anyone out there?

Hey, everyone -- been a long time since I posted, and I'm not sure I'm doing this blogging thing right! First, congrats to the new twins in the family! Good job, BJ and Val! AND -- if you haven't heard yet, they are now joined by a new 3rd cousin, Finlay (Finn) McCall Heller, son of Paige (Wayne's daughter) and Mark.

Hope everyone's doing ok!

Judy

PS from the Haas side

Okay -- Please bear with me -- I'm new to this stuff -- but there is a whole paragraph missing from my last post. Beats me where it went. I just wanted to mention that Brad's band, Foxtrot Zulu, still plays from time to time and in fact is releasing a new album this fall. If you're interested, the band website is: www.foxtrotzulu.com.

Judy

Judy and Rick - The Haas Connection

Hi everyone! Thought I'd share this picture from the special day we had last weekend, when Rev. Michael Samson (right) came home to Grace Pres. in Montclair, NJ to do his first baptism(s): first, sister Heather and Dusty's little Julia (left); and then Mandy and Steve's wee Alex (center). It was also Mother's Day, a first for both Mandy and Heather. Both Julia and Alex, and Heather Leigh's Ava (Sandy and Barbara's other Heather) are all 6 months old now. They were all born a week apart!

Our children and THEIR children, taken in April, 2007:

Seated: Mitchell, Brad, Katie, Alison, Mandy's Alex; behind sofa: Steve and Mandy

To re-cap the Judy and Rick Haas side of the Samson's:

Rick and I are living back in NJ (again!), at the shore, and loving it. We hit our 35th wedding anniversary last December, and are grateful every day for Rick's good health after his quintuple heart by-pass surgery last year. Mandy, Steve and Alex are in Baltimore, along with their Boston Terrier. Their big news of the year, of course, is ALEX! Brad, Alison, Mitch, and Katie moved to NH shortly after we left! (hmmm....) Brad's big news is that he just passed his CCIE certification exam, which is a special Cisco certification for network engineers.... I don't understand it -- I just know he worked very hard for it, and it's like getting his Ph.D. in networking! Alison works part time as a pharmacist, and keeps busy running Mitch (7) and Katie (4) to their schools/activities. They also have 2 dogs, 4 cats, 2 gerbils, a turtle, and a horse!

Here's a picture of the 3 babies born last fall. From left to right: Julia (Heather Samson's), Alex (Mandy's), Ava (Heather Smyecko's), all 2 mos. old at the time. The 2 girls are both Sandy and Barbara's newest granddaughters. They are currently awaiting the arrival of their daughter Dana's and her husband Chris' 2nd child, a son, due in July. Wayne and Nicki will become grandparents again when Matt and wife Sarah have their first child, a girl, very soon!

So that's life in our world lately! Thanks again,Willie, for setting up this Blog so we can keep in touch!
Judy and Rick

Brad's band, Foxtrot Zulu, still plays from time to time, and just made a new CD which will be released soon. (see www.foxtrotzulu.com)

Here's a picture of our 3 babies, at about 2 mos. old:

The Will Samson Family

So, here is the five minute update on my family. I realize this might also be an introduction for some of you. If you would like to publish your own news or updates, email me at will at willsamson dot com.

At 42, I am presently in school again, working on my third career. I am a PhD student in sociology at The University of Kentucky and my dissertation will be on the role of alternative Christian communities in sustaining culture and the environment. I am planning to teach and to continue writing.

Lisa is a novelist, presently writing her 22nd (I think) novel. She just received another Christy nomination, this time for her book Straight Up. Her most recent book, Quaker Summer, received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly.

Together, Lisa and I have a book coming out this summer entitled, Justice in the Burbs. It is about how to live justly while dwelling in a suburban context. We are presently writing another book for which the working title is More Than Enough. It deals with issues of consumption and contentment.

We have three kids. Ty is 17. She finishes high school this summer, a year early, and is planning on working in an inner-city mission for a year before starting college. When she enters college she is planning on majoring in art history.

Jake is 12. He turns 13 this summer and we are taking him to Scotland to celebrate. He plays the trumpet and rock climbs.

Gwynnie is 10. She is a Scottish dancer and plays the fiddle. Not the violin, mind you. We do live in Kentucky, after all.

We live in Lexington, KY in an intentional Christian community. Our house is 3-story, drafty Victorian badly in need of owners with an ounce of skill at fixing things up.

Well, that's the five minute version of us. If you want to post your own update but not sure how, click here to email me and I can help you.

Gwynnie and Scottish Dancing

Gwynnie, our youngest daughter has started learning Scottish Dance. So, this weekend we headed up to Northern Kentucky for a Scottish Festival and to watch her compete. Here is a picture of her in her costume.

The Arnold Jr. Family

Greetings from the Arnold Jr. family! This is Bill Arnold Jr., Pat and Bill Arnold's son. We are currently living in New Jersey. I've been working on alternate route certification so that I can teach music in the public schools. My wife Valerie is just about to go back to school to finish her degree after being out for quite awhile. Our five year old son, Liam, is getting ready to go to kindergarten next Fall.

Here's a recent photo of us at Rockefeller Center:

Posting Your Own Thoughts Here

I sent out invitations to all the people for whom I had emails. This was basically all the Bill Samson's and quite a few that Judy provided. So, many of you should have received an email from Blogger that allows you to sign up and post. Please let me know all others who should receive an invite to post.

Feel free to start putting up your own posts. This is a space to tell what it happening in your life and the life of your family. This whole project began when Judy sent out an email with the news of the upcoming baptisms of Julia (Heather and Dusty) and Alex (Mandy and Steve), with the baptism to be performed by the Rev. Michael McCall Samson. Exciting.

It would be great to hear what is happening with you, to use this space to catch everyone up on each other's life. For my kids, it would be great for them to connect with their broader family.

So, please feel free to put up your own posts. If you are not sure how to do that, please email me and I would be glad to talk you through it.