Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the Swanson Family!

We wish all of you a great an awesome year of joy, health and friendship.  May this year fill you with all hope and faith in Christ Jesus!  We got our Christmas card photos out late because we had to wait for our college kids to get home for the holidays.  We have loved having both Karl (from UAF - Fairbanks) and Kirsten (PLNU - San Diego, CA) home for a few weeks.  We also had a host of company, Uncles Bruce and John, Grandpa and Grandma Swanson, Tia Lupe Swanson, Britt and Pat Moore, The Taylor family, Ben and Liz Haunschild, and Megan Kirsis!  We hope you enjoy a brief look through the past few months.

 All the professional photos in this blog were taken by Megan Lyon Photography.

 Pete continues to be the principal at McNeil Canyon Elementary School, elder at Christian Community Church, hunter gatherer, snow machine rider, reader, home repair technician, you get the idea!

Lenore is still teaching K-6 Music/PE/2nd grade at McNeil.  She is still working on her MAT (M.A. of Arts in Teaching), still teaches high school Sunday School, and still participates in leading worship at church..

We host a small group on Sunday nights for parents with young children.  We are studying the Bible via storytelling.  When everyone is here, we have 12 adults and 12 children.  Claire babysits during the study.

 Claire was in the Nutcracker this Winter and is currently skiing on the Homer High School ski team.  She is a freshman this year is a part of student government. So far she has straight A's.

Kirsten loves Point Loma Nazarene University (where both Pete and Lenore graduated).  She has already been in a Musical, an Opera (The Merry Widow) and many other musical concerts.  She is in a sacred small singing group, a Jazz choir, and a regular choir.  She takes both voice and piano as well.  She is pursuing majors in both Vocal Performance and Physics.  She works part time as an personal assistant/babysitter for the CO's wife at Mirimar Marine Corps base.

 Karl is in his 3rd year at UAF in the Honors Mechanical Engineering program.  He is currently pursuing the Navy Nuclear Sub Engineering program.  He will find out in early Spring if he gets in.  If he qualifies, he will go through the OCS (Officer Candidate School) at the completion of his degree at UAF.  He spends all his vacation time snow machining here at home.

 The kids had fun messing around during our photo shoot for our Christmas photos!

 Auntie Britt had fun during our photo shoot as well.  It was a little cold though, around 5 degrees.

 Claire decided for the first time to audition for the Nutcracker ballet.  She took lessons when she was younger but had never participated in the show.  She was cast in "Snow", "Flower" and "Spanish".  She had so much fun she may be in it again next year.

 Although the garden didn't do super well due to the constant rain this past summer, the greenhouse and porch plants were happy!

Angel Kathy helped out at McNeil for the Fall Carnival.  Lenore was Freya, Thor's mother (Viking)

Pete was a good sport and let the kids throws whipping cream pies at him.

 Claire turned 14 this past October.  She got her permit on the first try.  In Alaska kids can drive with a permit at 14.  Perhaps it gives them extra practice during the 'ice season'.

Lenore turned 50 and celebrated with the 2nd graders and staff at school.  Pete and Lenore took a weekend trip to Soldotna to a bed and breakfast to celebrate.

Celebrating at the Soldotna B & B.

Thanksgiving was at the Taylor's.  Karl came home and brought a couple of friends along.  We had quite a group of young adults.  We played games and laughed a lot.

Karl got a Batman hat for Christmas and a lot of snow.  He enjoyed riding in quite a few feet of snow.

Scandanavian dinner with the Uncles, Tia, Britt and Pat, Grandpa and Grandma and us.

Tia Lupe Swanson tried out cross country skiing.

We took Grandpa skiing as well.

Kirsten loved being home for Winter in Alaska.  We will sure miss her when she goes back to California.

Britt and Pat Moore enjoyed Alaska in Winter as well.

Megan and Claire pretending to be babies.

Snowy view from our deck.

Swanson/Beachy Christmas.

Kate is a snow dog.  She loves it!

Couldn't drive out so what should we do?  Go snow machining!

Pete's sled shows just how much snow there really was.  He couldn't even see while riding.

This is how we move snow in Alaska.

Glad my college kids came home to help :)

The Greenhouse is barely above snow level.

Kirsten could not figure out who she was in "Headbanz".  She kept guessing Fabio.

Kathy Beachy and Lenore..kindred spirits.

Pete dressed up for the Fall Carnival as Thor's father, Odin.

We hope you enjoyed our blog.  We love you all and hope to see you and hear from you in the coming year.  Have a blessed year full of love, thanksgiving and giving yourselves to the purpose of furthering the Kingdom of God!