Dear Friends and Family,

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It’s that time of year again—where we pretend our lives are Pinterest-worthy and you pretend to care. So, grab some cocoa and let us tell you about the circus we’ve been running over here at the Lemperle house.

 

Philip has had quite the year. He started a new job with Legacy South and is living the dream as a Homebuilder. If you’re wondering what that dream looks like, just imagine a guy who’s either on a construction site or sitting at a desk Googling, “How to fix drywall for dummies.” He’s also serving as Bishop of our church congregation, which has really taught him the art of looking calm while internally yelling, “WHAT AM I DOING?”

 

Haley spends most of her time picking up Philip’s slack and is surprisingly graceful under the load. This year, she toured Italy with BYU Alumni Choir, serving as their accompanist and honorary gelato tester. When not living her best life raising a bunch of cute kids and traveling abroad, she runs her piano teaching business and loves every moment of it—except maybe when she’s listening to the same wrong note for the hundredth time.

 

Felicity is our overachiever: after absolutely crushing 3rd Grade last year, the school district invited her to do it again—just so the other kids could learn how it’s done. She also shined in her school’s Beauty and the Beast production, playing the pivotal role of “Jail Holder #1” with more conviction than the Beast himself. She spends most of her time managing her siblings’ emotional meltdowns, which is basically unpaid therapy.

 

Elsie is our little artist. Whether she’s crafting or writing stories, she’s always creating. She also ensures no one (and we mean no one) gets away with breaking the rules—which is both admirable and occasionally inconvenient for the rest of us. She is also an award-winning cuddler, redeeming her from all the policing.

 

Nessa is the family comedian, keeping us laughing and/or slightly offended at all times. She has single-handedly filled 90% of our family quote journal. Highlights include:

• To Haley, mid-workout: “Mom are you not strong? You sound like you’re dying! Like you’re standing on a rock and there’s lava under the rock and the rock is about to crack.”

• After a particularly whiny day, Haley told the kids she’d had enough. Nessa’s solution? “If you just do what the kids say, they won’t whine.” (Logic is undefeated.)

 

Truman is officially all boy. He leaps off furniture, headbutts Philip like it’s a family handshake, and makes sound effects like he’s auditioning for a Marvel movie. He recently mastered his balance bike and is already gearing up for two-wheelers. Truman also started preschool and loves it, but his biggest battle this year has been avoiding hair clippers like they’re a chainsaw.

 

Pua, our family pet, continues to get grosser with each passing year. Enough said.

 

And there you have it—the highlights (and lowlights) of our year. We hope your holidays are filled with joy, laughter, and fewer sticky fingerprints than ours.

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The Lemperle Family