Mid-Missouri's a great place to live.
So, we have been willing to give
Our hand and our heart
To work on our part
And time was like sand through a sieve.

To our children, Moberly's still home
No matter how far they may roam.
Now, they are spread
From the Great Rivers' bed
To the Pacific shore beaches and foam.

The times here really are changing
We parents are now re-arranging
No more kids in our home
Though they're still on the phone
For now you'll not find us complaining.

Jenny was graduated in May
Successful in most every way.
President of the class.
The number one lass.
We all had mixed feeling that day.

Her senior trip came real soon.
They were all on their way to Cancun.
They snorkeled all day
Senor Frog's was okay
And finished it with a typhoon.

Before she entered the Brigham Young U,
Mom wanted to go and some big thing do.
So we took her and Matt
And dad's Bubba Gump hat
And away to San Francisco we flew.

From the Bay Area she returned to the Y.
Though she questioned the reason why
All the friends from school,
(And this would be cool,)
Couldn't remain close till they die.

They could all go to some neutral site.
The Mormons and Catholics alike.
And per-pet-u-ate
Their Moberly date
For Jenny it would make things just right.

But her wishes have turned out all wet.
Her buddies are as diverse as can get
They sought their own schools,
But learned high tech rules.
Now, they're camped on the new internet.

Matt had a very fine year.
He finished his BY career.
In August was done.
In time for the fun
In Forty-Niner country so dear.

He wants to go on to grad school.
He can cause he's nobody's fool.
Visited Berkeley and Cal
And Stanford a while.
The invite from them made him drool.

Now he is caught in a circular trap.
They think he's a really smart chap.
Get a job say the schools
But there are other rules.
Bosses want an MBA in the gap.

So, Matthew has secured a position
Which will hopefully support his transition
From his bachelor's board
To maybe Stanford.
Selling stocks and bonds is his mission.

He continues to live in Provo.
Though ready to any place go.
Staying close to the place
Where the girls he can chase
He hasn't a wife yet you know.

He's been a big brother to Jenny.
His deeds for her have been many.
She doesn't need much
But when she's in a clutch
Matt's more willing and handy than any.

We have had two additions this year.
They joined the family down here.
Three months apart.
They both got their start
Where two of our five live quite near.

Albuquerque, in New Mexico,
Is where they decided to go
A girl gave Greg three
A boy for Scott Lee
That's seven in case you don't know.

Greg and Cheryl's daughter is Brooke.
So good she'll cause you to look
To see she's awake.
No noise does she make,
But when hungry she can get real shook.

Scott and Pam's little son is so new
We really haven't had much time to
See him a lot.
He's called Mitchell Scott
To see him is what next we'll do.

Scott makes those computer chips
That fly to the moon in spaceships.
He's in charge of yield
A really new field,
And with molecules he comes to grips.

Scott continues to work at Intel.
A job that suits him quite well.
He'll get a degree
But, between you and me
Its the hands-on work that is swell.

With little Mitchell Scott in tow
Pam now has no where to go
She'll just be his Mother
Like there is no other.
In this full time arrangement he’ll grow.

Greg is still bending smiles
The folks keep coming for miles,
To get wired up
Then spit in the cup.
Greg's successes are measured in piles.

Cheryl has a new house to roam.
With ceilings as high as a dome.
With Brooke in her swing,
She adjusts everything.
She's working to make it a home.

The new home has both of' them spinning.
With the latest technology winning.
Surround sound and such
It's quite a bit much.
Greg's piano is just the beginning.

Brian and Brent both have school.
They both think it really quite cool.
Brent's first year out the door
For Brian - it's four.
And both will excel as a rule;

On computers both have great ploy.
They use them much more than a toy.
Brian surfs on the net.
Brent can usually get
To the end of each puzzle - bright boy.

Brad and Connie are still in LA.
A new home they bought about May.
Near odd Venice Beach
But also in reach
Is the temple just five miles away.

Brad works where the pictures they take.
Making objects that really are fake.
Animated cartoons,
And cars and balloons
He's helped many movies to make.

Now, Connie is quite a commuter.
But the distances really do suit her.
To school in the morning.
Other trips without warning.
She now has a van that can purr.

Another new school now for Mike
He's moved a bunch for a tike.
He's big like his Dad.
Not really that glad.
Cause there's kid's stuff he'd still really like.

Andrea - a most energetic girl,
Still approaches her life in a whirl.
Her first year in school.
Flexible as a mule.
She'll only wear dresses that twirl.

Allie has just barely turned two.
But there's little that she doesn't do.
No longer a baby
We think that just maybe
She'll try all our patience clear through.

For Brian and Mike a big year.
This was their eighth one down here.
Both were baptized
It's something they prized.
Its covenants we hope they hold dear.

This, a year of change and transition.
We find ourselves some times a wish'in
We could visit the past
Go back to the last
Time the kids were all here in position.

Jackie continues to help and to work.
John thought some things she might shirk.
More busy than ever.
And ever more clever.
She has her father's work quirk.

More community work than before.
She now doesn't enter the door
Of the public schools
She's removed all her tools.
She has no kids there anymore.

John would want me to mention,
He's enjoying much more attention.
But there much more to do
To help her get through
With her projects of major dimension.

He shares her with the kids, like before.
Though the commitment is really much more.
Her extended travel
Makes him all unravel.
But homecomings are worth waiting for.

Quite active in Church they remain.
Both have the President name.
Primary for Jack
While John is still back
At the Stake as his permanent domain.

Both are older, but also much better
But, by now you are bored with this letter.
Merry Christmas to you
A great New Year, too.
Our greetings we send you together.

Best wishes from Jackie, John, Jenny and Matt