I know this was a few years ago, but I thought this would be a good chance for you to get to know me a bit better. If you care, that is.
So the following Family Newsletters you will read are actual letters that my wife and I sent out to family and friends.
Here we go:
AND SO IT BEGINS…
So the following Family Newsletters you will read are actual letters that my wife and I sent out to family and friends.
Here we go:
The (1st) Twelve Months of Marriage
Not in Poem Form J
The time has come, the Walrus said, to speak of many things…and so it has, at least in this household. One thing my family didn’t do a whole lot of, but my wife’s family does, is write an end of the year letter/synopsis. An essay, if you will, of all the goings-on in the family. Keri, my wife, has graciously allowed me to do the writing this year. Of course it will have to meet her approval, but I love to talk and write and so I am very thankful she said yes to my request. However, I have but one standard that I am forced to obey, and that is: Keep it to one page! Sigh.
Let me take you back to the twelfth month in the year of our Lord two-thousand and two. On the twenty-first day Keri Marie Myers and Joshua William Murcray were wed by Reverends James Leroy Murcray and Byron Keith Myers. The former being the father of the groom and the latter being the father of the bride. Unfortunately, due to a seating limitation, the list of over four hundred invites had to be drastically reduced to a meager 200. Our deepest regrets to those missing two hundred. Of those invited 175 made an appearance and stayed for the blessed event. Following the wedding was a sumptuous meal and reception that consisted of singing, dancing, and plenty of photographs. The evening came to a close some hours after the end of the ceremony and with a taste of the most delicious cake in the world, the newlyweds were sent off to begin their new lives. We spent our honeymoon at Disneyland , Christmas Eve at my parents’ house, and Christmas Day with Keri’s family in Blythe , California
The New Year started with me working the graveyard shift (which I continue to do, ugh!). On the 3rd we were off to the baby shower for John & Melissa Cordrey who named Keri the godmother of their as-yet-unborn son Matthew. My dad, the aforementioned Rev. James Murcray (“Josh’s dad” for the rest of this letter) had surgery on the 13th. On the 26th my brother and his wife celebrated their first anniversary and were closely followed by my parents, Jim & Patricia Murcray, who celebrated their 31st anniversary on the 27th. Apparently, though, the end of the month left a lot to be desired. The apartment next door to us caught on fire on the 31st, when a little boy was playing with his mothers’ cigarette lighter. The smoke damage in our apt. was minimal and there was no fire damage, but I was home alone, running in and out gathering as much as I could before the fire dept. kicked me out. Needless to say we had to move to a new apt. That brings us to the next paragraph and the next month.
It took us all of two days and help from David Marley (Kelly’s husband), Kelly Marley (Keri’s sister), Byron Myers (Keri’s father, remember? He did part of the wedding? Try to stay with us.), my mom (Patricia Murcray), and Maribeth Myers (Keri’s mom) to get us all moved in by Monday. Some days later we celebrated Valentine’s Day. It turns out to have been Keri’s very first Valentine’s Day with a date. So I tried hard. David and I cooked a five-course meal for Keri and Kelly. We even printed up special menus for the dinner. The ladies got dressed up and we men did all the cooking and cleaning. With their favorite flowers waiting for them and, of course, with us men doting on them hand and foot, the ladies were thrilled. I think what really topped it was the fact that the ladies got dressed up, but were able to wear their slippers to the dinner table. How much better could we have treated them?!!!! (Let’s pause while I buff my nails) One further note for February looks in on the 25th where Keri and I like to celebrate the actual day we first met. No, not in person, but actually when we met on the internet. Yes, you heard me correctly, we met on www.match.com dating service. Pretty cool, huh?
I can’t talk about March without pointing out the most important day of that month. March 1st is my birthday. I turned 28 this year and have already started planning my 30th birthday. Any ways, my wife invited our two families to Castle Park
The biggest event in April was the birth of Keri’s godson, Matthew Christopher Cordrey on the 4th. The next day Keri and I celebrated by going and seeing Billy Hill & The Hillbillies at Disneyland three times in a row. Sounds weird, but go and see them and you’ll understand. Keri and I had Easter lunch with my family while Byron and Maribeth were on vacation.
As most people know Mother’s Day is in May. The sad part of Mother’s Day was that Keri and I and her family had to attend a funeral for Linda Stevens (grandmother of Keri’s godson Matthew) the day before. In fact we also celebrated Mother’s Day with my folks that same evening. Since Keri and I were going to be gone in June we decided to celebrate Father’s Day with my dad early. So on the 31st Keri and I went model home viewing with my parents. After that we took them out to eat at The Rib-Cage. Brief Note: The Rib-Cage in Moreno Valley
June snuck up on us despite our intense yearning for it to arrive. June 2nd was the anniversary of my good friends Justice and Kristina Ford, Aunty Diana’s (Keri’s Aunt) had a birthday on the 14th, Father’s Day on the 15th, Kelly & David’s 3rd Anniversary on the 17th, Maribeth & Byron’s 30th Anniversary on the 20th, and Keri and I celebrated our 6th Month Anniversary on the 21st. Melissa & John Cordrey had their 2nd Anniversary on the 23rd. Megan Olsen had a Birthday on the 28th. So did Justice & Kristina’s first daughter Kaylie who celebrated her 1st Birthday. But what topped the whole month off was when Maribeth, Byron, Kelly, David, Keri, and I all went off to paradise in Hawaii
July 4th saw us at Kelly & David’s house for a celebration. On July 20th there was a BBQ at my parents house to celebrate my mom’s birthday. On the 27th Byron played a concert at the Nixon Library. (I’m keeping things short because I’m running out of room.)
Fall came (just kidding, down here summer never seems to let go) and August arrived. On the 7th Byron Myers celebrated his birthday with family at Red Lobster. Myers, Marley and Murcray joined together to watch the play Hello Dolly. And then something sad happened to me. Keri left me for about 4 days to go visit John, Melissa, and Matthew Cordrey in St. Louis Caribbean . Byron played in the orchestra for Evita. On the 28th Keri celebrated her 24th birthday. And thus ended August.
September 1st had three important reasons to celebrate. The most important being my half-birthday. The second because it was Labor Day. The third because Keri, Byron and I went and bought a 2002 Chevy Cavalier. YAY!!! On the 10th Daniel Marley (David’s brother) celebrated his birthday. Two other important dates were the 18th , when Survivor premiered, and the 23rd when Gilmore Girls premiered.
The most important day of October was the 1st when Smallville premiered. Just kidding. You hope. On the 7th my brother celebrated his birthday and Maribeth Myers followed suit with a birthday on the 13th. Melissa Cordrey didn’t want to be left out so she celebrated her birthday on the 16th. We celebrated that by getting new bedding and giving our queen size bed to my parents in exchange for their California King size bed on the 19th. On the 20th I injured my back at work and had to go to the hospital. They didn’t like what they saw and then took a look at my back. They put me on Workman’s Comp where I stayed for about 3 weeks. A tradition among Kelly and Keri is to watch the movie High Spirits on Halloween, so we did. And October came to a scary end.
In November my parents left on the 5th to head out to Oklahoma Branson , Missouri Disneyland to tape the Billy Hill & The Hillbillies show. On the 26th Keri and I went over to my grandmother’s to celebrate a small Thanksgiving and played a rousing game of Boggle. The next day we were off to Kelly & David’s house for a giant 21 person salute to Thanksgiving. The next day us manly men were off to conquer the golf course. This was followed by a pancake bonanza at Byron and Maribeth’s house. Yummy yum! November ended with Keri and I decorating our apartment for Christmas. Wish you could see it.
Now we are up to date and December is back. I’m back to work, all of our gifts are bought and plans for the month are pretty well set. I can’t believe it’s already been a whole year since we got hitched, shackled, ball & chained, not to mention married. WOW!! I’m feeling a little dizzy. For our anniversary we are headed to Las Vegas
Keri wants me to tell you thank you for being such an important part of our lives and we are so blessed to count you all as family and friends. We love you and wish you the merriest Christmas of all –may it be full of God’s Blessings.
Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year,
Joshua & Keri Murcray
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