December 2004

Dear Friends and Family,

As the year 2004 comes to a close, it’s time once again to update y’all on what we’ve been up to.  This past year has been amazing and a lot has happened.

For Spring Break, Terri and the kids rented a cabin on Lake Catherine near Hot Springs, Arkansas and spent the week there with her sister Julie and her kids (Allen had to work).  They had so much fun hanging out together. Over Memorial Day weekend, we managed a quick trip with the kids to Lake Bridgeport, Texas.  In July, Trey and Allen were away at Boy Scout camp for a week. After their return, we spent a weekend or two rewiring our house with Cat 5 data cable. That was quite a task—spending hours in the very hot attic of our house in July! As exciting as that was, even better was the recent premiere issue of Network Life magazine which featured Allen’s photo on the cover and a story about him inside. Allen installed a PBX in our house and we are in the process of getting new multi-line phones.   We spent the Thanksgiving holiday at DisneyWorld and had a great time.

Trey is 11 ¾ years old and is in 6^th grade.  His grades are improving and he won 2nd place in the school science fair.   We are in the process of applying to private schools for next year. His activities include playing the trombone, playing YMCA baseball, and of course, Boy Scouts.  In February, Trey earned the Arrow of Light award and moved from Webelos into Boy Scouts.  Now he is working toward his First Class rank.  Trey’s voice is noticeably lower when he sings with his church choir. Both he and Kelsey got loft beds this year; the beds are raised with a computer desk underneath.  It definitely helps with the need for more floor space.

Kelsey is 8 ¼ years old and in 2^nd grade.  This year she was invited into the Talented and Gifted program at school.  She loves reading, writing, and singing.  Four of her 13 entries won ribbons at her school art/literature contest.  Kelsey discovered that her favorite sport is cheerleading.  During basketball season, she cheered in a church-based league. She is now almost as tall as Trey is, and is growing her hair long. Brownie Girl Scouts is still a favorite activity and she’s a whiz at cookie selling, having sold the most in her troop.  In May, she and Allen enjoyed their last Indian Princess campout together. Kelsey and Trey attended Science Adventures camp over the summer with their cousins and really loved it.

Terri has had a busy but gratifying year.  She kept busy with committee meetings for the White Rock Arts Festival; the school carnival; her church Finance committee and her church’s 50^th anniversary steering committee; being a room mom to Trey’s class; going to handbell rehearsals; Girl Scout troop leader meetings and Brownie events; and her job at the SMU ethics center, not to mention chauffeuring the kids to their activities. She still loves doing aerobics, running, and lifting weights for exercise.

Allen has been involved in a variety of activities too.  He attended a meeting of the Supreme Court Historical Society in Washington DC and met Ken Starr and Justice Clarence Thomas. He also traveled to Las Vegas to volunteer with the interop-net team at Networld+InterOp and got to see the “Blue Man Group” in concert.  He was involved with a local sheriff candidate’s election campaign, his numerous watchdog websites, Site-Based Decision Making committee at the kids’ school, sound engineering at church, acting as Assistant Scoutmaster for Trey’s troop, renewing an interest in amateur radios, driving the McKinney Avenue Trolley, and scuba diving.  He took a trip to Cozumel this fall to get his SCUBA certification and can’t wait until his next dive. Allen’s job at SMU continues to be challenging yet rewarding for him.

Looking over this, it’s hard to believe we managed to do so much this year.  God has truly blessed us and we give thanks every day for that.  May your holiday season be rich and joyful, and may you have a great 2005.

With love and our best wishes,

Allen, Terri, Trey and Kelsey Gwinn