How do you summarize a year in one paragraph or one letter? Which part should I share, the great family memories, good times with friends, the struggles, the disappointments, growing pains, what I think about the economy, unemployment etc…hmmm…I wonder. If I share only the good things then we would appear to be the model family where everything always goes perfectly. I could only talk about the unpleasant things and this letter would be like a dripping faucet to your ears. Then I think of God! Everything that happens in our lives is growing us into Him, to bring Him honor and glory. Our lives are perfectly planned by Him and he loves us in spite of our imperfections.

We have so much, family and friends, good memories and so many things. I’d love to hang onto them as they are now, but time moves on. Family time is a commodity, whether it is our family here at home, time spent with Cami and Jarita abroad, with Ben, Raquel and Brock, or extended family. Our children continue to grow and stretch their wings. It is a delight to observe them walking this road called life and looking to God to guide them.

Because I did not want to be the only one exercising my brain I requisitioned the children to help me write this letter. Aliya was the police women that made sure everyone turned theirs in .

Tikvah: I am 11 years old and in the fifth grade. I am going to tell you what I did this year. This year I went to Taiwan to visit Jarita and Cami. I went camping with the family up in the peninsula of Michigan by Lake Superior. That’s all I did this year. I am really excited about going skating this year.

Well this is Tony(13) I was told to write a ten sentence paragraph. I guess I’ll tell you about some of the things I did this year. This year I played football. We went camping this summer up in the Keweenaw. It was a very beautiful place, but Lake Superior doesn’t have any good swimming beaches. Well my cousin got married in like September. Then we just stayed home until October when we went to PA. Last of all we went to Taiwan this fall/winter. We had fun there but I was really glad to be home after 3 weeks in Taiwan (where there is no snow). Overall it was a pretty good year.

Aliya(15): This year I did quite a few things. School, bossed people around, school, helped out at a VBS, some more school, sang in a Great Lakes Music Festival, school, went camping with family, even more school, took Bobby’s Dr. Pepper, school, went camping with friends, school, decided I liked a cabin or camper better than a tent, quite a bit more school, thought about what I was going to do with all this school and algebra problems and grammar(which obviously didn’t have much affect on me), went ice and roller skating, school, and well... school. In the last couple months I have also done quite a bit more around the house than I have had to in previous years. Since I am the oldest girl in the house now Mom has me calling people, planning events, and cleaning/organizing quite a bit more then I’ve ever had to before. It is a challenge, to be sure, but I like to slap challenges in the face. Not that that always happens in a timely fashion. J To conclude this long paragraph: School is good, life is better, but God is always best!!!

Robert (17): This year has not only been eventful, but it has been the start of a new journey for me. At the beginning of the year, I was entirely clueless as to what God wanted me to do after high school, and I wasn’t quite ready to get into roofing. (Sorry Dad J) Through a series of events, God showed me part of what he had planned for me, and it was much cooler than any plan I could have thought up. Being a missionary pilot had crossed my mind before, but I hadn’t thought about it seriously until I was given the opportunity to visit JAARS(Jungle Aviation and Radio Service) , and it was there that I learned where God wanted me to be. JAARS works as support for a Bible translating group called Wycliffe Bible Translators, and their mission is to make the Bible available in every language. A pilot is very useful to this group, because he can get them in and out of the jungle within hours, when walking would have taken several days. After visiting JAARS, I began making plans for my training, only to have them thrown out or amended by God. After God closed the doors at several aviation schools, I found one that seems like the perfect fit, even though the name has given me some grief from my friends. SMAT (School of Missionary Aviation and Technology) is a school that offers everything I need to become a missionary pilot, at a fraction of the cost and in half the time that other schools were offering. God allowed me to visit there this summer, and ever since then I cannot wait to get back and begin training. I plan to start flying lessons in earnest very early next year, and next summer I will be moving to Michigan to attend SMAT. This year has been an adventurous one, but I’m sure it will be dwarfed by the adventures God has in store for me.

Merry Christmas from Kinmen, Taiwan! This is Cami(18). :) I have successfully followed in Jarita's footsteps and am now teaching English in Taiwan. Jarita and I are roommates here for the first time since we were very small, so that has been an adventure in itself. Other adventures include facing creepy old men on the bus, warding off the cold temperatures with our small heater, trying to learn six songs in Chinese, making gads of Christmas cookies, and the everyday grind (and fun) of teaching 24 classes. Personally, I love it here. I love the scary adrenaline rush of getting in front of a class of 4th graders. I love the warm feeling when a student says "hello, teacher!" or, better yet, "Cami Teacher, hello!" I love God granting me the strength to get through each moment. I love hearing a student say "I love you!" or, better yet, "I love Jesus!" I love being able to share about Christ to my fellow teachers. I love being able to share about Christmas to every student at every school where I teach. I love Kinmen, and I love that God has chosen to bring me to this place. I could say more than this, but I'd be writing the whole letter. These people need Christ more than anything, so please pray for them, that they would see Christ in us and believe. Again, Merry Christmas! Love, Cami

Jarita (22): I've been teaching English in Kinmen for going on 4 years now, and I can't honestly say when I'll be coming home. Life gets busier and complicated every year, but then every year there are more chances to trust God completely and follow Him wholeheartedly even when I don't know what's going on! Some highlights of the year: going to Vietnam for camps in January, and getting my first taste of life in a third world country. visiting Hualien, Taiwan with my team in May, leading camps for 80 kids in Hsinchu, Taiwan in July, going home to the US in August (and camping at Lake Superior-awesome!), starting work on my master's degree in teaching with Liberty, and coming back home to Kinmen to start my fifth semester here. Five semesters have gone by so fast, and now Cami is here too! There's always lots of work to do, whether it's teaching, studying, hanging out with team and friends or working with the leadership team of our church youth group. Loving every minute of where God has placed me. As I look to the future, it gets pretty daunting at times, but encouraged to remember that if I acknowledge Him in all my ways, He will direct my path; just as He has up until now. Thank you for your prayers, and please let my family know if you would like to receive update letters from Cami & I. (haha, she loves to write!)

Ben and Raquel have settled nicely into the roll of being parents and we grandparents. Brock will be a year old on the 27th and is walking all over. He loves to eat and gives us all a lot of laughs! We are so glad to have them close by!

The business continues to do well with all of the employees God has sent our way, doing their part. Bob has started a new project for the winter. He used to tell me "When this project is done it will be the last for a while!" I can't remember if he still says this but if he does it goes in one ear and out the other. In all of our married life this has never happened. Strange as it may seem I really do like this about him! If he were to be in the house looking over my shoulder all day...well, it just wouldn't work too well. He did not volunteer to write a paragraph so I get to write anything I want about him. He is a great husband, dad, and provider for us!! Oh, by the way, the project is an office addition.

One of the hard things this year has been Bob’s Mom. She was diagnosed with breast cancer a few months ago…once again we are reminded of our fragile lives and family memories are even more precious. She has handled the first 3 rounds of chemo quite well. I believe the next step will be surgery. Pray for her as you think of her. She is a fighter and such an example to us all to fight the good fight of faith!

As I look back over this year and ahead to the next. I think of the memories, the challenges, the growing and know that it is all part of God’s plan. He sent His Son die so we could live our lives here to the fullest, rejoicing, resting, and clinging to Him no matter what is ahead!

We are so honored to have you, our family and friends!

Celebrate Jesus this Christmas!

The Kulp Family

Somehow Bob and I got involved in this  MDA fund raiser.  Maybe you can help bail us out.

We've been on the road for a while now.  Some of the highlights have been....

• A quick stop at the St. Louis Arch, just enough time for a couple of pictures.
• A tour of the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial Site
  
• Visiting Jim and Roxane for a couple days in AZ Photos
  
• Checking out the job that Kulp's will be doing in Las Cruces
• On to Maricopa, AZ to see Bob's sister Margaret and family Photos
  

Now we are at our last major stop, Las Vegas

While Bob goes to his meetings the kids and I do school work and hang out at the pool.

 

It gives me extra time for reflection without the normal daily tasks to fill my day.

I've been busy putting together the booklist for the next year of homeschooling.  I know it’s early but it gives me time to watch for bargains on what we need. 

 

There's  time to set/reevalute goals for my personal and spiritual life which is always refreshing. Most people do this at the start of the year so I’m a month late, but it's what I do when I go to a conference with Bob.  It's very refreshing! 

Extra time for reading, too.

 

Jarita's friend, Ling, took us to the Northwest side of the Island today and treated us to lunch at a very cool restaurant. The owner is an artist and had carvings, tables,chairs etc made from drift wood. Beautiful gardens and herb beds surrounded the restaurant. It was quiet and beautiful.