Monday, December 28, 2009

Christmas in Houston

This year, we were unable to visit family for Christmas. It was just the 3 of us. We had a wonderful, blessed holiday & really enjoyed our time together. Here are lots of pictures of our days together. Hope your holidays were as blessed as ours were!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

2009 Christmas Letter & Pictures

We hope that 2009 has been a blessed year for yall. 2009 has been a year of surprises & adventures for us.

Russell & C.C. completed their Master of Divinity degrees at Logsdon Seminary in Abilene, Texas, in August. Graduation was December 12, but they were unable to attend because of finances & the long distance that would have had to be traveled.

C.C. was to have done her Clinical Pastoral Education residency in Lubbock, Texas, after graduation, but a last minute change at the hospital there really threw things up into the air. After a mad search to find another hospital that still had an opening, C.C. applied for, was accepted at, & began her residency as a hospital chaplain at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston, Texas. She works around 60-70 hours a week both at St. Luke’s as well as at Texas Children’s Hospital. Although the long hours have been a huge adjustment, she honestly loves her job & ministry. The quote that says, “Find a job you love & you'll never work a day in your life” is definitely true for her.

The move to Houston has been a difficult one for Russell. We never imagined that the job market in Houston would be as bad as it is. After a sixteen week search for a job, Russell was finally hired by St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Sugar Land, Texas, to work in their food service area. He still intends to pursue a Ph.D. in Theology in order to teach at the college or seminary level in the future. Current schools of interest are in Texas and Colorado. In the mean time, he is praying about doing a year of Clinical Pastoral Education.

Damaris Mikaelia turned 10 this year. Do we honestly have a daughter in the double digits? It seems like just yesterday when she was born! Damaris is doing well in the 5th grade at Dulles Elementary School. Her favorite subject by far is music. She auditioned for & was accepted into the 5th grade choir which keeps her very busy. She really enjoyed the Colonial Days study that all 5th graders participate in & was thrilled to participate in the program where they performed colonial dances & songs. We’re including a picture of her dressed in her colonial clothing. She is almost as tall as her Momma & is already trying to “borrow” her shoes!

Unfortunately, finances & our new location (& the distance) will prevent us from being with any family for the Christmas holiday. If you’re ever in the Houston area though, come by and visit us. We’d love to see each and every one of you. We pray that 2010 will bring happiness, joy, grace, & peace to you & your family!
Russell, C.C., & Damaris Almon



Friday, December 18, 2009

Damaris' Colonial Days Celebration

Each year, the 5th graders at Damaris' school have a Colonial Days celebration. They spend several weeks learning about colonial times as well as learning dances from that time period. This is their performance from last Thursday, 12/10. She is wearing a pink dress in the videos.


2009 December 10 - Damaris Colonial Days 1 from C.C. Almon on Vimeo.


2009 - Damaris' Colonial Days Celebration 2 from C.C. Almon on Vimeo.


2009 - Damaris' Colonial Days Celebration 3 from C.C. Almon on Vimeo.



Saturday, December 12, 2009

Graduation!

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My wonderful chaplaincy friends threw me an impromptu graduation yesterday at work since I couldn't attend the actual ceremony.

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Our great friend Toby also went by the Alumni Wall & took this picture to send to us since we couldn't be there to see it ourselves.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

We're Graduating

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We have strived for and accomplished
an important goal in our lives
of which we are very proud.
We,
Russell Lane Almon
and
Christie Cherie "C.C." (Wolfe) Almon,
are pleased to announce
our Graduation from
Hardin-Simmons University / Logsdon Seminary
on the twelfth of December
two thousand and nine
with our Master of Divinity degrees.
We would like to thank the faculty,
along with our family and friends
for all the support they have given us.
Sadly, we will be unable to attend the graduation ceremony,
but we will be celebrating with our fellow graduates in spirit.