THE BAILEYS 2000 CHRISTMAS LETTER

with ROYCE, JUDY (Both 39 and holding), JILLIONNA AGE 11 AND JOSIANNE AGE 10

JANUARY Another year with the Bailey Bunch has brought much happiness, good health and many fond memories. Royce and Judy are enjoying (meaning used loosely) the 5' grade at our "Bailey's Home School." We are privileged to be able to teach the girls at home while offering opportunity for music (Hand Bell Choir, "Praise Him" Youth Choir and Youth Orchestra) and inside/outside chores (including the animals). Gramma Wolter (retired from San Diego School District) continues to assist Judy daily with her professional teaching skills. Grampa Wolter is also a huge help with his expertise on the farm. We feel blessed! illee continues to take piano and harp lessons, along the way she added the hammered dulcimer. Josee continues lessons on the piano and flute. She informs us that the harp is in her future--next year-time will tell. Both enjoy performing and they tolerate practicing quite well. A special "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire," pre Super Bowl program, Royce asked, "What is it about?" Josee answered, "Bowling, I think." Oops!

FEBRUARY We traveled to California to see Royce's parents in Ojai and were spoiled with relaxation, entertainment and much pampering. They are a blessing in so many ways! We greatly enjoy our extended family. Judy continues to harp on people and receives much gratification from the people, places and opportunities this hobby gives her. Royce predicts a new album this coming year but Judy says it won't happen with just 24 hours in a day. She won her sixth Angel Award for Best Inspirational Instrumental Album of the Year. Her album is number 11 (plus 2 videos) entitled "Praise Harp Collection, Vol.1. A "best of" album previously released in Germany as "Faszination Harfe." We had a cold spell with ice and snow for a week and Gramma and Grampa Wolter needed to get off their mountain to lead out in a Week of Prayer. Their road (on the north side of the mountain) was solid ice. So Grampa Wolter attached: clamp-on ice cleats to their shoes, placed a helmut on Gramma Wolter and belted a 2" thick mattress sized foam rubber to her back-side. Down the 1700' driveway they went, until Gramma Wolter did the splits. It was the one thing they didn't have covered. She pulled her thigh muscles and couldn't walk. So Judy and Grampa Wolter put her on a red plastic toboggan (from Walmart) and slid her down the hill. It only took two hours. Even though she couldn't walk for 2 weeks, she still went and gave that Week of Prayer.

MARCH Jillee, while studying English. didn't know an answer and said, "I'd like to phone a friend." Gramma Wolter responded, "Is that your final answer?" Judy's picture (playing the harp) at Biltmore House was in "Southern Living" magazine. For you Westerners, it's the equivalent to a Southern "Sunset' magazine. Josee starts calling Judy "Marmee", like in "Little Women." The girls took swimming lessons and Josee commented, "I get thin while taking swimming." Judy said, "Maybe that's what I need." Josee replied, "I don't think it would work for you Marmee." Josee lost two teeth (12 altogether so far).

APRIL The 1 st class in school is "S-P-I-L-L-I-N-G." I guess that's why its first, it needs the most work. Jillee's letter to Editor Mrs. Sox appears on the back of the "Primary Treasure": "I like to read the Primary Treasure in church and listen to the sermon. Do you think that's a good idea?" Mrs. Sox responded: "Dear Jillionna, I think it is fine for you to read the Primary treasure while you listen to the sermon. That's what I did when I was your age. But if the grown-up you are with says to put it away, obey." We traveled to Williamsburg, VA with dear friends and added practical knowledge to our understanding of American History. We would highly recommend this trip. During family discussion, Royce says, "Mommy must be crazy to have married him." Josee breaks up the room with laughter, "He's half right."

MAY Judy asks, "If the mother's place is in the home, why am I always in the car?" We had a bad week. 1) Judy indents the tailgate of someone's new Ford truck and receives a speeding ticket for going 25mph in a 35mph zone. Go figure? 2) A Bobcat came into our garage and knocked down the cage and ate our six chicken hatchlings. 3) A black snake was eating our fish in the pond. Josee wrote Judy a note: "Mom, I Love You so much! Don't worry about the wreck. God will help us threw it!" We went to Camp meeting and found out what BIBLE stands for: Basic-instruction Before Leaving Earth.

JUNE Grandpa Wolter injures his arm while cutting down dead yellow pine trees. He says he has a half time guardian angel because if he had a full-time angel it wouldn't have allowed his arm to be pinned between the tree and tractor. The cool evenings have the smell of honeysuckle and the sound of the seven year cicadas. We have a Bailey family reunion in Ojai. All siblings (four), spouses (four), offspring (four) are present and accounted for. We had a family portrait taken, ate out a lot and helped to nurse Gramee back from recent neck surgery. We had a blast. I'm sure Gramee and Papa Bailey were glad to see us go, so they could get some rest. Then again, maybe not. We stay involved with Church responsibilities and activities. The girls and parents graduated to Juniors Sabbath School Class. Judy plays the piano and Royce helps teach the class when he isn't on call.

JULY Royce serves as church elder and co-junior leader, while Judy serves as church pianist. Josee takes Royce to Walmart. She guides him through the store, with her shopping list (modeling mommy), like it's the back of her hand. Grandpa Wolter is asked to pastor another church - Blythwood, SC. This is the h church he has pastored since he retired. He says he will have to retire from retirement to get anything done. The dogs chased the neighbor's Emu through our backyard (frightened from the fireworks in the neighborhood). They didn't get close to catching it, nor did we. Another neighbor lent us ten of his goats to clear some thickets in our pasture. We hatched more chickens and started work on a barn. Took a box turtle to Sabbath School one week and a green frog we found the next week. Marco, our cockatiel, flew off Josee's shoulder and stayed out all night up in a pine tree. No coaxing would get him down: we called him, sang to him, and even took the harp out in the field and harped on him. He kept calling for us to come get him. After much prayer, 0 ."Sabbath morning we found him 20 feet up in a hemlock and all 200 pounds of Royce shimmied up that unsteady tree to rescue him. We prayed a prayer of Thanksgiving and promptly retrimmed his wing.

AUGUST Speaking of animals, we now have two dogs (Blackee and Clifford), fish (indoor and outdoor), four guinea pigs (frequent babies), a cockatiel (Marco Polo), 14 chickens (all .hatched on our farm), nine goats, one guinea hen (Daniel Boone), two peacocks (George and Martha Washington), four turkeys (named Bill, Hillary, Monica and James Carville). The girls are fully responsible for their feeding and care. Only one goat has been overfed, which resulted in her demise. No report to date of under feeding. Royce cannot find a pair of jeans that fit him since he has gained all of his weight back (despite his ileostomy). After bringing home seven pairs of jeans, Judy finds a pair that finally fit him. The stores are very clever. They call these jeans "Mature Cut' or "Relaxed Fit', but what they really are saying is, 'You have a BIG buff." We all go (with Harp) to Lansing, MI for the Adventist Services Industries (ASI) convention. Judy plays live on 3ABN (Three Angels Broadcast Network). Afterwards we take a family vacation visiting Battle Creek and Henry Ford's Greenfield Village. What a wonderful educational experience.

SEPTEMBER Judy looked out the kitchen window to see Clifford, our dog, modeling her swimsuit. Sad to say, Judy says he looks better in it than she does. Royce is passed a note with picture of a horse on it that said, "Daddy, when can we get a horse?" Jillee 's was warned that her punishment for not obeying was to give a chicken away. But she pleaded, " NO, NO, NO, mommy! Take my money, take all my money, but don't give away a chicken. Gramee and Papa Bailey come to assist Grandpa and Gramma Wolter with Josee's baptismal service. We are so proud of her witness and dedication to the Lord. Elizabeth Blackwell (Lizzie) our new long-eared rabbit has become the baby doll of choice. The girls first place an infant diaper on her, then place their very own baby clothes on her. She is wrapped in a blanket and carried on her back with a spit rag, bottle and pacifier (which she accepts begrudgingly).

OCTOBER Royce treated Judy to the place of our honeymoon,Grand Cayman, for our 1 anniversary. Wow, has it changed, but we say, 'We just keep getting better." Isn't that tender? The girls play in their piano recital. Jillee played Minuet I in C and Minuet III in D by Wolfgang A. Mozart and Josee played Sonatina in C, Op 55, No. 1 Allegro and Vivace by Friedrich Kuhlau. A busy mother and wife's dilemma: How many men does it take to change a toilet paper roll? Answer: Don't know! It has never been done. Josee takes part in her first communion with Jillee and their friend Christina. Judy continues to enjoy her interaction on the Park Ridge Hospital Board, while Royce continues to serve as Vice Chairman of the board serving our two county mental health services (Trend).

NOVEMBER Royce enjoys the practice of Medicine and is happy to announce the addition of a new partner (Loma Linda Grad '75 Sammy Gammenthaler, Invasive Cardiologist) joining Dr. Steve Hildebrand and Don Wetmore PA-C. This allows Royce more spare time with the family and our newly acquired four legged animal-an Appaloosa horse (named Sassy). He saddles her up almost every day for the girls and coaches them on their riding performance. Jillee writes this prayer and puts it in the Guinea Pig cage, "Dear Jesus, Please make Tiffany to have her babies. Now would be a good time. We've waited so long for her to have babies." And very soon Jillee's prayer was answered with a litter of three cream and white babies. We had a wonderful ninth annual Bailey's Thanksgiving Vegetarian Potluck at the church with over 50 people attending. A portion of the children's orchestra played and of course, we had Judy's famous veggie turkey. With years of practice it is now looking more like a turkey than the blackened Bat-mobile. While playing the harp at the Biltmore House an intoxicated guest asked if Mr. Vanderbilt was gay? The host assigned to watch over Judy's section of the 10 acre house, answered, "Mr Vanderbilt was always happy." Judy's latest album is released, "Praise Harp Collection, Vol. 2." We went to Dollywood, TN with some dear friends and all six children climbed up to talk to Santa. Josee when asked what she wanted for Christmas said, "Bush to be President." Jillee said that Gore probably wouldn't get any presents. What will Santa do? Ban Rush Limbaugh?

DECEMBER We added a second horse (a paint) that Jillee named Louisa May Alcott (Little Women) Bailey to our family. Judy plays 14 times at the Biltmore House this season in addition to parties, Christmas programs and church performances. It is getting difficult to transport all the instruments if all three girls play: three harps, one dulcimer, one flute with three benches, three music stands, and three sets of music - wow!! A roadie may be in our future-in our dreams. The girls entered their gingerbread houses again at the Grove Park Inn. No ribbons obtained, just lots of fun and satisfaction. The girls have grown 3 inches this year and are both at 4' 10". The family was filmed for "First Wednesday" on Adventist Communication Network (ACN). It will air in January 2001. We shared our faith and trust in God regarding Royce's health challenges over the last couple of years. Catch up on old Christmas Letters at http://members.aol.com/Harpists4u Christmas time is so busy, we have delayed our Christmas Letter this year due to Christmas -- Ha, Ha!! We look forward to hearing from you every year and adding to our memories the new happenings in your lives. We pray that this year will be filled with love, peace, and happiness-which comes truly only from above. "Our faith is to endure the pressure brought to bear upon it. God is able and willing to bestow upon His servants all the strength they need. He will more than fulfill the highest expectations of those who put their trust in Him." 8T 11 May God richly bless you and fill you and yours with joy for a happy New Year!