Merry Christmas from the Russell-Roses -- 2008

Merry Christmas from the Russell-Roses – 2008

Hey, I’m getting this letter done BEFORE Christmas this year, which is an improvement over the Jan 6 effort of last Christmas.

And I’m writing from a snowy Chilliwack, which is fairly unusual at Christmas time. I always tell the girls, when they wish for a white Christmas, that it’s not necessarily the best scenario, as it throws all travel plans into disarray. Will family make it out to our house Christmas Eve and Christmas Day? Will we make it to the big Russell party on Boxing Day? All of that remains to be seen, depending on whether the weather cooperates, or if we get more blizzard-like conditions right when we want to be driving.

Because as all seasoned Fraser Valley drivers know, you don’t want to be on the freeway between Abbotsford and Chilliwack in a blowing howling snowstorm. Has to be experienced to be believed. I guess Daryl needed a refresher course, as he boldly drove into Burnaby last Wednesday and got stuck crawling along in near-white-out conditions on the way home.

We hope to see everyone when we’re supposed to over Christmas, but we’ve decided to just take things as they come and if that means snow delays us seeing folks until a few days later, we’ll enjoy their company when the fates allow us to do so.

We’re happy to have each other in our lovely home and a gas fireplace to snuggle up to and four cats to drape on our laps if we need to keep warm. Daryl and Molly and I quite enjoyed sitting in our great room and watching the howling winds blow the snow horizontally the other night.

The first half of this year was filled with more travel than the Russell-Rose family usually does. We spent a very relaxing few days on Hornby Island with our friends Sharon and Rudy Rogalsky at spring break. Sharon gave us a very thorough insider’s experience of Hornby, complete with hikes, beach walks, craft fairs, evenings in the community hall, and a tour of the famous composting toilet. It was just what we needed and we are very grateful to them. We saw (and I got to photograph) eagles and seals on this trip too.

It seemed that almost every weekend in spring was consumed by some activity for Emma – Destination Imagination competitions, a skipping championship, and a soccer tournament. Then when her DI team won the provincials we decided to go to the global finals in Knoxville, Tennessee, which meant a few more weekends of fundraising by selling raffle tickets at the mall.

However, the fundraising was worth it, as Emma and four other girls and five of us mums had a fun-filled and educational trip to the University of Tennessee campus (and Dollywood!) for a five-day festival experience completed geared to the thousands of participating kids enjoying themselves (with a little creative problem-solving competition thrown in along the way).

We also spent a weekend with our longtime friend Linda and her family in Olympia, Washington, stopping in Seattle along the way. This included a real American 4th of July, with their neighbourhood turning into a pseudo-battle zone, as each family set off a personal pile of fireworks. A fun contrast to the orderly, gather-in-a-public place-and-watch-sanctioned-fireworks experience we had in Canada on July 1.

Then it was off to Victoria for our friend Nicky’s very fun wedding to Justin. We tied the traditional Victoria experience into the weekend, including the provincial museum, with its very excellent exhibit commemorating B.C.’s 150th anniversary, and Miniature World. It was neat to see my friend Cheryl Claibourne’s grandma featured as one of the BC 150 historically significant people.

(It was quite a year for a museum aficionado like myself, as I also got to the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville and the Experience Music Project in Seattle.)

From Victoria we went to a provincial park near Sooke, where we spent a few days camping and day-tripping to beaches. Was a bit chilly for July there, but we still enjoyed it once we got decked out in warm clothes. (Note to self: don’t forget to pack pants for the boy for a summer camping trip.)

Our final trip was to the Cariboo. Emma had an adventure camp for a few days up there, and Miles and I stayed with our friend Tara and her kids at their log house at 108 Mile during that time. Then Daryl brought Molly up to join us once she finished her own summer camp, and I ventured with the kids to see the Williams Lake Russells. This included a side trip to Barkerville, so I really got a good dose of B.C. history in this historic year.

Our kids continue to thrive. Molly is doing very well in French immersion at middle school and also enjoying being on a new soccer team with two young women coaches who work her quite hard. She’s actually proud of her ability to do pushups now, much to her mum’s delight. She’s also playing basketball at school, on a small team that struggles against some of the other powerhouses. She and two friends recently wrote their own version of lyrics to a French pop song to reflect a social studies assignment and then made a music video of themselves performing it, editing it on our computer and handing it in as a DVD. We certainly weren’t doing that in Grade 8! I also admired the strength, compassion, and maturity she showed when supporting a friend through a family tragedy.

Emma had a very exciting year, what with the Destination Imagination trip where she got to experience southern U.S. culture, meet kids from around the world, and carry the B.C. flag in the opening parade. She’s also keeping busy with soccer, school, volleyball, DI, and skipping club. She’s happy to have the “not so much homework” teacher for Grade 5 this year.

Miles finally got to enroll in the school he’s been visiting since he was in the womb, and became a kindergartner this year. He also got off the sidelines and onto the soccer field, where he played with surprising gusto. He’s a real stickler for the rules though, and has been known to stop the ref to tell him/her that another player pushed him, and that that’s not allowed! As he matures, his funny ways of expressing himself are not as common as they used to be, although he did say, when faced with the prospect of going to sleep during a power outage last week, “I like a little light with my dark.”

Daryl continues to keep his clients happy, to hit the gym a lot, and to keep order around this house and in the kitchen. Now that he’s not busy both day and night with work (just days now generally) he’s actually tapping into the Rose family hockey gene, which has been latent until now, and watching the Canucks regularly.

I continue to be frazzled by the competing demands of work and family, spending a lot of my post-work hours getting kids to activities. But I enjoy watching them, and very much value my home time when I get it. And I love my job, and enjoyed the small role I played in communicating about our transition from university college to university this year. And it was invigorating to once again be part of the Rosedale Rockers old-women’s soccer team. This year we formed our own Over-30 league so we wouldn’t have to play the young girls, and we actually won a few games. And I continued to take lots of photos everywhere I went.

We count ourselves lucky to be surrounded by the love of family and friends. We celebrated my eldest brother Brian’s 50th birthday (with more 50ths to come in the Russells for the next few years!), and a triple 40th for some Chilliwack friends, and attended lots of other delightful social events, including a rip-roaring Halloween bash for which we dressed up for the first time in years.

All in all, we’re happy to be here and happy to know y’all (hey, there’s a holdover from my Tennessee visit).

If you want to see the year in photos, go here for family and cat photos
, and here for my favourite scenics!

Love,

Anne, Daryl, Emma, Miles, and Molly
(mixing up the order a bit so as to be fair!)

The things you see on a cold country road

Cold bald eagle, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

I love the details of this eagle's feathers.

Some people think it's fun to jump off Mt. Cheam

Paraglider, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

Fresh snow on Mt Cheam

Fresh snow on Mt Cheam , originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

Who can resist a shot like this?

Magnificent Mt. Baker

Magnificent Mt. Baker, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

My favourite volcano! Just had to stop and grab some shots of Mt. Baker while I was driving through the Fraser Valley the other day. Don't see it from Chilliwack, but there are some great views of it from Maple Ridge, Abbotsford, and Mission. This one is from South Parallel Road, just off Sumas Way, in Abbotsford.

Mt. Cheam in Autumn

Cheam from Jesperson Road, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

A family I know has had a very tough few months following a tragedy. It offers some comfort that they are surrounded by nature's beauty. This is the view from their front yard.

How to be famous on Flickr

Full relax George, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

So usually I'm content if I shot I'm proud of hits 25 views after a few days on Flickr, but this one of George is at 100 views and still going strong after nine hours. Apparently the key to popularity is to post a cat crotch shot to the Cat Bellies group. Very well viewed group!

A new view... of the Chilliwack River

Chilliwack River view, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

The Riverstone Heights subdivision, accessible off the road to Cultus Lake, has opened up new vistas of the Chilliwack River.

The dahlia and the spider

The dahlia and the spider, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

The sort of shot that gets recorded on a fall morning when I have to turn back to home because I forgot something and I have the camera handy and it's beautiful light and I take the moment...

Chilliwack from Marble Hill

Chilliwack from Marble Hill, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

I've picked the boy up from his daycare family many times, but rarely have the camera with me, and it's rarely early in the morning. So when he slept over, I thought it would be a good opportunity to capture the magnificent view at morning time.

Digging for the ball

Digging for the ball, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

Yes, we finally had to let Miles know that he could play soccer too. We dreaded the logistics of three kids in soccer -- a total of five practices and three games a week (not counting Emma's school soccer), but we are enjoying watching the game at three different levels, including the very basic and enthusiastic "chase and run" version enjoyed by these five-year-olds.

Harvest Moon -- Sept 15

Harvest Moon -- Sept 15, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

So nice to get good moon shots!

Hip Hip Hooray!!!

DSC_0116, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

It took two seasons and at least 16 games for us to achieve victory, which we did against the Killer Kleats on May 1, after achieving the greater victory of creating our own spring league for women over 30 (we found competing against the young gals last year a bit much!).

Destination Imagination winners!

DSC_0084, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

The CanDI Bashers are a group of 8-and-9-year-old girls from East
Chilliwack Elementary who placed first in their category at the BC
finals of Destination Imagination (DI). Now they’re headed for the
global finals in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Destination Imagination is a creativity competition This popular
process-based program helps young people build lifelong skills in
creative and critical thinking, teamwork, time management, and problem solving.

Participants work together as a team to create their unique solution to a Team Challenge, which can have a focus that is theatrical, structural, improvisational, scientific, or technical — or a blend of several disciplines.

The CanDI Bashers created their own skit about the importance of
nutrition and friendship. They wrote the script, built the props,
designed the costumes, and used their sewing and skipping skills to round out the show. Now they want to share it with the world!

Aging soccer mums seek same for on-field fun

Soccer moms seek other over-30s for spring women’s league

The Rosedale Rockers love their soccer, but they’d like it better if they could play against opponents their own age.

The Rockers are a team consisting of women from their mid-30s to
mid-40s. When they formed last year, most had never played organized soccer. They found themselves playing against much younger and more experienced teams in Chilliwack’s regular seven-a-side women’s spring league.

“We enjoyed the games and had a lot of fun and got better as the season went on,” comments team manager Cheryl Hagen, “While the regular league will continue this year, we’d really like it if we could inspire a few more over-30 teams to form so that we can have a separate spring league for older women.”

The Rockers didn’t win a game all season, but they scored some goals and won the team spirit award at the end of the season in recognition of their sense of fun, sportsmanship, and irreverence.

The Rockers are all soccer moms used to watching from the sidelines, but the tables were turned as their many kids cheered them on during their games, or they escaped their family responsibilities for mom’s night out twice a week.

In addition to the fitness, fun, and outlet for some healthy aggression that the experience provided, the Rockers say that they valued the chance to put themselves first for a change, make friends, and be an example to their kids.

“Being on our soccer team has been rejuvenating for my soul,” said Emma Blaschek. "I have treasured every minute of being a stay-at-home mom for nearly 12 years, but there have been times that I felt I lost a little of my own self. Now the kids are older and since I joined the Rockers I feel that I now have something that is all about me. There is something special about being on a team with such great women.”

“At first I laughed at the notion of putting myself first twice a week,” said Heidi Wiebe. “I didn’t think I could do it. But joining the team and getting back into sports has been a great self-confidence booster for me and it helped me get in better shape too. And our kids get to be proud of us.”

“I really enjoyed the adrenaline rush and the challenge of getting physical and playing against the other women,” said Trish Martin. “I also loved the team camaraderie and how our friendships grew off the field too. I used to see more of my friends, but after getting married and having kids we lost touch. It’s good to hang out with other ladies again. I’ve always loved sports, having fun, and getting physical. Now the door is open to all of that again.”

“The women’s seven-a-side soccer season was one of the best times in my life. It brought together lots of different women who are now even closer friends to me and each other, which is a wonderful thing to watch and experience,” said Cheryl Hagen. “At the same time I was doing something a little selfish for myself, which I have not done in many years. To add to it all I was getting exercise and having so many laughs!”

"I hadn't played in 21 years and didn't think I'd ever play again," said Anne Russell. "It was amazing and very satisfying to return to soccer over the age of 40 and find that I still had some of my old moves and could blast the ball up the field and have fun doing so."

The Rockers are currently recruiting players aged 30 and over for a proposed spring seven-a-side league. Each team may have one player under 30.

“We’re encouraging interested women to contact us individually, and we’ll place them on a team, or to form their own group of up to 12 players and join as a team,” says coordinator Tara Field. “All levels of experience are welcome, even beginners.”

Games will be Tuesday and Thursday evenings at Vedder Middle School, starting in early May. Game times will be 6 or 7:15 pm. League cost will be $500 per team, or $50 per individual player.

Teams can have a minimum of seven players and a maximum of 12. The season will run from April 22 to June 19.

Organizers are hosting an open house/scrimmage session on Sunday, March
30 from 1 to 3 pm, at Vedder Middle School. Drop by and ask questions or come in cleats and shin pads and kick a ball around.

For more information contact Tara Field at 794-9821 or ronkfield@shaw.ca

A Rosedale Annie kind of afternoon....

Talk about multi-tasking!

I took Miles to music for a 4:15 dropoff after pleasantly but quickly picnicking in the park (as his caregiver dropped him off at my work a bit early), stopping by the bank to sign some official papers, and popping in to register him for skating lessons (all between 3 and 4 pm). (And after working all day and badminton at lunch.)

Zoomed out to Emma's school for a 4:30 pickup of Neufeld Farms frozen food, ordered as a fundraiser. Rushed home and attempted to find space in my deep freeze and fridge-top freezer for all of it and was forced to admit that I'd perhaps been overly ambitious in my order as a result of being excited about having a deep freeze for the first time ever. Tried to fit in the salt'n'pepper chicken wings, dry ribs, four lasagnas, cookie pucks, calzones, and chicken cordon bleus amongst the quarter-side of beef and three roasting chickens already in there (and all bought from friends' farms -- buy local, folks!).

Had to abandon task hastily in order to make it back to town to pick up Miles at 5:10 and spend five minutes holding hands in a circle and playing a variation of Duck Duck Goose with other mums and kids and the famous Mrs. Trish. Phoned three friends on way in searching for spare freezer space and was third time lucky, but had my problem exacerbated during second phone call when Cheryl informed me that I'd forgotten my 48 (!!) chicken pot pies and another friend would be dropping them off.

Meanwhile, was driving with the calzones and cookie pucks that wouldn't fit in our freezer and aware that freezer door is not quite closed properly so should really hurry home to address that problem after dropping excess food at friend's house with surplus freezer space.

BUT, it's a near full moon and I see it rising beautifully over our mountains and I have my camera with me. Plan to stop on Gibson Road but the manure truck is spraying poo and decide Miles might not like that so much (yes, he's trapped in the back as his crazy mother zooms around town, but he's got his new Musikgarten CD on).

Keep heading east to McElwee and zoom onto Cleggs' property to capture the moon rising over mountain (neat thing: it's already risen in town but as you head east it pops behind Cheam again). Then start heading north on McElwee to Nevin but see that it's poised perfectly to rise yet again right on top of Cheam. Pull over once more (much to Miles' chagrin, although he's watching the moon too). Get some great shots. Promise to send some to a woman walking her dog on the road (always meeting new friends!).

Then zoom to Alyson's in order to store the excess food in her freezer before beating Daryl and Emma home and dealing with the freezer door crisis. Alyson and Terry joke that perhaps I should get the dead body out of my freezer so I can fit in the frozen cookie dough.

Head home, and am met by the neighbour who tells me a woman was here delivering chicken pot pies (48!!) and by a groggy sick Molly, who vaguely refers to same pies, but not their location. Search the house for the pies, find them on Daryl's desk, remove food from boxes so it's easier to store, get freezer door closed properly, sell my neighbour seven chicken pot pies, and head upstairs to appear calm and collected, with frozen cookie pucks in the oven, before Daryl gets home from Emma's soccer with takeout dinner. Tell Daryl that if he's tired of soup for lunches there are 41 chicken pot pies in the fridgetop freezer.

Have a rushed dinner then head to my soccer where my (non-active duty) police officer friend tells me she brought the chicken pot pies to my house only to find what appeared to be nobody home and the basement door wide open, and did a second drive-by just to ensure everything was safe. Ooops! What can I say? It was a hectic afternoon! (Glad she's looking out for me.)

But the cookies are good and the photos are magnificent and we have enough food for several months, barring extended blackouts! Life is busy, but good.

See the photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosedaleannie/sets/72157603948488981/

PS: Emma just informed me about the package of stew beef that spent the night on the basement floor!

Me and my peeps

Me and my peeps, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

A rare relaxing morning.

The local toboggan slope

The local toboggan slope, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

It's nice to be able give the kids the opportunity to have a little outdoor snow fun locally when the white stuff hits, and since our friends have a hill on their property and it's just down the main road from us, I made sure they got out there during our recent powdery snow day. Our yard is a little too flat to be exciting in the snow, unless you can build snowmen. (Note: the scene in this photo is taken from roughly the same spot as the summer scene in my blog header.)

Fraser River at sunrise

Fraser River at sunrise, originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

Took a little detour this morning on the way to work in hopes of catching a beautiful scene. And I did. But was dismayed at the junk strewn about and burned on the ground. How some people treat their home!

A welcome break....

A welcome break...., originally uploaded by Rosedale Annie.

from the rain, slush, and snow. Jan 6, 2008. Cultus Lake.

Merry Ukrainian Christmas (or, our year-end letter is really late this year)

Jan 6, 2008

Dear Friends and Family,

It’s officially too late on in early to write a Christmas letter, but not too late to reflect on the year past and post it for all your dear ones to see! (And as a historical document for my own reflection in years to come!) And hey, it’s still Ukrainian Christmas. So indulge me, if you care to.

When we ended the Russell-Rose family chronicle last year we were poised to move into our newly redone beautiful house. And we did so on January 11, after kicking off the year with a family ski holiday at Sun Peaks with some friend families.

We quickly became accustomed to having lots of room for everyone – indeed, excess space – as well as a functional kitchen, a luxurious bath, one room for each kid for them to decorate and make their own, and a master bedroom where we couldn’t touch the wall from our bed. We enjoyed lots of light, beautiful views, and the fun task of choosing just where to put things. It was hard to believe it was us who were living in this dream home, except when we saw the mortgage payments being withdrawn from our bank account.

We kicked off a season of housewarming parties with a wild one with the grown-ups in our East Chilliwack circle where we danced like crazy teenagers and put the first dents in our wood floor by dropping bottles and glasses. All through February and March we were showing off our house to various friends and family.

Then, while hosting six of the Williams Lake Russells as our first family-stay visitors, we endured a week of heavy rain and our happy-house bubble burst. The deluge leaked into our basement, saturating most of it over the course of a day of non-stop downpour. The Williams Lakers quickly baled as the water crept over their stuff and their children. The next day, Daryl moved most of our stuff upstairs and we began a four-month stint of living again like the cozy family we’d always been.

Luckily, we were covered by insurance, but we didn’t want to proceed with fixing until the threat of the Fraser River flooding, which was very real and quite nerve-wracking in Chilliwack, passed.

We endured quite a lesson in patience as the predicted date for the peak of the Fraser kept changing. The whole community got quite stressed out waiting for something that may or may not happen, and the official contingency plans leaked to me by friends indicated that all levels of government were taking the threat quite seriously too.

The river was due to peak the weekend of June 8-10, right when we were going to Whistler for a Russell reunion to mark my parents’ 50th anniversary. Fortunately, we all learned late in the week approaching this weekend that the peak was going to be below flood danger levels so we were able to go on the trip with a little less anxiety. It was a great trip, with almost all the children and grandchildren together (minus the Australia Russells and Kellie-Ann) for a weekend of visiting, eating, family photo-taking, and lazing about. There were 24 of us there. Thanks Mum and Dad, for being married 50 years and setting a great example, and for the trip!

Our basement wasn’t completely redone until mid-August, so when Daryl’s sister Barb sent her kids Evan and Maya out from Winnipeg for a BC experience we were still all sleeping on one floor. I kept consoling myself with the fact that the new “one floor” was much bigger than the old “whole house”. Our kids were very good about the whole four-month ordeal, not whining or complaining at all, but the girls were very happy when they got their rooms back again. And I wasn’t really upset either. The whole ordeal was a drag, but my family was healthy and happy and together so I couldn’t complain too much.

I went into major tour guide mode with Evan and Maya, making sure they had a total BC experience (except we didn’t get to the ocean this time unless you count Rocky Point in Port Moody). We did Grouse Mountain, waterslides, Hicks Lake, hiking on Little Mountain, backyard marshmallow roasts, a Rose family party at our house, and just general lazing about, after picking them up at cousin Bonny’s in Kelowna.

We also hosted Yumi, a teenaged girl from Japan, in August. She was from a very urban background so we made sure she visited our friends with chickens, cows, sheep, and puppies. We spent a lot of time working on basic communication. (You like? Yes, I like!)

For our family summer holiday we spent a few days relaxing on Quadra Island, even going on a family kayak expedition one day, Miles included. Then we had the awesome (not a term I use lightly) experience of whale watching off Telegraph Cove for one morning.

Our spring and fall were spent in the typically busy family fashion, working and getting kids to activities. I added a new twist to the spring soccer mix by joining a women’s seven-a-side team put together by my friend Cheryl Hagen. We ranged in age from 32 to 49, were all mums, and only three of us had ever played soccer before. I hadn’t played for 21 years and most of our opponents were about that age! Needless to say, we didn’t win any games, but we had a hoot, really bonded as a team, managed to score a few goals, and won the team spirit award at the end of the season. It was tons of fun. But oh, my aching knee, back, thigh, etc!

I also continued to pursue my photography hobby this year, shooting lots of scenics from the beautiful world around me and portraits of family and friends and cats!

Molly completed a very successful first year of French immersion, graduating from Grade 6 as the top academic student in her class. She also went to the provincials with Destination Imagination and played Mr. Grimwig in the school’s production of Oliver. Throw in soccer, basketball, and volleyball, and she was a busy and very well rounded girl. I was most impressed with her diligence about schoolwork and her maturity. She’s now in her first year of middle school, and adjusting well to the changes that brings. I'm continually amazed how one can go from being a tiny newborn to an adult-sized, logically thinking being in just 12 years!

Emma was also named top student in her class along with a boy student, which surprised us because they don’t usually give such an award in Grade 3. She also did well with DI, placing second at the provincials, and played spring and fall soccer, improving very much along the way. She now gets a lot of homework in Grade 4, which stresses her out, but she is a very conscientious student and is doing fine.

Maybe it’s just because I’ve been home for two weeks and seeing him a lot, but I really notice a lot of growth and maturing in Miles. He seems much more like a real boy (if that makes any sense) and less like a half-formed little kid. Our favourite milestone for him this year is that he finally goes to sleep in his own bed after you read a story and say goodnight and snuggle, instead of insisting that we lie there with him until he nods off.

He’s at preschool and music class, took swimming lessons this year, is just learning to ski, and continues to enjoy life. He’s quite curious about reading and the alphabet, a whiz at 100-piece jigsaw puzzles, and well immersed in the world of computers, knowing all about (he thinks) websites, and passwords, and "dot.com!"

He talks quite well, but still has some funny ways of turning a word – “abloon” for balloon, “pooter” for computer, “rosstraunt” for restaurant, etc. He continues to have a strong affection (perhaps no longer an obsession) for running his hands through my hair (a holdover from his hospital days) and has named it Hairy and insists on giving it a hug and saying goodbye to it separate from me!

He has an elaborate grammar system based on "to be" and "did", saying things like "thems did be there too, Mum" or "I did be tired" or "her did be better than me." It's very cute and clever but I guess we'd better fix it before we hand him to Mrs. Marochi and kindergarten in the fall.

He also developed a competitive side this year and loved to gleefully shout "I winning" even if he wasn't. And there was a memorable evening of his holding a dirty sock up to our friend Mike and telling him to "mell it, mell it!"

These days he and his friend Daniel have an elaborate imaginary land called Stuffy World for their stuffed animals, in which all the stuffies take on a new name and become a super-powered alter ego. So the boy has an imagination!

Daryl, of course, continues to refuse to let us say much about him. We can report that he is still a wonderful father and mate, and business is good. He still loves snowboarding, and continues to hit the gym for fitness and stress release.

In typical male fashion, he professes to not like cats, but when Moby the cat brought Neko the stray kitten onto the deck at one night, Daryl let her into the house and she’s been with us since!
We rounded the year off with another milestone Russell event: the first grandchild wedding. Bryden and Trista married 50 years after his Russell grandparents and 25 years after his parents. I was the wedding photographer (with the professional help of my friend Rick) and enjoyed the challenge of chronicling the whole evening, although it was hard work. It was great to be together with so many family members for the big event.

We’ve all enjoyed our Christmas break of visiting, hosting, and relaxing, and got to Manning three times for skiing and boarding.

As we approach one year of living in our new house this week I feel lucky all around!

Love to all,
Anne, Daryl, Molly, Emma, Miles
(and George, Sophie, Moby, Neko!)