Last year, I ended our letter with a quote from my favorite blogger about life being BRUTIFUL. In order to embrace the beautiful, you also have to embrace the brutal parts of your life. I didn’t know at that time how brutiful our lives would become as 2014 wore on. More on that later…right now…the beautiful!
Lyndee
We’ve seen flashes this year of what this almost 8 year old will be like as a teenager, fiery and then remorseful. She never likes to be in trouble, but has trouble with controlling her emotions at times, especially the night she stomped dramatically up the stairs and told me, “You ruined my day! This is the worst day EVER!” Those times are few and far between, and she is almost always snuggly and loving and loves to be my Mini Me! She still loves to read and play with her babies (Dimble, Arnold, and Louis). She plans on being a baker when she grows up and says I can work with her! Lyndee loved Bible school, swimming lessons, and overnight church camp. She took gymnastics this summer and just last night told me that she is faster than the boys in her gym class, even though she has to slow down when turning the corners. She is fiercely independent and competitive, who knows where that comes from?!
Benjamin
Ben at nine and a half continues to amaze with his capacity for loving and kindness and his passionate disagreements with us, too! He is the best snuggler in the tristate area AND he’s lost more electronic game time through disobedience than anyone else in the family. He is great at using his imagination and playing with his “guys.” Early in December, he informed me that he didn’t want to grow up yet. I asked him why and he said, “Well, I still need to finish my collection of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle guys and I am not done adventuring yet.” He still has his tortoise, Mia, although we have threatened to unadopt her a few times when he let his responsibilities lapse. He played baseball (willingly this year!) and was involved in nature camp, church camp, swimming lessons, basketball camp, track and field camp (not by choice, but you kind of have to when your parents are coaches), flag football, and Bible school. After watching Gabe’s first band concert this fall, he has switched from wanting to play the flute, to wanting to play percussion like his big brother (and his parents). This means piano lessons in 2015! Ben still wants to be a farmer when he grow up and says he will always give me free corn.
Gabriel
Gabe is eleven and a half. So many times, I look at him and just can’t believe this big kid is mine. I am so grateful that he still loves using his imagination and hasn’t been too jaded by middle school. He loves school and his friends and isn’t too embarrassed to be seen with his mom, yet. He is an awesome reader it’s not unusual for him to be reading 5 books at a time. Gabe’s tech knowledge is fast outpacing us, and he teaches us about things all the time that he’s figured out. He was awarded a 2nd place in the State DNR Duck Stamp Contest and loves to draw comics as well. He also recently won an exemplary award in an area writing contest. I cheer for these things and Matt wants him to spend more time on his free throws. He played baseball this summer, played football this fall (until he broke his arm), and is now playing basketball and learning how to listen to his dad, the coach. He attended Bible school, church camp, and an academic camp this summer. He takes piano lessons and percussion lessons, and Grammie has begun ukulele lessons with him, too! His gerbil, Russell, passed away after a short, but happy life and I am sure another “Russell” will join us again soon. Gabe wants to be a professional athlete when he grows up and he’s hoping for the NBA. He says I can live in his mansion and he’ll give me my own butler.
Matt
After 17 years teaching elementary Physical Education, Matt made a move this year to Century High School in Rochester. He is enjoying the challenges and is a great role model for the young men and women he teaches on how to have FUN again in PE! He coached the boy’s track and field team in Pine Island again for the 18th season last spring. The team went to True Team State for the third year in a row where they placed 4th and had two relay teams and several individuals advance to the State meet in June. He loves his fantasy football leagues and still loves hunting, even though he hasn’t gotten many opportunities this year. He coached defense for Gabe’s 5th grade football team and is now coaching Gabe’s 5th grade traveling basketball team. He is so good at it and it is fun to watch! At the first tournament, I told myself I was just going to be a quiet observer. That lasted about two minutes! I’m insanely grateful that my husband is also an exceptional father, who lets the kids know that even though he is demanding about schoolwork and behavior, he loves them amazingly!
Amy
I am teaching 6th grade for the 5th year. Coaching cross country is always extremely rewarding. The program continues to grow and this year we had three athletes qualify for the State meet! I assisted Matt again with boy’s track and field and truly believe that coaching and teaching are callings. I love my jobs and the people I work with are the most dedicated and professional people I know. I am grateful that my friends (and family members and husband) are patient with me and know that I am always thinking about them, even though I hate talking on the phone and avoid it as much as possible. I am keeping the same ending part as last year because it makes even more sense to me now. As a family with three active kids, Matt and I work hard to keep things in perspective (although not always successfully) and keep close to us the things that are truly important and let the lesser things go to the background for a while. The kids are really at awesome ages right now and we are enjoying every aspect of our lives. I feel so fortunate to have a job that I love, coworkers who make it fun to stay in the trenches of teaching, a family I love to come home to, safety and well being in my life and access to everything a girl could want!
Family
We drove out to the East Coast this year to visit Chris and Bree and family this summer. Our kids didn’t necessarily like the car driving part, but they were troopers. And Chris and Bree were awesome hosts! We got to spend time in Washington, D.C., Annapolis, Shady Side, and Ocean City. Watching the kids experience the ocean for the first time was pretty priceless. We drove up to Niagara Falls on our way home and when we got there, wished we had our passports so we could have been on the Canadian side as well. Our guide told us we could probably get over to the Canadian side, but “Good luck getting back into the U.S.” Needless to say, we stayed where we were! We only got up to the lake once this summer, but plan a lot more time up there next summer. Stay tuned for Bobapalooza 2 for Dad’s 80th birthday!
Pets
Dash is HUGE. Dash takes off into the woods every chance he gets, hence ½ of the reason we invested in a shock collar set. We got a 2nd dog, (although look back on our single dog days fondly) named Tucker. He is a 1.5 year old golden retriever who we found on Craigslist. He will be a good dog….eventually. Now you know the other ½ of the reason we invested in a shock collar set. Prior to that purchase, the two of them had some grand adventures in the woods – including meeting a not-so-friendly skunk. Lyndee wants a bunny…not happening. Matt wants an iguana…also not happening. Gabe wants another gerbil…we’ll see. I want a clean house….more than likely not happening.
Back to the brutal and beautiful.
The brutal…on June 22nd, my strength of two bears dad was diagnosed with lymphoma with a tumor wrapped around his spine. He endured radiation, chemo, and pneumonia. The beautiful…my stepmom, Karla, is amazing in her patience and commitment to my sometimes grumpy dad. (Sometimes we Slettedahls take grumpy pills and they WORK!) Heidi became our family information getter from the doctors and nurses. I got to give my dad pep talks and be hopeful enough for all of us and hold his hand when he was feeling the struggles of healing. My children and my husband were wonderfully patient with me as we all but abandoned our usual summer routines. I got to open my home to Karla for a lot of the summer as my dad got treatment at Mayo Clinic. We got to witness the amazing talents of our Creator AND the unfathomable talents of the doctors and nurses. My dad got a helicopter ride! And…as of October 27th, my dad is cancer free with no evidence of the tumor! He will continue to doctor down at Mayo in Arizona where they are working him really hard in physical therapy so he can ditch the walker as soon as he can. More brutal…my mom had emergency eye surgery to repair a torn and damaged retina when she lost vision in her left eye on the day after Thanksgiving. She and David were unable to go to Arizona for the winter. The beautiful…We again witnessed the amazing talents of the doctors and nurses at Mayo Clinic and the blessings of living in a medical mecca. David is a great care taker for my mom! More beautiful….they are unable to go to Arizona. I say this somewhat tongue in cheek since I know they love their home there, but I love HAVING them home here. Also, the surgeon says he is pleased with Mom’s progress and we pray for return of full vision! So, there you have it. This year, our lives have been a true lesson on the fact that you have to embrace the brutal in order to see and embrace the beautiful. Life is messy, and as soon as we are okay with that, we can see the incredible designs within the mess. Our lives are crazy, sometimes frustrating, loud, in and out, and busy by choice. Our lives are also blessed, laugh out loud, and incredibly loving. We pray that you will embrace both the brutal and the beautiful in your own ordinary, yet extraordinary lives in 2015.
Love,
Matt, Amy, Gabriel, Benjamin and Lyndee
Dash, Tucker, and Mia
