Holiday greetings from the Steffey family!

As 2009 comes to a close we are reminded of God’s ongoing work and presence in our lives and are so grateful for his protection and provision on a daily basis. Looking back, there were moments that appeared to just creep along but now it has passed in a flash. Here is a little glimpse into our lives:

The little man in our house, Braedan, keeps us constantly on our toes. He is a ball of energy and we are always looking for creative ways for him to “let loose”. He started playing hockey last February, thanks to the Little Pens program, a Sidney Crosby initiative that provides kids with all of the necessary equipment to play (including a stick, all pads, a helmet, a bag and skates). They let him in a little early (he was not yet 4) because of his ability to skate. He completed the highest level and played in a 3v3 league this summer and was put in the top tier of the mini mites program at our rink for this winter. He is the only 4 year old in the whole league and plays against mostly 6 year olds. However, he still has the attention span of a 4 year old, so there are times in his games when he pays more attention to the clock, the cool colored helmet on an opponent, or skating on one foot, but he’s coming along, having fun and has even scored a few goals. He also loved playing organized soccer for the first time. He is a bit bored with school and would much rather spend his time playing a sport or a video game (with which he is quite obsessed - to put it mildly). In spite of his excessive energy and his “screen” addiction, he is a real joy. Our favorite moments are when he occasionally finds his way into our bed, early in the morning, and gently kisses us each on the check before snuggling in until the sun comes up.

Haley has really come into her own this year. She is thriving in second grade with the same teacher that I had for the third grade. She is in a class with 17 students, only 6 of whom are girls and all of those 6, including Haley, are very strong willed and outspoken. Despite almost daily conflict, she is doing well and surprising us at every turn. The most recent being that she finished 2nd in her entire grade in the spelling bee. We were so proud of her and a bit shocked considering that she is our most creative speller, ie. Yoosd = used, wuz = was, but discovered that once she learns the proper spelling, she doesn’t forget it. She also played hockey again this year, Last season was capped off with a trip to the largest girl’s tournament in the world in Toronto, Canada where she got to play on a girls team for the first time. They finished 3rd in their age group and we all had a wonderful time. She continues to play this year and was asked to join a higher level boys team, but we decided to stay in-house for a little while longer. She also loves hip hop dance and is looking forward to soccer and baseball in the Spring. She continues to take strides to overcome her fears and anxieties but we still spend a couple of hours every night waiting for her to fall asleep. She is, however, making it through most nights without waking up (never happened until she was 5), which makes both Mark and me very happy.

Hannah is growing up so fast. I can hardly believe she will be 10 this May and in a year and a half will be in middle school! As with the rest of the family, she really enjoys sports. After years of protesting, she has finally fallen in love with soccer and now looks for any opportunity to play. I have enjoyed coaching her team and it has given me the opportunity to get to know her friends and their parents better. We are anticipating taking the leap into “cup” soccer, a higher level of training, travel and competition soon. She continues to excel in school and has a nice group of friends. She is becoming more independent (much to my chagrin) but is still up for a good cuddle. This past May, when her 9th birthday happened to fall on Mother’s Day, she decided to run the Race for the Cure to raise money for breast cancer research. She did, in fact, complete the 3.1 mile, very hilly race in 30 minutes and managed to raise close to $1000. She also enjoyed a musical theatre class and was chosen to perform a solo in the final production. And probably her biggest news of the year is that she finally got her own room. While she and Haley were on a trip with a friend to Disney World, Mark and I, with some help from our parents, rearranged all of the bedrooms, turning our 3rd floor playroom into Hannah’s room and giving Haley a cozy little Hannah Montana room all to herself. The girls were totally surprised and Hannah loves having her own space. We are, however, discovering that it wasn’t just Haley who made the messes in their shared room, as Hannah has claimed for years.

Mark has had a great 1st full year (3 semesters) on Pitt’s campus, serving as a chaplain for the varsity athletes. He continues to develop relationships with athletes from all of the different sports and enjoys mentoring students, co-leading the weekly FCA meeting on campus and facilitating a bible study for some of the men’s basketball players. In his spare time, he has taken up youth coaching, covering teams from soccer to baseball to hockey. He is an awesome dad and is always doing something with the kids. They love spending time with him. He is also doing a lot of running and has recently committed to a half marathon this summer. Thankfully, he has not asked me to join him.

I have tried to keep myself busy as well. This was an incredible year for me as I was reunited last January with my son who I made an adoption plan for 18 years ago (almost 19 now). It is much too long of a story to put in this letter but I would love to share it with you so just ask. I am in awe of God’s faithfulness and we have all been blessed with his addition (beyond pictures and emails) to our family as well as the addition of his wonderful family to our lives. The PA turnpike between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia has become a familiar drive this year. Speaking of adoption, we are now in the matching stage of growing our own family through adoption. Mark and I have both been burdened with the number of children worldwide who are growing up without a family so we have decided to adopt out of the foster care system. We have gone through
all of the required training, filled out all of the forms, had the home study and signed the papers. We are now waiting to be matched with a child (or sibling group of 2) ages 2-7. We wait with anticipation but fortunately the busyness of life makes the time go fast.

So that is the Steffey news for 2009, in a nutshell (although not a super small nutshell). We are really excited for 2010 and especially for a World Cup championship for the US men’s soccer team. OK, maybe not that, but there is so much to look forward to. We would love to catch up with you (whoever “you” are, reading this) so drop us a line some time (email, facebook, phone). May your 2010 be blessed!

Kristin, Mark, Hannah, Haley and Braedan Steffey