Lucy's Christmas Letter, 1996

1996 Goodell Family

Christmas Greetings !

DAN

Dan's year can be summed up in three activities: soccer, computer, and telephone. If he's not at the soccer field or a soccer meeting, then he is on the computer and the telephone ... usually handling soccer issues. He coaches, referees, maintains fields, and does what commissioners do. He coached Whitney in Select season, regular season, and on three tournament teams.

LUCY

The first six months of the year for me consisted mostly of working late and on weekends. Nik and I flew to Illinois in May to visit with all of my family. After our project implementation in July, I took a vacation and helped Kim paint the front of our house. In October I drove with Kim and five of her friends and two other parents to visit colleges in Oregon. Great trip!

Four of my poems are scheduled for publication. I continue to find time for flute and volleyball.

Whitney ~

A jack-in-the-box, that's what she is,
just like her Halloween costume.
Bouncy and smiling,
spring-loaded, I think;
Irrepressible, up all the time.

Soccer's her life in winter and fall;
in spring she's on tournament team.
She goes for the breakaways, racking up points,
and also she shines in the goal.

Her birthday this year brought a calico cat,
Sienna's a playmate for Shadow.
Whit's poem was published, an author is born,
her wagon is hitched to a star.

Nik ~

Nik's now a freshman in high school with Kim,
adjusting to change with no fuss.
His room reflects interest in stereo sounds
and dreams of a Volkswagen bus.

Soccer and blading are Nik's favorite sports.
He's awesome as goalie; aggressive on skates.
He likes doing projects and work with his hands,
He's building our fence, and has finished two gates.

He's taller than I am and gaining on Dan,
and though some say that he's quiet,
I have to admit that his offbeat, sly wit
(since he wants this to rhyme), is a riot!

Kim ~

She's always on the go...
With marching band and swimming team
and jobs and plays and friends and trips.

She's taken up photography and now she drives a car.
She paints our house, she lifeguards pools;
she swims, does art, does camera work.

She's made two trips to Canada, two trips to Oregon,
made smaller trips around the state, and then
Montana, too.

College mail is pouring in, she's narrowing the search.
It's been a power, jam-packed year
for Energizer Kim.