Dickson Family Update 2008

The Dickson Family Update

2008

My name is Erik and I just turned 2 in August, but you could have guessed that from the way I yell “mine” whenever anyone reaches for something that I am holding, or from hearing me immediately say “nope” whenever anyone asks me anything :). However, you really wouldn’t guess that I am two when you hear me sing my ABCs by myself. I know all of my letters (upper and lower case) and most of my letter sounds. I can also count up to 12 and backward from 10. I love numbers, shapes, and colors, and I know all of those, too. I don’t know where I could have picked it all up; I guess it is because I love puzzles, books, Blue’s Clues, Dora, Super Why, and especially reading time with Mom. I also love going to “my class” at church—mostly for the snacks and Bubble Time. My favorite daily activity is following Mom wherever she goes.

I’m Brennan and I am 4. I love being 4—what a great age! I get to be a big helper for my Mom and I can do more and more things all by myself. I help teach my little brother everything that he knows, including the best ways to jump from one couch to the other. I can usually get dressed and use the potty without help. I can go down the tallest slides, swing really high on the swing at the park and even went on the Tower of Terror at California Adventure. I love to play games with my family and I even beat my mom sometimes. Ask me about my favorite animals and I’ll tell you “alligators and sharks,” even though sometimes they “creep me out.” Living in South Florida is perfect for me. I love school time with Mom and next year I get to go to pre-K. I am excited to go to school just like Sister does.

My name is Alanna and I am nine years old. I am in fourth grade. My favorite part of being in fourth grade is having really great teachers. I also love going to book club after school. In August, my family went to LA and saw Wicked, and it was really fun listening to my favorite songs. We also went to California Adventure with my family, grandma, and cousins, and the rides were awesome. I really like playing a game called Heroscape with my dad and we went together to two tournaments this year and had lots of fun. I also played on a basketball team this year. I was the only girl on my team, but it was still fun and I won a gold trophy. I hope to play again next year. My Littlest Pet Shop collection started small, but now I have over 30 of them. I like to play with them whenever I have time.

Danielle: I can’t believe that we have already been here over a year. Some days it feels like we are still just getting settled and other days it seems like we have lived here forever. We are really enjoying living in South Florida and have now dodged the hurricanes for two years in a row—whew!—thank you for all the prayers. I am getting a little more comfortable seeing so many lizards, iguanas, snakes, turtles, toads, frogs, etc., but I am still not a reptile lover (I make sure I don’t work in the yard alone for fear of what I may see). I enjoy serving as the Education Counselor in the Davie Ward Relief Society and am really grateful for all of the friends we have made. The kids are good at keeping me busy and are all growing up so quickly. I spend most of my days picking up, getting snacks and “pups”(cups of Tang—the boys’ drink of choice), reading stories, playing games, picking up, listening to a 4-year-old’s jokes, changing diapers, going to the library, cooking, going to the park, doing laundry, helping with homework and picking up again. Does that sound familiar to anyone else? In my spare time I work for Gone Tropo (a company that sells T-shirts) from home and I hope to start substitute teaching a couple of days a month for Broward County School District after the first of the year. We miss being close to family and friends, but are thankful for new friends and neighbors as well as for all of the visits from family. It was great to see family when we went to California this summer. We love hearing from all of you and hope to continue to keep in touch. Maybe a good new year’s resolution for me would be to update our blog more than once a year!

Vernon: With Thanksgiving fresh in my mind, I find myself thinking more and more about how grateful I am for so many things this last year (and beyond). We are finally feeling comfortable here in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area, mostly because of such excellent neighbors, church members, and great friends and colleagues. We still miss our family, but thankfully no day goes by without a call, an email, or some contact from loved ones. The members of the English Department here at Florida International University are incredibly supportive. I also received a grant through the Dean’s Office to study this summer at the Huntington Library, pushing forward work on my current book project and completing an article related to my book for publication in a top-tier journal in my field next summer (Renaissance Quarterly). In addition, I enjoy tremendously working with the youth in our church ward—the youth definitely keep you young and make you feel old all at the same time! The best part of this last year has been watching Erik, Brennan, and Alanna grow and spending time with them and Danielle—the best part of any day.