2025 Collins Christmas Letter
Christmas Letter 2025
After 16 years of using Livejournal for our annual Christmas letter, I've decided to move to my own blog location for 2025.
[Quick Links: Previous Christmas Letters | Favorite Photos of 2025]
So, What Kept the Collinses Busy in 2025?
So Much Beach.
We visited the beach every month except May. Most of our beach time was at Twin Rocks in Rockaway, Oregon, but we also spent time in Bandon on the southern Oregon coast, Cape Falcon near Canon Beach, and Anna Maria Island, FL.
Homeschool and Co-Op
Last September we joined a Firmly Planted, a co-op with about 100 kids that meets on Mondays for about 4 hours. The kids take three classes (taught by parents) plus a chapel session each day. It's a good mix of academics and electives, although the older kids skew more academic. James was able to complete a solid Chemistry course in the 24/25 school year. (This school year Annette got roped into teaching Physics, which very frankly consists of lecturing from the previous, far more qualified teacher's notes and praying that no-one asks for clarification!) In the spring they hold a formal for the 8th-12th graders, which surprisingly both James and Grace wanted to attend.
Grace decided to withdraw from co-op for the 25/26 school year and do most of her school online. James is also taking a real-time Cyber Security course for several hours on Wednesdays. He's finding this pretty interesting. Terrifyingly (to his parents), he's a junior this year. Lucy is in 7th grade and Grace is in 9th.
Extra-Curriculars
After about a season and a half off of comp, Grace doubled down on dancing this year with two competition groups, a solo, and a part as a mouse in this month's production of The Nutcracker. In October and November she was often at dance 6 days a week. This should slow down for the rest of the winter, but then we'll be in competition season in April and May with meets every two or three weeks.
Lucy is still keeping in training with a Contemporary dance class, but has decided that dance competition is not her thing.
James has also increased his training with Tae Kwon Do: he's attending 3 nights a week plus Saturday morning "Elite Teams." Thankfully (from my standpoint) TKD competitions are few and far between: usually just once a year.
Summer Camp
As mentioned above, we spent a ton of time at Twin Rocks this year. In June Grace, James, and Annette helped at kids camp. Over the Fourth of July weekend the extended family attended a "Vacation Adventure" during which we had all seven Nelson-side cousins together for the first time in several years! Later in the month Lucy attended Tween Camp and Grace and Annette helped. Finally, James and Grace (and Grandma) helped at Day Camp. August was Surfside (High School) camp for James and Grace - and Annette as a helper. And of course there was Family Camp over Labor Day.
While James and Grace found these first forays into counseling and other kid wrangling a definite challenge, everyone still felt refreshed and recharged after all this time at the beach. Spiritually we were all challenged and some good decisions were made. Plus, we got tons of exercise! Annette hopes to spend next summer in a very similar manner.
Church
Everyone remains happily involved with City's Edge, which celebrated its 28th birthday this year. Annette has been part of this body from its earliest days, and many of its members feel more like family than just friends. There are a ton of high schoolers this year - something like 15? - as well as a good group of younger kids and young adults. We're very blessed to have a solid, healthy place for the kids to explore their faith and the adults to continue to grow as well. (Oh yes, and we love Mayhem: A whole month of themed Sundays where we also get to hear each-other's stories!)
Down Time
We were able to take the entire family to Anna Maria on the Gulf coast this year in October for eleven days of sun and relaxation. In between walks on the beach and exploring the souvenir shops we spent time with David's side of the family: in fact, we managed to see nine of the twelve Collins/Garcia-side cousins. We also fit in a couple of visits to Busch Gardens, a theme park that hits the sweet spot of location, affordability, thrills for the kids, and less-thrilling activities for the adults.
Bits and Pieces
I became the shortest person in the family sometime around February when Lucy - not yet 12 - passed me up. The kids all love to tease me about this, but I am capitalizing on it in my own way: I can demand that anyone in the house reach things for me with a perfectly straight face!
James and Grace both have drivers' permits; Grace's is only 2 weeks old at the writing of this letter. James turned 16 this spring but didn't have the hours or experience to test for his license around his birthday. Grace is more motivated than he as she really wants to be able to drive herself to dance, but she picked a really rotten time of year to be born if she wants to get any practice in. There just aren't enough hours of daylight!
Lucy continues to enjoy cooking and often makes dinner for the family once or twice a week. Her specialties are Mac n' Cheese (from scratch in the Instant Pot) with just a Little too much spice for me, and pancakes with all the add-ins.
David is still comfortably ensconced at Intel. After nearly 5 years of working almost exclusively from home, the powers that be dictated a return to the office at least 4 days a week this fall. So we see rather less of him than we used to, but we're figuring it out.
Mom is doing OK. Having her just a mile away has been a blessing. She and I have both joined a Bible study thru CBS that meets via Zoom on Thursday evenings. The tech has been a stretch for her, but the study is definitely good for both of us.
We participated in Two craft fairs this year: one in the summer and one just a week ago. We sold effectively nothing at the first one which had wretched food traffic and limited advertising, but took home over $200 at the Christmas one. I'm chalking the first one up to experience, and it also motivated me to finally open an Etsy shop and create my own website. Of course I haven't sold anything there either, but I'm really not stressing about it: I don't know what I would do if a flood of custom orders hit my inbox next week. :} Especially with JoAnn Fabrics gone!
We will soon be owners of a fancy 3D printer. James and I are very excited! Because of course I needed just one more space-consuming project to shove in my garage because my craft room is now shared with both the spare bedroom and James' desk and computer equipment. But I digress.
Wrapping it Up with a Shabby Little Bow
It is always tempting to downplay, trivialize, or completely ignore the disappointments, struggles, losses, worries, and other hard stuff when writing these letters. To put our best face forward and hide the clutter in the closet. This is, after all, a highlights reel meant to focus on the good things that have happened in the year and the blessings God has given us. And He has given us so many! Still, keeping it Too tidy is not only disingenuous, it fosters (to coin a phrase) Facebook-itis : that notion that everyone *else* is doing great and has it all together, and so it really must be just you that is struggling. Believe me, it is not.
Parenting tweens and teens is Hard. They don't like to get up in the morning (true story: it's 9:50 am and exactly none of them have left their bedrooms despite repeated nagging.) They have big feelings and limited ability to communicate them in healthy ways. They actively or passively fight their school work. They don't like my food. They struggle with anxiety, headaches, ADHD, neurodivergance, motivation, screen-addiction, compliance, attitude, and responsibility. (Yeah, they're becoming a lot like their parents.) A dozen times a day I have to decide which battles to fight and which ones to put off until another day, and it is Exhausting.
Aging is Hard. I seem to have allergies I never really had before, plantar fasciitis has actively restricted my movement over the past few months, my eyes are having more and more trouble focusing on small things, and middle age spread is real.
This world is Hard. I have restricted my intake of news to a significant degree since COVID, but whenever I push up that rock I've been hiding under for a peek, I notice that things aren't getting better. I don't know how to feel about immigration, vaccines, tariffs, National Guard deployments, and spiraling housing prices. Bad, mostly.
In these dark months of the year, when Christmas somehow feels simultaneously like our only ray of light and a frantic, calorie-laden, crushing responsibility, it is very difficult for me to - as we are commanded in Philippians 4:4-8, keep my own focus on what is good, true, noble, right, lovely and admirable. To, in every circumstance and in every season, Rejoice.
When I began working on Christmas crafts this year, the phrase that came into my heart is from the hymn "Oh Holy Night:"
A thrill of hope,Jesus almost certainly wasn't born on December 25th, but I think it is no accident we celebrate his advent in midwinter. When it is darkest, we need light, we need hope, and we need a reason to rejoice.
The weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks
A new and glorious morn!
He provides all of these.
Fall on your knees,
Oh hear the angel voices!
O night divine,
O night when Christ was born!
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