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2007 Newsletter

Welcome to our Christmas Newsletter! Lot’s to talk about from last year, check it out and do us a favor, leave a comment and let us know your read it and what you thought!

Well another year has past and it’s probably been our busiest year ever! Here’s kind of a “Year in Review” of our life.

This year began with some sadness. My grandfather, George A. McLean passed away in March. He had been not feeling well for some time and we went up to see him about a week or so before he passed. He got to see his great grandkids, Miles and Macy. My Grandpa was a commercial artist, old school with pen and paper. I think I get a lot of my artistic skills and creativity from him. He was 86 years old and had quite the life - to read more about grandpa George check out this memorial site. While we were up there, we got to have dinner with my Uncle Brian and Aunt Michelle which was great.

One positive thing about his passing was that the whole McLean Clan got together to celebrate his life. We have quite the family; My dad has 2 brothers and 3 sisters, and I have 1 brother and 2 sisters. So we had a really cool time up in northern California as we got together and shared stories and looked at pictures and saw long lost family members from the US and Canada. Travis played guitar, Emily & James sang, and there was even a bagpiper. I spent a large portion of the time pushing Macy around the pond so she could sleep. It was a good day.

On the way home from the Placerville, Ca area, we decided to stop in Santa Cruz. I grew up in San Jose and spent a lot of time in Santa Cruz. Jen had never been there so I really wanted her and the kids to see how cool it was. We had a great day at the Boardwalk. Macy got to go on her first carnival ride - she loved it, in fact she screamed and cried every time she had to get off. Read more here.

On April 9th, our little baby Macy turned 1. We had the whole family over and celebrated. Macy made a complete mess of herself with her very own cake. And of course, she was spoiled rotten with gifts.

Every year for the 4th of July we go to Catalina, a little island off the coast of California. It’s one of our favorite places to get away from the craziness of Southern California. We have some friends who live on the island who are always super hospitable, and Jen’s mom always comes as well as her brother Kevin and his wife Melissa. This year Miles got to watch the 4th of July parade, featuring decorated golf carts and the USC band, from the roof of Antonio’s (our favorite restaurant there). Read more about Catalina here.

What would a SoCal summer be without a trip to the beach? We love camping at San Elijo State Beach. It’s less than an hour away, but it’s so nice to fall asleep to the crashing waves and wake up in that overcast fog - especially when it’s 110 degrees back in Temecula. This was Macy’s first real beach trip where she could strut her stuff, and she did. Read more about our trip to San Elijo here.

In August our church began breaking ground on our facility. In case you didn’t know, I’m a pastor at LifeChurch in the Temecula Valley. I’ve been at the church for 4 years. Before that I was at Sunrise for 7 years. Both churches met in local schools, which meant setup and teardown each and every weekend. So this is huge! Plus I got to have a very large hand in the design and layout of the building - not sure if that was a blessing or a curse, but it was very cool! Check out a cool video here.

September 18th was a big day for Miles - his 5 year old birthday! We rented a room a local pizza place and invited all his little friends and had a blast. Miles got totally spoiled with Transformers (which by the way are the worst toys every because I had to transform them every time Miles wanted them transformed!). Miles goes back and forth with being into Transformers, Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Star Wars, and Legos. He’s learning how to read, spell, add, and jump from couch to couch. He’s a great little boy with a huge heart - everyone who meets Miles loves him and he loves people - he’ll start up a conversation with just about anyone (which can lead to some pretty awkward moments).
And of course we had to get Macy a little something to keep her busy at Miles’ birthday party. Let’s just say she almost stole the show as she waddled around the pizza place in her pink dress and white hat with her pig tails and purse. Read more about Miles’ birthday here.

On August 26th, 2000 I said “I do” to the girl of my dreams and best friend. So this year we celebrated 7 years together. I love that we got married in 2000 because I will always know how long we’ve been married just by the year it is! We got to spend some time away from the kiddos which was nice since I am always so busy with work and Jen is always so busy with being a mom. Jen has been so good to me and she’s an incredible wife - I am blessed to have her in my life and couldn’t imagine it without her.

There’s a ritual that every family in Temecula goes through on any given weekend. You wake up, usually on a day off that you should normally just sleep in and rest around the house. But you wake up and get all ready to head out - the whole family. You search for socks, shorts, jerseys, shin guards, cleats, and balls - which can be practically anywhere in the house, car, or garage. Once all this gear has been apprehended, everyone loads up into the car. By this time you are usually running late so you are a little heavier on the pedal and of course you catch every red light possible. Once you arrive at these enormous green fields you have to drive around for 20 minutes looking for a space, and this is also the largest collection of SUV’s on the planet. Once we are parked we get to load up more gear than we can carry and head out on a trek to find which field we will be setting up on that day (it changes each week). And it’s either unbearable hot, or freezing - no in between. We proceed to spend the next half hour watching 6 kids run around kicking themselves, tripping, crying, whining, and occasionally kicking a ball in the right direction and if they’re lucky - into the goal. Yep, it’s soccer and this year we were indoctrinated into it. In all seriousness, Miles did a great job and we really enjoyed it. Miles, we’re proud of you!

Late October brought fire to Southern California and our backyard - again. Hundred’s of homes burned from San Diego to Los Angeles. People I knew lost homes, farms, and churches. What a crazy place this is - it seemed like 2003 all over again. Luckily after a few days, the winds died down and the fire fighters got control, but it was scary for sure.

Halloween was a blast this year! 2 kids to dress up = twice the fun. One cool thing we did was visit Jen’s grandparents who are living in a really nice senior center in Temecula. The kids had a blast and the residents were so excited to see them. Macy was a pink poodle, and Miles was a Power Ranger. That’s Ally, one of Miles’ friends - she’s a cutie too. More pictures here, here, and here.

This November we got a visit from Jen’s dad, Bob, who lives in Alabama. He usually makes it out once a year to hang out. It’s so cool because Miles really knows who he is and they have a blast together. And of course “Papa from Alabama” spoils the heck out of the kids every time he comes. We had a great visit this time, got to spend a few days together.

Thanksgiving in Kauai. What a blessing this was. The timing was crazy (right when we were set to move into our church building), but it was awesome! I took a ton of pictures - who knows when we’ll ever be able to go back? Miles had a great time, we all had a great time. We went with Jen’s mom and stepdad and her brother and his wife. We left little Macy back home with my sister Emily, they had a ton of fun while we were gone. Something strange happens to me when I’m on a island. It’s happened on Catalina, Jamaica, Maui, Kauai, and Scotland. Maybe it’s because my ancestors are from a small island called Mull - I don’t know, but it just feels like home. One of these trips we may just not come home! Read more about Kauai here.

When I got home, this is what I came home to at work. Well almost. This is about a week and a half after I got home. Pretty insane that this is where I work. There’s still tons to do and I find myself working harder now than I ever have. But our church has a home now and I’m looking forward to what God will do here. Come check it out if you are ever in the neighborhood. See some of what I spend my time doing here.

From our family to yours - we want to say “Merry Christmas” and “Happy New Year”! We’ve been extremely blessed over the last year and we’re looking forward to this coming year. We’re learning how to be parents, how to love each other more, and just how to live life. God has been faithful and this Christmas will be a great time remembering his gift of his Son. We hope you have a great Christmas and we’d LOVE to hear how your year went.

Alex, Jen, Miles, Macy & Java (the dog)

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