- The Christmas Letter: 2025 -

- The Christmas Letter: 2024 -

- The Christmas Letter: 2023 -

While I didn’t plan to kick off our 2023 Christmas letter by reveling in the goodness  of 2022, I can’t help but share: right after mailing out last year’s Christmas cards,  both Harper and Scarlett were assigned roles as angels in their respective class nativity programs.  *cue the angel choirs*  This casting carried over into our home life, and we have been parenting cherubim and seraphim ever since!  L to the O to the L….if only.

 

The New Year came in with a bang; we hit the ground running and have been going.going.going ever since!   After Scarlett’s 5^th birthday party in early January [theme: unicorns, “pink”] fancied up with bright lipstick, fake nails, and all the girliest girly girl thangs, the following month of love brought the annual Father-Daughter Dance! It was the dancing trio’s first year in attendance, and it was #allthehairspray and #alltheglitter #allfordaddy. Memories were made and photos were [not] taken and so many hilarious stories came from their evening out! 

 

The first half of March was Harper’s time to shine as she celebrated the sacrament of First Reconciliation,  earned the highest score/rating at her very first piano contest, and then blew out 8 candles on her sewing-themed birthday cake! Soon to follow was St. Patty’s 2023, which was truly THE LUCKIEST DAY as we brought home  a long-awaited puppy.  Welcome to the family, Arabella Rose; we promise to love you furever! <3

 

In mid-May, I sat misty-eyed at the preschool graduation ceremony as Scarlett turned the tassel alongside her very best friends.  There’s something about “lasts” that gets me every time!  But no time to wallow in sentiment; sweet summertime was upon us and sang the tunes of Totus Tuus, Cardinals games, pool days, Camp Invention, Camp Joey, park dates, [cont’d] puppy potty training, Grant’s Farm, boating/lake life-ing, and so much more! Two huge highlights were the kids walking down the aisle as flower girls in their babysitter’s beautiful wedding and also taking a train ride to Chicago to visit the coveted American Girl Doll Store with Grammy Resa and Mom!  For one final summer hoorah, we took a family trip to Michigan to meet up with two of my college friends and their families.  3 husbands + 8 kids + 12 years later …this trip proved that true friendship knows no boundaries!  

 

Soon after our return home, it was BACK TO SCHOOL time the second most wonderful time of the year [3^rd grade for Harper, kindergarten for Scarlett, and the most ever 1:1 time with Mommy for Juliette].   Juliette celebrated her 2^nd birthday on the last day of August with a “TWO SWEET” breakfast-for-dinner donut party; she loves sugar in any/every form, which I suppose is what makes her so extra sweet!  She is currently crushing potty training and misses zero opportunities to pull up her new Cocomelon “unnies” all by herself and grab an M&M reward before FaceTiming all of her grammies to share her success! 

 

Around the time of our anniversary in November, I reflected on how the vocation of marriage and family life is such a HIGH CALL that, all in all, I had a veryyy loose grasp on on the day we said, “I do!”  Our family still has so much to learn about each others’ needs and plenty of room to grow; but every single day, I am thankful for the graces that flow just from loving each other and grateful for this tiny tribe of people I get to call mine!  

 

Right before I clicked “save and print” on this letter, Brian boasted that he could’ve snapped his AI-loving fingers and had Chat GPT spit out something very similar in 1/20^th of the time…..  *sigh*  Hold your breath for next year; it’s very likely I’ll hand over the reins and give him a shot! ;) :)

 

Merry Christmas, beloved family and friends!  Know that we count you among our greatest blessings! 

 

- The Christmas Letter: 2022 -

2022, we   t h o r o u g h l y   enjoyed you!

After ringing in the New Year, we only had a few sleeps before celebrating a birthday!  The night before her big day, Scarlett stood in front of the mirror and said, “Hmmmm, I still look ‘da same!  But I don’t fink [think] I look AS wittle [little] as I oo-sed [used] to… Wait a second, am I gonna turn free [three] eva’ eva’ again, Mommy?”  We woke up to a 4-year-old standing at our bedside the next morning, and I wallowed around in #allthefeels for the rest of the weekend as we prepped for her Doc McStuffins party.  Though the days are sometimes long, the years are always short; this year I really reflected on how crucial it is to not count the days, but to MAKE THE DAYS COUNT!  

 

In mid-March, Harper excitedly rung in #7 with a gymnastics party!  She bought a recorder with some of her birthday cash and spent a large chunk of the spring serenading anyone who would listen.  The most frequented front-porch listener [the Amazon delivery man] notoriously sped off before her concerts concluded, but he did say once that he “loved himself a good rendition of ‘Hot Cross Buns,’” and our girl’s DAY. WAS. MADE.  One afternoon in April, same said Amazon man delivered five v. v. hungry “cata-piddas” to our doorstep, and we spent the rest of the spring feeding/growing/raising them into beautiful butterflies!  The kids immensely enjoyed round two of vlogging the journey for family and friends.  Then!  A few weeks after the butterfly release, I found a large family/colony of snails residing inside a Tupperware container [sans lid] that the older girls had been “raising” in their closet, and that was the moment I decided to call it quits with promoting/procuring wildlife experiences inside our home.

 

In the blink of an eye came July, which was filled with life, liberty, and the pursuit of [SO MUCH] happiness!  We celebrated the 4^th in traditional Fleming family style [IYKYK] and then immediately jetted off for a family vacation to sunny Florida!  Amidst pools and water parks and more pools, we also squeezed in one super magical day at Magic Kingdom which was, well, *magical* to say the least!  We were grateful for the rest and relaxation we enjoyed over the summer, because it wasn’t long until the older girls returned to St. Boniface Catholic School in August [Harper – 2^nd grade, Scarlett – Pre-K 4].  Soon after settling into the new school year, Juliette had her “Wild and ONEderful” themed 1^st birthday party!  We celebrated our girl at the zoo as well as with a family party at our home.  Undeniably, we are all still in shock that our “baby” is one…  Moral of the story?  #dontblink #EVER and, of course, #makethedayscount!

 

All.of.a.sudden, it was fall, y’all!  September was composed of Harper and Scarlett’s first soccer seasons, Juliette’s first Cardinal’s game, and our first visit to the E.R. in 7.5 years of parenting [thanks to a very serious allergic reaction to amoxicillin that even panicked the mom-nurse!].  We are hoping to repeat the first two events frequently and never ever revisit the third event! ;) :)  October highlights included Harper’s artwork being featured in the local art gallery, Scarlett’s school field trip to the apple orchard, and Juliette’s sprinting behind her walker but refusing to let it go and walk on her own.  We also had *3* beautiful princesses for Halloween and royally enjoyed escorting them around the subdivision to trick-or-treat!  November brought our 10-year anniversary, and we took the kids to Mass at SLU College Church to show them where it all began!  Brian and I recently returned from a trip to Florida where we celebrated our “once in a lifetime” love and soaked up lots of time for JUST US [for literally the first extended period of time ever since having kids, wowza!].  We had a fantastic trip but were excited to return home to our girls, as the time away confirmed that “Mommy” and “Daddy” are still our favorite titles!

 

With a very exciting Christmas season on the horizon, we look forward to all of the merriment and blessings that await!  To all of you, we send this cheer:  MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR!  <3

 

May the love of the newborn Christ fill your homes with light and life!

 

 

- The Christmas Letter: 2021 -

And juuuuust as we thought 2020 was the craziest year in the history of crazy years… 

 

[ ENTER 2021. ]

 

Ho HA Ho…  But, oh!  WHAT. A. YEAR. full of unexpected blessings and huge triumphs and great joys!  On New Year’s Day, we found out we were expecting another tiny miracle!  A couple days after that, Scarlett turned 3 and barked her way through a puppy paw-ty at our house.  And a couple months after THAT, Harper turned 6 and finally got to have her YMCA skating party [the one that was cancelled last year on the first day of sheltering-in].  Cue the trumpets and trombones – and heck, the WHOLE ENTIRE BAND… We stand in awe at the blessing of children and absolutely love celebrating these two three little souls that have been entrusted to us! 

 

In early May, Brian went back to in-person work at Purina for the first time since March 2020!  Does he miss the luxury of traipsing downstairs to work from home in sweatpants and slippers, cup of piping hot coffee in hand?  We’ll never ever know!  On evenings and weekends, he still managed to construct an outdoor grill and build bunk beds for the kids in addition to keeping up with his honey-do list full of many smaller home improvement projects.  Between a week of Totus Tuus and many many weeknights of T-ball and tumbling, we squeezed in a family vacation to Big Cedar in June and also enjoyed many laps around Lake Lou on Grammy and Papa’s new pontoon!

 

In no time at all, the clock struck August and it was back to school for Harper [1^st grade] and Scarlett [Pre-K 3].  On the last day of the month – and 10 days before her due date – our beautiful Juliette Thérèse made her grand debut!  Bows be ours forever and ever!  She is the most adored little sister and would probably unanimously win “favorite family member” if we took a vote.

 

October kept us on our toes between the Fleming family vacation to the Smoky Mountains,Juliette’s baptism, and a 2-week quarantine following positive COVID tests for 2/5 of the family.  In the thick of the quarantine chaos, my maternity leave[s] ended and I resigned from Mercy Labor and Delivery after being at the bedside for the past decade.  It was most definitely a bittersweet decision, though I’m excited to scale back from full-time work and have all weekends and holidays with the fam.  I will continue working part-time at Veritas Fertility & Surgery as well as crafting with Cecilia Clare & Co. and managing my shiny new Etsy shop! :D

 

Whew!  I thought about planning for a less eventful 2022, but I think we’ll just go full speed ahead into the New Year with bigger dreams and greater goals than ever!  With Love at the center of our lives, I can’t wait to see what the next 365 days will bring.  May you also feel His love, see His wonders, and share His grace.   We are praying for you always; please pray for us, too!  

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 

 

 

- The Christmas Letter: 2020 -

{ Sung to the tune of Jingle Bells: }  Jingle Bells, COVID smells, quarantine is hereee.

We miss you all so very much but hope this sends some cheer!  Fa-la-la, FA-LA-LA,
fa-la-la-tee-daaaaa…

…I’m not a songwriter, so I’ll stop there; but #brb while I don my mask, because we have a lot to share!

The new decade started off with a bang a la Fleming casa as we celebrated Scarlett’s 2nd birthday in January and
Harper’s 5th birthday in March.  Things quickly shifted gears in mid-March as we reacted to COVID-19 and
adjusted to so many emotions new to us re:  sheltering-in, remote learning, and working the frontlines of a global
pandemic.  Staying calm, cool, and collected so as to continue raising a little family through it all was a beast of
its own!  A few weeks in, I came to the realization that our normal lifestyle was already very similar to this new
thing called “quarantine,” and hunkering down for the health and safety of our loved ones and community wasn’t
that much of a new hardship at all.

In early April – and with remote learning on our radar for the first time ever – we stumbled across a $9 cup of
“cal-a-pitters” on Amazon and immediately clicked “Buy Now!”  #bestdecisionever, as the kids were so proud
to vlog the whole metamorphosis process and were equally as thrilled to set their 5 “homegrown” butterflies free! 
Preschool culminated in May with Harper’s teachers putting on the cutest little Pre-K graduation ceremony on our
front porch.  It was a fun milestone and a great day!

By June, the strict sheltering-in situation had started to wear on us, so a unanimous vote was made for a long
weekend getaway.  We put a new meaning to the phrase “CABIN FEVER” and made the 4-hour trek to a
treehouse/cabin park in Branson.  The property was complete with a playground, pool, pirate ship, and plenty
more; we had a great time hiking through the Ozark trails, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows over the campfire
[every day for every meal], and “camping” inside the cabin!  Three days of quality family time was the perfect
escape and just what the doctor ordered.  :)

In August, Harper started kindergarten 5 days/week at St. Boniface School [and in person, at that...hallelujah!]. 
She is loving school but is a homebody through and through; she is growing slightly jealous that Scarlett has
escaped daycare all together this year and Daddy is still working from home every day.  Are the rest of us at home
partying. it. up. all day long without her?! …She seems to think so!  A soon approaching 2-week Christmas break
will be refreshing for all.

Last month, Brian and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary!  Somehow we misplaced our unity candle that we light
every year on our special day, but luckily, our love hasn’t lost its flame! ;) :)  Fr. Meconi joined us for dinner on
our anniversary weekend and also performed a beautiful house blessing while he was here.  We are grateful that
he has been so present throughout the years and right by our sides for all of life’s greatest moments.

Though these are unarguably the craziest of crazy times, there’s certainly a silver lining in being able to scale back
from the hustle and bustle of life as we once knew it.  Amidst the uncertainties, we’ve reveled in our extra family
time, focused on finding joy in the small things, and learned to give ourselves a little extra grace along the way. 
We are looking forward to the day when we can reunite with   v e r y   l a r g e   groups of extended family and
friends safely again!  For now as we stay 6 feet apart, rest assured you’re always in our hearts! 

MERRY CHRISTMAS from a [social] distance!

Wishing you the comfort of friendship, the love of family, and the joy of the Lord,

{ Sung to the tune of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: }  Then as the virus vanished, people shouted out with glee: 

“Crazy ole’ 2020:  You’ll   .   go   .   down   .   in   .   hisssss – torrrrr – yyy!”

 

 

- The Christmas Letter: 2019 -

Not a single soul revolted against the inaugural family Christmas letter last year, so here we are again for round numba two! I'm so behind on archiving our lives [just published the Thanksgiving blurb a few days ago, blah!], but what they hey...here we go!

Ahem... 

*****
Hello/goodbye to the -FASTEST- year of our lives!

I'm finding it really difficult to wrap my mind around the fact that another Christmas season is here.  Hours and days and even months have literally flown by in the blink of an eye, and the past year feels like a blur.  Organized chaos <--- a [newly acquired] Fleming family specialty!

In May, we sold our home and took up residence in Brian's brother's duplex.  Admittedly, I was a [tiny] bit sad the last time we stepped foot inside that little place, as we spent our newlywed years under that roof and also brought our two sweet babies home to thrive inside those walls.  Our first humble abode saw countless laughs and a whole lot of love!  But all good things must come to an end, and so! So long, Bayfield Drive...

...and hi-ya Cabernet Lane!!!  It's fairly surreal to say after 16 very long months of building, but we are finally moving in one box at a time and should be officially living there soon!  Being married to the general contractor -- who also has a fairly demanding 9-5 job, by the way -- was not for the faint of heart!  Hop over to our blog to read all you ever wanted to know [and more more more] about the construction process and see photos of alllll of Brian's terrific work! 

Aside from a full year of house excitement, several more big changes came in August as I cut back my work hours, Harper started Pre-K [three days/week], and Scarlett started a new daycare [one day/week].  The transition to "all things new" was almost seamless, as Harper is loving her new school and Scarlett and I are loving the first 1:1 time we've ever had.  Cheers to great changes for all!

In September, we took a break from the busyness and spent a week in Destin with the Fleming family.  Brian's sister rented a luxurious house on the beach for all of 23 of us, and we had a total blast!  Then again, how could sand + waves + family ever disappoint? :) We are looking forward to heading back to Florida next week with our oldest princess for her first trip to Disney World!

Long-windedness is my strong suit, but in a valiant effort to wrap this up: I just want to thank you, sweet friends and family, for loving us through the storm! Despite Brian’s long work hours and my wavering sanity this year, we have been constantly supported by all of you. This means a lot!  I've realized more than ever that it truly "takes a village," and we are grateful for ours.  We most certainly count your love and friendships among our greatest blessings!

May the spirit of Christmas fill your homes and hearts with joy!

All our love,
Brian, Bridget, Harper and Scarlett  

- The {Inaugural} Christmas Letter: 2018 -

I always look forward to retrieving the mail during the month of December, because there's something special and magical and just ...so fun! about opening up everyone's family Christmas cards.  The well wishes written on the cards seems to bring a warm Christmas cheer into our home, and seeing the smiles and joy in people's photos is so heartwarming. I especially love when a typed-up letter of sorts falls out of the envelope.  Life is busy and full of a lot of hustle and bustle -- especially during the holiday season -- and it's nice to sit down and read about what's really going on in someone's life. ...You know, to have more to digest than the typical path-crossing-at-Schucks-or-Target that is, "Hi, how are you!" followed by, "Oh, great, how about you?" followed by both parties walking away briskly and going about their business. <-- All of this busyness is why I decided to add that little bit of extra love to our family's card this year.  And so, *ahem*...

*****

A {bellowing}  H E L L O  from the other side…

We hope this blurb finds you well!  It’s wild to think it’s Christmastime again; another year up and another year down, another 365 days of dreamin’ big and livin’ large in the Fleming abode.  This past year was the best year!

The first week of January 2018 brought us bambino numero dos, and life has been hop! hop! hopping! ever since.  Our Scarlett Clare is a beautiful blend of sweet and sassy: a spitfire in the making for sure.  Her world revolves around her big sister, and vice versa, too.  They really are the perfect duo, and we absolutely love their love.  It’s totally true what they say:  sisters make the best friends!

In August, we broke ground on a shiny new HOUSE!  We elected Brian as the general contractor, and so – as you can just imagine – every piece of the project [so far] has been well planned and perfectly executed.  As he was busy working on walls and roof this month, Harper was busy adorning each stud with a large “H” via a fat blue Sharpie.  [She loves to scribe/scribble all the letters and is working hard at perfecting her name, but her favorite letter is, of course, allllways H!]  Overall, the girls and I are just hanging on for the ride – usually at home in survival mode while Daddy works evenings and weekends at the new pad.  Of course, we trust that it will all be worth it in the end and are already pretty pumped for move-in day!  Click on over to our blog to follow the progress with #ourforevahome!

Lastly!  A couple weeks ago as we were decorating the house for Christmas, the glass ornament we bought six+ years ago on our honeymoon slipped off the tree and shattered into a thousand pieces on the floor.  Delicate Hawaiian seashells and fake blue sand and a little piece of my heart gone in the .blink. of an eye!  I was so sure this was just foreshadowing the beginning of the infamous “seven year itch” [#happybelatedanni, Brian!], but no! Nooope. Not the case here.  We are truly living our very best lives and are confident that the best is yet to come!

And so!  Without further ado, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, and holy 2019!  Know of our love and prayers for you both now and in the coming new year… Of course, we always count you – our beloved friends and family – among our greatest blessings!

All our love,  

Brian, Bridget, Harper & Scarlett 

*****

Merry Christmas, dear, sweet friends of ours!!! You are so very loved.