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Christmas 2023 Newsletter

Willow (5)

Willow has had a fantastic 2023. The biggest milestone was starting Kindergarten. She had an amazing summer filled with camps and has started to enjoy cheerleading. She set a goal to learn to swim in the Spring and was able to make it onto summer swim team. She loved swimming with her friends and will be back on the Barracudas this summer.

Gavin (7)

Gavin is now in first grade and like Willow set the goal to learn to swim in the Spring. He made both the summer swim team and the local swim club team, Excel. Now he and Owen often overlap practice times during the week. Unfortunately, shortly into the competitive swim season, Gavin broke his arm. He was playing on a play structure and fell onto his outstretched right arm resulting in a distal radius and ulna fracture. Luckily everything has healed up nicely, the cast is off and he’s back to training for American Ninja Warror – at least in his head.

Owen (11)

Owen is now in fifth grade and continues to pick up extra curricular activities. He swims year-round for Excel. For those unfamiliar with youth swimming, this amounts to three seasons: long course, short course and summer swim. He also played basketball and flag football. Last newsletter, we mentioned the Rubix Cube he got for Christmas. Let’s just say he’s way faster than dad now. The only thing faster than his cube time is how quickly he can go through books. His love for reading continues to grow.

Laura

This year has been exceptional, full of love, laughter, and special times. Travis planned a wonderful surprise beach trip for Laura's 40th birthday. Having both sets of parents, Laura's brothers Matthew and Dan, and their families at the beach made for many wonderful family memories. Laura competed in two NPC Bodybuilding shows this year. She is grateful for the support from friends, family, and coaches, and she's excited to compete again in 2024.

Travis

The highlight of the year for Travis was surprising Laura for her birthday. He planned a trip to Panama City Beach in May and coordinated both sets of parents and both her brothers coming down. It was great to have everyone together. From a career standpoint, he continues to be incredibly lucky. In 2023, he was inducted as a Fellow of the American Society of Medical Oncology (FASCO), and at Vanderbilt he was promoted to associate professor and Associate Vice President for Research Informatics. His work is incredibly meaningful and he has a wonderful team that continues to grow. Here are a few media highlights.

Christmas Present

Christmas Past