Merry Christmas from the van der Poels

2009

Been awhile since I made up one of these newsletters. Used to do it as a hard copy and mail it out with our Christmas cards. That was then ... now we don't bother to send out nearly as many cards and the “review of the year” has pretty much fallen by the wayside.

This year we're going to make a change and restart our little tradition. Read all about it right here. So much trivia about our family. Way more than you need to know. Way more than you want!

So, let's get going. In no particular order of importance:

Steven Our son is having a great time these days. He's still working as a personal trainer at World Health Club in Calgary. We understand that he is “one of the best” or, perhaps, “THE BEST”. He's managing to earn enough to buy a nice little condominium in SW Calgary ... a mean feat with housing prices as they are. And, he's got a lovely girl friend with whom he is travelling around the world on wonderful vacations. And, of course, he's got his cats and the huge salt-water aquarium. Life is good for Steve.

Susan Our daughter is still living in Wynndel, about 1 mile from us. Nice for all us that she can drop by when she needs to. And, of course, we get to see our grand-kids “often enough”. On a sad note, Susan's longtime, live-in boyfriend, Paul, passed away this year of a sudden heart attack. A total surprise to all of us. Susan's had her share of bad days and nights after this tragedy, but is dealing with things as best as can be expected. She is investigating future educational opportunities and we'll let you know what happens when it happens. Yes, you'll have to read this again next year! Her children, Willam and Jasmine, are growing up way too quickly.

Val Val's had a good year! Lots and lots of art coming out of the studio. Some has been sold, but there's lots more for you to purchase (ask about our friends and family discounts!). In case you weren't lucky enough to get her special card ...

Val had been giving some art lessons here in the studio and is completely involved with the Creston Art Club. Busy girl! See her art at http://mellowood.ca/art/index.html.

Bob Dullsville! Same old ... same old. Getting older. He's played a few gigs this year with his saxophone ... and people tell him he's sounding good. He continues to fool around on the computer and has done quite a bit of music arranging as well as computer programming. He's got lots of things to look at http://mellowood.ca.

Pets Short story: no more pets live here. Our last cat, Cinder, went off to that “other place” where cats can sleep all day in the sun and dream of catching mice. She was 18. We certainly miss our animal companions; we do not miss the messes, hair, and other things we needed to look after and clean up.

Our House The house is, and probably will continue to be, a constant saga. Bob spent many hours this summer painting the outside, and now only has less than half to finish. Big house with old wood siding takes lots of time and love to keep up. We installed a new hardwood floor in the kitchen this fall. Looks great!

Well, that's it for now. Let us know what's happening in your world. And feel free to drop by and visit!

Web Design--Bob van der Poel This page was last modified on 2024-03-21