2010 in Review

This year is quickly drawing to a close. I'll be breaking out new calendars in another day. In looking back, I can see I've done a lot of very fun things this year. Here is a recap:

In January and continuing through April, I tutored Rosy every Monday night at the One-by-One program. I enjoyed this very much.

In February, I flew out to Seattle and from there Heidi and I drove north. Our destination: the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada! It was a fun- - filled to the brim -- day, a day I'll never forget. She bought us the "best seats in the house." I spent the next five days at their home, which was also very fun.

March and April were pretty routine for me: working, singing in my church choir, spending time with friends.

May 1st, Felix Drake was born to Peder and Sarah! What a happy child he is! Aurelia is a very good, big sister to him. And he sure enjoys her!

The middle of May I flew to Stuttgart, Germany, and spent a couple of weeks with Hans, Rachel, Josiah, Annika, and their newest child, Will. I really enjoyed my time with them. I loved our time at Edelweiss Resort and Lodge in Garmisch, and the tour of Dachau Concentration Camp that Hans took me to see. Along with that, I loved the experience of living on the base for those couple of weeks and walking Josiah and Annika to school. On the 19th, we celebrated Josiah's 6th birthday.

I got back from Germany on Sunday, the 30th of May. On Monday, Memorial Day, I rode to Austin with Peder and Sarah for the parade and to spend some time with them and my brother and sister. I drove home in my new 2010 VW Beetle. What a nice ride! I'm sure enjoying this new, "final edition" automobile!

June 15th I went with 99 of my choir friends to see the Minnesota Twins play at their new outdoor stadium. I must say it was pretty impressive. I got to see another game in October.

During the summer, 5 friends and I were invited to the home of mutual choir friends to attend 12 sessions of The Truth Project, which is the starting point for looking at life from a biblical perspective. Each lesson discusses in great detail the relevance and importance of living the Christian worldview in daily life. This project was life-changing for me. If this is ever offered to you, attend. I can't say enough good things about it.

July 30, Janet, Jerry, Pat and I drove to Duluth to see the Tall Ships Festival. My dear friends, Nancy and Ray, invited us to their motor-home site to have lunch and to watch the ships come into the harbor from the pier. What a beautiful display of history! I loved seeing these ships - along with thousands of other folks.

The next week, August 3, I turned another year older. I had a good birthday, celebrating with Peder and Sarah, Aurelia and Felix, and with my co-workers and choir friends. That's one good thing about getting older - - there seem to be more birthday parties each year!

Around the middle of August, Heidi and Marshall came for a visit. One day we spent at the Minnesota Zoo with Peder and Aurelia and kids. I watched Aurelia and Marshall while Heidi & Chad and Peder & Sarah went to the Twins game. That was a fun time, too.

Labor Day Weekend, Janet, Aunt Liz, Pat, and my sister-in-law, Donna, and I drove down to Branson, Missouri, to see our good friends, Jim and Lil. We took in the show, Noah, the Musical, and saw another family show, The Haygoods. As usual, we had a very nice time.

A couple of weeks later - mid September - we (Jerry, Janet, Aunt Liz, Pat and I) drove down to Lowell, Indiana, for the 6oth wedding anniversary of my Aunt Ginny and Uncle Allan, plus Aunt Ginny's 80th birthday. This was a special time for all of us. I'm so happy we could go.

In October, Janet and my friend, Nancy, and I went down to southeastern Minnesota to see the Amish, and in particular, my Amish friend, Lovina. She runs a little general store on her property. It was wonderful seeing her again, and shopping at a few of the area Amish farms.

November brought sadness to me. Peppi, my canary whom I had for more than 3 years, suddenly died. I'm guessing it was a heart attack, for he hadn't been sick. Oh, how hard it was to say good-bye to him.

This month has been busy from the start up to now. With choir rehearsals and concerts, plus getting ready for all three of my kids to be here for Christmas, life was ramped up a bit. Hans and Heidi and their families all traveled here, and I had one of my best Christmases ever! What a joy it is to see your grown kids and their kids! I'm so proud of all of them. I have six beautiful, bright grand children!

Last week Annika and I went looking for a new pet for me. We came home with a beautiful cat which I have named Nels. He is so friendly and lovable. I'm really happy with our choice, Annika. I can't wait for you to come again so you can play with him! I'll be posting more photos of him soon.

[Added 12/31/10: I completed reading the Bible this morning. This is a practice I started some time ago and now it has become part of my daily life. It's a blessing to me. Tomorrow I will begin again - this time it will be in a larger print Bible.]

Happy New Year to all of my readers! I wish you a very good 2011.