Feliz ano nuevo

2010 comes to an end at midnight. Addy and Emme are planning stay up to celebrate with noise makers, headbands and "goodies". I'm thinking we will celebrate with the British about 8pm CT.









The last several months we have been busy planning how to spend the winter. After studying many options, we came up with a partial plan. Thought about camping, but that idea grew too big as we went from "tent camping" to a new vehicle and a trailer. Too much change for this year. Finally found a cottage to rent for February on the Texas coast, and we will spend January and March mooching off friends and relatives as we travel. So far we have
spent time with the families of an aunt, 2 cousins, 1 niece, 2 brothers and 2 sons and a stop in Hot Springs Arkansas just driving to Texas. Also had breakfast with friends and attended a retirement party where we saw several former co-workers. Look out 'cause we might be headed YOUR way!







Backing up a little, after the family gathering in IL Labor Day, we returned to Freeland and finished the garden work. As we cleaned up the refrigerator to leave for the winter we found some interesting ways to use up produce. Even made pumpkin cookies, puree and soup from the pumpkins Addison and Emerson had painted Labor Day. YUM!
Roger began the project to finish the basement. Unfortunately I failed to take pictures of before so will only have "after" ones. It is looking quite nice. He paint/stained the floor and built walls, enclosed a closet and paneled the window and electric panel. Later he plans to paint the formed concrete walls.
In November Anne made another trip to Arizona to visit her sister and their mother. In amazingly good health, but with limited energy Mother celebrated 99 years of living on December 15th. We are hoping to celebrate 100 in 2011.
On Thanksgiving Anne fixed an easy but traditional Thanksgiving Dinner and Kate, Mike, Samuel, Dan. James and Kyla all joined us to be "stuffed". We had fun watching the kids and chatting, eating and watching parades and football.













So here we are ending one year and beginning another. I have often thought this past year about our friends in Mexico and all the other Peace Corps volunteers around the world and I feel we as a country do not give them the Thanks they deserve. It is as hard to put your life on hold, leave your comfortable home and family, learn another language and live in a new country in the effort to spread peace as it is to take up arms and fight a war. I know it is important to protect our country and our freedom, but MY wish for 2011 is that we can take a lesson from our Peace keepers, medical missionaries, habitat workers, Red Cross volunteers and others who work to find ways to live in harmony throughout the world.
From my Latin classes in 10th grade,

PAX