2012 Christmas Letter

The Colglazier Times

2012 Christmas Edition

We hope this letter finds you well and that you have had a good year.  2012 has been another good year for us.  We took a couple of fun family trips to Washington, DC and to the beach.  In Washington, DC, we went to the Newseum, the Senate, and C-SPAN.  We camped at the beach going to the North Carolina Aquarium, Oak Island Lighthouse via ferry, Fort Fisher, and of course the beach.  All the kids once again participated on the summer swim team.  The three oldest competed in robotics with the highlight being part of the winning alliance at a tournament in South Carolina.

Miriam will be 12 next month.  She continues to enjoy dance and has recently gone en pointe in her ballet class.  Miriam started braces this year.  She continues to enjoy cooking and reading.  Miriam swam very well this year frequently anchoring her relays to wins.

Bethany will soon be 15.  She joined Venturing this year and has enjoyed going on their monthly outings.  She is the crew Secretary and is getting ready to go to Philmont next year.  Bethany got her braces off this year.

Carl celebrated his 16^th birthday this year on Thanksgiving.  He won First Prize in the high school division of this year’s C-SPAN StudentCam competition, was interviewed live on C-SPAN, and had an award ceremony with the Cary mayor and the C-SPAN bus.  Carl attended the National Scout Jamboree Shakedown to help get the Summit ready for next year.

Christian recently turned 18.  He became an Eagle Scout this year after completing his project of building a hand rail at our swim club.  Christian continues to make brickfilms having one shown at BrickFlix where he was also on stage for a Q&A.  He has one entered in a Tongal contest in which he is guaranteed to do quite well, and gets a steady income from his YouTube partnership. Christian has also joined Venturing.

Leslie-Jean continues to home school all four kids and holds a committee position at the home school cooperative all the kids attend and enjoy.  Dan continues to work for IBM and helps with math at home.  Leslie-Jean and Dan celebrated their 20^th anniversary at Carolina Beach State Park with dinner in Wilmington.  Dan completed a lot of Boy Scout training this year earning his Wood Badge beads and completing BSA Lifeguard and Powder Horn.

How did Christian earn the rank of Eagle Scout this year?  He did so by fulfilling all the requirements.  How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah?  One reason is because He fulfilled all the Messianic prophecies.  This Christmas season, let us look at a couple about His birth.  The Messiah was prophesized to be born in Bethlehem according to Micah 5:2.  “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”  Matthew 2:1 tells us that Jesus was indeed born in Bethlehem: “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea…” 

The Messiah was also prophesized to be born of a virgin according to Isaiah 7:14.  “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”  Matthew 1:18 tells us that He was indeed born of a virgin.  “This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.”  Jesus went on to fulfill all the Messianic prophecies.  Most importantly Jesus also took our sins upon Him, died for them upon the cross, and conquered death by rising again three days later.  Through this, Jesus offers the free gift of eternal life with Him in heaven for those who accept it.  Let us celebrate Christmas as the birth of Jesus and the beginning of the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecies.  Merry Christmas and may 2013 be a blessed year for you.

Christian, Carl, Dan, Leslie-Jean, Bethany, and Miriam

At the US Capitol

Christian Becomes an Eagle Scout

Carl at C-SPAN

Team PyroTech Updates

Well, the three older Colglazier kids are on a FIRST robotics team, Team PyroTech. On January 7, 2012, FIRST announced the 2012 game that the FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) robots will be playing. Our 6 week build season has begun and Team PyroTech is finishing up their first week! Check out Team PyroTech's Website to see updates from the team!

2011 Colglazier Times

The Colglazier Times

2011 Christmas Edition

We hope 2011 has been a good year for you. It has been an unexpectedly grand year for us with Carl winning the Grand Prize in C-SPAN’s StudentCam contest and the boys’ FIRST Robotics Competition team, Team PyroTech, qualifying for the Championships.

We just celebrated having Miriam in our family for 10 years, which means she is almost 11. She continues to enjoy dance and cooking. Miriam was recently baptized with her sister. She scored quite a few points for the swim team this year and finished 15^th the 9-10 girls freestyle in the City Meet.

Bethany is now our third teenager. Earlier this year, she got braces on the same day Carl got his off. Bethany has joined her brothers on Team PyroTech. She continues with piano lessons, and once again enjoyed the swim team and classes at SEEK (home school co-op).

Carl is 15 and about to get his learner’s permit. His StudentCam win was celebrated with a check presentation, an article in the newspaper, a City Council presentation, and a live interview on Washington Journal with the Historian of the United States Senate, Donald A. Ritchie. Carl continues with piano and enjoyed Philmont and Team PyroTech.

Christian is 17 and has his provisional driver’s license. He taught a class this year at SEEK on brick filming and made quite a bit of money on YouTube from people watching his films and tutorials. Christian enjoyed playing soccer, Team PyroTech and going to Philmont.

Leslie-Jean has had a busy year home schooling. She has assisted with Team PyroTech and has also been very involved with SEEK.

Dan continues in performance at IBM. He is helping the three oldest with math. Dan greatly enjoyed Philmont and is working on completing his Wood Badge ticket. He also continues to enjoy running.

C-SPAN by Carl

C-SPAN (Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network) is a nationally televised cable network that covers Congressional proceedings and current events (with no commentary). This spring we got the chance to see C-SPAN from the inside! How? As a part of their StudentCam documentary competition, winners get the chance to be interviewed on the network. Furthermore, first and grand prize winners are interviewed live during the Washington Journal program. I was able to get this chance by winning grand prize in this year's competition and our family was able to go to the set itself thanks to our close proximity to Washington, DC.

Some of my favorite things that we got to see were the sets for Q&A, Book TV, and more. From the lighting to the editing rooms to the lighting, it was really interesting to see how everything comes together. We were also able to answer the family mystery: is the background of the capitol building on Washington Journal real or fake? It turned out it is real. In fact the location was so good, FOX News and NBC took some of the other floors.

Another great part of this visit was the people we met including: Brian Lamb, founder of C-SPAN; Greta Brawner, one of the hosts of Washington Journal; and Joanne Wheeler of C-SPAN's education department. It was a very neat experience to get to see what gets put into a cable network behind the scenes.

FIRST Championships by Bethany

In April, our FIRST robotics team qualified for Championships in St. Louis. Championships started the day that Carl had his interview with C-SPAN, so the boys flew there while the rest of us drove. It took a day and a half to drive there. After eating lunch with the team, one of the team members and I went around to all the different pits looking around and collecting (what felt like) a million buttons, wristbands, and necklaces. We got to meet some really cool teams from all over the world! Later on we found the rest of the team in the bleachers getting ready to cheer on Team PyroTech. It was very crowded, loud and fun!

The next day we woke up around 6 since we didn’t need to get there as early as the rest of the team. We were slow in getting up due to watching the end of the royal wedding. I got a ride to the Dome so I could see the opening ceremony with the team. The ceremony was cool and we got to see Dean Kamen, founder of FIRST. After the ceremony, we waited for will.i.am from The Black Eyed Peas, who was going to control an FTC (FIRST Tech Challenge) robot and compete against Dean Kamen. It was an exciting match and turned out to be 77 to 9 with will.i.am winning. That day we watched many matches with and without our robot competing. At the end of the day we attended a very special concert for FIRST teams featuring The Black Eyed Peas. We were surprised in the beginning to also have Willow Smith. The concert was a lot of fun.

The next day 8 teams qualified for the finals and each of those 8 teams got to pick two other teams to be in an alliance with. Unfortunately, we did not get picked. After lunch, part of the team and a few siblings walked over to the Gateway Arch. Then we went back and watched the closing ceremony and the last few matches of the competition. We did not win Rookie All-Star, but we were told we made it to the top 4 and that was exciting. After the competition was over, the team split up and headed home.

Philmont by Christian

On July 16^th, Carl, Dan, and I went to the RDU airport and joined other members of our troop to go to Philmont Scout Ranch. We took a flight to the Denver Airport and picked up a rental van. We got a bite to eat at a Mexican restaurant and decided to try a new (for us) soda called Inca Kola. It tasted like liquid bubble gum gone wrong but was a fun experience. After lunch we traveled to our first camp site in Colorado Springs after stopping at the Air Force Academy. The next day we went to the Garden of the Gods and then rode the Cog Railway up Pikes Peak. On day three we woke up and traveled to Philmont and prepared to go backpacking. At 1:00 PM the next day, we took a bus to North Country and our Philmont backpacking adventure began. We hiked to our camp site with our packs weighing around 50 pounds because of all the food we were carrying. The next day we picked up a burro and got to our next campsite. On day 6 we went spar pole climbing which is a method of climbing a tree with spikes attached to your feet that you drive into the pole and climb your way up. Day 7 we hiked to Miranda and did some tomahawk throwing and black powder rifle shooting. The next day we took a side hike to climb Mt. Baldy, a climb of over 3000 feet to reach an altitude of over 12,000 feet. It was tough day, but we made it for a total mileage on the day of 10 miles. Day 9 we hiked to Santa Claus camp site. Day 10 we hiked to our next camp site and played around on some massive rocks. The next day we hiked to Cimarroncito and completed a service project. Day 12 we went rock climbing and took a side hike with some great views. Day 13 we hiked to Ponderosa Park and held horses because our horse ride was canceled due to a thunderstorm. Day 14 we climbed the Tooth of Time and faced the switch backs of death hiking in a zig zag style for miles in the blistering sun while seeing our final destination the entire time. Finally we made it and our backpacking adventure was done. We treated ourselves with a feast of pizza. After eating only freeze dried meals, it tasted amazing. The next day we went back to the airport and headed home having the adventure of a lifetime. After 15 days and hiking over 50 miles with a backpack on our backs, we were ready to be home.

North Carolina State Fair by Miriam

Every year we like to go to the North Carolina State Fair. We really enjoy looking at the arts, crafts, and food people enter into the fair. We also enjoy eating hush puppies and some fair food. This year Christian, Bethany, and I were able to enter something into the fair. Christian and Bethany entered the Website Design contest. Christian came in 1^st place and Bethany came in 3^rd. I entered chocolate truffles and earned a 2^nd place ribbon. It was fun to see my truffles at the fair.

Christmas – Good News Worth The Trip

This year we received good news which caused us to travel to Washington, DC and St. Louis. In Matthew 2:2 we are told the Wise Men asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” They had received good news through the appearance of the star and had travelled in response to worship Jesus. The birth of Jesus is truly good news. Because of our sins, we are separated from God and unable to come to Him. To correct this, God came to us - as a baby. Later on the cross, He became the perfect sacrifice for our sins forever travelling the gap between God and man. Let us celebrate this Christmas by responding as the Wise Men did to the good news of the birth of Jesus by coming to Him and worshipping Him.

The Colglaziers

Philmont Adventure - Day 1 - Cary to Colorado Springs

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Woke up at 3:00 AM and got a few last minute things done. Went back to sleep and up again at 5:50 AM with the alarm. Breakfast of eggs and toast. Left to go to the airport at 7:45 AM stopping at Sheetz to pick up snacks for the plane. Everyone arrives at terminal 1 on time by 8:15 AM. Last insurance card copy collected. Tickets handed out to all but Keegan and Chris who got theirs “later”. Mostly smooth through security except Jordan got his bottle of sunscreen confiscated. Had to wait a while for our 9:55 AM flight. Got seats together in the back of the plane. Good flight. Read about half of “The New Cool”. Had “plane” crackers, pretzels, peanuts and Sprite Zero along with the chocolate chip cookies I brought. Got to Denver about 30 minutes early. Talked to a Scouter from Baltimore at baggage claim. Found Dollar Rent-a-Car bus and got on the second one. Discovered at Dollar that our reservations were with Thrifty. Fortunately it was right next to Dollar. Wound up renting a 12-passenger van instead of the 3 full-size cars that were reserved. Drove out of the airport looking for a place to eat. Crew wanted Mexican, so I suggested Casa Bonita. Got directions there by cell phone. Turned out to be the wrong place. Ate at Ludita’s instead. Had tamales and Inca Cola. Drove to the Air Force Academy (75 MPH speed limit). We walked around the campus and saw the chapel. When we returned to the van, Christian could not find his ID. I ran back to look for it. I received a cell phone call to come back as it had been found. On to the Garden of the Gods Campground. Set up camp around other Scouts including Crew 718-S from West Virginia. Drove to Flying W Ranch for a chuck wagon dinner and western show. The food was quite good: beef brisket, baked beans, apple sauce, biscuit, and spice cake. The western show was really good with the Flying W Wranglers – the second oldest western band at 59 years. They were all very talented. The opossum song was the highlight. Drove back to camp with one wrong turn. Great orange full moon seen on the ride back to camp. All went to bed pretty quickly at 10:00 PM.

Philmont Adventure - Day 2 - Colorado Springs

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Up around 2:00 AM to go to the bathroom. The moon was so bright that I did not need a flashlight. Up again at 5:30 AM. Took a very nice shower. Other scoutmasters went to Starbacks and brought back donuts. Given watermelon slices by a troop from Omaha, NE. Pancake breakfast with sausage and beverage for $4.50 at camp. Ate 3 very large pancakes which were very good. Drove to Garden of the Gods and walked around seeing the amazing rock formations. Climbed a few and got lots of great pictures. Drove around to see more. Stopped at Balancing Rock and wound up doing a lot more climbing and taking pictures. Drove back to camp to get warm clothes. Lunch at A&W/KFC – root beer float! Drove to Pikes Peak Cog Railway missing the turn on the way. Got to park in an RV spot. Rode Aspen car up Pikes Peak. Very steep in parts. Lots of good views on the way up. Took lots of pictures at the top. Called home on Dr. G’s cell phone from the top. Felt really tired on the way down. Drove to Old Colorado City and ate dinner at Thunder and Buttons. Had buffalo brat with elk chili. Back to camp. Boys went swimming. Got ready for tomorrow. Bed early.

Philmont Adventure - Day 3 - Colorado Springs to Philmont Base Camp

Monday, July 18, 2011

Everyone up by 5:30 AM. Broke camp and departed at 6:30 AM. Stopped at Starbucks. Drove to Pueblo for breakfast: Big Breakfast with Hot Cakes at McDonalds. Drove to Philmont. First view of the Tooth of Time and Baldy Mountain. Checked in at the Welcome Center with Caleb. Got our tent assignments (D31 – D36) and met our Ranger, Garrett. I went by myself to handle the paperwork – fast and easy. Caleb and I went to Logistics to learn our trek and mark our map. Lunch of two chicken tenders and mashed potatoes. Then medical checks. All went well except Carl had brought an expired prescription. Took two hours to resolve. Rest of the crew went on to Services to get equipment and food. Rejoined the crew at the end of equipment check. Carl and I did ours quickly afterwards. Some ranger training: maps and first aid. Dinner of pork and potatoes. Advisors meeting while the boys attended Crew Leader, Chaplain’s Aid, and Guia meetings. Chapel. Campfire on the history of Philmont. Quick shower and asleep by 10:00 PM.