Schulzkes
in 2012 
Here’s a quick
recap on a busy year in our home and one that has seen many changes. The first change came with Mandy deciding to
work on a Masters in Counseling. She
started in June at Ottawa University, and has completed three straight, with
approximately two years to go for degree completion. This change meant introducing our children to
school in the public system after being home schooled up to this point. We didn’t anticipate it being difficult, and
for the most part they’ve all eased into it just fine this first four months
with the younger three attending at Imagine Rosefield,
and Tristian doing 8th grade at Sunset
Hills here in the neighborhood. They are taking Abacus still remotely from Aunt
Sung using Google Hangout.
Quintus continues with IBM as a storage software product
manager, but changed product assignments at the start of the year to Tivoli
Storage Productivity Center (TPC). This fall he received a band-level promotion
which he’s long been hoping for. The great work opportunities that IBM provides
have been a great blessing for us all. Scoutmaster duties occupy a lot of his
time, and when he can fit it in, playing any sports, helping coach, and singing
keep life rounded out.
Mandy is doing
really well with her university courses, and she enjoys it a lot! Seminary
keeps her programmed to a strict bed time so 4 a.m. is as little pain as
possible, but on the bright side she loves teaching and has a great set of students
this year. When she can still scrap book in her spare time, it’s a nice break,
but spare time has been more sparse this year.
Tristian has been a Raider in football all year. His team was a powerful one with a State
runner up, a State Championship, 3rd in a tournament in San Diego
and another runner-up spot at the end of this year. Tristian learned a
lot from his experience and is going to play another season in a weighted
division with his friends, on a smaller size team (try 12 players), and playing
backup QB. It will be a fun season. He excels in math getting the top grades
among 8th graders at his school, and wants to attend the newly built
Paradise Honors High School, and, of course, play football for them too!
Ammon started the year continuing his Tae Kwon Do with his
purple belt. He was very effective in
sparring (frequently knocking opponents over), and won first place in sparring
in one of his tournaments. He took a break from it now, and wants to play
football in the spring. Ammon has the best 5th
grade teacher, Mrs. Harrell, and he frequently says the worst day of school is
the last day of school! He has never
done a spelling bee before but he won his class one, and took third place in
the school for his grade. It’s really funny because he couldn’t remember which
words he won on or lost on in those spelling bees. He just memorizes as much as
he can, then goes with the flow. He continues to have an undying love for
reading, and it shows—he got the 
new Diary of a
Wimpy Kid book for his birthday and stayed up all night, even after a bowling
birthday party, to finish it!
Miranda has shot up as tall as Ammon and if we had the patience (or crazy desire—yeah,
we’ve watched toddlers & tiaras
too) to enter beauty pageants, she definitely has the looks of a model. She
absolutely loves music, and as I’m writing this just after Christmas day, Santa
got her exactly what she asked for—all she really wanted, an electric guitar,
and she wants to learn to sing and play so much. Her dream is to be a
rock star, like Taylor Swift. She works really hard to help around the house,
and with her work ethic we believe she can achieve those dreams she has!
Leah, the same little girl of ours who has struggled with
her speech, doesn’t stop talking now—she’ll even sit and talk or sing to
herself. It’s been a huge blessing that we’ve been able to continue sessions
with “Mrs. Meagan”, and Leah is really enjoying her first grade class. It takes
a lot to get Leah down; she’s really a positive happy spirit and brings so much
joy into our family.
As we reflect on the year as a family, improved
communication has been a big part of what’s kept us thriving and moving forward
together. We understand the struggles that come of a large and busy family,
with many pursuits and many challenges. With all the mix of responsibilities
and the consistent things we want to teach our children, it’s easy for
contention to creep in on us and affect our relationships. Soft spoken words,
writing notes (yes, writing is not dead, so don’t let your journals
gather dust either!), and gentle listening and understanding go a long way. We
pray for all of our friends and family to find great joy within the walls of
your own homes, and we reach out from ours to all of you with thankfulness for
your friendship, and all you’ve blessed us with by knowing you. We encourage
all of you to never forget those loving
ancestors of yours who paved the way for your opportunities because of
their love for you!
Love from,
Quintus, Mandy, Tristian, Miranda, Ammon, and
Leah.
This Christmas…
Mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten
friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. Write a letter. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest
your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo
a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize.
Try to understand. Examine
your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little
more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child.
Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.
Speak your love and then speak it again.
Howard
W. Hunter, "The Gifts of Christmas," Ensign, Dec 2002, 16