(See links to photos below)

It was a great year for the Kevin and Jennifer Ellsworth family. There were many exciting events but perhaps none of them quite as exciting as the discovery that we will be having a baby boy next April! We are very excited to welcome a new member to our family and look forward to the exciting adventure of being parents.

In preparation for our new family member we decided that we needed to have a bit more space than our small one bedroom apartment that we had been living in for two years. So in October we move a block west of where we were into a nice two bedroom apartment that costs just about the same rent. We love the extra space (even though we are still working on organizing boxes in the second bedroom to make space for the baby) and this apartment feels nearly luxurious compared to our previous one. We were able to stay in the same ward where Kevin is serving as the ward statistics clerk and Jennifer serves on the enrichment committee. It is great to have a good ward with good friends.

Jennifer is still working as a nurse at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray. She enjoys her work, but could do without the commute. She was able to get more day shifts in her schedule most of this year, but still has to work nights more than we would like. Her most important job, however, is preparing to be a mom. She is still barely looking pregnant but is doing a great job taking care of the baby already. She did many little projects throughout the year including making baby blankets for family and friends, finishing a skirt, etc. and enjoys baking many things including delicious bread (which Kevin enjoys eating).

Meanwhile, Kevin spent most of his year working on school projects and homework to finish up his bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering (and minor in Asian Studies). He graduated in December and will now be starting a Master’s degree, also in Computer Engineering, in January 2010 while working as a research assistant on campus in the Configurable Computing lab. He worked on a project earlier in the year to make a remote controlled car equipped with a video camera drive itself, and is still working on a project to develop a low cost windmill to take to a small village on Lake Titicaca, Peru as part of an Engineers for International Development class. During the summer Kevin took a break from school and did an internship at ImSAR, a small startup company in Spanish Fork that is developing radar technologies for defense and security applications. With a small company Kevin had the opportunity to work in many areas of the company, but spent most his time on low-level software optimization. Kevin also finds time, occasionally, to do some photography work for his company Light Brush Studios, though it is mostly just for family and friends.

We didn’t have the opportunity for any large excursions this year, but we did make it down to Hatch, Utah a couple of times with Jennifer’s family. We also took a quick trip down to Manti for our anniversary and went to the temple there. We managed to get a few hikes in and even went camping. Mostly, though, we enjoyed being close to family and spending time with the wonderful people in our lives. We are very grateful for all our family and friends and all that they do for us. It was a wonderful year and we look forward to the adventures of 2010.