Hello, everyone!  We have our 2022 update available; it’s at our new blog location:

Http://txcolliers.net

2021: The Year in Review

It's 2022 already! Some things have changed and some have stayed the same. COVID has continued to be a part of all of our lives, and in December we found our household with a couple of positive tests and having to self-quarantine during the week leading up to Christmas. Fortunately, no one got really sick (all of us had at least the first two vaccine shots) and the two of us that had our booster shot experienced a few mild symptoms but never actually tested positive. So, even though it was right at the end of the year, we're ticking off the "got COVID" box on our 2021 Bingo cards.

A brief update on each of the kids:

Tartan Alex continued to teach English to elementary students in Mito, Japan, but at new schools. They have a policy of moving teachers every three years. Fortunately, the schools were still close enough to his apartment that he didn't have to move. He has signed on for a fifth year, so Tartan and I are hoping to have another chance to visit him there. In the photo above, he is holding THE Olympic torch for the 2020 games when it made an appearance at one of the schools where he teaches.

Kyrie got a promotion to story coordinator for the Netflix animated production of High in the Clouds. We are thankful that once everyone got vaccinated, she and Nick (her boyfriend) were able to visit us without having to worry about masks. They joined us for Thanksgiving, and we were even able to enjoy the Renaissance Festival again.  Because of the aforementioned quarantine, we did have to celebrate "second Christmas" with Kyrie and Nick in January. Nick and Kyrie's personalities complement each other very well. They have been together for over a year now and are a sweet couple.

Aidan had an exciting year as he was able to finally make his big Alaska driving trip. Up to just a few days before his planned departure, he was not certain he'd be able to get across the Canadian border, but fortunately, with a negative COVID test, he was. He made the 8000+ mile round trip beginning around the end of August and wrapping up in the middle of October. His route took him through Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Washington, Oregon, California and Arizona, camping all along the way. He made many stops, notably in Yellowstone, Edmonton, Anchorage, Homer, Seward, Vancouver, Yosemite, Mojave National Preserve and the Grand Canyon. He made it back safe and sound, though the 2002 Sequoia returned quite travel-worn. I (Naomi) am glad for my new 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe, because Aidan has become quite attached to the Sequoia, even nicknaming it "Sakuya" (only Touhou Project fans will likely appreciate this).

Abigail spent the year teaching dance (modern, ballet, pointe and tap) and dancing with the company at Magnify. She went on a mission trip with Open Sky Arts Collective to Parkersburg, West Virginia to minister to kids in a very poor and drug-ridden area. She reconnected with some kids she had seen a couple of years ago, met new ones, and sadly missed some who had moved away or in some cases were simply "gone", and she couldn't find out what had happened to them. On a different note, it has been a joy to see the relationship between her and her boyfriend, Gilbert, grow over the past year. Gilbert is a godly young man, and he also provides a "firm foundation" for the lifts and stunts that the girls do in the dance company.

Kayleigh finished up her sophomore year and began her junior year, so she has started taking dual credit classes at Lone Star Community College. She has also been taking dance classes at Magnify, a couple of them taught by her sister, and below is the modern piece she was in, which was choreographed by Abigail. (The full piece is nearly six minutes long, so this is only a portion. She starts on the front left of the video.) This past year, Kayleigh was also an advanced dancer for the National Youth Theater production of Newsies, in April. It was her first theater production and she was specifically sought out for her tap dancing expertise. After watching her tap solo, there's no question: Kayleigh is definitely the King of New York!

Tartan and I are doing well and continue to do the things we have been doing. Tartan works at ExxonMobil as the subject matter expert for all things related to Well data. He continues to lead as an elder at our church home, Creekside, and also has been playing bass guitar with the worship team on Sunday mornings. I (Naomi) oversee Kayleigh's schooling, keep the house running, help out with various things at our church, and am the treasurer for our homeschool group, Homewood. 

We went camping almost every month this past year and it was a lot of fun experiencing different parks around the state. For our anniversary in August we spent time at Big Bend Ranch State Park: camping and hiking in the desert heat, driving 4-wheel track roads until the wisdom of our years told us to turn back, and just enjoying spending time together. We plan to do more camping this year as well.

Though there have been many happy circumstances and we certainly appreciate all the blessings we have received, there are still things that weigh on our hearts. For one, January 2022 marks ten years since we last saw Aimee. To us she remains three when she could have been a firecracker of a thirteen-year-old, which I can't help but think she would have been. We miss her still. And, this year also marks the passing of my (Naomi's) dad at the end of January. He has been my earthly father for over fifty years and I am still absorbing what his loss means to me. Your prayers for my family are appreciated.

Thank you to those of you who have sent us updates on your lives and thank you to those who have clicked over here to keep in touch with what's happening with us. May your 2022 be a year of amazing blessings through the highs and lows for all of you!

 

The Collier Family

Looking back at 2020

 2020 - What a Year!

 

 

Greetings, friends and family and happy new year!

What did we do last year? Stayed home A LOT! We spent a lot of time on Zoom. I'm sure most if not all of you can relate. 

Tartan worked from home more often than not and Aidan was off work when the YMCA was closed for an extended time. Kayleigh and Abigail had to finish biology and anatomy, respectively, through Zoom. Kyrie was able to graduate from UT Dallas, though with no graduation ceremony, and Abigail graduated from high school with a drive-by parade-style graduation. Tartan Alex had an extended break from teaching school in Japan, but they eventually started meeting in person again. He's very much an introvert so he felt well-prepared for staying at home and social distancing. Masks are also much more common and not as big a deal in Japan as they have been here. He is staying on for another year of teaching English in Mito. Kyrie thankfully was able to get a job as production assistant for an animated adaptation of the children's book High in the Clouds by Paul McCartney (Netflix/Gaumont).

Kayleigh and Abigail tried teaching and participating in dance classes over Zoom in the spring, but classes were back to meeting in-person in the fall. Though they both came down with bad colds in December, we have managed to stay COVID-free. They performed at Christmas services at churches here and in Grapevine.

Tartan and I celebrated our 30th anniversary in a very low-key style. We rented a tiny cabin at "The Getaway" north of Houston for a few days and then spent a week camping at Davis Mountains State Park in west Texas, hiking, geocaching, and just being away from it all. 

We did not make it out to the Renaissance Festival or make a big family trip at the end of the year. We did learn how to play Among Us with our kids online and I (Naomi) had several Zoom calls with my siblings and dad which is something we hadn't ever thought to do before. 

 Here are a few notable scenes from 2020:

Abi's graduation parade	Sisters	Pumpkin patch
Aidan is 21	30th anniversary trip	Naomi & her dad (just before COVID)

We know that this past year has been a difficult one for many of our friends. Some have lost loved ones, others have lost jobs, and in a great many respects life has looked very different than in previous years. And yet, we continue to adapt and persevere.

We wish all of you and your families a better, and a blessed, 2021. We know the upcoming year will have its challenges, but our prayer is that we will all approach the new year with hope, patience, and grace. May the love and peace of God be with you this year!

The Colliers

 

2019 in Review

Dear family and friends,

It's 2020! We're looking forward to many things in 2020, but let's take a look back at 2019.

Kayleigh moved from eighth grade to her freshman year in (home school) high school. She danced with Ballet Excelsior Trainees in the spring, going to both Project Dance Houston and Project Dance New York. Naomi went with her on the New York trip and though the girls got caught in pouring rain on the first night, it otherwise went really well. Over the summer Kayleigh made a change and is now dancing with Magnify Dance's junior company and teaching a tap class, too. She continues to work on tap skills and keeps a connection with Excelsior by taking a tap class there. In December, both she and Abigail danced in the Christmas Spectacular at Champion Forest Baptist church, one of the main campuses for Magnify. They were very busy with rehearsals in November and into December. They performed in seven shows from a Thursday to a Sunday. The transition to high school has been challenging but she is working her way through it.

In March, Abigail was offered a position as a hip hop instructor at Magnify when their current instructor unexpectedly had to leave. It was quite a challenge to step in and almost immediately have to create choreography for their end of year show, but she pulled it off magnificently. In the summer she went to Parkersburg, West Virginia with Open Sky to do a week-long children's program with a church in the middle of a very poor area where much of the adult population struggles with substance abuse. She came back with her heart full for all the children she worked with. This fall she began teaching ballet and tap at Magnify and then was asked to step in for an injured dancer for the Christmas Spectacular. She and Kayleigh really enjoyed it though it was physically and mentally exhausting. Abigail will be graduating from high school in May.

Aidan began taking a couple of classes at Lone Star, managing to work around his full schedule at the Shadowbend YMCA. He took three more courses in the fall. He keeps in contact with his brother in Japan the most of any of us because they regularly meet up on a gaming platform and join forces in some epic game scenario. He also took on being a dungeon master (basically a director) for a group of friends that he and Tartan Alex used to get together with to play D&D style games. He loves providing unique voices for the characters that they meet in each game. He is great at making up his own voices, but he's also a mimic. At our new year's dinner, we were discussing the last trilogy of the Star Wars series, and in a sudden silence as the girls were talking about Kylo Ren and Rey, he said "Give me your hand" and we all could have sworn Kylo Ren was at the table!

Kyrie spent this year taking classes, working, and being producer for UTD ATEC animation lab's short, Stargazer. Animation lab is a two semester course that incorporates the various specialties in ATEC (Arts, Technology and Emerging Communication) into a production team somewhat like what they would experience in the professional world. Tartan and I were able to attend the premiere and it was superbly done. She graduates in the spring, but she has a capstone project to complete, classes to finish, an admin job for the research department and her volunteer work with fifth graders at her church.

Tartan Alex was able to spend a week home with us from Christmas to new year's day. We all were happy to have him here and we spent time playing games, watching all eight episodes of The Mandalorian, and seeing The Rise of Skywalker. He teaches English to elementary school age children in Tomei, a rural area of Mito, Japan. He enjoys it even though there are a few difficult children, but aren't there always? Currently, he's planning on staying another year before coming back and doing something new.

Speaking of Tartan Alex, Tartan (the elder) and Naomi went to Japan in July to visit him. It was an amazing trip. We walked around the Akihabara district of Tokyo, had dinner with my cousin, spent a couple of days in Kyoto and saw T. Alex's cozy apartment in Tomei. One of the highlights of the trip was being invited to visit his main school where we sat in on one of his classes and had lunch with another class after having a tour of the school. We got to participate in the lesson because the children were supposed to ask one another "what do you do on {day of the week}?" Once they found out they could ask us- they all lined up. Another memorable experience was attending church at Kyoto International Church. It was truly international with members from Japan, the US, Germany, Nigeria and China, among others. We sang in Japanese and English and the pastor spoke in Japanese while another member translated to English. It was an "event" Sunday in that everyone was encouraged to wear a summer kimono and they had extras for those who didn't have one.

Enchantment of the Seas next to Symphony of the Seas

As we finish this up, we just returned from our annual trip. We traveled aboard Enchantment of the Seas to Cozumel, Mexico on a four night trip. The best part was probably not having to do anything but show up for food. The worst part was motion sickness for some of us on three of the evenings when there were heavy winds. I found myself wishing we were on Symphony of the Seas, the largest passenger ship in the world, which towered over us at dock in Cozumel. We enjoyed listening to karaoke several nights, seeing the very talented performers in the musical shows, and just sitting out on deck or in one of the covered locations, reading, listening to music or just taking in the sunset. A few long naps were also indulged in and the girls had fun at Dancing Under the Stars.

As we look forward to all that God has in store for 2020, we hope and pray all the best for you and yours!

Love, the Colliers