News update from Tuesday January 08, 2002

Dear family and friends,

Warmest greetings from the Lacey family stationed in Ohio. You are getting over 1-1/2 years worth of update in this letter, since I never got last years out. I know some of you thought we just dropped you from our list...

Daniel (14) is our full-fledged teenager. He has passed mom up in height and is a regular eating machine. He is our built-in babysitter so Tim and I get a chance to go out now and then. The summer of 2000 he was pitcher and first baseman on a baseball league at a nearby church. The main emphasis was right attitude, teamwork, and improvement in abilities. The team worked hard and was undefeated. He helped coach with Tim and other men this past summer.

Daniel got braces put on his teeth right after his 13th birthday in September 2000, and then had oral surgery to remove two baby incisors and expose to pull down the two permanent teeth that were impacted. They are coming through nicely. His wisdom teeth were removed since he was put under, which will prevent another surgery later on.

Daniel took American Kenpo classes the fall of 2000 through the spring of 2001 from a Christian black belt at the same church that hosts the baseball. He was student of the month for January. His rank is purple belt. Daniel sings in the adult church choir, directed by Tim, and is involved with the youth groups at church. Last summer, he went on a work weekend to Shepherd's Bethel in Indiana and helped weed-whack 55 acres.

oel (12) has played baseball the past two summers. He was pitcher, catcher, first baseman, and shortstop...and did well anywhere he was needed. Joel also did well in Kenpo and is ranked a purple belt. He was student of the month of April. The class dissolved because of a job conflict with the instructor.

Joel joined Daniel by adorning braces on his teeth in February 2001. He had the top ones on for 7 months before he was straightened out enough to get the bottom ones on. Last May, Joel received the Christian Character Award from the Patch the Pirate Club he is in at church. Just this last December, Joel had one of the leading roles in our church Christmas cantata, "Then Jesus Came." He did a great job and has found his niche in life - all his "clowning around" has blossomed into his acting career.

Joshua (8) has been doing very well genetically. In May of 2000, we gradually changed his diet of Propimex 2 (his medical formula) over a one-month period. In January 2001, he started to get sick during a week we spent with friends in South Carolina. His valine intake was too high, which messed him up metabolically. We adjusted his diet and he leveled out again after about 3 weeks.

Joshua has been losing his teeth, pulling the loose ones out on his own. He "graduated" from the "Pocket Full of Praise" group and is now in Patch the Pirate Club with Joel. He enjoys the songs and skits they perform every month. After many attempts, Joshua finally got the hang of riding a two-wheeler. It was shortly before he turned 8. Baseball is still his greatest love. He seldom misses a pitch from his Dad.

Jonathan (6 1/2) has been riding a two-wheeler since the summer he turned five. He is fast as a whip on wheels, as well as on foot. He loves to walk to the creek and catch frogs and minnows with Daniel and Joel. Daniel taught him to do back-flips on the backyard trampoline. Jonathan lost his first tooth playing basketball with a neighbor boy. Thankfully, it was ready to come out. Jonathan will finish his last year with Pocket Full of Praise. He too loves to play baseball with his Dad and his brothers.

Shauna (2) has been growing and developing, like any healthy, normal toddler. She is sunshine and joy to our home and hearts. She was taking a few steps around her 1st birthday, but really took off walking at Christmas time (2000) while at Grandma & Grandpa Lacey's Her favorite book is "How Big is a Pig?" She keeps up with the boys who teach her all sorts of things (some good, some not so good...).

Her first sickness was a cold/cough, which she got from me when she was 14 months old (January 2001). Then she had a nasty flu bug about a month and a half later. Other than that, she has been a very healthy child. Shauna loves to go bye-bye with Daddy or Mama. She's really a good shopper...a daughter after my own heart. She was potty-trained daytime and nighttime a couple of months before her 2nd birthday. What a joy to be officially out of diapers! Shauna is all girl, loves to dress up, and takes care of all her baby dolls. She is very much a Daddy's girl.

Tim received the "Father of the Year" award at our church in June 2000. Daniel and Joel had written essays with convincing reasons why their Dad should be chosen...and he was. In the fall of 2000, we played bluegrass for several gatherings, a Harvest party, and an Old Fashioned Founder's Day in IL. Over the last two New Year's weeks, Tim had the opportunity to attend the Wilds music conference in North Carolina. A couple of times he took Daniel and Joel, and other racecar fans too, to the Indy 500 time trials and the Brickyard 400.

Tim still works as a Communications Officer at the Air Force Institute of Technology. At present, he is studying and taking to total of seven tests to obtain the title of Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer. He hopes to finish this by summer time. He will retire next year in the January/March time frame with 20 years in the Air Force. We are all ready to settle down and hope to retire in the Nashville, TN area. As of now, Tim does not see being called up for any combat duty concerning the current war on terrorism.

Probably his greatest milestone for the year was that he turned 40 on October 26, 2001. A few of his co-workers really messed up his office with signs, balloons, health/hair messages on his computer, etc. The kids and I had a surprise birthday celebration on the Sunday night after the service with the church choir people.

I had Lasic eye surgery done last December 2000. After some 30 years of glasses or contacts, I now see 20/20. It was literally an "eye opening" I still stay busy home schooling all 4 boys with Shauna in the middle of it all. I sewed a 15th year Anniversary Bedspread (April 2001) and made matching Mother/Daughter banquet dresses for Shauna and me. I continue to be a "Creative Memories 'wanna be'." Maybe this will be the winter I can get back to photos.

Other family highlights were a Gaither Homecoming concert and a Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver Bluegrass concert with Paul Williams and the Victory trio. Tim, Shauna, and I heard the Air Force Strings and went to a Michael and Debbie Pearl "To Train Up a Child" seminar. This past summer, Rod and Mary Beth (sister), their daughter Jenna, and another niece, Abby, came for a few days. We also had a friend of Daniel and Joel's spend a week.

In September, we took a trip home to Wisconsin to see my family. In October, we went to see the Niagara Falls. That was a fantastic sight! Our friends from IL went with us. We spent Thanksgiving with Tim's family in GA. And, we had our own Christmas here in Ohio. We did entertain some out-of-town friends too.

That should catch all of you up on the happenings in the Lacey household. God has blessed us and we are grateful for His watch care over us. We would love to hear from you. Thanks to those of you who have kept in touch. Write a note, make a phone call, or e-mail us. All the information you need is on this letter.

We love you - you are very special people to us.

Love,
Tim & Sandy
Daniel, Joel, Joshua, Jonathan, & Shauna

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