December and January running arounds

 Ramos family Lazer Tag was amazing!

 CHEERS!

 The beloved Elf made his appearance in December...

 we got to be in the Christmas Parade... So fun!

 Aricin is growing up way too fast!

 Stop Hunger Now... has been such a great annual way to serve as a family

 watching the surf

Surf Happens Surf Contest 

 Such a stud

 Snow in SB (fake snow is still fun)

 Costume Craziness

 The beauty of the Central Valley

Festival of Lights was awesome 

 Tally's first Mani- compliments of Grandma Julie

 Me and my mini me

 Fresno Zoo fun

 This girl lost her first tooth

 This kid cracks us up

 Ninja fun

 Date with mommy- we went Ice Skating in SB

 This boy is so creative and loves thinking outside the box

 Painting fun with friends

 Batman

 Aricin won the Pine wood derby competition for cub scouts 

 Kids helping Kids Benefit Concert featuring the band Need to Breathe. This event was so much! Aaron is on the board and was able to surf with the band members the day of the snow which was pretty cool

 Ran into an old friend- she was my setter at Westmont for Volleyball back in 1997-98

 We got box seats with our own private butler- i didn't want to go home :)

 Horses birthday party for a sweet friend

 my boys

 Tally and her friends

 Tally and Daddy getting ready for the Father daughter dance

 Evening strolls on the beach

 Our beach finds... I love looking for shells

Life is good. Its crazy busy and full but we are trying desperately to slow down and enjoy these moments with these sweet and nutty kids. I'm working more than i'd like but hopefully it will pay off soon. The kids are growing up so fast. I still feel like its a huge blessing to be able to home school them monday, wednesdays, and fridays- being able to stop and read with them or teach them is such a gift and they are so enjoyable. Aaron and I are reading Ann Voskamps 1000 gifts and trying to more deliberate about documenting all of the things we have to be thankful for as a reminder of God's goodness even when we feel disgruntled. I'm hoping to foster a spirit of gratitude in the kids as well

Another Year Another Ode...

Marshall Family Christmas Ode 2015, Volume 11

Hello friends, here’s a note from us to you

Filled with love and sharing what’s new…

Aricin (7) surfed his first contest, started 2^nd grade and loves to read

Soccer, Scouts, Baseball and Skateboarding are habits he likes to feed.

Talia started 1^st grade and turned 6 this fall

She’s artistic, smart, and girly but kicks a mean soccer ball.

Oliver is now 4 and has started pre-school

He’s quite the dare devil, jokester, and thinks his siblings rule.

Making Pinewood Derby Cars & selling Girl Scout Cookies

Our kiddos keep us busy running around like little wookies

Aaron loves his job as Director of Ed. at the SB Zoo

His PhD is still in progress always leaving him with something to do

The Phd will be done this spring  - do you know a copy reader?

And this year Aaron was selected as a tri-county 40 under 40 business leader

My days are full of homeschooling and Real Estate

Laughing often with the kids and enjoying our Wed night date

For 2 weeks we caught up with sweet friends in Colorado

And later took a week long family trip to San Diego

We saw several Dodger games this year

And conquered Mile High Alpine Slides with minimal fear

We went Wine Tasting on bikes on Colorado’s Western Slope

And ran an ‘Amazing Race’ in SB for 50 relatives - it was pretty dope

We got to feed Giraffes , a Hippo, and a Beaver

We carved family time for game nights & dance party fever

We love SB – can’t get enough of the beach and sand

Combing for shells, building sandcastles, paddling, & surf keeps us tanned

Grateful for where we’re at, what we have, and who we do life with

We remember God is good and his Providence is no myth

We are trying to learn how to slow down and rest more,

To be intentional with those around us, to keep an open door

We are trying to live simpler

Have less things without so many whimpers

We want to let go of unreasonable expectations

Instead choosing to offer grace filled relations

We are trying to grasp a posture of Gratitude

To help us with a more joyful attitude

So that’s our year so much to tell

We hope you are happy healthy and well

We wish you PEACE, LOVE, JOY and blessings this holiday season

And invite you to visit us anytime for any reason

With Love and Extending Big Hugs,

Aaron, Janay, Aricin, Talia, and Oliver

November 2015

 Sometimes I can't believe we actually live here

My cousin, Vincent got married and we had fun celebrating 

 We like to have family dance parties in our house :)

 And family game nights with pop corn

 Family hike through the Butterfly Preserve to the Santa Barbara Bluffs

 Game Face

 We had a Buttefly/ Bumblee Birthday party for Tally

 Soccer Season is officially over

 Rock Climbing with the Thomsons

 We found a couple old surf boards next our neighbors were throwing away and Aricin was super excited about our find

 Tally and her sweet friend, Maleah

 Cheers! Happy Thanksgiving!

 It's that time of year again.... our silly elf

 This boy owns my heart

 Christmas Parade time

We have been having fun as you can see. Life's been busy but good. I'm working on a Real Estate deal that has been feeling a little all consuming- hoping everything slows down soon.