this year. This was a hard adjustment for her, because she is so shy, but absolutely loves school now. She does a great job writing her letters and is always making pictures for everyone in the family. Brylie loves everything girly and is quite a little mom to Gage. Gage is 2 ½ and is the busiest child I have ever known! He loves to climb and explore and test his boundaries. He is the silent, mischievous type. :-) Gage is the comedian of the family and often has us laughing hysterically. He is all boy and has no trouble keeping up with Hunter and his friends. We are anxiously awaiting the 4th addition to our family through adoption. Last April, after some prompting from the Lord, we decided to pursue an international adoption through China. After many months of being told the wait for a child from China could be increasing to as long as 5 years, we prayerfully considered another country. We have just finished switching our paperwork over to adopt an infant girl from Ethiopia. There are 4 million children in Ethiopia in need of forever families to love and care for them. If all goes well we should have our little girl by next Fall. The kids are thrilled to be getting a baby sister! Another big change in the Arnold family involves a move. We are very excited to be moving into the farm house that Robb grew up in. We love our home, but we simply have run out of room. The farm house is much bigger and it will be so convenient to live right at the farm. Before we move in we are going to completely remodel the kitchen, which we plan to start after Christmas. We should be moved in by spring planting time. (fingers crossed!) Robb had a very busy year on the farm and we were blessed with good crops. He stays busy with farm work, selling Golden Harvest seed, and being a really fun daddy! He always finds a little time to enjoy hunting. He will also be doing some refereeing for basketball this winter. Robb will put his handiwork to the test this winter with the remodel. With 2 kids in school this year, I do a lot of running. I take the kids to and from school, as I am not yet ready to send them on the bus. :-) I have also been going in during Hunter’s lunch and counting his carbohydrates and doing his insulin pump. It gives me peace of mind to do it myself and I love seeing him midday! I stay busy cooking for the farmers and delivering their meals to the field. I also did a little grain cart driving during harvest this year. The kids and I love helping out where needed. This letter is getting so long….I apologize. For some of you this is the only communication I get with you throughout the whole year. I pray that you are all happy and healthy and enjoying this blessed season where we get to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year! Love, Robb, Teresa, Hunter, Brylie, and Gage