Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary!

Richard and I recently celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary. So... I have decided that this would be a great opportunity to think about all of the reasons I love my husband and list 14 reasons. (*These items are not listed in order of priority.)

1. He is a wonderfully loving father.

2. He is a very helpful and involved father.

3. He is a caring and compassionate spouse.

4. He is passionate about his profession.

5.He is a very caring person.

6. He is a very spiritually in tuned man.

7. He makes me laugh every day.

8. He knows how to have fun.

9. He listens (most of the time!).

10. He is considerate in his advice.

11. He is very handy around the house and with cars.

12. He is healthy.

13. He takes his responsibilities seriously.

14. He married me!

These are only a few of the reasons why I love Richard and have treasured our 14 years together as man and wife.

Where Does The Time Go?

Aidan Christopher Wood

I can't believe it! Our little baby is now a one year old! Where does the time go?

On the same day Richard and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary, we celebrated our little one's first birthday. :)

He has achieved so much in the one year he has been with us.

Aidan has always slept and ate well. (Mom and Dad are truly grateful!)

He is quite the talker, and sometimes he gets a bit angry when he doesn't get what he's asking for. ("Don't you know what I'm saying, Mom and Dad?")

He has been cruising along furniture since the age of eight months. This concerned Mom a bit about having an early walker, but Aidan is still only taking a few steps at a time. Mom thinks that maybe there's a bit of a lazy streak in him. ("It's just faster to crawl, Mom!")

He is just about to start on whole milk (Hallelujah!). Why is formula so expensive? A baby's gotta eat, right?

He is now forward facing in the car seat and enjoys traveling all the more now that he can see what's going on.

He smiles a lot!

He is very ticklish! (He'll even start laughing before you touch him.)

He is a very happy baby.

He loves blowing kisses to anyone who asks.

He has been a great addition to our happy, little family!

All of these things we are truly grateful for. We have been blessed with easy going babies, and Aidan is no exception!

Happy Birthday, Aidan!

Christmas 2008 - Happy Holidays!

Disclaimer: Some may have already received or will receive a copy of our Christmas letter for this year, so I apologize in advance.

Dearest Family and Friends...

Seasons Greetings from sunny Gilbert, Arizona! We hope this letter finds you all well and able to enjoy the spirit of the season. We have had a busy year in 2008!

Richard has now been working in private practice as an optometrist for a couple of years. He is enjoying the benefits of private practice. He had a couple of health scares this summer; however, he has received a clean bill of health. We are truly grateful for this!

Grace is still surviving as a second grade teacher! She has had many challenges this year, but she enjoys her time with her class. She is enjoying her time as a mom to a new baby. It brings many adventures and experiences, but Aidan makes it quite fun, exciting, and enjoyable! With all of her free time (NOT!), Grace has also begun blogging. Check out our family blog at woodfamilyaz.blogspot.com!

Alex is doing very well! He is now ten years old. He is in the fifth grade and is an excellent big brother to his younger sister and baby brother. He has been a great caretaker to Aidan and is awaiting the day he can really play with him. He has shown us that he is still quite the responsible young man. He continues to enjoy school, video games, and friends. He also loves reading! Grace affectionately calls him “Nerdo”. Alex continues with his piano playing, and he has even started the violin at school. He is actually quite good with both instruments! He even throws an impromptu concert for the family on occasion. Mom asks him to play thirty minutes of piano and twenty minutes of violin each day with only Sundays off. What a mean mom, huh?

Addison is now seven years old! She is enjoying the second grade and being next door to mom during the school day. She is still quite energetic and enthusiastic about life and learning. She is a very good big sister and is an amazing caretaker to her baby brother. She still enjoys her status as the princess in the family. Addison is quite sociable, loves drawing and coloring, and is very musically inclined. She began violin lessons this year, and she is quite a good violinist!

Aidan is now almost one year old. We welcomed him into our family on December 28, 2007. He came quite a bit earlier than expected, but he has thrived ever since entering into this world. He is a very smiley baby who is full of life and much energy. He is quicker than Speedy Gonzales! While Richard and Grace had to make some adjustments to parenting a new child, we are truly enjoying our new addition to the family!

We are grateful this season for our many friends and family members. You all have been such a great support to us, and we miss you all very much! As we reflect on our Savior’s birth this Christmas season, we hope all is well with your families and homes. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


Love, The Wood Family (Richard, Grace, Alex, Addison, and Aidan)

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are thankful for so many things this holiday season! We are taking this opportunity to list five things we each are grateful for.

Richard - "I am thankful for beautiful children and a beautiful wife. I am thankful for my Savior. I am thankful for health. I'm thankful for friends."

Grace - "I am grateful for my family members and friends. Health, freedom, and the love and patience of our Heavenly Father."

Alex - "I am thankful for video games, football, fun, family, and friends."

Addison - "I am thankful for my family and the earth. I am thankful for my Heavenly Father. I am thankful that I am a kid. And I am thankful for my friends."

Aidan - "My mom for bringing me to my family; my dad for taking awesome care of me; my big brother for looking out for me; my big sister for making me smile; and my awesome babysitter for taking care of me when my family is away!"

The Saga Continues...

On Monday morning, Richard, being the dutiful husband that he is, took my tire into Costco to have it checked. They said, "Sorry! You didn't purchase the tire here, so we can't look at it." Bummer!

So.... he continued with his quest. He took the tire into Sam's Club. They ran a battery of tests. They couldn't detect a leak in the tire. What the heck? Do they not realize that the tire was super flat just the day before?

I didn't believe this, so I had Richard take the tire into yet another tire shop. They ran the same battery of tests. They also couldn't detect a leak.

The two places recommended that we watch the tire for a day or two to determine where the leak may be coming from.

It's been almost a week now, and we are not detecting any leaks in the tire. The tire looks perfect. Go figure!

I guess that the adversary needs to come up with more than a flat tire to keep us from going to church!

Sunday Morning Flat

Yesterday, we noticed that my tire was flat according to my car's sensor system.

We didn't notice any flat tires; however, we went to the local gas station anyway to fill up my tires.

The sensor light went off. Yippee!

We celebrated too soon! This morning, Richard went into the garage for I don't know what, and he noticed that the tire was not just a little flat, it was so low in air that the rim touched the garage floor. Oops!

I strongly feel that this is the adversary's way of trying to hinder our eternal progression. He did want us to go visiting teaching and home teaching this morning, let alone go to church.

But staying true to what we believe... Richard changed the tire, and I was off to go visiting teaching with Addison. And... we were still able to attend our church meetings.

Yee Haw!

What Do People Really Think?

As a teacher, I like to tell my students that I am seventy seven years old. Wow! Even my seven year old daughter believes this. Scary, huh? What makes it even funnier is that my ten year old son plays along with it all.

Anyway... a few weeks ago, my daughter got a new girl in her class. Being that her mother is a teacher just next door to her classroom, she was at school early that day. So, being the social butterfly she is, she introduced herself to the new girl and her mom.

Addison: My mom is seventy seven years old.

Mom: Really?

Addison: And my dad has a pacemaker.

I wonder what that poor mother was thinking. Was she thinking that Addison was making this story up? Does Addison live with her grandparents? Or was she thinking that Addison's parents were crazy to have children at such an old age?

I wonder... What do people really think?