From MaryAnne

Zach, Troy, Josh, Michael, and Sophie

Me and my boyfriend, Earl Hickey

Hello Everyone! We spent Thanksgiving with two other families in our neighborhood and had a great time. There were a total of 13 kids and 6 adults, and enough food to feed twice that many. It was nice to share the cooking responsibilites with someone else, I cooked a 20 lb turkey and the stuffing, the other families took care of the rest.

Troy and I got up at 5am Friday morning to do some holiday shopping. We shopped for 8 hours and were exhausted, but we got everything we hoped for, so it was worth it. We only have a few Christmas presents left to buy, and with me working now, it's a big relief to have it all done.

The latest news with us is that I'm working at The Gap. I started two months ago and love it. Somehow I have become the "maternity specialist" so I spend most of my time in Gap Maternity and Baby. Troy is still plugging away in the corporate world of mergers and acquisitions at the law firm. In a few months he'll start teaching a spanish class at the Denver University Law School which he's looking forward to.

Here's a quick update on the kids: They're all happy to have the month long grounding from the X-box lifted and are spending most of their free time playing LOTR & Battlestar Gallactica. Zach is 14, trying to survive high school and early morning seminary, and it seems as if his ipod and headphones are permanently attached. Josh is 11 and likes jr. high but is a little bummed because his "girlfriend" and his best friend moved away recently. Michael is 8 and obsessed with all things Super Mario. He even created his own Mario costume for Halloween. When we went to Six Flags that weekend, he wore his costume and several teenagers asked if they could have their pictures taken with him. He was very happy about that. Sophie is our little princess and is now 5. She takes ballet and goes to preschool and is such a sweetheart. She loves to sing, and makes up her own lyrics to Primary songs.

That's it for us! -MaryAnne