Believe it or not its 2 weeks to Christmas and another year has sped by quicker than the last. As you can see from our card our “little” girls are turning into two styling young ladies.
We’ve had another busy year and have managed to visit all four corners of the continent. After hosting the Martin family last Christmas we ventured down to Florida in early February for the girls first visit to Disney World with Jeremy’s brother Jason, his wife Sheila and their girls Keely and Emily. Well it was a bit chilly for Florida but being sturdy Canucks we blitzed through all 5 Disney parks and rode every ride – even the dreaded Tower of Terror. The parks were half empty so line-ups were pretty short and we got spoiled. In March we enjoyed our annual family ski trip at Sun Peaks near Kamloops and enjoyed some fun in the snow.
Soccer wrapped up in March and Softball was supposed to start first weekend of April but oddly got snowed out! But by the following weekend everything was warm and green again just in time for the annual Martin Easter egg hunt extravaganza. It was bigger and better than ever and we went outback and moved the field of dreams into a wilder back field where kids found a few garter snakes among the eggs and candies. Both girls had a blast playing ball and Jeremy moved up from coaching T-Ball to Major Softball. Georgia made the Major Softball tournament team and they were worked hard through a very hot July to become a lean, mean, green softball machine. They demolished the competition in the district/provincials in July and went on to represent BC at the Canadians in August. Their young team faced some more experienced teams from across the country but managed to get into the finals losing a heartbreaker to team Ontario. Grandparents Al and Carol and Uncle Harold and Aunt Gert all came out to cheer Georgia on through the tournament.
While Georgia was sweating it out under the sun sister Bailey headed off to Camp Imadine for her first time on her own at summer camp. She passed her swim test on day 1 and never looked back, making some new friends and having a riot with her fellow campers. The whole family enjoyed a wonderfully relaxing week at a beautiful summer house overlooking Cowichan Lake with our good friends the Stewarts. Highlights included tubing down the lazy Cowichan River, hiking up a rocky creek bed and trying out a new game Ticket to Ride, which Todd seems to win every time much to our chagrin.
After softball wrapped up we jumped on a plane to visit the northeast – or at least as far as Ontario. Rose and brother Tom went ahead and spent some time catching up with family and old friends. Jeremy and girls caught up and we all enjoyed a memorable family picnic with Great Grandma Jane at Dundas Park – with the best homemade peach pie you ever tasted. After a crazy day riding the roller coasters at Canada’s Wonderland we wound our way through lake country to the home of Rose’s college buddy Renee for a mini Sheridan College reunion with Susie and her family joining us from Ottawa. Renee’s husband Norm treated us to the best steak and shrimp dinner we ever had and we had lots of laughs creating wacky sock monkeys and playing cards til the wee hours. We wound up our tour of Ontario with a visit to the Beckmans in Kingston. Although it rained most of the weekend we didn’t care as we were wrapped up in non-stop games of Canasta and Settlers just like old times.
Both girls were at the same school campus this year with Bailey starting grade 3 and Georgia in grade 7 (the kings and queens of the school). Both girls were fortunate enough to be placed in classes with most of their best friends. Both girls began soccer at the end of September and their teams have done very well – Georgia’s team is undefeated so far. We took a break from piano this fall but Bailey and her friend Emily decided to give the violin a try – first recital is this Sunday so we’ll see how far she’s come. Both girls sang in kids’ choir and did a wonderful performance for Remembrance Day.
We visited the last corner of the continent at the end of November escaping a month of rain and grey skies for a week in sunny San Diego at the Lawrence Welk resort. Laugh if you will but it was pretty posh and we had a great time swimming, golfing, playing ping-pong, pool and tennis and of course taking in the amazing San Diego Zoo and Seaworld. Like Disneyworld in February Seaworld in early December was pretty empty so we got front row seats at the killer whale show and got soaked by Shamu – but hey you only live once right?
In addition to the fun and games we did work pretty hard through the year too. Jeremy had a very challenging never ending trial requiring several out of town trips and also had to replace his “perfect” secretary who moved away this summer. Rose worked tirelessly on the Broody Chick line of mom and babe products creating an amazing website. She put on another show with musician friend Heather and had a wonderful poet friend Carla join in on the fun. It went so well they have another show coming up on December 20 to another sold out audience.
And of course our “boys” Finnigan and Jasper kept us on our toes. Finnigan has become a troublesome teen that is finding new ways to get into big trouble. We transformed the sunny side of the house into a beautiful veggie garden this spring and just as everything was coming up fresh and full Finnie thought he would help out by digging up some radishes for us – GRRRR. But he really is a lovable mutt and can’t get enough of us – especially his mommy Rose. In fact it seems he missed us so bad when we were away in the summer that he managed to tear a hole in the leather sofa – nothing that few strategically placed pillows can’t hide right? But they both survived as you can see from the card.
This Christmas we are looking forward to visits from the Cowles side of the family including Tom and Jenn, Gracie, Cooper, Donna and possibly Aunt Mary Jane and her family. Jeremy is performing another Christmas play with friend Karen this weekend and Rose’s show is the following Sunday. We have a little ski trip to Mount Washington planned for right after New Years (in case we don’t get any white stuff down here this year since we got a decades worth last Christmas). We look forward to cards and updates from everyone near and far again this year and hope that our Christmas letter finds you and yours happy, healthy and looking forward to a relaxing and reflective holiday season. And hey if you’re coming out this way for the Olympics in February pop over to the island to give us a visit.
Best wishes for a very Merry Christmas and fabulous New Year beyond compare from our house to yours!
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