The 2009 Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family!

This year I decided to mix it up a little bit and not include my annual Christmas Letter with our cards. Why not save a tree or two? So, if you are reading this, thank you! I'm glad you stopped by to hear all the juicy details about life at the RouseHouse in 2009.

We had a very interesting year, to say the least. As a family, we experienced a lot of change and growth. We have been challenged and rewarded and challenged some more. Above all, we have come together as a family more than ever before. 2009 has certainly shown us what is important to us and just how blessed we really are!

One of our highlights has been to watch Claire grow into an amazing girl! Where once stood a shy, nervous Kindergartner, we now see a strong, confident, happy and well-loved 2nd grader. Claire is right at home in school. She was fortunate to be allowed into ELP (talented and gifted program) again this year and even submitted a paper in the state-wide writing contest! When she's not busy "hitting the books" she is enjoying all of her friends and is becoming quite a little social butterfly! She is still very busy with swim team. She is getting stronger and more confident in her abilities every meet and we really enjoy watching her glide through the water and then laugh and play with her teammates. Claire is truly a great kid, inside and out and I couldn't be more proud, or thankful!

Ella has had a very exciting 2009 as well. She turned the big 5 on August 18th, and then started Kindergarten the very next day! As we expected, she is loving it! Ella really enjoys learning and, of course, playing with her many girl friends and boyfriends! She has a very patient and loving teacher who is just perfect for her. Ella also had a great year with her extra curricular activities as well. She continues to enjoy gymnastics and placed 3rd in her gymnastics meet this summer. She also had the great honor of playing the purple gumdrop in the Nutcracker. She is definitely right at home in the spotlight! Besides a few bumps in the road health wise, Ella is still our shining star! Always there to give you a smile or a hug or a laugh, and always there with a hand-drawn picture to enjoy!

Avery, oh Avery! God could not have made a more perfect third child! I'm laughing right now, just thinking about her. She has the greatest personality. Completely full of spunk and spice and pure attitude! She talks a mile a minute and asks questions constantly! She is never without a dog in her arms, usually a stuffed one, but sometimes it's poor Jack (our Shih-Poo). She is growing up so quickly and sometimes my heart breaks when I realize that my last baby is not much of a baby anymore. Avery's highlight of her week is going to school 2 days. She loves her teacher, friends and, mostly, washing her hands in the kid sized sink! She is also quite the little swimmer and tumbler. She definitely follows, very closely, her sisters' paths.

Dave has had a busy year. The economy has certainly not smiled on the car business, but he has had some great opportunities come his way and has landed at a great place. The coolest thing has been how we have shifted our schedules around and really allowed him to take over a lot around the house. If you come to our house in the morning, you'll find Dave up, getting the big kids dressed, breakfast and out the door to school. The three of them have really bonded this fall and it sure is nice sleeping in now and then!

I had a bit of a crazy year as well. I gave full-time employment a shot for half the year. It was a wonderful opportunity and I met some great people. I also realized that it's not the best thing for our family. So, I went back to part-time work as an Academic Advisor at DMACC. I am loving it and have really found my place. I like the balance it allows me at home and "out there"! I am very grateful for the time I have to volunteer at the girls' school and still spend some one on one time with Aves. I am also grateful for my wonderful husband. We will celebrate 10 years of marriage in a couple of weeks, and I can truly say "I've never been more in love"! I think the trials and treats we've had this year were exactly what we needed to grow stronger and closer as we begin our second decade together.

All in all, 2009 has been a wonderful year, thanks to our many friends and family that have walked through it with us. We can never express enough how much your friendship, love and prayers mean to us.

Here's to a healthy and happy 2010!
God bless,
David, Janelle, Claire, Ella and Avery and Jack our newest family member!

There's always one in every group.....

My dear sweet Ella.

As many of you know, Ella has been having some "not so great" health the last few months. It all started a few months ago when a rash appeared across the bridge of her nose and cheeks. With that came complaints of aches and pains. Lots of aches and pains. Add to that, randomly appearing rashes that itch and irritate. All the while she started complaining of stomach aches and fatigue. The worse part was her change in personality. She has been struggling (to say the least) with her emotions. Lots of tears, meltdowns, and general moodiness. She is also tired a lot and just not her spunky self.

We tried to chalk a lot of this up to life changes. Ella started Kindergarten this year and that can be a lot on anyone. But, we just couldn't believe that was all there was to it. After all, she seems to love school and is doing very well. So, we started the "Tour de la Doctors".

Her pediatrician ran a huge batch of test, including a full screen blood test. Everything came back fine. Then we started with the dermatologist. He treated her with steroid cream for 3 weeks, that didn't do anything. So now she will be seeing a rheumatologist in February. Until then, her dr. put her on a strict no-dairy diet. We're going to see if a little Lactose-intolerance is to blame for some of this.

On the bright side, Ella is still growing strong. She is loving school and she is still my sweet, snuggly cuddle bunny. We just need to keep finding her strengths and encouraging her to be strong and grown-up and she'll do just fine!

Please keep Ella in your prayers, and maybe us too, as we have to live with her! : )

My great teacher...

My little Gumdrop, enjoying her bounty, after a wonderful performance in Ballet Des Moines' Nutcracker.


Ella is such a gift from God. I am amazed at what she does, what she can do, and most importantly, what she can make those around her do.

Ella just has this infectious personality that makes you want to hug her. She just makes you happy to be wherever you are at any given moment.

Ella makes me grateful for good friends that take time out of their day to support her and love her.

Ella makes me laugh at just about anything, because, well, she's laughing at just about anything.

Ella makes me want to fight like a lion to protect her from harm and hurt.

Ella makes me want to get up and do more, learn more, create more and live more.

Ella makes me proud.

Ella makes me want to pull my hair out at times.

Ella makes me feel so loved by my family, as they gather together to celebrate her successes and share in her favorite thing, dessert!

Ella makes me want to be a better mom. More patient, more quiet, more curious, more understanding, more fun, and more forgiving.

Ella is my angel. She was sent here to teach me about the good things in life. She is a great teacher!

Thank you Ella. I love you!