Holiday Greetings

Even though this year has been busier than most, I did not have a chance to do a holiday letter and sent out a photo card only. So, with a few minutes to spare before everything gets really going, I thought I would take the time to reflect upon the last year right now. Roger is trying to soothe RT into taking his morning nap. The cats are snuggled in their favorite spots for their morning snooze. I am thinking about the grocery run and stuff later today.

Friends and Family

2011 has been a year of challenges for Roger and I. Many have been wonderful, but a few have been tough.

We started the year with a couple trips to the cities for birthday parties. We saw our granddaughter, Delaney, turn one and Roger's sister, Trish, turn 50. My pregnancy was going great. We had a great week in Minneapolis in March for Roger's conference and Elise's birthday dinner. We had a lot of snow...ALOT of snow.

We spent the spring in Valley City watching the river rise. Roger and the VCSU students worked on sandbags and protecting the town. It worked. We avoided the flood. We all breathed a big sigh of relief.

We had a great time celebrating Harvey and Carey's wedding in May. A few days later, I went into labor and after a difficult night, delivered our beautiful baby boy. Roger Thomas, RT, is the joy of our lives. Those first weeks were tough with little sleep and recovering from the C-section, but we enjoyed having that precious boy!

A few weeks later, my Grandma Schmid passed away in New York. I was sad because Roger never got to meet her. I always wanted to have them meet, but we never made it to Long Island in time. A month later, my step-grandma, Olga passed away. We had plans to visit her for her birthday so she could meet RT, but we were too late. Those two women were the last of my grandparents and I was devastated. I still feel that loss all these months later. Both were special to me in their own way. I will always miss them...

In the middle of all that, the snow in Canada melted and the Mouse river in Minot rose and rose and rose. My parents evacuated their things. They did not escape the flood. Their house was filled with water for three weeks to the ceiling. Everything was out, but the house was lost. They have since removed everything but the cement and the studs. They are waiting to see what their next move is, whether they have to rebuild or the city will buy it and tear it down. Hopefully, they decide soon!

Meanwhile, the good news is that Mom and Dad were able to rent an apartment in West Fargo and Mom could transfer to the Bremer here. Dad drives to Minot for the week and teaches at Des Lacs and then drives to Fargo for the weekends. It is a lot of driving, but they've really gotten into living in Fargo.

Roger and I also moved to West Fargo. I couldn't stand the thought of leaving RT in daycare all day, so I resigned my position and applied to graduate school at NDSU. I am currently working toward my PhD in Developmental Science. I love it! I spend enough time at home with RT to make it all worth it!

RT has been such a wonderful addition to our family. Roger and I are constantly amazed that we have such an adorable boy and that he is ours! He is growing so fast. He scoots around, eats like a big boy, and smiles and laughs all the time. He is the best gift I've ever received. Roger, RT and I are such a happy family!

Roger, RT and I are spending Christmas at home. This is the first time since I've met Roger that we haven't traveled somewhere for Christmas. I have been enjoying the planning, decorating, shopping, baking and cooking for the holiday. It will be tough not to see our grandkids, but we have plans to see them next week for Christmas number 2!

We hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season, whatever you celebrate! The days start getting longer and soon enough it will be spring.

Happy Holidays to all those we love! I hope 2012 is a rockin' year for us all!!