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Merry Christmas from the Chan Clan It is hard to believe I am sitting down here to write a Christmas letter already. Once again this time of year brings our thoughts and wishes around to the people who are nearest and dearest to us. Christmas in 2004 is going to be the year of the Asian Christmas. For the first time Christmas lunch for our family the slanty eye's (including the half and quarter Asians) will be out numbering the gwailo's (round eyed westerners) so through a democratic process we decided that it would be only fitting and proper to have a vegetarian Yum Cha Chinese Christmas Lunch. Really looking forward to that! -Guess who wrote this Xmas letter!! :-) We only had the one holiday away this year, and that was to the Gold Coast. The week we were there the drought decided to break. It was torrential wind and rain, flash flooding, cars floating away, you name it. We had to rain check our visit to the fun parks but we still managed to have a great time. The highlight was swimming and digging pipi's out from the beach (one thing you could do outdoors with out having to worry about getting wet!) Lot's of wet weather activities like movies, 10 pin bowling, coffee shops, monopoly & scrabble. We are hoping to back again early next year to give the girls their promised fun park visits. Other then that it has been a pretty uneventful year. Steve and Tania stuck to a new years resolution to get fit and healthy and are feeling a heap better for it. This year will also see Steve and Tania retiring for senior leadership positions at their church after a long stretch. We are looking forward to some fresh blood into the leadership team and for us, a less demanding role in leadership. 2004 has been a significant year for Steve's work. He has changed roles and is now working in a pre-sales consulting role for PeopleSoft. This has meant a lot more travel, but potentially less time away from home. It has meant Steve got to visit New Zealand for the first time (shameful considering he married into a very proud kiwi family!). He has been working in Wellington, Auckland, and the Napier/Hawkes Bay region. He also got to spend a weekend there and caught up with some of the "out-laws", and had a fantastic time getting to know some of the family a bit better. This week Oracle has announced a successful hostile takeover bid for PeopleSoft which means more change and uncertainty in his role. Steve is enjoying his role, and finding it a stretch and a challenge. The IT industry is a fast paced and exciting environment to work in. Tania has had a rewarding and fulfilling year. It has been her last year at home as a full time mum, and she is starting to think about rejoining the workforce. During the year she graduated from a certificate course called "Faithworks" which is run by Hillsong College. She has also enrolled in a beauty therapy course with Emma's Secret for 2005 with the intention of working in beauty therapy as she does not want to go back into travel consulting.
So once again as we celebrate Christmas, we wish you and your families a time of peace and happiness. As we do every year we pause to think of the special and important people in our lives, and are reminded how much richer our lives are because of you. Thanks again for your friendship this year, and we look forward to catching up with you in the new year. Blessings and Miracles this Christmas to you from us, Lots of Love,
The Chan Clan Stephen, Tania, Maddison and Brooklyn
Graphics: Thank you to Patch of Heaven
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Maddison
has finished grade 1, in style again. She was awarded a "Positive
Attitude" certificate on speech night, and has excelled in school once
again this year. Her favorite subjects are in the creative arts
area, and is saying she would like to be an artist or a teacher when she
grows up. This year she started loosing her teeth; she lost her
two front teeth on the same day. She has discovered that the Rouse
Hill tooth fairy is pretty scabby! She was left $2 but when she slept over at
Aunty Wendy’s the Gladesville tooth fairy left her $10!!!! Talk about
pressure on the poor old Rouse Hill tooth fairy! : ) Maddie has really
grown into beautiful little girl with personality to boot! Not that I am
biased or anything! : ) She loves a good joke and has a great sense
of humor. Roller blading is a new skill this year and dad has bought a
pair as well to try and keep up with her. 
Brooklyn
is now four and a half and quite a little lady now. She is really
looking forward to going to big school next year. She will be starting
prep at Castle Hill SDA Primary 3 days per week. Brookie is a
delightful, happy little girl. She also is a gorgeous little girl and
is the spitting image of Tania, and has inherited her mums beautiful
blonde hair, blue eyes and fair skin. From the moment she wakes up she
has the most contagious smile that will melt your heart, and doesn’t
leave her face till she drops off to sleep at night. She adores any
kind of animal. Drags our eternally patient pet bunnies and budgie
around the place all the time, and I have seen her grab a big Rottie
three times her size with both hands and kiss him right on the chops.
The zoo is a favorite place to visit, which we often do with our Zoo
Friends passes.
