Merry Christmas!

It’s the last month of the year and then 2018 will be over…unbelievable how fast this one went by. Every year, time passes quicker and quicker. I’m a bit sad to say goodbye to 2018 as this was truly a great year for our family. Nothing too exciting or crazy happened (no move or new job), just living life and enjoying it as much as we could, and we are more than thankful to be healthy.

Our youngest, Elliot, turned 5 this month and this is his last year in preschool before starting Kindergarten at the elementary school next August. He grew so much over these past 12 months, not only in height but also in spirit and mind. This is his first year we signed him up for a sport: Basketball and he loves it. Actually, any sport involving a ball is his kind of thing. It was quickly discovered that he is ahead of his age and now plays with the 5/6-year-old group. His favorite thing to watch is the show Battlebots and afterwards he builds his own robots out of Lego. Elliot is very creative and definitely has an engineer’s mind. He also excels at reading (one lesson a day at home and some at preschool too) and writing his name. Looking forward to see how he does at school next year and if his hobbies will change because of that.

Our little girl might be small in size but definitely not her personality. She loves being in second grade (and her awesome teacher) and anything that involves drawing, painting, writing or reading is her favorite subject. She writes a story almost every single day and we have a hard time keeping up with all the papers of this future artist. Amelia also joined a dance studio, per recommendation of her pediatrician, where once a week she has a tap/ ballet lesson. She really enjoys it and we love watching her become more confident while performing in front of people.

Our furry child, Indy, just turned 10 in the beginning of the month and is loving life. When she isn’t squeezed or chased by Amelia, she relaxes in front of the fire or watches the birds on the birdfeeder thru the window.

While Derrick’s year started off with lots of rest and healing after a hernia surgery, by spring time he was out and about working hard in our yard. Old decking and an overgrown pool has been removed and lots and lots of dirt has been added to even out and re-sow the grass in the front and the back of our house. When he is not busy traveling for work or working around the house, he jumps in to play Mr. Mom while I’m on business trips.

For me, 2018 has been a fast-paced and busy year mainly due to the many changes at work because of acquisitions, but I do enjoy the work. I also traveled twice to Europe this year:  in February to France for a week and then two weeks in September to Holland with weekend visits to Berlin to see my family. While in France, I enjoyed spending 36 hours with my brother, Lennard, exploring Paris and catching up with a friend for dinner. To balance life, I try to go running at least 3 times a week and help at least once week in Amelia’s classroom (from copying to testing children) and anytime there are special events. So far, I have organized the fall class party, dressed up as a witch for a mystery reading sessions and decorated cookies and made clay mats with the children. I feel blessed that I’m able to work but also to be there for my children’s carnivals, class parties, and weekly lunch meetings.

This year, we were delighted to have Grandma and Grandpa Martin as well as Derrick’s brother Lee and family visit us here in Nashville. We spent a fun couple of days with them, boating an entire day on the lake and barbequing in the backyard. In October, Oma Doris came to visit for 3 weeks and next to visits to their schools, going to the pool, spending a day at the farm in record heat, some honky tonking in downtown, we also spent a few days in Chattanooga exploring the underground waterfall, riding a truck in the river, and visiting the aquarium. Tony, Derrick’s oldest brother, and his grandson also stopped by for a brief visit just a few weeks ago.

For our family vacation this year, we headed up North to Columbus, Ohio, where we visited the famous zoo, watched the Memorial Golf Tournament, explored Germantown and had fun at the Children’s Science Museum. Unfortunately, our camping trip had to be cancelled due to a sick child, but Derrick and I explored a great State Park to go camping to next year on our weekend getaway in October while Oma watched the children for us. It has been 3 years since the last time we had a couple’s weekend and we truly enjoyed it. We went hiking, discovered waterfalls, chatted uninterrupted and relaxed during a way overdue massage.

By Christmas morning, our family will grow by two...guinea pigs, that is. The children, mainly Amelia, have asked for their “own” pet for over a year now and we are finally ready to add more furry friends to our house.

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM  OUR FAMILY TO YOURS