The Frogleys in 2010

Happy Holidays all!

We have chosen to post our Christmas update on our blog this year. Obviously, if you're reading this, you found it okay. :) And yes, Christmas is over, so is New Year's... just be glad I got to this before Valentine's day.

This year has been busy, and full of surprises. Our first surprise came in February, when my brother David received his mission call. He told us that he had planned to drive back to Oregon to surprise our parents, and thus, I would miss watching him open the call. At the last minute we decided to drive to Oregon and join in on the surprise. Of course, this involved our first road trip with all 5 kids. It was a lot of driving for a short visit, but we had a lot of fun.

David left for El Salvador, San Salvador West mission in June (and we got to drop him off at the MTC!).

Our next surprise came when we discovered that Dave didn't actually have to be IN UTAH to finish his thesis. He could (potentially) finish that portion of his degree while working out of state. After applying to numerous internship opportunities, Dave received another internship with Intel (with the same group as before), and we prepared to move to Oregon in August (even though the internship officially began in July).

One of our favorite surprises came in October with Intel's relocation package... it turns out the amount we were expecting for our relocation assistance was PER PERSON! And it turns out that 7 is an excellent multiplier. :) With this new windfall we were able to pay all our moving expenses, pay off our car, and our credit cards, buy a new couch & several housewares for our new apartment, and splurge on two new iPod Touches... one for Dave and one for me. Also, thanks to a pot-luck park event with some old friends, Dave was able to find a loop-hole in the Master's program that allowed him to do an "industry-oriented" thesis, instead of a research based one, so he was finally able to settle on a project and feel confident about it.

Then came the not-so-good-surprises. Turns out that while working on a thesis remotely is possible, it's not really recommended, and it's very difficult to do from home, where there are countless distractions from a loving wife and 5 adoring children. Dave made virtually no progress on his thesis during his internship.

But, not all was lost. Thanks to our awesome relocation package, we now had no consumer debt and our savings account was building faster than we previously thought possible. Dave decided it was time to return to Utah and finish the thesis once and for all. So, when the internship officially ended in January, we stored most of our belongings with my parents, packed up our little mini-van, loaded up a car-top carrier, and drove back to the desert. We are now staying with some wonderful friends, living off our savings account, and Dave's meager "research assistant" income until Dave finishes this thesis. (BTW, the "research assistant" job is through his professor and his official job responsibilities include: finish your thesis. We feel extremely blessed with even this small stipend because we fully expected an income of $0 for these few months.) Also, I have given Dave a deadline of our anniversary (May 9th) to defend his thesis. He's on track so far, but it's a long road, so we'll see what happens.

As for the rest of the family. I have stayed very busy (too busy) with La Leche League, and with my many sewing projects, and with homeschooling.

Kathryn (5), officially started homeschooling kindergarten this year, though she's doing all first grade work. She is an excellent reader, and loves speaking in public. She has already given several talks in primary, and loves practicing them at home. Ryn is also an avid artist and budding writer. She loves drawing pictures for family members, and writing long descriptions of her art. Kathryn also started piano lessons this past fall.

Danielle (4), is also learning to read, and really enjoys math as well. But her real passion is watching movies and acting them out. Her all-time favorite movie is Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, and she loves her play barn and animals.

Christine just turned 3 on New Year's Eve. She loves following her sisters around and joining in their play. She is already begging to read and has desperately tried to give up her naps, even though many days prove that she still needs them.

Jacob & Joseph turned 1 in September and are the highlight and torment of everyones' days. They love to laugh, run, climb, destroy, and babble. We are just now hearing a few distinguishable words from them... the most consistent of which is "uh-oh." Their older sisters have also taught them to be "doggies" and we love laughing with them while they crawl around the floor with their tongues hanging out.

Jacob (Jack-Jack) is very relaxed and content most of the time. He loves mom, but doesn't mind when she's gone. He can usually be found with two fingers in his mouth, unless he's trying to make animal sounds, which nearly all sound like growling. Jack also LOVES electronics and is constantly stealing our phones and ipods. He's also pretty good with a touch screen.

Joseph (Joss) is a little more high-strung. He is a bit more clingy than his brother, and doesn't like strangers, but once he gets to know someone, they are his best friend. He quickly attached himself to my mother while we were in Oregon and would seek her out to get grandma-hugs whenever he could. Joss is also a bit more vocal. Some of our favorite words in his vocabulary include "froggy," "doggy," "ti-u" (thank you), and "DAD!" (which is always yelled and very staccato).

We hope this update finds you well, and wish you a happy new year. We're excited for all the surprises and changes this new year will bring, and wonder where and how the holidays will find us in 2011!