2012 in Review

Dear friends and family,

Happy New Year! I hope all of you can find your way to our Christmas letter blog. 2012 has been a year of challenges and happy circumstances.

Day before the ride (rode to Big Sioux)

Jennifer's time this year seems to have been taken up by biking, since she had convinced herself to go on RAGBRAI this year (Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa). This required many, many miles on the bike. With the weather hotter earlier this year, some miles got put on starting in March, but the real training began in earnest in late April. Many a mile was started at 5:30 am, 15-20 miles around town, with increasing miles on the weekends, when Jennifer could find time to do it. This took a lot of time from family  and they really understood the need to get the miles in. Jennifer trained for it with one of her best friends. She even rode on the hottest early days in July, which really did get her prepared for hot days. But nothing can prepare you for seven days straight, getting up at 5 am and just riding, riding, riding through Iowa. It was long and hot through Wednesday, and many times hard. But she never walked any part of the distance. Iowans are great opening up their farmsteads, setting up cooling stations and offering water from their wells, opening their towns and having parties across the state for a whole week.

Sisters in Cedar Rapids

Her mom and dad hosted her group from Wisconsin in Marshalltown, which was relief from sleeping outside in the heat, or in that case on that night, in the storm that came through. Her sister and brother-in-law also rode the whole trip, with her nieces along for the ride in a camper that grandpa drove nearly the whole way. For those of you that have not ridden RAGBRAI, as Iowans or former Iowans, she would say you should try the whole way, all seven days, at least once in your life. It is an experience like no other and it will challenge you, make you smile, make you curse, but you will be amazed if you complete the whole thing. When she finished, she thought she was done with the whole thing--never to try it again, but now she misses the camaraderie you get from enduring the same miles, heat and challenges with 10,000 other people.

Final dip in the Mississippi

Jennifer also got a new boss at work, someone who has worked in the living history field for about 30 years and finds it refreshing that she doesn't have to explain every little nuance of working in that field. Unfortunately for her work site, they lost their senior staff member, with over 35 years at the same location, when he passed away in November. It was a very sad time for everyone and put a damper on the whole spirit of the site. With all the recent retirements, it now makes Jennifer the second most senior person at the site in regards to years worked there. That's a little daunting.

Joel also had some major changes this year. He left his job to return to his full time parenting job. His recovery from surgery had plateaued and not in a good way. But since leaving, his muscles and back health have improved immensely. Jennifer never thought that she would get to complain again of him walking too fast, but she gets to do so regularly now. After enduring life with the kids while Jenn spent most of her time bike riding, Joel started some improvement projects. With more free time and enjoying better health, he was able to refinish the second half of the basement. We've had really bad water problems in the second side and he discovered where it came from and though he hired someone to do the initial waterproofing, he was able to take the rest of the work and insulate, drywall, paint and put in a new floor for the second side of the basement. The kids like it and we are now in search of affordable furniture to make the basement very inviting to the kids that come in our house. Travel in the car has improved, so that Joel drove to Iowa during the week of RAGBRAI, spending some time at his parents' house with the kids and then driving to Marshalltown to meet up with Jennifer at her parents'. Still cautious, we stayed at home for Thanksgiving, but made a trip to Algona again in December. In addition, Joel was introduced to a genre and aesthetic called steampunk. You will have to look it up on the internet to get what it means. But he's taken to creating a few items, while dreaming about refinishing the space in our two story garage, which used to be a carriage house.

So more good news, the kids have a new cousin, a baby boy named Christopher. Jennifer's brother and his wife welcomed the baby boy in November. Though they haven't made it yet to the Twin Cities, they hope to get up there to visit in January. He's as cute as a button, as you can see from the photo.



Willem had a good end to sixth grade. Math was too easy, too much review for him, so he made the switch to a more challenging math for 7th grade. He is now doing Algebra in a class with 8th graders. The start was a little hairy, but he has found his stride and math is still his favorite subject. Teachers make all the difference. Science was not his favorite last year, but this year we have no problem in that subject. Instead, social studies has become a challenge, which we see as evidence of how teachers engage their students. He's also involved in Future Problem Solvers, which Jennifer tries to squeeze out time to coach. Will continues to play baritone in band, enjoys going to the after middle school hang out, the Escape, and really enjoys all his time on the Wii, computer, and TV. We have to really watch the screen time. He likes to read, but is very picky about the books he will read, so he tends to reread the Percy Jackson series and the Ranger's Apprentice series. He also continues to enjoy Legos, which is an ever growing collection in his room. Will trained for the youth triathlon again this year, but got a fever two days before and wasn't recovered enough to do it. He was disappointed, because we also got a new bike that fit him better with bigger tires that moved him along faster.

Alice still loves her dance class. This year was a Mary Poppins theme for recital and she enjoyed dancing to "We Love to Laugh."  She started dance in the fall again. Another thing she has decided she really likes is playing a recorder. She's not quite old enough for an instrument, but we can see she's very ready to start. We have to wait until 5th grade. This summer we couldn't convince her to join Will in the triathlon, though at first she seemed interested. She has made noises that she might try it next year, so we'll see if we can keep her interested. Alice continues to be a great student and enjoys extra challenges with a high ability reading group, gifted and talented sessions once a quarter and being on a Future Problem Solving team that Joel coaches. She still loves art projects. A new love for her is "The Hobbit." Joel had read the book to her before, great daddy daughter time, and was rereading it to her this year. She has enjoyed it so much, she was begging to go to the movie, which they did together. I think we have another Tolkien fan on our hands, because now she wants to go to New Zealand to see the movie sets (well she actually want to go to Middle Earth, but that's impossible). And she wants Lord of the Rings and Hobbit Lego sets as well. Her brother is not into it as much, but he liked the movies when they were shown on TV and also likes the Lego sets. Both kids like fantasy, so perhaps they'll come around to reading the trilogy in the next few years. She still enjoys Boys and Girls Club and attends that after school, even though Dad is at home.

RAGBRAI was our big trip this year, which maybe wasn't that much of a vacation after all. Joel would like to keep occupied, but he doesn't want to give up his time with the kids entirely. He is exploring substitute teaching in our town as well as possibly working with placing high school foreign exchange students in the area. Both jobs would allow him to be around the home when the kids are done with school. Who knows what 2013 will bring? Life is an adventure and we will take it as it is.

All the best for 2013,
Jennifer, Joel, Willem and Alice