Merry Christmas

Well, if you are here then you have found your way to our Christmas letter for 2005. What better way than to send out a Christmas blog for all to read?

2005 has been such a fabulous year for the Mazza's. Every year it seems that God's blessings overflow. This year has seen us blessed beyond imagining. We feel especially grateful to our Lord God, who sent his son Jesus to Earth over 2000 years ago.

Our last letter left off with both Paula and I coming up on our 33rd birthdays. Paula took me out for my birthday to a fine Italian restaurant and a movie. For her birthday, we were able to go to Disneyland together. What fun we had without the kids! Sandwiched in between our birthdays, Emily turned 7 this year. She celebrated by taking her cousin to Legoland for a fun princess day.

In February, Cassidy had the opportunity to play violin with the San Marcos Civic Youth Orchestra at Disneyland. The whole family joined her, including Grandpa Jesse, Linda, Grandpa Lou and Aunt Jeri. We all had a great time watching Cassidy perform and riding rides.

March brought on Spring and a great Easter celebration at our church in Solana Beach. We brought in a big stage and I was part of the production team running things behind the scenes. Anthony also started T-ball on his first Little League team, the Diamondbacks. He played very well and was a great hitter.

In April, our good friends Scott and Cathy and their three boys visited from Wisconsin. We had a great time visiting and opening our home. Not soon after that, we found out that Anthony's acceptance to Emily's school in Encinitas was revoked. That meant that if we stayed in San Marcos, we would have all four kids in different schools. We began reviewing our options and praying for guidance about what to do next. Our dream had always been to live in Encinitas, so we began talking about the possibilities of moving.

May brought the beginnings of some very busy times for us. Paula's workload increased as the Early Childhood Coordinator at our church. Paula has worked very hard and has impressed a lot of people with her dedication and passion for teaching kids about the Bible.

In June we made the decision to put our house on the market, even though the possibilities of affording a house in Encinitas seemed mighty slim. All I can say is that Paula and I were in total agreement that we should put our faith in God to take care of all of the details. So, we sailed off together to Catalina for an anniversary weekend (celebrating our 8th) while our house was shown to prospective buyers.

Immediately we felt attacked from all sides and there were a lot of ups and downs as we moved through July. Underneath it all, God continued to provide and I was given a pay raise during this time. What a blessing that has been! As we moved from July to August, we battled through the death of Jamie's Aunt Janice, work trips to Minneapolis and San Antonio, minor hospitalizations for Paula's mom and Jamie's grandfather and a few offers on the house that were less than spectacular.

August brought even more struggles, but also brought a solid offer on the house that we accepted. We had a lot of work ahead of us, including termite tenting and roof repairs, but with the help of great friends and family we were able to clean up the old house and move to the new house in Encinitas. There is SO much more to this story and many ways that God moved to make things happen for us, if you haven't heard all the details, please get in touch with us, we would love to tell you about it!

Also in August, our little Ally girl turned 4 years old. We can't believe how fast time has flown. We had a fun party at the park right in the middle of moving and everyone had fun celebrating with Alison. Emily and Anthony also started at their new school, Flora Vista Elementary, two weeks prior to us moving. They were such good sports and are really enjoying the new school.

We were officially in the new house in September and Cassidy started junior high not long after the move. There was a lot of adjustment and a lot of boxes piled everywhere, but throughout it all the Mazza kids have been really great. They have helped out here and there and have made it through the transition pretty well. They love the new house, the new schools, and having our good friends, the Petersons, right across the street. Scootering and playing together are daily occurences around here!

As we transitioned into fall, AJ celebrated his 6th birthday with a party at the park with his friends. Our boy is growing up so fast! Cassidy also celebrated her birthday early with a trip to Disneyland with her friend, Caroline. As we moved to the end of October, the kids had a great time dressing up and Trick or Treating through the new neighborhood.

Cassidy officially celebrated her 12th birthday in November. She was so happy to get an iPod shuffle and to finally get her ears pierced. She's looking so grown up these days. We had a great Thanksgiving here at the new house. We were so grateful to have Grandpa Ken with us, who is now in his late 90's.

Work for me has been quite busy lately as I have had trips to Glendale, Minneapolis and Baltimore. The latter two trips happened just recently in December and it was quite cold. Work for Paula has also been quite busy. During November, she was offered a full-time position at the church, which has been approved to start in the new year. She is excited to serve in this capacity and we are all looking forward to another year of blessings in 2006.

Well, I hope you all were able to get through reading the accounts of our wonderful 2005. We have plenty of pictures to share also. You can view our slideshow and see our memories of all the great times we had in the past year. We hope this blog finds you all healthy and happy this holiday season. May you find renewal and strength in the wonder and magic of this Christmas season....and may you all be blessed with the peace, mercy, love and grace of our Lord and Savior.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Mazza's....