C Po0*ecH&o<. That's what is written on the hill in front of the
Lewis' home. They tell me it's 'Merry Christmas' in Russian, but I think
it's a coded message to the National Guard. You see Mary, Sam and I have

 

Philip & Mary Smith 2000

 

 

barricaded ourselves into the basement. We're tearing down walls, hanging drywall, and painting like the place belongs to us. I fear my in-laws have determined to put a stop to this before our family grows any further. When Mary has her baby in February we may decide we need another room, and invade the upstairs. I fully expect an armed SWAT team to show up in the middle of the night and escort us to a barren two room apartment in downtown Gaithersburg. One we could afford if I got a second job stocking vending machines at night. Grandma and Grandpa Lewis continue to eat dinner with us and baby sit Samuel regularly, but it can't possibly last.
Perhaps my paranoia will motivate me to get my applications out and enter into an MHA (Master's in Health Administration) program. Right now I am working in the financial department of ICHEIC (The International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims). At church I am Assistant Executive Secretary in charge of creating the weekly Sacrament Program (an assignment that has largely been delegated to my wife). I'm also Young Men's Secretary and Basketball Coach, so until basketball season is over and the remodeling is finished in the basement, I will have very little free time.
Mary is having another minor pregnancy. She is due in the middle of February but hardly anyone can tell. One of these days she's going to really gain some weight and we'll call it a major pregnancy. She's in charge of Achievement Days for the 10-11 year old girls, and she spends her days stopping Sam from killing himself.
Samuel is 15 months old and climbs everything. We left him outside alone for 5 minutes and found him sitting on the chimney. His vocabulary grows daily. I'm most proud of his clear pronunciation of the word 'basketball.' He can also identify most body parts including his nose, eye, ear, mouth, belly button and medial collateral ligament.
I hope your holidays are as exciting as ours.
Love,