Our 30th home-made holiday wish to family, friends, and colleagues.

1.
Blessed Holidays and New & Better Year
2021
from the growing
Paul &
Susan
Kim &
Matt
Mark &
Sarah
Grayson
Evie
Jesus
MaryJoseph
Betty &
Max
Merry Christmas 2019-2020
from the Growing
Menig Family Tree
May 2021
bring us all
fresh growth
in
connections
compassion
knowledge
wisdom
family
& Life
We hope you enjoy our
30th Personal Greeting
celebrating the
Miracle of Life!
✨

2. We’ve been blessed that our family grows and
we connect with them. We’ve visited in-person
and regularly ZOOM and FaceTime. Both o
ff
er
the opportunity to take pictures and record movies that keep us
feeling closer. Susan’s P.E.O. raised a record amount for their chapter
in 2019 and, like many a non-pro
fi
t, is struggling this year. Thanks to a
fraternity brother, Paul has been hosting a weekly get together with
MIT Dekes from classes in the 60s to the 80s. It’s a refreshing one-
hour discussion of the past, current technology and events, and looks
into the future. Paul’s rebranding to Business Accelerants is complete.
He’s also the Executive Director of the Transportation Safety
Equipment Institute, a 58-year-old trade association. He stays super
busy with clients looking to grow their business successfully. Susan
reaches out to all she can to provide a good wish and a listening ear.
Our next challenge is to rid ourselves of much of what has collected in
the home the last 26 years and prepare to move somewhere nearby
with less
fl
oor space and maintenance. Some say,
“Good Luck with THAT!”
One million years ago, in
2019, Kim and Matt hung
bird feeders in their yard
and prisms in the window,
so their front room
features rainbows and
hummingbird battles--both
of which have been
welcome sources of
entertainment in 2020! In
2019, they did some
traveling individually (Kim
to see college friends and
Matt to see family), as well
as together (they explored
Orcas Island in the San Juans--including an awesome guided kayak
excursion--and enjoyed a Menig family reunion in Michigan and
Grayson's birthday in Seattle). They participated in various festivals,
activism events, and a giant bounce amusement park; checked out
multiple waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge; and got to see Matt's
parents when they visited Portland. 2020 has been...di
ff
erent, but
they're grateful to be healthy and employed (Matt was promoted to
Residential Combo Inspector, and Kim is delighted to provide 1:1
coaching for leaders as part of her current role). In February, Kim and
Susan (Mom) jointly hosted a baby shower for a dear friend of Kim's,
which turned out beautifully and wound up being unexpectedly good
timing. Matt and Kim spent the early part of the pandemic making silly
stop-motion videos, and the recent part on get-out-the-vote activities.
(The photo is from last year's tulip festival. If you aren't familiar with
the symbol on Kim's jacket, ask Kim or Mark to tell you the story of
When Dad Made Dinner...)
“Liar, liar, pants on
fi
re!” To all those people
that have claimed that the second child is
easier, I say again, “Liar, liar, pants on
fi
re! “ Somebody confused
easier and exponentially harder when explaining things to us! Little
Eveyln joined us in the world right after Christmas last year and so we
will be celebrating her
fi
rst birthday in about 10 days from when we are
writing this. She is a beautiful, bubbly, little girl that certainly has her
own opinion about things, but we couldn’t be happier and love her to
pieces. Grayson is now 3.5 and took full advantage of the time at
home in 2020 to complete potty training, graduate to a big boy bed,
and now rides a two-wheel pedal bike with no training wheels!
Grayson, Evelyn, Sarah, Mark, and Samson are all doing well and
staying more than busy with life and work. Sarah is
fi
nishing her 10th
year at Seattle Children’s Hospital and Mark just had his 3-year
anniversary at PureSpectrum. Despite all the challenges of 2020, we
remain focused on our blessings and grateful that, while we haven’t
been with family/friends the way we’d like, we’ve actually “seen” them
more than normal in this crazy year thanks to the wonder of
technology and video conferencing.
Two years is so much growth at
this stage. Before he turned 3
he was using the balance bike
and coasting lots. In November he learned to
ride his new two wheeler with pedals and is
o
ff
to the races. The bouncy house set up in
the garage is great to burn o
ff
the energy of a
boy constrained to spending time at home.
Grayson enjoys dressing up and acting in his
out
fi
ts as doctor, pirate,
fi
reman, police and
making forts. He’s a
fi
ne negotiator, having
learned how to bargain for more “screen”
time on an iPhone or the big TV. He also has
his own take on things. Watching him play a
video
fl
apping bird game his Dad kept encouraging him to
fl
ap his arms
to avoid hitting the ground. He kept resisting and started
fl
apping just in
the nick of time, even though he’d never done this before. He soaks up
everything you say, and readily says it back. The “no” and the “why”
stages are coexisting at times. His favorite toys tend to have something
to do with construction and he gets to see the real things all over town.
He’s been able to stay in “daycare school” since Mom works in a
hospital. That’s been great for social skills, but has introduced behaviors
learned from others. Papa was thrilled that he sat still long enough to
listen to Papa read his favorite story of Peter Rabbit. Baba helped him
plant green peppers, tomatoes, and
fl
owers. Grayson plays harmonica
with Papa and make believe cooking with Baba.
Evelyn Elizabeth Menig (Evie) topped
our family tree on December 30th
and was added to the family tree of
Jesus on September 26, 2020 at her baptism.
She’s learning her moves and we call her
“Scooter.” Sitting as seen in this picture, she
reaches our her hands and pulls her self
along in the seated position. She’s pulling up
on furniture and getting ready to take those
precious
fi
rst steps. She has big wide eyes, a
wonderful smile and loves banging her hands
on anything from the table to those noisy
pots and pans or
Papa’s iPad with a
music app with drums or piano. She’s our
little sweetheart and has surely wrapped
Papa around her little
fi
nger. We claim she’s
said “Mama” and makes lots of sounds,
mostly happy except when she’s hungry or
frustrated. She can sit for many minutes
playing with toys with shapes and sounds. Of
course, she is enamored by her big brother
and watches everything he does and listens
to everything he says. Already she likes being
pushed along on a small vehicle and gets
many rides in the stroller while Dad runs.
Grayson
Evie
Kim & Matt
Mark & Sarah
Susan & Paul
Isaiah 11:1 But a
shoot shall sprout
from the stump of
Jesse, and from his
roots a bud shall
blossom.