Chad & Jen's Christmas Letter 2008

There's a midwestern tradition I've been introduced to as of late that I think I'm going to adopt: the Annual Christmas letter. I've read a few of these and I think I can do this, right? It's kind of like a blog entry (I think). Here we go...

-Chad

December 21, 2008

Family and friends,

So this is Christmas, and what have we done?

I can't believe I'm sitting here in Starbucks at the end of the year, just a few days away from Christmas and only a few more days after that, 2009. Next year will be a huge year for us. This year has been all about preparing our lives for the changes to come. There's been a lot of hard work, a lot of patience practiced and a lot of good times. So let's go through the past year, day by day, with a detailed description of what Jen and I did (like the trip reports on my blog). You'd like to read all that, right? No? Okay, well, I'll condense it down a bit so you can read it and then go finish your Christmas shopping (hint: I always like Starbucks gift cards).

Winter

The year started off with an addition to the Hunter family. Jolie Rebecca Hunter was born to my brother, Braxton, and his wife Sarah on January 8, 2008. She was the first Hunter grand child, but she won't be the last.

As you likely know, we're starting a family (Jen's in her second trimester now) and the plan was always to get into a 3-bedroom house before that blessed event. So January to March of this year we had to get the old house ready to sell. Replacing carpet, repainting areas, putting things in storage to stage it properly. In this housing market, the details matter. And we were pretty successful, but more about that later.

For Valentine's Day, Jen and I took a trip to Memphis, Tennessee. We had a good time watching the ducks in the fountain at the Peabody Hotel, visiting Graceland, and eating Bar-be-que on Beale Street. I was born in Memphis and given up for adoption. Going back there always stirred up thoughts about that experience. This year, I actually decided to do something about it. More about that later as well.

For those of you who don't know, I'm a graphic designer by trade and I had the opportunity to work on a brochure for Universal Studios new theme park in Dubai this past Spring. That was a lot of fun. I also continue to do work for LifeWay Worship Music and other clients here in Nashville and around the country. I've been blessed to have a steady stream of work and don't take that for granted. Jen is still working for Greenvale homes and has done very well in this poor economy. I'm proud of her for sticking out the tough times.

We've been attending Village Chapel in Nashville for some time. This past February we started going to an class where we had the pleasure of making some new friends. Jeff & Michelle Godby and William & Carla Gladstone. Now all 3 of the women are moms (or mom-to-be's) and it's exciting to be in a community where we can all relate to what each of is going through and we'll be able to support each other as time goes forward.

By the end of March, the house was ready to put on the market. Jen's experience as a real estate agent paid off. She knew just how much to ask for, because we sold the house in one week, and made a profit! Now we needed to move...

Spring

We were able to get a 1-bedroom apartment at Brentwood Downs. Both Greta and Michael have apartments there. Tara and Adam live close-by and the new house is one mile away, so it was a great location. We moved in with everyone's help (thanks everyone) and quickly started taking advantage of the swimming pool and the hot tub (I'm going to miss that tub).

We signed papers on the new house, a 3-bedroom townhouse in Oak Hill, and we have been able to watch construction as it moves along. It's been really cool, as this is the first time I've bought new construction and we're both anxious to move in.

In May we decided to take a quick weekend trip to Chattanooga, Tennessee for our second anniversary. If you've never been there, I highly recommend it. Beautiful city parks, great restaurants, museums, aquariums, all within walking distance. You should definitely visit, and feel free to NOT see Rock City if you go. There's more to see there than the tourist traps.

Summer

Summer was filled with more swimming in the pool and just being outdoors as much as possible. We would go see as many of Greta, Tara & Adam's softball games as we could, and that was always a great way to spend the evening. We celebrated my 37th birthday by visiting my family in Newburgh, Indiana. We got to spend time with our little niece, Jolie, and the rest of the family. That was a lot of fun.

Jen's parents came to visit and we took a canoe trip down the Harpeth River near Nashville. That was a real adventure, and I can't believe I had never gone canoeing before (I don't consider myself an "outdoors" person by any stretch of the imagination). I definitely want to do it again.

As summer drew to a close, we went on a trip that I've looked forward to for a long time. We went to Cancun, Mexico on a "delayed" anniversary vacation (there's plenty of details here on the blog if you are interested). It was so much fun and I can't wait to go back.

Fall

In early fall, I decided to do something I have thought about doing before, but I haven't. I decided to track down my birth mother. The thoughts of wondering who she was when we were in Memphis played a part, and so did trying to track down any medical history before we tried to start a family of our own. After only a few months of effort, the state had tracked down Mary Ann (Geiger) Beery, my birth mother, and her husband Gunner. I've gotten to know them better over the past few months and it has been a pleasure. I can't wait to get to meet them sometime in the near future.

Not long after I discovered more information about my roots, Jen and I discovered that we would be adding a new branch to the family tree. Jen found out she was pregnant and we're now expecting a little one next June. Needless to say, we're excited! I think that little bit of news is still sinking in for both of us.

Knowing that we would start a family VERY soon, Jen and I filled the end of the year with a lot of trips. We knew next year would mostly be a "nesting" year with the baby, so we had one more "grown up" trip to Walt Disney World, my favorite place on earth. For those of you who would wonder why adults would visit there by themselves, there's plenty to do there that doesn't include meeting costumed mice and riding boats past singing dolls (not that there's anything wrong with that). We had a great time visiting old friends, taking in shows, enjoying great dining and wonderful shopping. It was a little bit of a different trip since Jen was pregnant, but it was fun as always.

Holidays

Only two weeks after our Disney trip, it was Thanksgiving. We were spending it with my family. Dad decided he wanted to spend it in Chicago and we excitedly agreed to go! We had a great time. The weather was actually nice and the shopping on Michigan Avenue on Black Friday was crazy, but fun. It was my first time to Chicago, but I definitely don't want it to be my last. I love that city.

Ever since then, we've been back and been wrapping gifts and starting to get ready to move. We're also flying out tomorrow morning to visit Jen's family for Christmas. It'll be my first "white Christmas" in recent memory and my first time in snow deeper than 4-inches EVER. Having lived in the South, I've been accustomed to (and comfortable with) mild winters, but this should be fun! I'm looking forward to it.

So what's next? We close on our new house in mid-January. As much as we've loved being Greta's neighbor, we're ready for the new house and all the new adventures in the new year. We're very hopeful for what 2009 will bring and we pray that you have many blessings in the new year as well.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,

Chad, Jen & our little one

Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?

Sure, Charlie Brown.

New U2 Video

Video for "I Believe in Father Christmas"

New Coldplay Video

Video for "Lovers In Japan"

Doors Closing, Doors Opening

Okay, so it's been awhile since I've blogged about something that's not vacation-related, food-related or baby-related. But a lot has been going on in the past few weeks that I thought I'd put down on paper (so to speak) and share with you guys.

So some of you periodically ask how my schoolwork is coming along. The honest answer is, it isn't. Not really. I've ordered books and listened to lectures but I haven't been able to actually get to any of the lessons I'm supposed to do. The interest in counseling hasn't faded...don't get me wrong. This isn't some fad. But the timing is really off right now. I've been extremely busy with freelance work as of late (which is a GOOD thing, and I'm grateful for that). Any "slow time" I have seems to either get filled with more work or with things I've had to neglect in the busier times. Or, heaven forbid, rest.

I know, in the near future, things are going to get busier. Probably busier than I can even imagine. We're moving next month and then after that, we've got to get things ready for the new little one. Life doesn't slow down. And when life gets too busy, the only way to keep sane and get sleep is to sit down, prioritize, and make some tough decisions.

Of course, seeking out wise counsel is also a good idea. I sat down and talked to Dad about this stuff over Thanksgiving and he said something profound. He told me, "Chad, you've got a little one coming soon. You don't need to spend the first few years of your child's life with your nose in a book. Just set it aside and, when you can, come back to it." And when he told me that, I knew he was right. I just don't think I wanted to admit it because I was afraid I would look like a quitter in my own eyes and, honestly, in your eyes. In the eyes of family and friends. I'm a people pleaser at heart...what can I say! This isn't the end of things as far as counseling goes. It's just taking a detour.

The only tough thing about it right now is learning to hold very loosely to this and being willing to put it on a shelf for awhile. I'm a "goal-oriented" person. I get a buzz out of checking things off my "to do" list, sometimes even at the risk of my own sanity or the sanity of others. (Just ask Jen. I probably drove her nuts wanting to buy pieces of furniture 6 months before our house was completed just to know that we had that task done! But she has the patience of a saint, and I'm grateful.) Anyways, the point is I'm done with school for now and will come back to it when the time is right. And I'm telling myself that last part as much as I'm telling you.

But I think the "letting go of school" direction I'm going in will have more benefits than I'm aware. I have a feeling God was preparing me for getting ready to shift gears and do something else. There are some business opportunities and some volunteer counseling opportunities that I'm exploring right now that will allow me to move forward, have some more stability and be better for me and my family in general. But I'm not quite ready to go into detail about that just yet. So all I'll do is to ask you to pray for me about what the future holds. God has been good and taken care of Jen and me. I'll trust that He will continue to do so in the future. Even so, that doesn't mean that the prospect of change isn't a little scary!

That being said, I'd like to encourage everyone out there to sit down and prioritize at this time of year and try to find time to spend with family and friends. Stop and smell the roses. Take care of yourself and the people in you love. Life is short and we have to keep what's most important to us in focus, even if it means we have to let other things go. Especially our pride.

-chadley

Pregnancy Tracker Update

Fortune cookie

Can't believe I haven't shared this yet, but about 2 weeks before we found out Jen was pregnant, I got a fortune cookie at Pei Wei and this was the fortune.

We figured it out later, and Jen was actually pregnant when I got this message and we didn't even know it!

-chadley

Pregnancy Tracker Update

Here's what the Pregnancy Tracker app on our iPhones has to say this week.

Chicago Trip Photos

Hey! We're back from Chicago! We had a great time, but don't take my word for it! Jen did a great job creating a "trip report" this time around, so visit her blog and check it out at the link below. I've uploaded a few of my favorite pictures that she didn't include in her blog.

Jen's Chicago trip report

-chadley

Today's Ultrasound Photos

Here's the latest ultrasounds, including one that, yep, looks like a baby! Everyone is happy and healthy, and we appreciate your prayers.
-chadley

Pregnancy Tracker

Here's what the Pregnancy Tracker app on our iPhones has to say...

Photo of the Day

Sacreligious, or just funny? You decide.

Taken at Bongo Java, Nashville

-chadley

A reminder to myself

Went to the Y this morning and worked out. I feel so focused and
refreshed afterwards..more than i have in weeks. Why do I ever let the
thought of sleeping in win over knowing how important if is to take
care of myself?

I have to do better.

- Chad

Sent from my iPhone

Orlando Trip, Nov. 2008, Part 2

And now for the rest of my Orlando trip report:

The day after our Epcot trip, we had a day at the Kingdoms!

We got up and started the day at Disney's Animal Kingdom. This is Jen's favorite park and also one of Disney's more beautiful. It also helped that it was an unseasonably cool day, as that park seems to be one of the hottest places on WDW property year-round. We started the day getting FastPasses to the Kilimanjaro Safari and then making our way over to see the "Finding Nemo" musical. This is an original stage show performing only at Animal Kingdom, and it has a pretty big pedigree for a theme park stage show. The costumes are by the same designer who created the one's for The Lion King on Broadway. The songs were written by the same people who did the "Avenue Q" show that is on Broadway as well. It was a small show, but held the same quality of other musical productions I've seen touring the country. And it was a huge step above the usual dreck they call "stage shows" at Disney World - my least favorite things at the parks.

After that, we rode the safari, and took the two walking trails through the animal habitats. I don't know if it was the comfortable, un-muggy weather that brought the animals out, but I saw more animals in that trip than in 2 or 3 other trips combined and they were quite active. We saw several tigers, lions, meerkats, gazelles, giraffes and gorillas. I also took a quick ride on Expedition Everest, as the single rider line was very short and Jen didn't have to wait by herself for too long.

We wrapped up our time at AK by eating at "Yak & Yeti", a new Pan-Asian restaurant located in the Asia section. The restaurant was great - we got to sit on the second floor and do some great people-watching as crowds passed by. I got a salmon dish, while Jen got the ribs. As usual, Jen got the better meal of the two! The portion of ribs was so huge I actually ate half of it and we were both stuffed when we left. We returned to the hotel for a break after lunch.

That evening, we made our way to the original park at WDW, the Magic Kingdom. We had a bit of a surprise waiting on us, though - the Christmas decorations were up! The past couple of years, they have also covered Cinderella Castle in a sophisticated network of lights that resemble icicle lights on steroids. It really is mesmerizing to see them shimmer across the Castle's spires and turrets.

The first ride at MK was, naturally, the Haunted Mansion - probably my favorite ride at any Disney park. Then we rode the Mark Twain riverboat around Tom Sawyer's Island. You could tell this was more of a grown-up ride as it seemed to attract couples looking for a romantic place to spend a few minutes away from the hectic crowds. We then went and rode Pirates of the Caribbean, and then decided it was time to get something to eat. We went to Casey's Corner on Main Street, where they serve foot-long beef hotdogs and corn dog nuggets! We ate a quick dinner and made our way to Town Square where we had a front row view of the Spectromagic floats as they came out onstage. It was the perfect spot! Then we headed back down towards the Castle and picked out a spot for the Wishes fireworks show above the Castle. This takes place only about 15 minutes after the parade ends, so you have to find a good spot quick.

The fireworks were great, and afterwards, we found a bench and relaxed while the rest of the crowds made their way out of the park. Then we hopped on a practically empty monorail and made our way back to the car, closing out another fun day.

The next day was more of a laid-back day (which we needed). We had planned to meet with some friends of mine from the days when I worked at Universal Orlando. We got up early, got some Starbucks coffee and went to the office at Universal. I got to show Jen where I used to work, which was fun. Many of the people I knew were in a Monday meeting, but I did get to meet up with Wally Schumacher and Ali Snyder, both who worked there while I was there. We went to a Mexican restaurant close-by and had a great time catching up. Everyone had become parents since I had left so it was interesting to hear their take on how their lives had changed. One of my other coworkers, Todd Wineland, had left a couple of complimentary passes for Jen and I to use, so afterward we took those and made our way to the Universal parks.

Since Universal is mostly thrill-rides as compared to Disney, we did more sight-seeing than riding. First we wen to the Universal Studios park. Jen wanted to go see the "Animal Actors" show which I had never actually seen before. It was, as you might imagine, a very cute show. Then we went to Islands of Adventure and just walked around and took in the sights. The parks there are great, but it really is eye-opening to go there with someone who is restricted from doing so much. I didn't really feel like we had to miss out on too much when we were at Disney, but Universal was quite different.

Afterwards, we went back for the afternoon at the hotel. I planned a special evening for us, so we made sure and rested up. We had reservations for one of my favorite restaurants that night, so we got a little dressed up. On the 15th floor of the Contemporary Resort is the California Grille, a restaurant that overlooks the Magic Kingdom. I booked our reservation for 9 PM, optimal time to see the fireworks from the rooftop. But my expectations were exceeded as they gave us a table right by the window, so we were lucky enough to have an amazing view of "Holiday Wishes" from our table! That night, there was a special Christmas party at the Magic Kingdom, and the grand finale had fireworks going off from about 8 different locations around the Magic Kingdom - the sky was filled with fireworks and we were watching them at practically eye-level.

Not only did the view exceed expectations, but so did the food. For a starter we got the Chef's Garden Heirloom Tomato Flatbread with Roasted Garlic, Provolone, and Arugula. Then we split the Heirloom Tomato salad. For the main course I had the Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Goat Cheese Polenta and Jen had the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli with Sun-dried Tomatoes. We also got the Valrhona Chocolate Cake and Apricots for dessert. This was a great meal and I would definitely love to go back again. After stuffing ourselves, we made our way back to the hotel.

The following morning was our last day there, so we decided to continue the eating parade and had breakfast at the Kona cafe at the Polynesian Village resort. I had my favorite, the "Tonga Toast", which is banana-stuffed sourdough bread, rolled in cinnamon sugar and served with Strawberry Compote. So good! Jen got the "Big Kahuna" - French toast, Macadamia-Pineapple pancakes, eggs, home fried potatoes. Needless to say, we were stuffed again and didn't eat again until we got home that night. We had a little time to kill before we needed to return to the airport, so we went to Downtown Disney, which is a shopping area on the edge of WDW property. We picked up a few souveniers, including one of the first things we've bought the baby - a Mickey Mouse t-shirt. After doing some shopping, we sat by the lake for awhile and eventually went back to the car, drove to the airport and flew home.

So I hope you enjoyed reading about our last "kid-free" trip to Disney World! We're looking forward to a future trip where the agenda won't be set by a pregnancy , but by a little one who will be seeing their Dad's favorite wonderland for the first time.

Oh, and did I mention we leave in less than two weeks for Chicago?

-chadley

Orlando Trip, Nov. 2008, Part 1

Okay, so we've been back from Orlando for a few days and, now that I've had a chance to catch up on some work I'll dive in and tell you about our trip.

First off, we had a great time! The weather in Orlando was amazing the entire trip. We had a lot of fun and surprisingly, we only went into the Disney Theme Parks for a couple of days. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

We were scheduled to fly out on Thursday evening at about 8:30 PM. It was a late flight, for sure, but we wanted to be able to settle in and have our travels out of the way so we could start the next day fresh and ready to go. Unfortunately, I didn't quite work out that way. We had a delay at the airport. Basically, our flight was the last flight out of Nashville that night and, due to some delays in other cities, they held our flight for about a dozen passengers who had been trying to get to Orlando all day. That was nice of the airline and only a minor inconvenience for us. We left about 10:00 PM and arrived about 1 1/2 hours later. We grabbed our luggage and made our way to the car rental stand. We opted to get a car this trip so we could go to places outside of Walt Disney World (WDW), like Universal, etc. When we got to the car rental stand, their computers were down, which slowed things down a bit. Fortunately, it was about 1 AM Orlando-time, so there wasn't a line! Lucky for us they upgraded us to an SUV! We got to drive a brand-new Nissan Rogue with only 6 miles on it when we left the garage.

After a trip down the 528/I-4 corridor, we were at WDW! We were staying at one of Disney's smaller resorts, the All-Star Resort, in the Music section. It's not nearly as "nice" as the Swan & Dolphin Resort that we stayed at last year, but it was clean and comfortable. For the first two nights, we had to stay in a room with two double beds (in the Broadway section, for those who know the resort very well). Fortunately, Disney accomodated our request for a King-size bed once one became available. As you can imagine, King-size beds are not the norm in a resort that's family-friendly. But once we got the bed, I have to say it was super comfortable - maybe even more so than the "heavenly beds" we had at the Westin resorts we've stayed at before.

But enough of the hotel! Our first day in Orlando we slept in, then went and got coffee at the Starbucks in the town of Celebration. For those of you unfamilar, Celebration is a town that Disney designed and developed in the mid-1990's. World renowned architects like Michael Graves, Robert AM Stern, and Robert Venturi designed many of the main buildings in the town center. The rest of the town is filled with nice, well manicured lawns and beautiful homes. For more information visit Celebration's official site.

After that, we drove a few miles down the road to Giordano's Pizza, a Chicago-based pizzeria with a few locations in the Orlando area. The pizza there was amazing, and even though we just got a small, we could only eat about 2/3 of it! After the lunch, we decided to go drive around the WDW Resort grounds a bit. In particular, I wanted to show Jen Disney's Wilderness Lodge, one of my favorite resorts at WDW. The whole resort is bult of logs and is very reminiscent of the Lodges found at National Parks in the west. The campground next door, Fort Wilderness, we drove through and checked out more for curiosity sake. Then we headed back to the room for a nap.

That evening, we headed out to IKEA, the Swedish superstore that specializes in well-designed home furnishings for affordable cost. We wanted to window-shop for furniture and decor for the new house. We found some things we really liked, particularly a rocker for Jen in the nursery and some mirrors and light fixtures for the home. We resisited in buying anything, hoping to visit the IKEA outside of Chicago later this month where we don't have to pay for any shipping! Then we had dinner at IKEA's cafeteria, where they have the best swedish meatballs on the planet. SO GOOD! After that, we hopped in the car and made our way to downtown Orlando to see Coldplay perform at the Amway Arena. The show was amazingly good, almost up to U2-quality staging and lighting. They played all the hits and were very energetic. The highlight of the show to me was when the rigging about the floor of the arena started blowing neon-colored confetti shaped like butterflies onto the crowd. Then, they flooded the arena with blacklight and all you could see was neon butterflies flying everywhere. The effect was simple but stunning and slightly surreal. Great show, and I'd love to see them agian!

The following day was our first day going to the WDW parks. Jen wanted to sleep in, so I left a little early to try to get FastPasses to the newest ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Toy Story Midway Mania. I was blocked from getting the passes (Jen's ticket hadn't been used yet, so it wasn't valid to get us a pass), but we were able to get back pretty quickly after opening and waited a reasonable amount of time. The ride is great! Imagine riding through a 3-D videogame where you are playing Midway games (ring toss, dart throw, baseball toss) with the Toy Story characters computer generated and rendered in 3-D. The games were fun, but the technology was very impressive. Imagine shooting 3-D objects into a 3-D movie and having effects on what you saw onscreen. That's exactly what happened in this game and it will be impressive to see where they go with this kind of technology in the future.

After strolling around and taking in the sights at the Studios, we took off for Epcot and the main event: Epcot's Food and Wine Festival! Before we did anything, I ran and got FastPasses for Jen and me to ride Soarin'. It was shortly after 12, but our Fastpasses were for 6:30! So glad we did that first thing. Then we took a ride through the iconic sphere at the entrance to Epcot, Spaceship Earth. The ride has been heavily renovated and, although very similar to what was there when Epcot opened in the early 1980's, it has been enhanced with the latest robotic figures and a new finale that takes place on interactive screens built into the ride vehicles. The overall impression is that the ride has been greatly improved, but I still miss the fiberoptic whirlpool you passed through in the finale that was in place in the 1990's/early 2000's.

After that, it was time to eat! We made our way to World Showcase, and picked up something new Disney was trying. They were selling small gift cards attached to wristbands that you could charge up with whatever amount you wanted. When you went up to one of the booths, instead of pulling out your wallet, you could swipe the gift card. It was a great idea, in that it keeps you aware of how much money you are spending and saves time at the individual food kiosks. I won't go into too much detail about the foods we ate (suffice it to say we tried almost everything on my "wish list" from the previous post). I will say it was all quite good, with the exception of the Milk Chocolate Crème Brûlée and the lemon tart. The exceptional dishes were the Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and the Seared Beef Medallion with Cheddar Cheese Polenta. After eating about halfway around the lagoon we took an afternoon break and returned to our hotel. We went back in time to use our FastPass for Soarin', then continued with the "dinner" stroll around the lagoon. At 9, we stopped for the grand finale fireworks "IllumiNations" over the lagoon and leisurely made our way back to the car and to the hotel to get some rest.

And that's where I'll stop things for now. I'll pick up later this week with the rest of our trip.

-chadley