The 2016 Adventures of the Hill Family

2016 was a huge year for all of us.

We dared to dream, and we achieved so much along the way.

Sean has graduated from Kindergarten, with flying colours. This year saw Sean complete the first year of his 13-year formal schooling, and we could not be happier with his progress, nor prouder of his efforts. Sean enjoyed every aspect of school - from learning new words, to working on additions and subtractions, to widening his mind with History and Science and Languages, to trying new sports and embark on new sporting adventures, to making new friends with kids in every grade in the school. Sean was well liked by his teachers and other school staff, and well respected by his peers. The goals Sean set out to achieve - to learn to read, and to be awarded the Gold Badge (the school's highest status in the Merit Awards system) - were surpassed before the year was out. Sean's hard work in class was rewarded with his first Academic Achievement - in History - which delighted one and all. Sean is now looking very much forward to his 6th birthday in a few days, and is keen as beans to return to school for Year 1 at the end of January.

Henry has grown from an adorable toddler to a boisterous and active big boy. Henry has enjoyed a full year of full time day care, and has made some firm friends with all the other kids. His favourite friend is a lovely young lad called Jack, who is autistic and has ADHD. Jack is 10 and he and Henry are the best of mates. Henry looks forward to seeing Jack every afternoon, when his educator takes all the little kids to the nearby school to collect the older kids for after-school-care. Henry and Jack always make a beeline for each other and it is joyful to see the kids so happy to see the other. Earlier this year, we were worried that Henry was showing signs of speech delay, but we are happy to report that Henry is saying at least 3 new words day since the beginning of December. To all of our friends who assured and reassured us that Henry will speak in full sentences when he was ready to speak, you are so right! We can't shut him up, nor do we want to. Next goal - to get Henry to say his own name, instead of calling himself "Big Boy", or a recent favourite, "Robot".

Jonathan has become much more hands-on with the kids this year, and he is loving it! Jonathan loves spending the afternoon with the kids - collecting them from school and day care, cooking and feeding them dinner, bathing the rowdy kids, and then reading stories to them before putting them to bed. Jonathan has supported and helped Sean with his homework all year, and much of Sean's achievements and accolades are due to Daddy's patience and teachings. Jonathan's increased input into our increasingly busy family life has seen Team Hill working like a well-oiled machine - he makes the kids' lunches overnight, ensures the kids' uniform and day care clothes are ready for the morning, and reads and rereads all the notes and letters that have come home from school, so that we don't miss any important notices or dates. Work wise, Jonathan is still happily chugging along with his team, and looking forward to enjoying some long service leave next year.

Gloria returned to work in February and, for all intents and purposes, ended up being in the right place at the right time. Her new managers gave her many opportunities to learn and grow professionally, and by August, Gloria was rewarded with a promotion - a significant jump from office pleb to middle management pleb. An increase in responsibilities and workload meant Gloria was unable to be a hands-on volunteer at Sean's school, but it did not stop Gloria from being appointed, and later elected as Secretary to the school's Parents & Citizens' Association. Gloria has continued her cooking adventures throughout the year, reaching Week 100 just before Christmas. Next year looks to be just as busy as this, and Gloria is totally up for the challenge.

It's been a crazy hectic blur of a year for us. We fitted in 2 overseas trips to celebrate special occasions (attending Joy & Fohn's wedding in Hong Kong in January, and celebrating Gran's 80th birthday in NZ in September). Everyone has faced new challenges, and have grown and matured and learned so much. We have some exciting plans ahead for next year, including a trip to Canada and the east coast of USA in November. We can't wait to see what 2017 has in store for us!

As the year draws to an end, we are so grateful for our blessings in 2016. So very grateful, for our health and wellbeing, for all the opportunities that have been presented to us this year, and for all the lessons we have learned, for all the friendships we have made and strengthened, for all the love we have shared.

Wishing you and your families a very Merry Christmas and safe and Happy New Year.

There's a story behind this year's Santa photos. With too many weekend commitments and engagements in the lead up to Christmas, we simply ran out of time to get our usual Santa photo taken at Harvey Norman. Gloria was heartbroken by the prospect of missing out on a Santa photo this year, but Jonathan would not budge on leaving the house on Christmas Eve to get the photos done. Mainly because he had a surprise for Gloria. He and the boys went on a secret mission on Wednesday and had the photos taken with a fun and friendly Santa at our local shopping centre. As you can see, everyone enjoyed a great photo shoot!