Here's a new feature on our web page... this content is NOT a direct copy/paste from our annual Christmas letter.  It's actually fresh and new, although it contains many of the same bits of information.  That said, some of it is even recycled from our 2004 Christmas letter and changed a little so that it doesn't ring a bell for those people with really good memories.

Eric grew his business a lot this year, hiring more employees, getting more office space and renaming the company.  The new name is Cernotics.  It's based on the Latin root word "cerno" meaning to sort, distinguish.  Our English words ascertain and discern are based on this same root word.  Picking just the right name for the business took hours and hours of work and many passes through a Latin dictionary, but it was lots of fun, especially those hilarious names for which we couldn't stop laughing.

Since Eric took on more responsibility at the business, we decided to have Becky officially stay home and quit her job at Merck.  Lots of things were changing at Merck to which the news stories will attest.  Becky was on extended maternity leave anyway from when Sarah was born so the transition was relatively easy.  A couple calls to Merck HR and she was a stay-at-home mom.  So no more corporate America... it's full time motherhood and Becky is really looking forward to it :-)

We still attend BranchCreek Community Church in Harleysville. Becky continues helping on the Women's Ministry leadership team and Eric has started teaching 3, 4 and 5 year olds once-per-month during the Saturday night services. We finished a five year term on the Young Marrieds' Ministry this year so Eric jumped into the youth ministry and is a small group leader on Tuesday nights for 7th grade boys.  It's been an interesting experience for Eric and not like anything he's done before.

God continues to bless us and stretch us in many ways. After 11+ years of marriage, we are still learning the ropes in some respects as the children grow older and the responsibilities change, especially with their time in school.  In addition, Eric's business demands more time than ever before and that does cause some stress for everyone.   With God's grace we move forward with peace and contentment.  Fortunately, we know that He's looking out for us.  His plans might not be exactly what we were expecting, but they're always good for us in the long run.  And what could be more peaceful than that?