Hi everyone,
Well, it has been a long time since I updated you all! We are both well here, and the new year seems to be getting into swing quite fast.
Sad news is that Jan's other grandmother, Oma Friedel, passed away on Saturday (18 January), three weeks short of her 99th birthday. After a short illness she died in hospital. Gerhard and Eberhard were regular visitors, and Brigitte went over as soon as she could get a flight. The funeral is on the 29th. Tina is heading to Germany on 1 February to help Brigitte with anything that needs doing.
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| Oma Friedel at Christmas 2013 |
Jan is
very glad that he made the time to go and stay in November last year with her. So no 100th birthday in Germany in February 2015...
however, they think they might organise a family get-together on 12
February where family members can share their memories of her.
Our next overseas trip will be to Rarotonga for Mike's wedding in April. Then we will be organising a trip to Brazil to see the Martins; we are not sure if this will be later this year or next year yet. June-July, anyway, regardless of the year.
Jan has just ordered the first of the lounge in-ceiling speakers. Yay! At last we will be able to get rid of some the dangly speaker wires. Once this pair has arrived and been installed, then Jan will order the next pair. We have to do a two stage process; order them online in the US and get them sent to a US address (Barb's boyfriend's sister, Patience, in this instance). Then Patience posts them to us. She is a saint who happens to love Whittakers L&P block so gets her thank yous in bars of white and fizzy chocolate :-)
I have discovered the books of Peter Robinson and am just reading the last of
them. I have also read about seven Ruth Rendell Inspector Wexfords too.
I have a new Kindle touch and am enjoying that immensely (also care of Patience). My old Kindle has gone to my Father, as he can read the screen just fine on that; but a book is too dense.
We have rediscovered a long-lost cousin: my Uncle Ian's oldest daughter, Kim. I met her with her mum when she was just a wee dot, when I was about five. Kim lives in Dunedin with her family, and we hope that she will come up to Nelson for my father's 80th Birthday party on May 24th this year. I am hoping that we will be able to get all the remaining brothers and sisters together, and as many of the cousins as possible, to have a real family get together. It would be really great. We will see!
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| Kim & Brenda around 1967/8-ish |
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| Kim & husband Geoff |
Had Aunty Jill out for a visit to our place & Aunty Diana up from Christchurch (and how they both hate being called Aunty). It will be a rellie good year :-)
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| Peter, Joan, Jill & Jan at Roses Road, Jan 2013 |
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| Peter, Joan, me & Aunty Diana outside at Roses Road |
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| Jan & Aunty Diana at Krauts, December 2013 |
Andreas's birthday in Germany looked like a very stylish high tea party! Simone sent us photos :-)
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| Andreas with his grandparents Karin & Ernst at his birthday tea |
Jan has been cutting down trees - and cutting them up for firewood. Getting ready for winter when we haven't even hit our summer straps yet. But very prudent. There is a clip below of Jan felling a tree outside my office. Pesky thing was in my view :-)
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| Chainsawing, of couse :-) |
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| Jan felling a pine tree outside my office |
First meeting of the academic year is happening next Monday. Ouch. I am up in Auckland at a Leadership training session at AUT for two days next week, then Otto & Lara come down to stay for a few days with us. Building some of their own family memories :-)
Masters is going on: and will be in draft by 01 April (just in time to go to Raro for Mike & Donna's shindig).
Bonnie has the early stages of congestive heart failure, but is on meds, so will hopefully be OK for many more years to come (as she is only 7). John is planning on a return to Kiwiland later this year, and hopefully won't notice any changes in her. We have tried Skyping with Bonnie, but she cannot work out where the noise comes from...!
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| Bonnie looking intensely... intense |
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| Bonnie & Coco trying to work out why the crazy woman is trying to get their attention |
Caught up with Kevin & Sandra at Mapua recently and finished the evening at McKee Domain with the most fabulous moonrise over the bay
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| Moon over Tasman Bay, Jan 2014 |
Right, that will do for now. I know I have missed out heaps of news, but I have hit the end of my writing endurance!
Take care
Sam & Jan
