2024 Melton Newsletter

Thanksgivings

First, we are thankful to all those who came to visit us in 2024. It seemed like every time we needed a boost, Annelies and Lieneke would arrive, or Bianca, Serena, Cranes, Coles, Archbolds, or cousin Brit, and especially Bampa and Nana. One of the biggest challenges of “parachute church planting” is leaving behind loved ones. This year, they came to us.
Second, we are thankful for our new table. That might seem like a weird thing to give thanks for in a newsletter, but have you seen it? A parish family commissioned another parishioner to make it for us. It is the longest (12’) four-legged table in the known universe and it is gorgeous. One of the reasons why we’ve been so committed to hosting this year is to try to be faithful to this generous gift! Also worth mentioning here is that we are so thankful for our home. We set up an above ground pool (classy, right!?) in the backyard, and have continued to settle into this spot.
Third, it does not go without saying that CTK is a big thanksgiving. We can’t imagine leaving this parish, as it has become so dear to us and we to it. It has really matured this last year and the fever of the “plant phase” seems to be settling into that sober confidence where real gains are made. Within the CTK community, there were 28 baptisms in 2024. We made a video about children. You can learn more about what’s going on at CTK by watching Tony’s end-of-year rector’s report.
Fourth, we are thankful for our friends. Since moving to Fair Oaks, four other families have moved into this wonderful neighborhood. Many of them serve as informal godparents to our kids. Our dear friends (Holts) now live right next door. Tony’s associate rector, Fr. Tyler, and his wife, Emily, live just down the road. The Fair Oaks Recruitment Club has been a big 2024 bright spot as we continue to labor in our “parish mile”.

Adventures

Our family’s mission statement, “Enjoying the adventure of bringing up disciples into the fullness of Christ’s Church,” shaped a year filled with connection, travel, and celebration.  In March, we joined dear friends from Dallas (Archbolds) for a relaxing beach trip to 30A, FL, and later reunited with our seminary friends for a big summer reunion.

The year began with a boys’ road trip to New Mexico for a ski trip with our friends, the Dittmans. We also took two big road trips to the Midwest to visit family, and made our way back to Dallas twice. On the first visit, we celebrated Tony’s long-time mentor, Fr. John Boonzaaijer, as he was consecrated a bishop. On the second trip, Tony had the joy of officiating the wedding of two former students, Dietrich and Julia, and even served as the MC for another former student’s (Jaxson) wedding reception. Lots of miles on the van!

CTK also took its first Family Camp in St. Simon’s Island, GA. Another highlight was introducing Clementine to her Ohana during a weeklong retreat to Hawaii this fall for Tony and Vandi.

Family Life

Every day starts off with coffee before the kids wake up. In the winter we have a fire in the wood burner. Vandi takes care of Olive and Clementine during the day. Tony tries to get most of his work done while the older kids are at school, and typically offices from home. When the older three get home, it is a crazy mix of homework, sports, instruments, dinner, evening prayer. Fridays are movie night. We’ve been trying to end most evenings with a game of Crokinole.

Sadly, we had to put down our beloved Poppy, the golden retriever we've had since Rosie was born. Poppy is buried in the backyard with a real headstone that a friend gave us. Vandi raised 14 chickens and ducks from eggs, but then a stray dog made short work of them one day. We also lost our next door neighbor, Gallagher, early in the year. She was very dear to us and especially the children, and we miss her zany personality. We walked through the hope and then loss of a long-awaited baby (Fritz) with our dear friends (the Holleys). As a whole, 2024 was a year for the children to process death.

It has been a busy ministry year for Tony at Christ the King. We are hosting a ton, both parish families and also neighbors. This was a big ministry focus in 2024. We also sent out Incarnation Canton in March, and Tony is working on planting two other churches and an extension seminary campus in his "spare time" as the Canon for Church Planting for our diocese. He also taught his first seminary class on Church Planting. On his days off, Tony continually tackles house projects, whether that's building a horse fence around our backyard, rebuilding our barn, clearing out the crawl space, making a bamboo playhouse, building a big fire pit, or turning the backyard into a leper colony for St. Francis day. He recently picked up the hobby of smoking brisket.

Vandi stays busy managing the home and cultivating community around us. She served as doula to four women from our parish this year, and strives to remain available to whatever needs come up with the people around her. As always, she has a few side gigs. She watches extra kids after school and started a small flower business that she hopes to expand in the Spring.

Children

Sam (13) has really come into his own this year as a middle schooler. He walks to school on his own, always eager to get there early, and has started taking his schoolwork seriously for the first time. He’s getting better marks!

He’s been busy learning guitar, basketball, and golf, while also taking on a summer and fall lawnmowing gig. Sam’s close group of friends is a consistent presence at the house (and in the kitchen), keeping our home lively and well-loved.

At home, he’s the typical oldest sibling: helpful, tender with Clementine. He’s also our resident Bible scholar, knowing every answer during family readings.

This year, Sam hit a big growth spurt and tackled some exciting projects and milestones. He took on fixing up a golf cart, celebrated his 13th birthday with a special trip to Chattanooga with Dad, and served on the Acolyte Team at church. A highlight was flying with the other acolytes to Dallas, TX, to attend the St. Michael’s Conference over the summer.
Beckett (11) is in 6th grade and is looking forward to joining Sam in the Upper School next year. He’s been excelling musically, learning both the trumpet and piano, and staying active with basketball and Chess Club.

Always up for a challenge, Beckett has become a Rubik’s Cube master and a fierce competitor in the family’s new favorite pastime, the “Canadian flicking game.” This summer, he had a blast making whirlpools in the pool..

An entrepreneur at heart, Beckett started his own Pokémon card business, “Beck’s Deck,” and has earned quite a bit of pocket money. One of his biggest joys this year has been caring for Felix, the kitten he found as a newborn in our shed. Beckett nursed him back to health and is an incredibly attentive pet owner.
Rosemary (9) is thriving in 3rd grade, keeping up her streak of high grades and impressing us all with her hard work. This year, she discovered a love for creating clay earrings—her designs are as unique as she is! She's also learning piano and spends a lot of time reading through any book she can get her hands on.

Her sweet nature shines through in the thoughtful cards she writes for family and friends, and her big imagination keeps her and her little sisters entertained with endless creative play. Rosie is also our family’s early riser, up with the sun and ready to start her day.

When she gets home, she loves to share long, meandering stories about her day—always full of details! She's already looking forward to spring so she can grow flowers with Mama.
Olive (turns 5 this week!) has had a big year, starting with her hair finally growing out after her self-styling adventure a couple of years ago—though she’s still rocking a toothless grin! She spends her days twirling around the house like a ballerina, often to dramatic music, or dressing up and experimenting with "makeup" in her imaginative play.

She’s our little spitfire, with a quick sense of humor (and just the right amount of sass). Olive loves writing people’s names on everything, making cards for  her Sunday School teacher, and has been enthusiastically counting down to her December birthday since last December!

Every night, she requires that Daddy gives her a special blessing ("glessing")  and that he sings a new improvised song—her own bedtime tradition.
Clementine (2) has had an exciting year full of love and growth—literally! She’s at the top of the growth chart for height but still has all her toddler squishiness. Her days revolve around caring for her beloved "babies" (dolls) and playing with her best friend, Luella, who just moved next door. These two, born on the same day, are inseparable and play together almost daily.

Clementine is always thrilled when everyone gets home, constantly asking during the school day, "Where’s RoRo, Sam, and Beckett?" She joined us on a special trip to Hawaii this year, where she met extended family and fell in love with turtles.

Books are another big part of her life—whether she’s “reading” them herself or snuggling up to be read to. She loves to sneak into Daddy’s office and the pantry and make big messes.