Whenever I do Christmas cards, I always include a reference to our blog. In years past, its been an easy way to catch everyone up on our lives. The blog was always full and up to date, and folks could read as little or as much as they wanted, to learn as little or as much as they wanted about our comings and goings, and my mental state.
But this year, at this Christmas, our comings and goings have slowed and my mental state is pretty stable. The blog has been sitting empty these past few months, as there has been little of note occuring in our now typical American lives. So, I suppose I ought to take a moment to sum up the year for you.
At the beginning of 2012, we lived in Shenzhen - a port city across the bay from Hong Kong, in the south of China. Dave worked about an hour away from home, and traveled out of the country for weeks at a time. On this project, he spent time in Abu Dhabi, Morocco and the Philippines. He enjoyed the new places, but the time away from home was long and difficult for all of us.
Chinese New Year hit in February this year, and we decided to spend it quietly at home. Dave's travel had been enough for all of us, and a week together in our house sounded perfect. We took a day to explore Hong Kong Disneyland, a simple taxi ride and border crossing away from our home. On that day, Dave received the invitation to join the United States Foreign Service.
We left China in March, and our family moved into a serviced apartment in Northern Virginia in April. Dave was going through a 6 week training course to begin his career as a diplomat. In May, Dave learned his first post. His colleagues are in Cape Verde, Nigeria, India and more. Dave is at the State Department building in Washington, DC. We settled into our own house with our own things in June.
The first half of our year was a tumultuous whirlwind, and the second half has gone by so smoothly. Lilly has turned 6 years old. She is at her third school of the year, where she's enjoying the 1st grade.
Sophia has turned 5 years old. She is at her second school of the year, and loving Montessori School. Annika turned 1, and then 19 months, and enjoys her sisters and their friends. Lilly and Sophia and I chatter quite a lot, so little Annika has felt no need to talk yet. Lilly and Sophia has made lots of friends this year, and transitioned exceptionally well through all of their changes. I'm looking forward to their staying relatively stable for the next year, until our next scheduled move.
In December of 2012, our family will move to Venezuela where Dave will work the visa line as a consular officer in the Caracas Embassy. We hear that the schools there are fabulous, and so we're looking forward to another comfortable home. We also hear that the crime rates are ridiculous, with murders and express kidnappings alarmingly commonplace, so we're feeling a little nervous. We also hear that grocery stores frequently lack basic staples, like milk and toilet paper, so we're feeling the need to be well prepared upon arrival.
But Venezuela feels far away right now. This season, we've filled our house with Christmas decorations and the smell of cookies baking. We marvel at the Christmas decorations everywhere we go, and we're loving how festive the whole city feels. We're soaking in the Advent story every night and the teachings and worship from a fabulous church. We're excited about driving to spend Christmas with family - who we've seen multiple times this year already, and who we expect to visit with more in 2012. We're resting in America this year, and feeling surrounded by God's blessings.
But this year, at this Christmas, our comings and goings have slowed and my mental state is pretty stable. The blog has been sitting empty these past few months, as there has been little of note occuring in our now typical American lives. So, I suppose I ought to take a moment to sum up the year for you.
At the beginning of 2012, we lived in Shenzhen - a port city across the bay from Hong Kong, in the south of China. Dave worked about an hour away from home, and traveled out of the country for weeks at a time. On this project, he spent time in Abu Dhabi, Morocco and the Philippines. He enjoyed the new places, but the time away from home was long and difficult for all of us.
Chinese New Year hit in February this year, and we decided to spend it quietly at home. Dave's travel had been enough for all of us, and a week together in our house sounded perfect. We took a day to explore Hong Kong Disneyland, a simple taxi ride and border crossing away from our home. On that day, Dave received the invitation to join the United States Foreign Service.
We left China in March, and our family moved into a serviced apartment in Northern Virginia in April. Dave was going through a 6 week training course to begin his career as a diplomat. In May, Dave learned his first post. His colleagues are in Cape Verde, Nigeria, India and more. Dave is at the State Department building in Washington, DC. We settled into our own house with our own things in June.
The first half of our year was a tumultuous whirlwind, and the second half has gone by so smoothly. Lilly has turned 6 years old. She is at her third school of the year, where she's enjoying the 1st grade.
Sophia has turned 5 years old. She is at her second school of the year, and loving Montessori School. Annika turned 1, and then 19 months, and enjoys her sisters and their friends. Lilly and Sophia and I chatter quite a lot, so little Annika has felt no need to talk yet. Lilly and Sophia has made lots of friends this year, and transitioned exceptionally well through all of their changes. I'm looking forward to their staying relatively stable for the next year, until our next scheduled move.
In December of 2012, our family will move to Venezuela where Dave will work the visa line as a consular officer in the Caracas Embassy. We hear that the schools there are fabulous, and so we're looking forward to another comfortable home. We also hear that the crime rates are ridiculous, with murders and express kidnappings alarmingly commonplace, so we're feeling a little nervous. We also hear that grocery stores frequently lack basic staples, like milk and toilet paper, so we're feeling the need to be well prepared upon arrival.
But Venezuela feels far away right now. This season, we've filled our house with Christmas decorations and the smell of cookies baking. We marvel at the Christmas decorations everywhere we go, and we're loving how festive the whole city feels. We're soaking in the Advent story every night and the teachings and worship from a fabulous church. We're excited about driving to spend Christmas with family - who we've seen multiple times this year already, and who we expect to visit with more in 2012. We're resting in America this year, and feeling surrounded by God's blessings.
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