Christmas Letters and Photos 2007

Hello One and All,

Just a quick update on the Barnett family in 2007… As you probably know, the highlight of our year was the addition of Caleb to our family. He was born on May 7th, is healthy and doing great. As all parents know, the addition of a baby to the house I such a joyful thing. Caleb is so much fun in every way. We can barely remember the long nights and hard moments in the midst of how he is now. We feel like we have really found a good rhythm right now (yes, we know he will change). Like typical new parents, we dote over every single little cute thing he does – which is, of course, almost everything except pooping. With the experience of caring for a baby very close this Christmas season, nuances of the Nativity story and what God did when He sent Jesus has been alive with a reality and depth that we have never known before. It really was and continues to be amazing – the Incarnation.

Melissa is truly grateful that she can stay home with Caleb. Most recently Melissa has begun to do tutoring part time, which is a welcomed supplement to our one-income-living experiment. Virtually all of our friends from church had babies this year (or recently), so we have a wonderful community of new parents and people at our same place in life around us. Melissa also loves another mom’s group called Mama Mia that she meets with several times a week, which has also been a blessing. We are both very thankful for the amazing blessing of community, which we don’t take for granted.

As for me, (Dan), this year has been full of other surprises (Caleb was not a surprise…) and changes with work in particular. An incredible opportunity presented itself late this summer when very unique position opened at Santa Barbara High School as the Director of and Teacher in the Visual Art & Design Academy. Because I used to work for the academy I still had a strong understanding of how the program works and was offered the job. Although hard to leave an excellent teaching situation at Nordhoff, it has been great - and an excellent fit for me. I am growing in some areas that are not my natural strengths, and on the other hand, getting to use many of my gifts, talents and passions on a daily basis. This wonderful blend is truly a blessing. I can really say I love my job.

We know that gratitude and thankfulness are developed attitudes, and so we take this time to bear witness to the blessings God has given, even in the midst of our difficulties that pale in comparison. We hope your year past and year ahead are full of blessing too.

Much Love, Dan, Melissa and Little Caleb