December
2015
Ian
Ian
just turned 15 and is in 9th
grade this year. Not only is he now in high school, but he recently
had his braces taken off and will soon be getting his learner's
permit. Ian is now taking French I at CHESS and this year he is also
taking the Yearbook/Photography class. He is also still
participating in a co-op to supplement the literature we are studying
in our homeschooling. In March we took a field trip to Agecroft
Hall, a Tudor-style house built in the mid-16th
century. Ian also continues to take piano lessons. In February he
participated in the Manassas Piano Festival, receiving superiors in
theory and solos. He played in recitals in June and December and
occasionally plays special music at church. Ian again played both
spring and fall soccer, and his team continues to post winning
records in the WYSC U-17 division. Ian also continues to enjoy
participating in Mid-Atlantic District Church of the Brethren events.
He attended a junior high lock-in in February, snow tubing in March,
National Junior High Conference in June, Beach Retreat in September,
and a Christmas lock-in in December. In addition to continuing to
help with the sound and audio/visual systems at church, Ian decided
to get baptized in August of this year. Ian has continued to swim
for the Curtis Park Seahawks during the summer, and he decided to
play on the church softball team this year. He spent back-to-back
weeks at summer camp: first a week at Cherokee Scout Reservation in
North Carolina for Boy Scout camp at the end of July and then a week
at Shepherd's Spring's Outdoor Adventure Camp in August. During the
summer Ian enjoys helping at the local library as a volunteer with
their Summer Reading Program, and during the school year he
participates in their Teen Advisory Group. Ian also continues to
stay busy with Boy Scouts. He was Patrol Leader during this past
school year, and he helped organize several events, including a
patrol campout in our woods in May and a karaoke lock-in at the end
of October. He also participated in several troop campouts and other
events. As usual, this month we have also been busy working the
Christmas tree lot that our troop runs each year with four other area
troops.
Preston
Preston
successfully completed his first year at Virginia Commonwealth
University in Richmond, where he took classes such as University
Physics II, Engineering Visualization & Computation, and
Electric Circuits, and he even took Differential Equations at
Northern Virginia Community College this summer to lessen his course
load this fall. This summer Preston continued to play on our
church's softball team. During the fall semester, Preston took
Multivariable Calculus, Material Science, Dynamics, Deformables, and
UNIV 200 (a writing class) toward his degree in mechanical
engineering. He is sharing an on-campus apartment with one of his
roommates from last year. In August we met Preston's girlfriend
Cassandra when we went to dinner prior to Preston returning to school
for the fall. Since then Cassandra has attended many family events.
Kanoa
Kanoa
has had a relatively light year regarding volunteer positions. She
is completing a term on the church's gifts discernment team, while
still also teaching Sunday School and helping with the youth
programs. As a delegate for the Piedmont Republican Women's Club,
she attended the Virginia Federation of Republican Women's convention
in Richmond last spring. Kanoa continues to teach Ian most subjects,
including grammar, spelling, history, science, and math, but she also
transports him to all of his outside classes and activities.
David
David
continues to teach an adult Sunday School class and oversee the sound
system. He is also the Committee Chair for our Boy Scout troop. He
helped to plan a troop bike trip to the Virginia Capitals Trail this
fall, and although Ian wasn't able to attend due to a conflict with
his soccer tournament, David still went and enjoyed a 27-mile bike
trip on this relatively new trail. In December David also traveled
to Denver for a business trip where he was able to visit with his
cousins.
Events
In
March Kanoa organized a ski trip for the Boy Scout troop. We took a
day trip to Liberty Mountain in Pennsylvania. Both Preston and Ian
were able to ski for the first time, and a number of other boys from
the troop were able to experience skiing. David and Kanoa both
attended to provide support and assist with logistics. In May, Kanoa
and Ian traveled to Winchester to visit Kanoa's friend and to attend
the Apple Blossom Parade. In June we traveled with all of David's
family to southwest Virginia for his Aunt Mary's memorial service at
the old homeplace in Grundy. This summer Kanoa served as Midland
Church of the Brethren's delegate to the Church of the Brethren's
Annual Conference in Tampa. While Kanoa was busy with business
sessions and Ian participated in junior high activities, David
relaxed in the hotel room. Ian enjoyed attending an aquarium and
participating in the other junior high activities We all enjoyed the
daily worship services, especially the performances by the Nigerian
Women's Choir. Since we drove from Virginia to Florida, we enjoyed a
couple of stops. On the trip south, we stopped at the Dwarf Grill,
the original Chick-fil-a, near Atlanta. On the trip north we once
again stopped in Atlanta. This time we spent part of the day at the
World of Coca-Cola. In September David and Kanoa celebrated their
20th wedding anniversary by taking a trip to Quebec City –
their first vacation alone in many years. On the way up to Canada,
they stayed overnight in Lake Placid and then visited Malone, New
York, to see the Farmer Boy house, making this the third
Little House on the Prairie/Laura Ingalls Wilder site we have
visited. While in Quebec, David and Kanoa enjoyed visiting the Old
City and taking a trip out to Montmorency Falls. In September, all
of us, including Cassandra and a friend from church, attended the UVA
vs. William & Mary football game. The game was more exciting
than it should have been, but UVA won thankfully. Wahoowa!Then in
November Kanoa's grandmother celebrated her 90th birthday.
Her children organized a party for her.
Wishing
blessings for our friends and family for 2016,
The
Ratliffs
David,
Kanoa, Preston, & Ian
