Merry Christmas, from our family to yours!

Dear Friends and Family,

We hope that this letter finds you well and that 2014 has been a good year for you.  2014 has been an eventful year for our family!  We have had the opportunity to travel some and have made it to: Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, USA, and Singapore this year.  Thailand was by far our favorite and a definite highlight for our family.  Both of our youngest siblings were married this year- Congratulations Erin and Justin! We were so glad to have spent the summer in Utah and California before returning to Singapore for a second year.  Colin's brother Stuart and their family welcomed our third niece into the family this October, and they were here in Singapore for three months.  It was so nice having family close to us, and we were sad to see them return to China. 

Ryan is nine years old and in grade four at Singapore American School. He is having a great school year so far.  He adores his classroom and music teachers and is always sharing the funny jokes they tell.  Ryan is actually a really funny kid himself and is often making up his own jokes.  He enjoys being active; playing basketball at the park with Dad, dodge ball after school, riding his bike and wave-board, swimming, and playing games with the other kids in our neighborhood.   He also enjoys reading and has recently started the Percy Jackson series. 

Evan is six years old and in grade one at Singapore American School.  He is the most friendly kid in his class.  He's really good at including others and has invitations to play-dates and birthday parties so often I can't keep up with his social calendar.  Evan is our creative child.  He's always making some craft or artistic creation.  He's getting better at bike riding and is doing well in swimming.  He's reading more and more and has almost completed our Disney Small World collection. 

As for me, I'm loving life in Singapore.  I substitute at the boys' school a few times per week and having the opportunity to teach at such an incredible place is just a dream.  I'm primary president of our ward and I love all 85 of our beautiful kids.  Primary and substituting keep me well occupied most of the time but I also love to venture out and see what the island has to offer.  I have made some great friendships here and am so grateful to be gaining a more broad perspective of the world.  Raising our two boys is a job I find very fulfilling, they are so much fun to be around.       

Colin is working hard at Goldman Sachs.  It's a good thing he loves his job because he sure does put in a lot of time and effort there.  With banking hours, a long commute on the train, and evening calls to the Salt Lake office, he doesn't get much downtime.  However, when he's free, he has enjoyed playing basketball and going on adventures around Singapore and playing board games with the family.  He's teaching in the Elders Quorum at church and enjoys those discussions.

We are looking forward to all that 2015 will bring.  We are grateful for all of the blessings in our lives and we count our friends and family first on this list. 

Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays!

Love, Jen, Colin, Ryan and Evan Dean