The Dennings: 2005

Here is a picture taken this morning in front of our tree.

Below is our Christmas Letter for this year. Enjoy:

Dearest Friends & Family,

As I sit here writing this, we are getting our first official snowfall of the year! It is so pretty and totally puts me in the Christmas mood – I’ve already broken out the Harry Connick Jr. Christmas cd’s and am thoroughly enjoying them as I write to you. The year 2005 has been a very busy year for us. We have seen the Lord bless in many wonderful ways and are so grateful for His provision and protection this last year.
After a lot of sickness in our household in early spring, Madison ended up with double-pneumonia two weeks before my sister’s wedding. The Lord was so good in answering our prayers and allowed us all to be involved in the wedding as planned and it was wonderful. That brings me to our first big news of the year – adding a new member onto the Turner family! My sister Tabitha married Matthew Dyer on April 23rd, 2005 and it is great to finally have a brother-in-law on my side of the family! They are so cute together and are a terrific match for each other. Matthew has a great sense of humor and wit – which if you know my Dad and Quinn, make him a perfect fit for our family. As I mentioned, we were all able to be part of the wedding with Quinn serving as an Usher, the girls were the most adorable flower girls ever and it was very special for me to stand as Matron of Honor.
While back in Michigan and recovering from all the wedding excitement, it seems Quinn and I created a little excitement of our own! Over Memorial Day weekend, we found out that I was expecting our third child! We weren’t exactly planning to add onto our family just yet, but as always, God has a most perfect plan and His timing is best. As it turns out, it will be girl # 3! The weekend before, Gracie had her first Ballet recital and both Quinn and I and all Nanas and Papas were able to be there in the front row to watch. Gracie’s smile as the curtain went up was priceless – she was grinning from ear to ear. And in the next moment, as all of the girls were, she was a little unsure of what to do next. She waved to my mother-in-law and that got a chuckle from the audience. The whole experience definitely gave her the stage bug, though and ever since then, she’ll sit us down to watch her dance and then tell us to clap for her. For those of you who have known me since birth – stop laughing – yes, I have a daughter exactly like me!!! In every way, if you only knew!!!
With June came our seventh wedding anniversary and the beginning of a summer of morning sickness for me!! It was not very fun, but you just have to get through and move on. I just kept thinking “this too shall pass”! We did quite a bit of traveling throughout the months of July and August with the Ohio trade show and then a week-long vacation with my in-laws at a cottage in Cadillac, MI. We had a great time and the girls loved being at the lake and being able to ride on Papa’s boat.
August brought two main events into our lives. The first being the birth of our niece Chloe Joy Charles! Quinn’s sister Harmony and her husband Scott had their first baby – an adorable little girl who looks lots like her Daddy. So now we can call ourselves Aunt and Uncle and the girls have a new cousin to dote on. We have yet to baby-sit, but we can’t wait! The second event was being able to get away from home and the girls for a very special trip for two out West. Quinn had a trade show for work in Portland, OR and the Lord provided for me to go with him for minimal cost to us. It was very special for me because my Dad was born and raised in Oregon and all of his relatives are still in and around the Portland area. I had only been there once as a child and have met my relatives a handful of times. It was great to be able to visit with them including my 98 year old Grandpa. I can’t tell you what it meant to me!
Then we took some personal vacation days to sightsee and visit with friends and just be together. We visited for two days with my best friend from high school and her husband in Anacortes, WA. Jen and Chris took us to Seattle for a day and then the next day we did some sight seeing around beautiful Anacortes. After that, we

drove to Puyallup, WA where our friends the Atkins had just moved the year before from Michigan. It was great being with them again and enjoying their love and hospitality. We took a day trip to Mt. Rainer. That was great too, except for the part where all you could see was the base of the mountain because it was so cloudy!!
It really was precious time because of the strain of our busy summer and me being sick, it was nice to be together. As for the girls, they had a fun filled week with Nana Heidi and Papa Wes. I don’t even think they noticed we were gone!
That brings me to the last couple of months. We had to get back and into the swing of things quickly as September, October and November have been so crazy busy!!!! Gracie turned four in October and has kept a very busy schedule of her own. She started pre-school this year and absolutely loves it! She goes three days a week in the mornings and then on Mondays she has continued with her Ballet/Tap class. It seems she has really grown up over this last year. Grace loves to dance and sing around the house all the time – she really is graceful compared to Maddie who tries her best, but looks a little like Frankenstein when she dances. Grace has a very sweet heart and she and Madison have become good friends this year. They are starting to watch out for one another and most of the time play so well together. They love to play dress up and house with their baby dolls. Gracie is also very artistic and loves to draw, color, paint, you name it! Madison turned two in June and is every bit the two year old! She has such a wonderful sense of humor and is constantly the crack-up. She reminds me a lot of Tabitha when we were little. Maddie always has that mischievous glint in her eye and likes to get into everything. She wants to do anything that Gracie does and is growing up very quickly – she has also just mastered the potty training thing!
Quinn has also been busy with his duties as a Deacon at church, as well as his work and helping me juggle the kids at home. Our project right now is building a master bedroom and bath in the basement so that we can move down there, give the girls our room, and put the baby in the nursery. We trust that it will be done by mid-January, but to tell you the truth – I’ll believe it when I see it! For me personally, I feel this has been one of the busiest times I’ve ever had during our marriage! Between watching another 2 year old girl two days a week, dropping Grace off at her activities and shuttling off to Doctor’s appointments galore, it has been a crazy fall! It was a blessing though, to be able to participate in a wonderful Bible study on Wed. mornings and be involved in Toddler time on Tuesday mornings with other moms my age. We learned how to make homemade rolls, can applesauce, and we tried to learn how to knit (but it was very frustrating I must say!)
Right now it is all I can do to try and get through the holidays and get everything in my mind checked off the list before baby comes around February 5th. I know that this year will bring many great blessings from God because everything we have, He gives to us. And I praise Him for everything He has brought us through this year. We love you all and are praying that God will bless you abundantly this year and that you would trust in Him minute by minute for all of your physical and spiritual needs. He is a great God! May this letter find you in good spirits and enjoying the holidays with your loved ones. I’m sorry for the long letter, but, hey – it’s me we’re talking about! I can out talk the best of them (and so can my husband!) God Bless and have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

In Christ’s Love,
Quinn, Samantha, Grace, Madison and Baby Denning