Morrow Family Christmas Letter #5: Christmas 2006

Annually, we rack our brains for new ways to turn what many regard as a sweet holiday tradition into a crushing victory in a blood-and-guts, take-no-prisoners competitive event. But, it’s time to face reality. No, Virginia, there is no Christmas Letter of the Year Award. We have yet to receive our trophy in the mail, an honorable mention letter, an invitation to the awards gala banquet, or even a “Try Again” bottlecap. So we determined that after four failed attempts, we would retire the annual Morrow Family Christmas Letter (MFCL).

Then a close friend confided that each day since Labor Day, he has trudged to his mailbox, often through the snow and ice, in hopes of finding our annual holiday tome. “Christmas just isn’t Christmas without it,” he shared, bravely fighting back the large tears welling in his eyes. The outpouring of emotion raised several questions: What kind of a man blubbers so openly about such a meaningless matter? Is retiring The Letter selfish? Could there be others who count on us for a small piece of their Christmas joy? Doubtful, but it’s just the glimmer of encouragement we needed to continue on with our annual yuletide manifesto. We can’t let down those - no matter how few they be - who mark the season by the coming of the MFCL.

Typically, all of the bragging and profanity found in the MFCL are just thinly-veiled distractions to hide what had been a less than productive year. But this year, we pledge 30% less profanity and bragging because we really were pretty *!*?# awesome this year.

First, the Cardinals won the World Series. And while no one in our household actually plays for the team (yet), Matt has been waiting for this day since he was ten years old. He wept openly. Rachael wept too, when she saw David Eckstein win his first-ever new car, but she is 7½ months pregnant and a little hormonal. That’s right, lightening does strike twice (despite what you might have heard in a marginal informative speech from the early 90’s), and we are expecting a little boy, Alexander Matthew Morrow, in early February.

Annie is 2½, loves lipstick and cheese, never stops talking, took a ride on the potty train at Silver Dollar City and believes that Santa lives in her heart, like Jesus (when he’s not at the mall terrorizing little kids of course). We need to work on her theology, but for now it’s cute.

Matt believes this has been the most productive year yet at the HBA. He won one for pollution by helping the local utility company pass a bond for a new power plant. However, he is making up for it by overseeing a new building for the HBA that incorporates ‘green’ building techniques. Get him to recycle the millions of diet coke cans he consumes in a year and the Inconvenient Truth may just be the planet survives.

Rachael is doing her part to save the world, too. She conducts strategic planning and focus groups on everything from diamonds to frozen custard. There is little more important than discovering how thirty-something soccer moms like to eat their sundaes or furthering the blood diamond trade. Go us!

We hope and pray your 2006 was full of blessings and joy. Most of all, we hope during this Christmas season, your family will enjoy the hope and peace that comes only from knowing the Savior who entered this world as an infant - the ultimate act of love and mercy. May He richly bless you during the coming year. Merry Christmas!