Greetings of the Season!
I love holiday cards! I love recapping our year, I love making them, I even like the monotonous stuffing and sticking, especially now that Taj can help. I know now everyone does cards, nor do I expect everyone too. But we sure do love getting them back and putting them on our wall. They stay there all year! Our lives are busy and our friends far away and around the world and holiday cards are way of slowing down and checking in on everyone.
Since it is not always practical to send a card to everyone, we decided to post it here. However, if you send us a card, I will send you one (well, until I run out).
Greetings of the Season 2015
We started 2014 on holiday in St. Croix sun kissed and relaxed. We then experienced an 80˚ temperature difference when we arrived home to Illinois. Although a bit under prepared for our first winter in 10 years, we survived the bitter cold, long dark days and gained a new appreciation for the glorious Spring weather that came next and perfect growing weather for the most rewarding garden we could ever imagine.
My father passed away suddenly in February. He is always missed, but ever present, especially now that I am reconnected with all my siblings. The note I got from dad after he passed thanked me for the ‘lookback’ of our year. So, to keep connected to those that knew him, our holiday card list got a lot bigger this year.
We bought our first house together, an older home complete with a RV barn, perfect for Ethan’s workshop and fall barn parties. We moved in while remodeling the kitchen, Taj helping me build cabinets and Ethan hanging them, with a stunning final product. It’s great to live in a central US location where people drive through or can make our house a destination and were rewarded with the company of all those that visited us. We also hope to make Ethan’s birthday pig roast an annual event; hopefully we won’t get rained out of backyard camping in 2015.
We took a few road trips and camping trips to Michigan, Wisconsin and the big trip across to the east coast to Connecticut, North Carolina and Georgia to see all my siblings, cousins, and some old friends too. Ethan and his cousins joined his mom and uncle on a reunion trip back to Hampton, VA and to scatter the ashes of his grandparents.
This year for my 40th birthday, Ethan surprised me with a dream weekend trip to Napa Valley. It was a magical weekend with wineries, great food and visits with friends in Sacramento and San Francisco.
We continue to get involved in our new community and learn to appreciate stateside living after being on islands for 10 years. Taj is an articulate and very social 5 year old, who continues to wow and amaze us daily. Ethan continues to enjoy his work with Diageo as the maintenance scheduler, growing his talents with SAP PM. I am now full-time with Idea Marketing Group and truly enjoy the creative marketing work.
Thank you for being part of our lives and we wish you a wonderful 2015.
Ethan, Sara & Taj
