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Dear Family and Friends, Merry Christmas! Someone tell me, why is it that one of the Christmas traditions for most people, us included, is to write a letter to everyone that they don't talk to the rest of the year explaining just what it is we didn't talk to them about that previous year? Hmm...I guess it's just one of life's unanswerable questions. Probably even part of the answer to life, the universe, and everything. Regardless, that is a topic for a separate article all it's own and is a fairly moot point seeing as how this letter is precisely that. Yes, this is indeed one of those letters that we look forward to with so much anticipation each December. Well, at least our family does. Life is hectic. What with all the different jobs and projects that God has set before each of us, it's a wonder that any of us keep in contact even once a year like this. As such, Christmas letters are greatly looked forward to and enjoyed at the Marshall's house. Thus, in an attempt to return the favor and share the joy, here is our meager offering into the mound of correspondence that burdens postal workers nation wide in this most wonderful of months. Now, many people treat this yearly tribute in the following fashion. They take the year, break it down into individual months, and cover what happened in their lives one month at a time. This is quite an admirable method. However, there are also those who segment the letter into a section for each family member. That way each person gets their own little piece of the spotlight without detracting from the continuity of the entire piece. Very effective. Yet others do a "Year in Review" and just cover the highlights that drastically impacted their family's present conditions or future goals. This variety tends to make for an excellent read due to it's generally concise nature and goal driven outline. In an attempt to make this the most effective and enjoyable reading experience possible, we will make an effort to combine all three elements and hopefully wind up with a result of astonishing proportions. At the very least it should prove entertaining. But that is for you, the reader, to decide. Our task is simply to put forward the best tribute we can muster and hope for the best. So, without further ado, welcome to "The Marshall's 2005 Christmas Letter!" To begin, let's combine both the first and final methods presented. Let's go through the highlights of each month. January was, from a certain point of view, rather bland. Our family simply lived and worked at the Nashville Training Center. It was a fun time for us. We were still getting used to Institute life, enjoying getting to know new people, and learning just what it was we were supposed to be doing. During this month Megan traveled several times to assist in a number of births. February came with a little more excitement. It was in this month that the Nashville Training Center hosted a "Total Health" medical conference. In true Californian fashion, we all jumped in with both feet. Louanne ended up taking over the kitchen when the young lady who was the official cook got sick, Jim worked with a lot of the logistics and nitty-gritty details of the conference, and all the kids just pitched in wherever needed from transportation to dish washers. The month of March brought with it a very large change for our family. After living in Nashville for a mere four months, we were transferred to the Little Rock Training Center. This was an exciting move for us. We were able to go from a small apartment that had been converted from a doctor's office to an actual house again. It was wonderful. Yet, March also held some hardships and disappointments. It was in that month that Megan left and moved to New York. April was much like January, only warmer. Much warmer. Yet, our duties were much the same. We merely lived and worked at a different Training Center. Then came May and with it a great deal of excitement. First was a visit from Grandma and Pop-Pop Lombard that coincided with the arrival of a team of professional asbestos removers from Michigan. Grandma and Pop-Pop where here for a fun visit. The asbestos guys were here for a week of hard work making the building workable again. Then, later that month, we were asked to cook the meals for the Nashville Training Conference. So, back we went to the Training Center in Nashville. Two weeks and several thousand meals later, we returned home to Little Rock thoroughly exhausted yet very happy. Then came June and one of the most joyous times of our year. About the middle of June we set out for California. Yes, we got to take a month to travel across the country and back. The catch was that we had to do the meals at the Sacramento Training Conference in the middle of it. That was an amazing trip. We got to see friends from "home," travel as a family again, and just have some good old fashioned fun. We didn't arrive home from this adventure until late in the month of July. And thus began the traveling spree. The first week of August found BJ and Jonathan heading for Flint, MI and St. Louis, MO respectively. A week latter, the rest of the family followed picking Jonathan up in St. Louis and continuing on to Flint. We wound up spending just over three weeks in Flint working on fixing rooms at the Training Center there. The purpose of the endeavor was so that they would have more rooms ready to rent out the weekend of the CRIM race that they host every year at the end of August. As part of the work we all got to pitch in and help with the CRIM itself. Very fun indeed. On top of all that, we made some great friends, had some great times, and just really enjoyed ourselves. September ushered in it's own trip. This time to Texas. Dallas, Texas to be precise. Yes, Dallas thought that was quite fun. We spent two weeks there doing the same thing that we had done in Flint. Once again, our family was blessed and encouraged by the staff of the Training Center just like we had been in Flint. Well, after being home for only a couple weeks, we found ourselves packing up and heading back to Texas. This time to Big Sandy for ALERT's annual Family Camp. That was truly a time of encouragement and fun for each of us. Throughout our summer trips we had been making some wonderful new friends and many of them were present at Family Camp. It was a wonderful week for all of us. Another month, another Training Center. November sent us to the Oklahoma City Training Center for just over two weeks. This time while Jim and the guys painted and did rooms again, Louanne, Kymberly, and the little boys helped out around the training center doing everything from clearing the dining room after banquets to making new table covers for the Training Center. And then came December. This month has been relaxing. After attending the IBLP Staff Christmas Conference in Indianapolis at the beginning of the month, we have just relaxed around home, worked at the Training Center, and just generally had a good time. So, now that we have caught up on the highlights of our year, let us proceed to tell you how each member of the family is doing. Not that it is generally all that interesting, but once again, it should prove entertaining. Let's start with Jim, the patriarch. Over this past year his management skills have been put to a new test; attempting to try and manage his two oldest sons as employees. Yes, he has been the project manager for all the construction projects that the Institute has thrown our way this past year. Then comes Louanne. Talk about a hectic life. Cooking, cleaning, washing, scolding, cajoling, and playing the bass are all among her daily chores. Although the only truly new thing in that list is the bass. That's right, this past year Louanne has started to play the upright bass. The instrument is bigger than she is, makes more noise than Ezra, and adds an amazing musical element to the family band. Much fun. Next comes BJ who has now reached the antiquated age of twenty-five. Besides his regular circuit of construction projects, chalk art reunions and classes, and other such items, BJ has tackled a rather ambitious project this year. He is attempting to build his own guitar. It has proved to be quite a project and yet he is enjoying it immensely. He is at this point roughly half way finished and greatly looking forward to the finished project. And then comes Jonathan who is now eighteen. As nutty as ever, he is finally beginning to enjoy Institute life. Over the past year he attended a number of computer classes and spends his time pretending to be a geek, building web sites, working out at the rock climbing gym, writing a lot of sermons, fictitious works, and articles(including this newsletter), and working toward going to seminary next fall. He recently got a job as the finance guy/office manager for the Little Rock Training Center so he now has a full time job to help toward the eventual seminary costs. Kymberly, at fifteen, is still doing high school, helping mom, and generally working the equivalent of a full time job at home. Between her help with her younger brothers, her growing cooking skills, and her recent sewing craze she is quickly becoming an invaluable assistant around the house. Now thirteen years old, Dallas, though also still in school, is beginning to help with projects around the Training Centers, goes rock climbing with Jonathan most evenings, and is becoming a mad strategy gamer. His skills in writing are also taking a bit more serious turn as he works to turn out some serious fiction work. He's actually getting pretty good at it. Then ten year old Thaddaeus is still just being, well, Thaddaeus. Still living up to the nick-name of "Thud" he is as adventuresome as ever and tackles everything life throws at him with the tenacity of a mountain climber. And last but not least is Ezra who is now five. As the true baby of the family he is about as spoiled as they come. Yet, to him it is completely normal and to be expected. To say the least, he gets to do things the rest of the kids never would have dreamed of. I guess it kind of helps to have two "moms" and three "dads." And that concludes our Christmas letter for 2005. I fear that we failed in attempting to be concise, but I do believe we acquired the status of entertaining. Regardless, we hope that you enjoyed reading it and hope that you have a Merry Christmas basking in the glory of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May God bless each and every one of you with the joy of our Lord and a peace that is beyond understanding as you strive toward the goals He has set before you. Merry Christmas,
Contact Information: 300 E. Roosevelt Road
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