Welcome to the 1997 Newsletter for
the A. B. Barthle family!

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Front cover

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Seasons Greetings to All
From the Denney's

This has been a great year for all of us. Jimmy & I are in great health. We had our annual physicals in October and November. Jimmy is in the middle of selling his Navel Oranges. He has several outlets, besides a road side stand. This has become a family affair. Whenever, he gets a large order, all of us, including children and grandchildren help pick and bag oranges for 'Papa'. By doing the extra work he is able to make a much better profit. The local growers that sold their complete crop to the packing houses only made $1.50 per box. Jim is making $8.00+ per box by taking the extra effort.

In January when our oranges are all sold, he will be going back to work at Duane & Kathleen's store two or three days a week. As for my work, I am still at Crawler Rail & Roller Company, although there are new owners. The conditions have definitely improved. I have been able to take some vacations and have had three salary increases in the past 6 months.

Just a few things that has happened this year: In February I was driving through downtown Dade City and on a marque was "Happy Birthday, Jack Higgins". I had to go around the block to make sure I was seeing correctly and then I realize this was in front of one of our Jack's customers.

In September, Jim and I went to New Orleans for a few days. We asked Dan to meet us and spend a couple days. We had a fabulous time. We took a bus tour of the city and the surrounding area and a paddle boat cruise. On the cruise we saw several Navy ships and a Grumman ship.

In October, we started to go to Atlanta for breakfast with Cinda and Ben. By the time we got to the state line Jimmy was running a 102 degree temperature, so back home we went. In a couple of days he was back to par. (Cinda & Ben, we are going to try this again.) I spent the rest of the week doing things around here that had been neglected.

I have become enthused with orchids. I have around 30 plants and some are blooming all the time. Now I have 5 different plants blooming in the living room. I have one that has been blooming since June 9. Imelda gave me my first plant 2 years ago and since than I have had some more given to me as well as I have purchased some myself.

I want to mention that the best part about going to the grocery store is that often I seem to be there at the same time as Monica. I appreciate the family updates, Monica.

This year at the Denney Family Reunion, Clark's son arrive to live with Renee', Clark and Jessica. We want to welcome, Shawn!

FROM STEVE & MAE:

Nothing much new going on. Still going camping when we can. We used the boat a little more this past summer. Chris & Spencer are almost skiing. Both of us are still working at the fire station. It seems to be getting busier.

Chris is turning 9 years old on November 29. He is having a birthday party at the bowling alley. Should be a good time. Also, we are celebrating 5 birthdays at Mom & Dad's on Thanksgiving Day. Mae, Chris, Mary Beth, Spencer and Shawn. Sorry Mae has to work but we'll get her presents to her. Chris is doing real good in school. All A's & B's. He is in the Cub Scouts (Bear level). Steve is his Den Leader. Just recently we went to Sea World. Had a good time.

Spencer will be turning 8 on December 23. He also is doing good in school. Chris & Spencer get together most weekends. Do a lot of playing outside and a lot of Sega.

Lori has changed careers. She just got tired of working the grave yard shift as a 911 operator. Now she is a Car Salesperson for a dealership in Tampa. She is doing good. Averaging 1 1/2 to 2 car sales a week. She still works 1 to 2 days a week as a Paramedic in the Emergency room at the local hospital.

FROM CLARK & RENEE:

Clark is still with Ogden Martin as Purchasing Manager and working long, long hours. Renee's still at the County Processing Center. In June we spent a week at Lake Weir as we have since we were kids. Everyone came when they could to enjoy the water.

In Mid-August we went with a group of friends to Tennessee and met some other friends from New York. We had a great week of siteseeing, shopping and relaxation. At the end of August, Renee' took the CYO group from church to St. Augustine for a weekend.

Jessica is a busy girl. Her hog placed first in her class and was third hog to sell at the Pasco County Fair. She is raising another hog for next year. She is still in 4-H and on the 4-H County Council Team, the 4-H Parlimentary Prodecure Team and the 4-H Story Telling Team. At school she is in FFA and FFA Leadership, FFA Story Telling and FFA Creed. In regular band she still plays the French Horn and has joined the Jazz Band playing the Trumpet. She also is an honor roll student. She missed by 3/10 of 1 point of getting strait A's. At Church she is Vice-President/Secretary of the CYO group.

Shawn arrived on August 31 to live with Clark, Renee' and Jessica. School had already started. It was over a week before his records arrived so he could begin school. However, after such a late start he got strait A's on his report card. Congratulations! He is also in Cross Country and Track. After school and on the weekends he is helping Jimmy pick oranges. Every Saturday night he flags at the motorcycle races.

GENE & MARY BETH:

Gene and Mary Beth are still working for the same Jewelry Company out of Rhode Island. This year they have had meetings in Little Rock, Vegas, Rhode Island, Atlanta, Miami and Orlando, besides their regular customers to call on.

Besides their work they both took a Real Estate Course and passed with a 91 and a 92. Their state exam will be in January. They have not made plans as to how they are going to use this, but wanted to have something to fall back on.

THE BIG BEST NEWS!!! Mary Beth is Pregnant. She is feeling good. She cannot believe she doen't feel pregnant. We have all assured her that will change. Everyone is excited and can hardly wait for May 12 to arrive.

For an update on Gene's brother, Kerry. He went to Seattle and had a bone marrow transplant. He was in Seattle for 4 months. However, he is home again in Birmingham. He has had some expected complications but he is doing very well considering. The next few years, he will have to be cautious. We all wish him the best!

DUANE & KATHLEEN:

Duane and Kathleen are both very busy with the store and all their other activities. Since they sell custom cut meat at the store, they get a lot of orders for special events, fund raising events, retirement parties, special dinners, cookouts, etc. Duane helps to cook at some of the larger events. He has several friends that have large cookers they pull behind their trucks that they can cook enough to serve several hundred people. He & Kathleen also donated all the meat that was served at the local football games for free advertising at all the games.

As I write this newletter, Duane's oranges are being picked. He expects to get 24 or 25 semi loads. He sold his fruit on a contract he signed several months ago. He made a smart gamble. The price has gone down considerably and those growers that did not sign the contract are not making near as much.

Duane and Kathleen have their house plans finished. They have done a lot of work getting the land ready for building. Kathleen has already planted several plants and they

have cleared around the pond and have built a bridge over the creek. They have already picked out the contractor. They are now waiting for the financing to be in place so building can be started. They hope to be in their new home by sometime next summer.

Bret and Jake are both going to St. Anthony's. Both boys are doing good. Renee' went to a play the other day and said that Bret was the only student that knew his part by heart. The rest of them had to read their part. Bret is also taking piano lessons. Both boys played T-Ball this year. They both love to fish. Bret caught a 7 1/2 pound bass last spring. This bass has been mounted and hangs in their living room. Duane and both boys went fishing today, the day after Thanksgiving.

Bret is in 4-H and had a first and a second place in the 1997 Youth Poultry Show at the fair. He and Jake both are raising rabbits for their project in 4-H this year.

Kathleen is one of the leaders in their 4-H Club. She is also busy with the Cattlewomen's Club, helps with various fund raising projects at the school and is active in the Catholic Womens Club besides being full time Wife and full time Mom.

In closing we are looking forward to Sara and Ken's visit next week. I want to thank Melda and Jack for hosting a get-together for the evening while they are here.
THE DENNEY'S WISH EACH OF YOU A VERY HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.
Love,Margie

From Joan:

Happy New Year Everyone! It's hard to believe that another year has come and gone. At my age, a year seems only about six weeks long.

Few changes have occurred in my life this year. I'm still at the same address, twenty-one years now. Fred and his family are still living with me. I still work in the same department at LRMC. Right now I am on medical leave of absence. Seems I have a herniated disk in my low back (hope none of you know what that's like).

In June, I bought a '97 Nissan Altima (which I love), a Nintendo 64 (which Fred loves), and a new computer (which everybody loves. I'm not sure, yet, if I love it. Computers still intimidate me, but I shall overcome!!) Then I was in a real dilemma. I had so many new toys it was difficult to decide which one to play with.

In October, I spent my vacation with Lisa and her wonderful family. They have a lovely new home in a beautiful area. Fall is my favorite time to be up there. The colors were gorgeous this year and the cool weather was a relief. For almost 2 weeks I was treated like royalty, then I came back home to reality.

I'm expecting two more grandchildren after the first of the year. This will be the third from Fred, and the first from Mike. That will be twelve in all. Can hardly wait. Bring on those grandbabies!!!

God bless each and every one. Hope you all have a wonderful new year.

Joan

From Lisa:

Hello to all. We are doing great. New house, new family room, new car, and new baby. (The latter is at the moment trying to help me type this newsletter. I can already see this is going to take a while.) It is amazing how quick those little hands and fingers are. I have even tried to give her a spare keyboard, but of course that one is not nearly as interesting as the one mom is working on. You already know about the new house and baby. I did neglect to mention, in last years newsletter , that Katie does not have Down's Syndrome. I do think however, that she smiles as readily and grins just about as big as a Down's child.

I mentioned that we have a new family room, actually it is the old one expanded a bit. Our house was not lacking in room except that the most popular room in the house was also the smallest. We blew out one wall and extended it 8 feet. We also did some remodelling , put a bay window in the front of the house, a picture window in the back, made the ceiling cathedral and dropped in two skylights. I love it!! We bought a Toyota Camry in '87 and we couldn't kill it. So, we decided to get another Camry, this time a '98, actually we are leasing it 'til we financially recover from all the other new stuff. We are hoping to get another couple of years out of the '87. My old '80 Ford pickup is being retired as a family vehicle, because it no longer holds the entire family. We will continue to use it to take our junk to the dump, a job for which it is still well suited. I'm glad because I don't have to worry about letting go of an old friend. (17 years is along time to build a relationship.) I still like bee boppin around in an old pickup once in a while, reminds me of growing up. I just need to store some diesel in the bed and paint it green for a vivid walk down memory lane.

Alan continues with TWA on the 767 and their new 757's, and has been flying overseas the last couple of months, Milan & Rome mostly. His only complaint - not enough time to be home tinkering with the house or his new upgraded computer. Maybe we can even play around on the internet now that he upgraded his 2400 baud modem. Yes, I did say 2400 baud. Can you believe it? What a snail! Anyway, he is excited about playing with his new system.

I'm still working at home. Data entry will never be the same, now that I have a helper. I haven't managed to get back into running, since Katie was born. I've gone out a few times but find it difficult with Alan gone so much and Katie so small. I really need to find a solution because so far, driving Becca to swim practice three times a week hasn't done a thing to help me get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. For that matter, neither are those french fries I keep buying because Katie loves them so much.

Becca is great, she is still swimming on a swim team (they were state champs last year and to date are undefeated this year). She is doing excellent in school (according to her teacher). And we have it straight from the horses' mouth - they wish they had more Becca's. By far her strongest suit is that of loving her little sister. She would like to start horseback riding lessons next year. She may have to wait a couple. Becca has an appointment with the eye doctor in January, it appears as if she may need to get glasses. This doesn't seem to bother her and we're glad about that.

Katie as I mentioned loves french fries. She also loves climbing up and down the stairs. I try to curb both, the first because it is not that healthy, the other because she wears me out just watching her. Besides, I don't have all day! Honestly, how many hours can one watch a child climb the stairs? Alan, Becca, and I all live for Katie's sweet little kisses and for some reason Becca gets more than Mom and Dad. Personally, I think Becca gloats a little too much about that. !!!

Our Love to All, Lisa, Alan, Becca, and Katie

From Teresa:

Hey Everyone! How's it going: We're all doing well - busy as ever. Work is pretty much the same for me, and the children are doing well in school. This year we're implementing a new curriculum. It's designed to teach children how to be real thinkers (something we supposedly didn't get from our education - Ha Ha). So far, so good, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so we'll see.

We just finished a project called "International Night" with our home education support group. We chose Germany as our country and learned how to make "eintots" (one pot soup) and "holiday strudel". You haven't lived 'til you've dumped about two pounds of a diced-apple conglomeration onto a pastry which you've just pressed paper thin and then tried to roll it all up without tearing it, and finishing up by squnching ( yes I said squnch) it all up into a too-short baking dish because you weren't German enough to have one of those molds for this particular dish. Once we got through living, we went on to something easier - sauerkraut and knackwurst. All the children worked very hard and their displays were all very impressive. We're already deciding which country to represent next year.

Our love to everyone. We wish you a very merry Christmas season and a prosperous new year.
God bless, Teresa, Jessica & Caleb

From Sandra:

We are doing fine and I am seven months! I sometimes cannot believe I am pregnant and will be a mother real soon. For me, I gain alot of weight and a big tummy, too. Mike is doing fine and has been working different hours everyday, but his day off are still the same, Sunday & Wednesday. Mike gain weight! He had been weight for a long time 155 lbs and now he's 175 lbs. He had to buy new jeans cuz his old pants don't fit anymore! He still looks good anyway.

This year, we went to the Inspiration Cruise with 11 people in my family from Puerto Rico & Florida. We went seven days cruise! I was very sick with ear infection and same time I did not know I was pregnant at that time. However, I did had a great time. Mike won about six to seven hundred dollars from the cruise and at Puerto Rico! I won only 200 dollars. We love to spend and to see any good luck! This year, I believe, we are not going anywhere far away from here. We will spend time with our newborn baby. I am thinking to be off work 3 to 4 months and hope that we can visit Mike's mother and other people that we want to see them again.

Our baby due on Feb. 4, 1998 and we still do not want to know what sex! We want surprise! I sometimes think it is a boy! My mother told me that the Baby Shower will be on January 3, 1998 (Saturday). I bet you wonder why I know the date. It is because my family from Puerto Rico want to be here for my baby shower! Babyboy (dog) and Lucky (cat) are doing fine and we love them very much. People are trying to tell us to give away all our pets because they have too many hairs. And it is not good for our baby. I am not

going to give it up until I see if there is a problem. We do complain about Babyboy's hair everywhere and we have to vaccum almost everyday!

Last Oct. 25 at 7:33am I woke up to go to the bathroom and same time to take Babyboy to bathroom outside. When I looked and I said myself that my car was missing, but I went backyard to make sure if I parked there. I woke Mike up and told that our car were stole! My mom called police! The police woman was very nice and calm me down, but Mike was upset! I was sad, but I know we have insurance cover everything! Mike lost his temper and we had a big arguement over stupid car! It was a bad moment for us because he was too upset while I was very calm, but when he was mad I lost my temper! Mike was so happy to see his car back the same day! That moment, I do not want to see the car because we had a big fight over the car. I will never forget! Now, I do like my car and Mike learned his lesson that he should not blow his head off over things! I told Mike that God is testing us to see how we handle. We failed, but we will be prepare for next time!

Our baby room's theme will be Noah's ark! I love animals and it is something different from Mickey Mouse, Pooh, Looney Tunes and many more. I can't think what else to say. Happy Holidays! Hey, we love you and we miss you all!
Love, Sandra & Mike

From Melinda:

Jimmy, Melinda and Warren are still fine. Jimmy as dental technician still working in the same lab but more work for everyone. Jimmy was elected as President of the FL School for the Deaf Alumni Association after he served several years as different position. Melinda transferred to another dept. in the VA Hospital because of federal budget cut. She is not happy with her position that is very boring. She will look another position. She was selected as Employee of the Month and received some cash last August.

Melinda and Jimmy are both still on Advisory Board of Youth and Family Services of hearing parents of deaf children and deaf parents with hearing children. Jimmy is also on the by-laws committee.

Warren is doing fine as 4 years old and still attend his day program at Lutheran Church. He is taking his computer course, too. Warren and his parent went to see "Hercules" at the ice palace and decided to be "Hercules" as his Halloween costume with colossal sword. He still uses sign languages with many new words. Sometimes he uses our slang words. Sometime he caught us talking and wants to know what we were talking about. We really love our precious boy.

We love our fax machine that is very popular among the deaf people since last March. Our family begin to have their own one. You all can fax us. The number is the same as our telephone number.
Love, Melinda, Jimmy, and Warren

From Bonnie:

We have had quite a busy year this year. In January Michael lost his 19 year old cousin (Paul) to a careless accident. He and a friend jumped off a bridge (which they did often) and he was never found again. It was several weeks later when someone found an arm and with special testing were able to confirm it was him.

In February we bought a horse (Redwood). In March we bought seven acres. We had a lot of work to do on it before we could keep him on it. Like bush hog, dig holes, fill them with fence post, paint the fence post with oil, pull the barbwire, put up the gates, (Michael made them out of grove pipe) have a shallow well dug for a pitcher pump, and build a shelter. All that just for a horse. He's worth it though, he is a good horse and he is good with the kids. We had Rachaels birthday party there, and in June everyone came over after Samson's party.

When Rachael was still four she had two loose teeth. Michael pulled them and a few minutes later she was in the bathroom crying. Not because it hurt but because she didn't like the way she looked. She is ready to go to school and she wants to ride the school bus.. She cries to think that one day she will grow up and won't live with us. She cries because she can't take her baby dolls with her when she goes to live with Jesus. "But they're my favorite" she cries. I guess you have figured out by now that she cries about everything and I mean everything. Mom said I was the same way. Poor woman! Samson on the other hand is still the same stubborn kid. He's a good kid most of the time. The other day I asked him what he wanted for Christmas and he said nothing. I guess I can save some money this year. Well we wish everyone much happiness and may God Bless you All-ways! Merry Christmas and a fantastic New Year.
Bonnie, Michael, Rachael, Samson

From Sam:

Hello everybody; We are doing fine...Hang on just a minute, didn't we just celebrate Christmas about eight weeks ago? When I was a kid, Christmas only came around about once every three years. Not fair!

Anyway, call me biased, but Carlene and I have apparently been blessed with the greatest son in the world. Kyle's "Ain't B" got a horse this year and he likes to horse surf. He took swimming lessons at the Y.M.C.A. this summer and loved it. Kyle started school this year. Last week he brought home a book from school and proceeded to read it to his mother and me. We are exceedingly proud of him.

Carlene is still at Marriott, and I'm still at Publix. Carlene's family visits regularly and often uses our house for lodging while enjoying many of central Florida's amusement parks. Which is fine with me because Jamaican cuisine is very tasty.

I really like the picture on the cover of last years newsletter, nice hat Grandpa!
Love, Carlene, Sam & Kyle

Hello from Fred, Janet, Kenny, and Jenna.

We are all doing fine, Fred is still with Publix but has transferred over to the houseware department where Sam is working. They both work days. Janet still stays home with the children and is expecting another in January sometime around the 10th we are told. We are also told it will be a boy. Kenny is growing like a weed and enjoys playing baseball and football with his daddy. Jenna is always trying to do what her big brother is doing which we don't think he minds too much. They get along great most of the time, Kenny doesn't forget about his little sister when he gets something from someone, he always tells them he has a little sister so he gets her something too. We wish you all the best. Have a great year.
Good-bye, The Fred Barthle Bunch

From Lisa,

Fred and Janet's little boy arrived at 4:00 am on December 5th, five weeks early. He weighed in at 5 lbs and 12 ozs. A ventilator is helping him until he gets a little stronger, otherwise he is doing well. Janet is doing well and is expected to leave the hospital on the 6th. I have no confirmation on the name as of yet. I do know that the boys are winning again. COME ON, SANDRA, THE GIRLS NEED A LITTLE HELP!!!
A Very Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to You All!
...WITH MUCH LOVE FROM THE JIM BARTHLE CLAN!!!

From Clem:

1997 marked a significant change in my life. On 1 Jan, I sold my citrus caretaking and management business to Louis and Robin Neuhofer. I stayed on as a consultant to help them get started, learn the business, and get to know my customers and suppliers. I am happy to say that this has worked very well and I no longer have to spend a great deal of time on the business, just remain available for the rough spots.

On 7 Feb I became officially retired US Army and Florida National Guard. This plus selling my business leaves me gainfully unemployed.

I am now able to do the things Joan and I had put off and planned for so many years. Too bad she's not here to help me enjoy it, but I know she's here in spirit. Have had a good year with the addition of two grandsons, Leo (Brian and Vicki) and Tony (Dean and Anne).

Had a fabulous trip to Hawaii with Connie who continues to be my partner in what is known as our mutual support group. We stayed with Suzi who has a four bedroom house on post at Schofield Barracks. Suzi took a week's leave while we were there to show us around; also Mike took some time off to show us some of the sights not seen by the tourists. I suspect Joan and David were watching us the whole time from atop Diamondhead. All said, it was a wonderful trip. While we were there Suzi was notified that she was selected to attend in residence Command and General Staff School (a real feather in her cap careerwise). It's a year long course stateside. I also learned that my son Mike got an unexpected promotion at the shipyard.

All in all it's been a good year. I live here with Tim, who is a real help as housemate, and has had some significant things happen in his career, but he will tell you about those.

From MIKE & NANCY:
Dear Family and Friends,

Season's greetings to you all! We hope that this holiday finds you healthy, happy, and eagerly anticipating the special magic that Christmas brings.

We have had an interesting couple of years (!) Good intentions with Christmas cards last year didn't materialize, because we were in the midst of moving into our "new" house. We had spent most of '96 planning, shopping (J), renovating, and adding on to a slightly newer (1939) home. We moved in just before last Thanksgiving (thus, the holidays were past us before we had time to think), and have enjoyed settling in, even though it's taken more than a year and we are still "settling". We're only around the bend from our old house, so the girls are in the same schools with the same friends, and Mike still has his three-mile commute-all definite plusses.

Our "new" address:
206 Hilton Terrace
Newport News, VA 23601-4006
We have also entered the electronic age and can be reached by e-mail:
Home: mpetters@compuserve.com
Work: mpetters@nns.com

From Sarah :-)

Hello! This year has been a great one. In March and April, we all went to Berlin to visit my best friend, and we couldn't miss going to Paris. Later in April, my Odyssey of the Mind team finished first in State competition, which led us to World Competition in June. We finished 14th out of 63. In late June, I started playing summer league field hockey, and in August, I started playing junior varsity for my future high school, Warwick. My best friend (whom we went to visit in the spring) moved back to Newport News in July. I have started 8th grade, my last year in middle school. (e-mail:woodchuck18@juno.com)

From Caroline:

I went to Berlin and Paris this past year. I got to see the wall and the Eiffel Tower. I went up to the first level. In Paris we also saw the Notre Dame Cathedral. I got to light a candle in there. In Berlin we saw our friends Whitney, Fred, Fern, Leigh, and Jarrad Farris. We saw the Berlin Dome and the Jagged Tooth (which was the Broken Church). We saw the Lipstick Tube and the Makeup Box. I also broke my finger this past summer. Now I'm in third grade. I like reading, writing, playing the piano, drawing and skating.

Mike and Nancy continue to delight in following the pursuits (and skates and bicycles) of the girls. While Sarah and Caroline are in school, Nancy enjoys her morning walks with Annabel, our husky, volunteering at Caroline's school and at church, and teaching French at home. Mike has continued his work at the shipyard in the Aircraft Carrier Program. He has spent some time in Washington, DC and San Diego, as well as made a trip to Wall Street in June.

We'd love to have you visit us here in 'this old house' and hope you have the happiest of holidays!
Love from us all,

From Jennifer (Bernie):

1997 has been a very eventful and fun year for us. The Spring brought us a walking little Nathaniel and our first experience at organized sports for Matthew. Matthew played T-ball in the Spring and had a wonderful time. I don't know who enjoyed it more, Matthew or Bernie and myself. Bernie assisted in coaching the team as much as possible. Basically, when his work schedule permitted it. This year however, he feels he will have more flexibility and will be even more involved. It was lots of fun for all of us. I know once Nathaniel is old enough, we will get him involved in T-ball as well, but for now he is showing strong signs of interest in golf. He plays with a toy golf club and he takes it everywhere! Perhaps a budding Tiger Woods!

As Summer approached, we decided to have a little work done on my car (the family station wagon). Everything was completed on my birthday (June 11th). However, on my way to work the next day I was slammed into by one car and then pushed into another... needless to say, my car was totaled. Fortunately, the gentleman who caused the accident had insurance and we were able to replace our family car with an official "mini-van". It is so nice and has so much room. I would not ever want to drive anything else.

During the Summer we were able to go camping a few times at Lake Oconee. The boys really seemed to enjoy the whole adventure of putting up the tent, swimming in the lake and roasting marshmallows by the campfire. Bernie is very good at teaching Matthew about how to do the outdoorsy things. I have to admit that I was learning right along with Matthew.

Fall has just flown by for us - we had a big birthday party for Matthew in October and it was wonderfule. Lots of kids and lots of fun. Bernie and I work approximately 1 mile apart from each other so we car pool almost everyday. It is great for the obvious reasons, but it is also nice to have that time to converse without hearing "Mommy, Daddy, Mommy, Daddy" all the time.

Back in February, Bernie received a call from one of the local helicopter outfits. They needed a back-up pilot and wondered if he would be interested. Needless to say, he leapt at the chance. He flies a couple of times a month, traffic reports, video shoots and air taxi stuff. Some really interesting assignments! (Some fly fishing on Father's Day!)

Nathaniel continues to get bigger (he is 20 months old and wears a 3T!) Matthew continues to absolutely amaze us with his intelligence and reasoning ability. He recently scored well above the highest level for Pre-K students. The teachers are even amazed. (Yes, I know I am his mother and would not say anything less, but it is true.) I have started volunteering at the church and working in the nursery. Its great because we are getting to know more people one-on-one in our church. I look forward to 1998 and all the joys and happiness it will bring.

We wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and the best new year ever.
Love, Jennifer, Bernie, Matthew and Nathaniel

From Tim:

As Dad mentioned, I have moved back to St. Joe. Neither Dad nor I enjoyed living alone, so now we don't have to. I had been having more time conflicts between my work schedule at GTE Data Services and my Air Force Reserve unit. In January I decided to transfer to the Individual Ready Reserve so I wouldn't have to drill one weekend every month. This allowed me to concentrate my time and effort at GTE where I was contracting as a computer network administrator. The extra effort paid off in May when I was hired on as a GTE employee.

The only down side of this is that as a new hire, I don't get any vacation the first year. This caused me to miss out on Dad's trip to Hawaii. When I get vacation in the coming year I hope to visit family members I haven't seen since our Atlanta get together last year.

From Susie:

The "island folks", or better known as the Davidson's have had quite the busy year. Jennifer started school in August, I think she was more excited than I was, but she loves it now. Of course, with that I have new obligations to meet and squeeze into my already full schedule. I really am enjoying helping her class do projects whenever my time allows. Michael also is going to school once a week at the church and he loves it too, unless mommy drops him off, then he only wants to go to work with her. Typical three year old.

We moved on post in May and have really enjoyed having the extra room and yard space. The kids have lots of neighborhood kids to play with and they love that. With the move we sent invitations out to the entire family to come visit, and have had a few takers. Dean and Anne came in September, just in time to see me before I had to go to the Big Island to participate in an exercise, but it was great seeing them again. And of course, you all know dad and Aunt Connie were just here. I know you've been told many stories from them already, I think all of us had a great time. The invitation is still open, but you'd better hurry, it looks like I'll be moving in late June 98. Don't know where to yet, but will be going to school for a year somewhere on the mainland, I think, but with the military you never really know.

I changed jobs in August and am now the Executive Officer for the Battalion and am loving it. It puts me second in charge and I love being in charge!! Lots of work and long hours, but since I have an understanding couple of kids, that's okay. It won't last for too much longer with the move scheduled next summer.

Michael and Jennifer are both in swim lessons and doing quite well. Michael is a little fish, but doesn't like jumping off the diving board very muc he's getting there though. Jennifer is not letting her brother beat her out so she is jumping by herself and also swimming really well. I just couldn't bring them back to the mainland without them knowing how to swim, having just spent most of their lives in Hawaii.

Jennifer is learning a new language, although it is not really an accreditted one, Hawaiian. In school they teach alot of history and language of Hawaii. And, just as an aside, in the Hawaiian version of 12 days of Christmas... the 5th day is "5 big fat pigs", yes you read this right...pigs are very important and valuable to the natives here!!
Anyway, we hope all of you have a great holiday season and an outstanding 1998!!
We send much Aloha to all.

From Dean:

This was a year of change for us, especially the last 5 weeks. The first weekend of March, Anne and I traveled to Nassau, Bahamas for a much needed weekend getaway. In April, we discovered that Anne was pregnant and was due on the 10th of December. For the next 8 months, we prepared for the arrival of the 10th Petters grandchild. Even so, Anne and I still found time to visit Susie in Hawaii for 2 weeks in September. While there, we visited Maui and the Big Island including Volcano National Park.

On the 6th of October, I took a civilian job position with the US Air Force working in the same organization that I have been working with for the last 8 years. Then at 9:00 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, our son decided that he really wanted some turkey and we hurried to the hospital. Anthony Charles was born at 4:23 that afternoon (we were in the hospital only 7 hours before Tony was born). He weighed 6 lbs., 8 oz. and was 20.25 inches long.

Anne and I are truly blessed to have a healthy and happy son. We hope to get back to Florida soon to show him off to the family, but until then, we will be sending out pictures through email. The Ohio branch of the Petters family wishes everyone a healthy and happy 1998.
Anne, Tony and Dean Petters

From Brian and Vicki:

This year marked the arrival of our third son, Leo Alfred--named after 2 Barthle uncles. Brian flipped a coin in the delivery room to decide his middle name between Alfred and Anthony. God must have known Dean and Anne's son would be Tony, so He chose Alfred. That's appropriate, since Unlce Fritz was Brian's Godfather.

Since the family grew once again, we needed more transportation than the small car we had. In August, we purchased a brand new Chevy Astro Van. What a difference a second vehicle makes--no more carpooling or getting Vicki to take Brian to work--what a relief.

Vicki started to homeschool John this year. He's starting to recognize words and how to say them. He will be reading in no time. Ben is really becoming his own person, not just doing whatever John is doing. Both play "Star Wars" and "Toy Story" a lot as well as other imaginative play. Leo is beginning to crawl and boy is he fast. He enjoys following John and Ben around and pulling up on the fromt window sill to watch trucks go by. Lastly, This year we survived wallpapering 3 rooms, so we are ready for the challenges of 1998.
Brian, Vicki, John, Ben & Leo

From Connie:

Sorry it has taken me so long to get to compiling this portion of the newsletter. I left for the trip to Hawaii on November 25th and returned on December 11th, and I am still trying to overcome the effects of “Jet Lag”. I really didn’t think it would effect me this bad. But I am trying to come down with a cold too, We had rain every day while we were gone. We saw a lot of beautiful country, Thanks to Suzie. She was a good tour guide. Also upon our return we have had at least four days of drizzling rain here in FL. “Thanks again to Suzie and Mike for all the hospitality” Give Jennifer and Michael a big hug from Aunt Connie.

Marie, Chris and Tiffany moved back home on May 31st. and we have had so many things happening since then.

I have become a Eucharistic Minister and Lector at Our Lady of the Rosary Church. In September they asked me to Teach a CCD class and now I’m teaching a 6th grade class on Monday evenings. We are currently studying the Bible. I find it very interesting.

In July, we acquired a 4 year old Rhodesian Ridgeback dog. Her name is Harley (like in Davidson-Motorcycles) She is a great companion dog. She is very protective of everyone at our house

Land O’ Lakes is going through a massive change. US 41 is being widened, along with State Road 54. The Nursery where I work is about 1/3 mile west of the US 41, on State Road 54 and the latest DOT projections is that we will loose 59 feet of frontage property due to the expansion of the road. Meanwhile travel in this area in any direction is at a snails pace. So we can’t get in a hurry if we want to go anywhere. It use to take me 10 minutes to get the 2-1/2 miles to the Nursery. Now it take at least 20 or more minutes to go the same distance.
Seasons Greetings to everyone - Aloha

From Marie:

Hello folks, it must be that time of year again. Hope everyone is fine. Well, things are well as can be expected, we are all doing fine. Chris is doing fine in Jr. High made the Deans List and Tiffany is doing pretty good in Kindergarten and trying to stay out of trouble. I’m still at Fireman’s Fund Ins. and still love it. Tiffany & Chris are going to CCD and will be baptized before Easter. And there dad Tim is even going to classes to become a Catholic too. To set a example for the kids. We send our prayers and love to all, And have a wonderful year ahead.
My God Bless you one and all. Sincerely, Marie, Chris and Tiffany

From Joe:

Howdy All, WOW! I can’ believe it’s been a year since I left active duty for the civilian life. What a year it’s been. When last we spole I had just starting dating a wonderful woman from Zephrhills. Well, we got married in December, bought a house in Wesley Chapel in May and got pregrant in August. We are hoping for a boy but a healthy child will make us happy either way. Daddy always said ”if your gonna to do something, do it right and don’t waste your time”. I still dispatch for Matt Stone Manufacturing. Amy works as office manager for Frost Management. They own 6 McDonalds restaurants in the Tampa area and she handles accounts for all of them. So if you need a certain “Happy Meal” toy give us a call and we’ll see what we can do. Little Amy is in the third grade at Quail Hollow Elamentary and doing very good. Nichole still has to wait one more year for school since her birthday is so late in the year but little Amy is getting her ready. I think she will make a good teacher someday. Well, we need to go for now but we hope everyone has a year at least half as happy as ours.
Joe, Amy, Amy, and Nichole

From Kelly:

Hello everyone, I guess it is that time of year to bring everyone up to date with what is going on in our lives. Jerry is still working at Sheppard Electric and was given a promotion to supervisor and given a company truck this year, and he is LOVING it. I on the other hand was laid off from Aetna in April and started working at Cigna in the health services department in August. Jessica (4) and Noah (1 1/2) are doing fine,as a matter of fact in October Jessica and Noah entered into the Little Mr. and Miss Flapjack beauty pageant here in Land O’ Lakes. Jessica was crowned Little Miss Flapjack and was given a $50 savings bond and has been in 2 parades since and was in a photo shoot for Camping World (she will be in the spring catalog). Noah was given the title of Little Mr. Toddler Flapjack and also got a $50 savings bond. Jessica started K4 at the Christian school here in Land O’ Lakes this year and has made a lot of new friends and is having a wonderful time learning. Noah is doing so many new things and learning a lot of bad habits from Jessica. He loves to torment her anyway he can and if she is sleeping he will make sure she wakes up even if he has to sit on her and scream. We have gotten 2 new additions to the house, a dog and a bird, as if we didn’t have a house full already (Jerry just can’t say no to the kids when it comes to pets). We are now proud owners of a camper and will no longer be camping in a tent(thank God). We all love to camp especially Jessica and Noah, so if you know of any good spots let us know, we would love to try them out. Well I am running out of things to say so until year same time same place see you later and have a wonderful year.
Love always, Jerry, Kelly, Jessica and Noah

From Kathy:

Hello everyone, Hope this finds you all well this time of year. Hunter is 2yrs old and going on 20, he has a private sitter GIGI who only watches him, so he gets a lot of one on one care. He can count to 10 and knows his colors, and talks like a little man. He got his first hair cut in NOv. at 2yrs & 4 mos. of age. Hopefully the longer it takes to come in the longer he’ll keep it. (unlike his Grandpa.)Justin event on his 1st hunting trip to Texas this year. He’s in the 3rd grade and doing well. Kelly is still in business with his Brothers & doing fine. He went hunting in West Va. and Texas this year. He had hunters luck in both places. Aetna gave me a scare in Oct. they told me they were transferring my job to N.C. then two days before my last day they changed their mind so I’m still with Etna after 11 years
We hope everyone has a save holiday, The Himes

From Thom:

Hello to all, hard to believe another year has passed. Though this year has definitely been more productive for me, On December 17 last year I went to work for Lester Coggins Trucking, on my birthday I went out on my first run with a trainer. After three weeks out with the trainer I was sent out with another driver, on my first run to California. Well it didn't take more than three weeks to decide that I wanted to be a solo driver, Not to say that he didn't know how to drive it's just I wasn't comfortable sleeping while someone else was driving.

Then I went out on own, only problem is they won't let a solo driver on the west coast. I have been to Texas several times and as far north as Vermont, Usually when I leave Florida I'm hauling plants. Once I get out of state it can be anything, like hauling beef from Michigan to Texas. Being a truck driver is not as easy as one might think, especially when you have to unload two thousand plants by hand. Then there's the department of transportation, I've been checked twice by different states.

The worst part of my job is being away so much, I usually only get two days off every two weeks or so. So I enjoy getting to see, or spend time with family. Well that’s about it for now, my best to all. Hope everyone has a great holiday season, your all in my thoughts and heart.

From Laurie:

The sun is still shining in California! The El Nino that the weather people keep talking about is trying to keep the sun from shining to no avail. We have gotten some rain this year though, it rains real hard for about a day then the water seems to flood the streets until the sun evaporates it off. The earthquakes are still shaking things up out this way. We feel a few from time to time, so far nothing big enough to brag about (thank goodness).

Well dad’s temporary job in Lake Charles, Louisiana seems to have turned into a much longer time frame that originally planned. He is engineering a test box to test wiring inside some large, what used to be commercial, now military aircraft. It seems to be a much bigger job than first anticipated by Northrop/Grumman. Although he works anywhere between ten hours and twelve hours a day he still finds time to... Well, being in Louisiana dad has had the opportunity to explore the vast activities that this “party” state has, to keep many people busy. I think he has started a collection of beads, plastic cups, candy and many more novelty items thrown out during parades. Nick and I tried to clean him out when we visited earlier in the year, we did not even put a dent in his collection (they just keep on throwing parades!)!

He has managed to make several short trips back to California to visit during the Holidays. Dad was sent to a school in Kansas City, Mo., on his way he stopped in Branson, Missouri. That was great he visited a few of the country greats, Mel Tillis was even there and he spent some time talking with him after his performance.

Mom has been pretty busy at work and has had to go on travel to Pensacola, Florida; Dallas, Texas; Monterey, California; and San Francisco, California. All the Contract Specialists were working for WestDiv out of San Bruno, California, now they are being transferred to South WestDiv out of San Diego, and eventually they will be placed under PacDiv out of Hawaii(no physical moves are expected right away). Mom hopes to be transferred to Hawaii!! The Government is still down sizing, a lot people are taking advantage the early retirement buyouts. Two more years and mom qualifies to take advantage of an early out. Mom is pretty excited about her fast purchase this year, she bought a ‘98 Red Honda Civic two door, sedan. She keeps very busy between taking care of the house, baby-sitting grandchildren, and working.

As for Myself, I’ve had an interesting year. Nicholas and I visited dad in Lake Charles for one week after Easter. We had a great time relaxing and visiting the Lake, the River boats, and the Gulf. One things for sure you don’t have any problems finding a place to eat, just a problem deciding which place to eat. I am still working for Mediacom (the fastest growing new cable company in two years). In September Mediacom offered me a major promotion. I could not refuse the offer, so Nicholas and I moved two weeks later to Sun City, California. I now am the Office Manager for Mediacom’s Sun City office. What a deal! What a headache! I step into a newly acquired system, who just changed billing vendors. Not only was the office new I also had to learn the new billing system and the old one as well. I am starting to adjust slowly. Sun City is mostly retired folks. Dad asked me how the social life will be, “I would be lucky to find a man with his own teeth!! However, shopping malls are only minutes away. San Diego and the beach is only one hour away.

Nicholas’ school is brand new, just opened two days before he started. The school is a year round school. He is off session until January 5th, 1998. He was excited about the move and was eager to meet new friends. He is learning to read, and doing a great job sounding out his words, math is a cinch for him so far. Nicholas has had his moments during the adjustment. I think he is still used to having more family around during the weekends, now it is just him and I. He is now missing some of his old friends in Ridgecrest.

My famous brother Danny is doing good. His reputation with computers is nation wide. We are all know as “Danny’s Mom, Sister, Dad, and Uncle”. He has also traveled quite a bit with OAO. Mostly to Pax River, Maryland. His reputation in the music field is well known, as of late he has made a singing debut, with “Brown Eyed Girl”, and everyone was in awe. The last time the band played at a local club they packed them in! He is doing very well. He is back into riding bikes again, and works out at the gym. Since he started this exercise program he has lost a lot of weight, and looks great and feels great. We are all proud of him, He stays busy between Evan, work, and home. He is painting and fixing up the house. He is a great dad and if you see him with Evan, you can tell they have a special bond.

Evan is now four years old. He is smart as a whip. Next year he will start Kindergarten. Briana is ten years old and reads as well as any adult. She spent two weeks with us this summer, and we all had a great time with her.

We all wish everyone a Joyous Christmas Season and love and happiness in the year to come!!

From Cinda:

Happy Holidays, Everyone! Can’t comprehend that another year has passed already! It has been a relatively “quiet” year in that we don’t have any weddings or graduations or other major milestones to report.

Becky is still working at her photography store. She works primarily as a lab technician, but also shoots portraits. We’ve seen everything from sweet babies to adorable children to well-oiled professional wrestlers...and she does some freelancing (natural children’s pictures and weddings) as well.

Alexa and Chris are still living and working in the Charlotte area. We’re lucky to see them fairly often especially in the fall during the football season (Ga Tech games, of course!) and holidays.

Ben’s teaching at the college all year and his regular job’s workload the second half of the year were too heavy to plan any “big”getaways, so our traveling this year consisted of short family visits, which were wonderful. All in all, it was a very good year, except that the Marlins and Indian, outplayed the Bravos. And next year we’ll have to deal with the Devil Rays (including Fred McGriff), and a lot fewer Florida Braves fans supporting us! It was nice while it lasted.

Duane, Kathleen, Bret, and Jake stopped by for a visit when they came up to help openup Turner Field this year. We love it so much when the younger generation will take time to visit us “older” folk.

Bernie and Jennifer always include us in their boys’ birthday celebrations, which are a real treat. Watching Nathaniel eat his special first birthday cake this year was indeed a sight to behold!

Ben’s relatives from Pennsylvania (an aunt and two cousins) came south in June to visit Ben’s sister’s family (from Chattanooga), his brother’s family (here in Atlanta) and us. When we all got together, there were less than a dozen people....not quite the crowd that the Barthles’ had last year.

Mandi and Joe Zeranski spent a long weekend with us in July shortly before Mandi left for bootcamp. We did Six Flags, CompUSA, and several farmer’s markets (how’s that for variety!). We hope they had as much fun as we did.

Ralph and Paula came up for a couple of ballgames this year. We always have a super time when they come. Nothing like eating those peanuts and beer-bratwursts at Turner Field! On their trip over Labor Day weekend we also took a fun ride up into beautiful north Georgia.

Even though Margie and Jimmy’s visit didn’t quite materialize, we’re glad that Jim’s illness didn’t last more than a few days. We’re hoping for next year.

Thom Carr managed to work in an overnight with us one weekend this fall. The trucking company he is currently with has a “Super Service Center” (one of only two in the South) that is within five miles of where we live.

Then in November, we got to see the Higgins (Mrs. Higgins, Jack, Melda, and Patty) for a short visit during an unexpected trip to Marietta (northwest Atanta) for the funeral of Mrs. Higgins sister-in-law.

We’re now looking forward to heading south next weekend for our visit with Sara and Ken as they stopover in Tampa.

On December 9th, Caesar (our Boston Terrier) will have cataract surgery. It’s going to be interesting to see how (if) we can keep him “calm” for a few weeks following that. We must also be very vigilant to keep him from scratching his eyes. So we’re trying to get our Christmas preparations done far ahead. The latter part of December could very well be the slowest few weeks of the year.

We wish everyone a very safe and blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year.
As always, you are all so very welcome to visit whenever you have the opportunity.
Much love, Cinda and Ben

From Melda:

Dear family, It’s almost Christmas. Where has the time gone? During this last year, we have had some major events take place in and around the Higgins household . . .

Rob moved into an apartment in Tampa Palms with two other college boys in August to be closer to USF. He’s a college sophmore and continues to work with the USF Men’s Basketball Program. The team (7-2) has already traveled to Miami, Jacksonville, San Juan (over Thanksgiving) and Columbus, Ohio, since the season started in early November. In addition to school, over the summer Rob worked Hoop-It-Up and several basketball camps and clinics in Tampa and Orlando. He has also been covering high school football games for The St. Petersburg Times this fall. He is pretty much non-stop from the beginning of June until March Madness is finished. We do see him though when he wants a home-cooked meal or needs laundry done!

As for Rebecca, she graduated from USF last December and spent a good bit of the year sending out resumes, interviewing and trying to decide what she wanted to do now that she is supposed to be grown up! She had several very good offers for employment prior to accepting her position as a human resources software consultant with Rockleigh Services, a company headquartered in Orlando. She, like Rob, is traveling--having already been to Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis (including The Mall of America) in the last couple months. Rebecca and her friend, Travis, spent Thanksgiving in Palm Springs, California, with his family and they plan to spend Christmas in St. Martin, Virgin Islands with others of Travis’ family.

I was really disappointed to miss Sara and Ken’s recent visit. Had really looked forward to hosting an evening together, but when I caught the flu the night before their arrival, Monica and Herman with the help of Margie, Ralph & Paula, Cinda & Ben and others, did a wonderful job of coming up with and implementing Plan B! My thanks to all who helped in bailing me out at the last minute.

If any of you have driven by Bearss Avenue lately, you may have noticed the new Lake Higgins which was created by the drenching rains of El Nino December 10-14. It surrounds most of our “castle” like a moat. Thank goodness we were able to ferry back and forth to the street with Jack’s Ram truck (which is new since the last newsletter). He rescued my car today from the carport. It had been sitting in about six inches of water for the last four days. Jack has always wanted waterfront property, but never expected it would be here!

Hope each of you has a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year! We all send our love.

Melda, Jack, Rebecca and Rob

Hello from Shelley, Luke and D.J.,

I hope that this letter finds everyone in Good Health and Great Spirits. We have had a very long and at times trying year. It has been a year of growing spiritually, emotionally, and physically. Let's start with Luke, the ruler of the roost (or so he thinks). He has started Kindergarten at St. Anthony's School along with Jake Denney. Boy does Sister Mary Ann have her hands full with those two! The class learned a Thanksgiving Play that they performed beautifully for the Sisters at the Priory. It was so long that Kathleen (Denney) and I didn't think they could learn it (I know I couldn't). However, they learned not only the words to the entire play but the motions as well. It was delightful! Luke for being 5 has a pretty full life between his animals, 4-H, helping Nana, checking in on Mandi in Arizona and playing with Tyler, he's pretty busy. I think that it is only right that I let everybody know that Luke thinks he has a brother, Natalie's son Tyler. They play, fight, and love each other just as if they were brothers. It's nice to see them growing up together and loving one another. However, they are both their Mother's sons and boy are they just like me and Nat! On to D.J. In our last letter he was working in Tampa at Robertson's Billiards, a company that builds and sells pool and game tables as well as supplies for them. D.J. was offered a job at Crawler, Rail and Roller (where Aunt Margie works) in January and he took it. The pay was about what he was making in Tampa, and he doesn't spend $75 a week in gas, so he actually got a raise. D.J. loves working on heavy equipment. In the past year he has been trained in how to remove the crawler tracks from bulldozers and other heavy equipment, take them apart and rebuild them from the bottom up. He is a quick learner and has already been promoted to leaderman of this department. After much consideration, nervousness and begging by both me and his Mom, D.J. decided to go try to get his G.E.D. He took the pre-test at the beginning of November and passed it with such a high score that Suzie Newlon (C.P.A. Joe's wife), the pretest administrator, told him, "Get your butt over there and take that test!" So he did on November 4th and 5th. December 5th he was notified that he passed the test easily with a great score in science. D. J. is so excited about the possibilities that this gives him -- college, other jobs, just the ability to say, "Hey, I did it!". We are very proud of him!!!

My turn. Everything is going well with me. I'm still working at Cooper and Associates as Office Manager about 50 hours a week, as well as working alongside Kathleen Denney as Treasurer of the Pasco County CattleWomen and as Cloverbud Leader for the Outback 4-H Club. Cloverbuds are the youngest 4-H members ranging in age from 4 1/2 to 8 years old. Kathleen is also a Cloverbud Leader with another 4-H Club. We pass each other a lot moving at about 150 miles an hour, you know, the same speed that you're all moving. Well, we have some exciting news... WE'RE MOVING!!! I need to take this moment to Thank God for always giving me what I need, even when it's not what I want. When I really needed to move out on my own, God gave me a friend with a place to rent at an affordable (below market value)price with plenty of space to grow. It also taught me to appreciate what I'm getting now. My long time friends Kelly and Ben Huss have a house they lived in for 6 years that is owned by some friends of theirs out of town. The people that own it do not want to make any money on it, they just don't want it to cost them anything. So they have a standing arrangement that the tenant pay $100 a month for rent and we make any necessary repairs. Kelly and Ben put new carpet and a new A/C unit in the house for us, so the only other thing that it needed was a new shower. So my Dad is in the middle of putting in a new shower and tub. Meanwhile... We ar busy being excited, painting, cleaning and moving into our new home. It's located at 34534 Missionary Road, Dade City. Everybody stop by and see us. Natalie is having a very busy year -- she's been selling Avon, taking care of Tyler, working for Mom and Herman and keeping house to Better Homes and Gardens standards. She's a wonderful Mother, wife and sister and I'm glad that I will be seeingher more since we're moving. I've had to grow a lot emotionally this year as my first baby (Mandi) left home to join the Army. The hardest thing I've done in a long time was let Mandi get in Mom's car to leave for boot camp. My incredible little sister took the Army by storm. She helped to set the pace for everyone else by finishing within the top five of her platoon most of the time, guys included (boy did they hate that). Mandi is a beautiful young woman and we are very proud of her HUUUUUP!!! Joe has really blossomed in school this year. In the past he didn't exactly fit in with the middle school crowd, but man does High School agree with him. I haven't seen Joe smile this much since he was five. He has found a group of friends that enjoy music as much as he does and he has just gone to get his restricted drivers license. OH NO! He's a great driver and a big help around the house. Thanks Joe for all the babysitting. Bill is a livewire. He has so many irons in the fire that he's driving Mom nuts. He's into plants, animals, sports, girls, the great outdoors, and most of all, his family. He is great at anything he works at and is enjoying the extra curricular activities. I have a Great Family -- that includes everyone reading this.

I hope that everyone's holiday season is filled with love, laughter and Family.

Love, Shelley, Luke and D.J.

From Natalie
Greetings!!!

Where did the year go?! Well, let's see where to start. Tyler turned two and is definitely showing it. We're working on this potty business. He loves to talk on the phone to EVERYONE. He sits on the floor every day with our wedding pictures and tells me everyone in the picture. It's a whole new world now with him being able to talk and tell me what he needs. He's a great kid!!! He loves to play with Luke and do big boy things. He thinks Luke is great!!

Well in case you missed the get together at Mom's house on 12-5, Chris and I have big news..... WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!!!! It's a 2 BR, 1 BA house on 2 & 1/2 acres. It's in the woods, so it's very quiet. It has a big stone fireplace that is gorgeous! We are moving in by the first of the year. When Chris and I started looking for a house this was the first on the list. After looking at every other house in Pasco County, we went back to this house. It's in Hernando County, about thirty miles north of St. Joe.

Well, in January my VW finally gave out, and we gave up. So Chris went and bought me a new car. He bought me a Chrysler Cirrus. I love it!! You can get in it and it starts the first try, what a treat!! Then we got married in May. It was a perfect day to fly a kite. Besides the wind, it was perfect. I'm still staying at home with Tyler and taking care of the house.

Chris is still working for Automatic Machinery and Electronics. He is on third shift from 11pm - 7 am six days a week. They will be starting seven days soon. In the summer they told him he might be moving to Port St. Lucie (on the east coast). We didn't want to move that far, but if it's for his job we would have. They never said anything else about it, neither did Chris. Well, I guess I'll go for now.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday! Love always! Natalie, Chris and Tyler Helms

From Monica
Greetings to all!

We hope this finds everyone healthy and enjoying their many blessings, as we are healthy and enjoying ours! We have had a year filled with change, change, and more change! We ended up 1996 by moving to Herman's house and then organizing and e-organizing and hen re-reorganizing things until we got comfortable. Can anybody relate to that?!

This summer Herman took Joe and Bill on a trip to Alaska. They fished for salmon, saw some spectacular scenery, and had a wonderful time. This was the boys' first plane ride, and they went from Tampa to Anchorage via Detroit. They all had quite an adventure and the boys are ready to go again! Oh yes, they DID bring back some fish stories about the ones that got away!

Shelley is doing well. It is getting harder and harder to see her because she is going about fifty miles an hour! One of the really nice things that happened to her this year is that one of Patsy Reynolds' daughters (Connie) started working at Cooper & Associates as a realtor. Connie has been an inspiration, a support group and a really good friend to Shelley. I'm so happy Shelley has had the opportunity to get to know her!

Right after the first of the year, Natalie announced that she was getting married in May. We started preparations and finally finished just about 10 minutes before the wedding! She had an outdoor wedding (at Herman's -- okay, our house). The day was clear and sunny, and WINDY! (I wonder what it is about weddings and weather?) It was a lot of fun, and Natalie and Chris are doing very well.

In February, Mandi turned 18; in June she graduated from Pasco High School (it isn't Pasco Comprehensive High School any more). She went to Cancun, Mexico for about a week. The day she got back, she headed to Marco Island to babysit for the Barthle's while they attended a Cattleman's Convention. She returned home on Saturday, then squeezed in a camping trip and a trip to the beach before Herman and the boys left for Alaska. While they were gone, Mandi and I had a really nice time spending some time together. All too soon, July 21st rolled around and she left for Fort Jackson, South Carolina and the Army. She has done very well and graduated from boot camp September 25th. Herman, Shelley, Luke, Joe, Bill and I made the whirlwind trip to see her graduate and get ready to leave for school. When she arrived at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, she discovered there is no air in Arizona! She has gracefully made the transition, and this week encountered her first snow! Mandi is a wonderfully courageous trouper and I can't help thinking how fortunate our country is to have such a fine soldier in it's ranks!

Joe has continued his pursuit of guitar oneness! He practices every day. While we had internet access, he found a place he could get "TABS" (printed music) to practice. He is doing very well, and improving every week! In addition to his fishing trip, he also enjoyed his first Tampa Bay Lightning (hockey) game. He bought his first jersey, and had a great time rooting for his favorite, # 5, Igor Ulanov. Joe made the transition to Pasco High School this year and is doing well. He also is the proud owner of a new restricted Driver's License! So don't be surprised if you see him out driving his Mom around.

Bill has had a very busy year! He has decided to play football for Weightman Middle School this year. Now I have a much better appreciation for what those guys go through! After all that practice, there sure isn't much time left for the essentials of life -- like breathing! He is also involved in FFA (he entered a story teller's contest, went to district, and WON!!) I'm very proud of his accomplishments! He's still playing trumpet in band, and has joined the Jazz Band. He also shot his first deer this year! The first time he went hunting, he got a seven point buck! He hasn't seen much since then (I think the deer must have gotten the word!). He also attended the Agriculture Expo in Moultrie, Georgia and the Made for Excellence Conference near Winter Haven. He has been having a GREAT time! He also manages to stay on the honor roll, even though he was moved to advanced math this year.

I have had a wonderful year! I started the year doing some catch-up work at the law firm. Then in March I heard of an opening for a Programmer/Analyst position at Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative, applied for it -- and got it! I was thrilled to get a position working in Dade City! I started in late March, and it has been a wonderful experience! I was so intimidated to start with, but everyone is so helpful and friendly that they soon made me more comfortable. I am thoroughly enjoying my job and love programming (it is rather scary to spend all that time going to school to learn something and then sometimes find out that isn't what you wanted to do). I am so fortunate! WREC always puts up a fantastic Christmas light display, so now when I go to work I feel like I'm working in a Winter Wonderland! Enough about the job!

When Connie got married and Dan left for the Navy the same day, us little girls' and Ralph's lives changed dramatically. I never could understand why Mom did the things she did from that time until I got married and left home. Well, this year I had an answer to that (whether it was the same one for Mom, I can't say. I just know how I felt). When Natalie got married and Mandi left home (in the same year -- NOT EVEN IN THE SAME DAY), I realized how very quickly children grow up and go off on their own. I knew I only had a short time to teach the boys all the things they need to know to get along in the world. I understand that throughout life we have to learn something everyday to get along, but I want to prepare my children for anything and everything that could come their way. I suddenly felt very inadequate. I lean on the Lord always, and in this I am leaning hard. When I can't be with the children (who aren't children anymore), He is with them. When I can't prepare them, He stands faithfully at their side. I am inadequate, He is sufficient.

I am so proud of my children! They are all working at being responsible citizens. They all know that Jesus died for their sins. They all know what is important in life. But one thing they have realized over the last few years is that they belong to a wonderful family -- the August Barthle family. A family with loving Aunts and Uncles and playful Cousins. A family that stands with you and helps you. Even when we don't see everyone, we know they are there, hearts beating as one.

Thank you to all who were able to spend some time with us this year! We especially enjoyed the get together with Ken and Sara! Everyone pitched in and we had a really good time. I'm so glad Melda is feeling better now, so sorry she was so sick then. She always adds so much to our family gatherings!

Hugs to all of you! We love you all. May God richly bless each of you now and throughout eternity!
Love, Monica

From Paula & Ralph:

Another memorable year is closing fast. Seems like we just sent the 1996 letter to Dan.

In February we celebrated our twentieth (yes 20) wedding anniversary. Just a simple get together at the local watering hole. Wow, where did the years go…?

We enjoyed a quick weekend with the Higgins & Rawlings in Thomasville, Georgia (more or less midway between Atlanta & Tampa) in March. What a history that area has, if you get a chance, check it out.

In April we headed to Virginia to spend a little time at Mike, Nancy, Sarah, and Caroline's new home in Newport News. Unfortunately Paula's Grandmother passed away about the time we arrived, so the trip was short. Florence Tubbs was a sweet lady with a thousand stories to tell. She was born in W. Paris, Maine in 1902, so she had a lot of living done by the time 1997 came around. Anyway, we got to see a lot (and I do mean a lot) of family we hadn't seen (or in my case ever met) in many years. (Sound familiar?) I guess a lot of families are that way. I'll never forget, at the reception after the funeral Paula turned to me and asked, "Isn't my family really loud?" My response was "yes, kind of like mine." The faces were different but not much else!

We had our first opportunity (it fell into our laps…life is so tough sometimes) to go to a Braves game at (Tina?) Turner Field with Cinda & Ben to see the Baltimore Orioles (yes, Paula says Cal Ripkin's eyes really are that blue!) play in the first inter-league game. What a place! Check this one out too.

July was when we were able to go back to Newport News to spend a week with the Petters family. What a great house! What a great home! One of the nice things we like about going there (other than the hosts) is that we do as much or as little as we feel like doing. We went to a AAA baseball game while there to see the Tidewater Tides (Mets team) play the visiting Richmond Braves (the Braves won…sorry C,S,N, M!)

We took a long weekend at the end of August to catch a Braves game against the Astros in Atlanta. This time we had time to take the tour of Turner Field. The tour includes the museum, Brave's clubhouse (locker room), the dug out, the press boxes, and all the rest. I think sitting on the bench in the dug out was just about the best part of the tour...

There was more baseball fun in November with the expansion draft for the new teams in Arizona and Tampa Bay. Our area has been trying to get a team for about fourteen years, can't believe it's less than four months before opening day (March 31st). The Devil Rays (Sorry Cinda & Ben, we got Fred McGriff!) will open at home against the Detroit Tigers. At long last…

We hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We love you all, Ralph & Paula
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