Tis' the Season!

     Well it's that time of the year again, time to take a step back and look at what the year has brought us. This year has been like one giant roller coaster. The beginning of this year, as with every year before, brought me one more number on the birthday ticker. It also brought with it news of a new family member. However it also meant that two of my best friends here at Ft. Jackson would be leaving.
     My son turned 7 at the beginning of the summer. He is a fantastic kid with a great outlook on life. I couldn't be prouder of him. This summer the children were able to spend time visiting with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. As always the kids had a blast. It's always hard to see the kids leave for such a long time, but it's comforting to know that they love their family and love being able to spend that time with them. The end of the summer brought both joy and sorrow. Both of my younger children celebrated their 6th and 4th birthdays. And the softball team that I play on finished 25th out of 93 teams at the Softball World Series in Orlando, FL. It was a great way to close out the summer. However the summer brought us the sorrow of losing not only a very close family member, but one of our closest friends.
     The fall brought us lovely weather, Halloween and Thanksgiving. We welcomed a new member to the Washburn clan in September. We also celebrated two Thanksgivings this year, the first just a little more special than the last. We were able to spend the first of the two with Gerry's family in New Mexico, and I was also able to see a good friend that moved at the end of the summer.
     So far December has brought us nothing but fun times. A very good friend has moved away, but in her absence she has left behind a great group of people, that I am proud to call my sisters. We have also been able to spend a lot of time together as a family and as rare as that has become lately, it is a blessing now. We are about to spend our 8th Christmas together as our little family and I couldn't be happier.
    So to all of my friends and family I hope that as you look back at 2010 that you are able to find more good than bad, more joy than sorrow. I wish all of you nothing but the best for 2011.
     So to you all MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A BLESSED NEW YEAR!!