Happy New Year--on to 2019!

I haven't done one of these for several years. Thought I'd get back to it. Time flies and too much goes by before I realize how long it's been since I've caught up with friends and family. You are in my thoughts often and I'll work harder in the new year to get out of my head and onto the phone and out of the door!

Here's some of what we've been up to--

Z returned to school full-time and he also got his driver's license so he is able to get himself to and from classes on his own. That meant a new car for me, so he could use my older one to get around without stranding me at home. He is aware that it is not really his car, but he is the primary user of it as Katie is away at school most of the year. We are proud at how well he did this semester and know he will be going far--but not just yet. One more year commuting to NoVa is ahead. This summer he will look for where he would like to transfer to finish up. I'm sure he's really looking forward to diving into Calculus next semester (NOT!).

K is still loving Hollins. She started 2018 with a January Term art trip to Rome and Florence and came back with a lot of wonderful sketches. She is heading back to campus for the second half of her junior year and we can't believe how fast her college career has flown by! She is beginning to think about what will be next after undergrad, but first she has accepted an invitation to join her roommate for a spring break trip to stay with an aunt in Venice. Yes--Pete and I are jealous! But very happy she is having the opportunity to travel so much.

Pete is still with the same firm, but now in the digital division. I'm not fully up to speed on what that means as far as what exactly he does, but it is an exciting move into new technology and he has been easing into his usual leadership role with this new team. He is more fit now at 50 years old than ever, but there are the aches and pains of having kicked around this long too. ;-) Overall, he's doing very well.

I was asked by my client if I could fill in doing program marketing for some employees who had moved on. It's been years, but I agreed just to help her out of a jam. Now I remember why I stopped doing that kind of work LOL! I'll wrap that up in February and move onto my usual event planning role with them. One big change was that they had to hire me on outright rather than as a consultant, so I'm a bonafide employee again. I lost my mind one afternoon and signed up for the Disney Princess Half-Marathon which, if I survive training, I'll run just after my birthday in February. 

2018 brought a lot of work on the house. New siding, then getting that fixed a few times, painting and a few other chores. I might not want to own my own place after this one, so much nicer to just call a landlord to say that something needs fixing!

In addition to K's jaunts around Italy, Pete joined me on my last event in New Orleans and we stayed a few extra days to enjoy that city. We had never been together and I hadn't been for years. Still a great town. We also At Long Last got up to Vermont to visit with dear friends Marie and Celest at their home near Montpelier and even got to hear them jam with their Italian music band-what a treat! We then headed up to Montreal for a few days. I invited myself along to a business trip Pete had to San Diego and met two Canadian women on my solo visit to the SD Zoo. We toured around all day and had a lot of fun. Those Canadians are so nice! We just returned from a holiday family trip to San Francisco. Pete and I used to go about every 2 years, but we hadn't been in about 9 years. It was a great trip and even better to all be together for a week. 

As a lot of folks, we have been bewildered by the political situation here and around the world and also the meanness online and spilling out into the public square. I've scaled back time on Twitter to practically nothing, only checking in on folks I know in real life, and that has helped my serenity quite a bit. I also spend less time on Facebook, but it is a necessary evil for making plans and keeping up with some of the local political action groups I've been working with. One is Spread the Vote, which helps folks get a state ID so they can not only vote, but also get a job, get into a shelter, or get any social services they need. It has been very rewarding. (www.spreadthevote.org).

In sad news, we lost my sister-in-law Carrie's mother Molly recently. I have known her since I was 9 years old and her passing was quite a shock. We are all still walking through that great change in our lives.

In happier news, my grand niece turned one year old and is walking and talking (very gifted). She is a light to carry us all into a new year.

Our parents are doing very well. Pete's have had some health challenges but are back to normal or on the mend. My mom is doing great and I've had several visits to her new home on LI. So convenient to fly directly into Islip airport from Baltimore.

I hope that you had more happy and hopeful times than challenges last year and more to come in this new one. Keep in touch when you can. We love you.