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| Morrows in Greystone Farms, our Birmingham neighborhood |
It’s Christmas once
again. In the midst of the ‘hot mess’ (that’s
Southern for “mess”) that we call the whole
world, this little envelope of yuletide cheer known as the Morrow Family
Christmas Letter couldn’t come soon enough. Unfortunately, threats of cyber
attacks from “sophisticated actors” in North Korea to leak incriminating and
formerly unread drafts of the MFCL recently emerged. The threats forced us to
shelve our merriment until tensions calmed. To be quite candid, the early
drafts are terrible – mostly focused on airing grievances and feats of strength
that, sadly, would just ruin Christmas for you and everybody else. So, those
files really need to remain sealed. For the good of Christmas. And the North
Koreans know it. Apparently, Kim Jong-un really hates Christmas. And Seth
Rogen. And us. And you.
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| Good Alabama BBQ! |
But here’s the good news: A heroic
and unlikely team of diplomats has united to ensure you receive your annual
envelope of holiday cheer on or around Christmas Day in 2014-2015ish. Special
thanks to the team: Dennis Rodman, Jimmy Carter, Billy Ray Cyrus, Dan Quayle and
Madonna. Think of them sort of like the Avengers, but with no powers. At all.
To do anything. Ever. And with no Hulk. Miraculously, as you can see by the
masterpiece you now hold in your quivering hands, the MFCL was saved. But concessions had to be made. So, this year, we suspect the final version may
do even more damage to Christmas than earlier, more offensive drafts. There’s only one way to find out…. Let the Christmas festivities begin!
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| We love Rachael's Pork Belly |
As you know from the disjointed
braggadocio we spew ad nausea every year, we think of ourselves as the Al Sharpton
of the Christmas letters. We may not be all
that, but we still shamelessly insist that all other Christmas letters
kneel to kiss the ring of the MFCL.
Admittedly, this year we feel about as eloquent as Joe Biden at a… in a…
well… about as eloquent as Joe Biden. Yet, as is our holiday custom, without a
single shred of even circumstantial evidence to support our claim, we audaciously
hereby declare this little cheer-velope to be the undisputed best part of your
holiday. We don’t need consensus. Or input.
We wrote it down, making it so.
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| Alex & Denver, American Village |
Those of you who archive our
letters (you know who you are) will remember that our letter last year had
several awkwardly placed references to an iconic Lynyrd Skynyrd anthem. And while Alabama
is still sweet, God apparently does
not intend it to be our home for much
longer. Matt has accepted a new job, and
now serves as President of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce. He is President Business, like, for real. And
yes, Everything is Awesome. Eventually,
the rest of the family will also transition back to Missouri to join him. But for now, he has temporarily moved back
into his parents’ house. Matt is 42, so, the jokes pretty much write
themselves. Please feel free to insert your own DIY comedy here.
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| Destin agrees with these two! |
This year God has blessed
Rachael with several ministry and volunteer opportunities in Birmingham, which
she is wrapping up as we prayerfully seek the next step for our family. Rachael
is growing in her appreciation of Matt, as she single moms it for a while and prepares for another move (our
second big move in two years). And as we
have no plan, the preparations are mostly mental. Meanwhile she is focusing on good southern
eats: consuming all the shrimp & grits and banana pudding her gullet will
hold until she heads back North. You can follow her Pork Belly on twitter
(@RachPorkBelly).
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| Annie & Emma, Memphis Redbirds |
Annie is in fifth grade. The
smart money was that the Morrow family’s first ER trip would be for Alex, but
Annie always exceeds expectations, and she’s quite competitive. She broke her
arm this summer, attempting an epic dismount from the neighbors’ trampoline.
Annie loves to write, and even had an essay published in a magazine. Her Christmas wishlist request for a ‘pimple
popper” reminds us that she is growing up fast, and is officially a ‘tween’.
Bless her heart (Southern for “gulp”). God blessed Annie with the opportunity
to see three Broadway shows this year, and she has fallen in love with the
stage. She dressed as the Phantom of the Opera for Halloween, and
has every line of “Popular” (from Wicked) memorized.
But the crème de la crème comes this February, when she will be a Lost Boy in her
school’s production of Peter Pan. She
says it’s the perfect role; she gets to be on stage nearly the whole time, yet only
has to speak six times.
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| Alex with his RED SOX baseball team |
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| Broken arm piano recital |
Alex is in the second grade. He
loves baseball, writing and reading mysteries. He doesn’t leave the house
without a Lego in his pocket, and loves fishing and critters of every kind. He
makes us all laugh and has perfected the art of tormenting his sister.
Annie and Alex are excited to
be moving closer to family but will miss all the wonderful friends they have
made here. While all moves are hard, God
has shown His goodness and faithfulness to our family in big and small ways
this year. We pray that is true for your
family as well as you celebrate this Christmas.
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| With our small group of "young marrieds" ... feeling a little old! |
Merry Christmas!
For MFCL Archives, comments, PLUS more
holiday cheer, visit: http://morrowfamilychristmasblog.blogspot.com
