Vogtian Chronicles 2009
Dear Friends and Family:
Greetings to all and to all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
As 2009 comes to a close, we are pleased to announce the addition of 1 and 7/9ths new members to the family.
On May 9th, Wendy married Nick Rattray, a fellow Ph.D candidate at the University of Arizona., at a very rustic ranch south of Tucson. The wedding was a three day event and we think everyone who attended had a terrific time. We certainly did.Nick's Mom, Terry, performed Herculean chores getting a lot of things arranged and Wendy, being every frugal, arranged for the most beautiful flower arrangements from Trader Joe's and what everyone said was the best wedding cake they ever ate, thanks to Costco.
The ceremony was preceded by a tribute to the bride and groom's grandparents.
The wedding ceremony took place as the warm Arizona sun was beginning to set.
The wedding also gave us a rare opportunity to get a group photo of our extended family.And on February 7th, 2010, Wendy and Nick are expecting their first child. If you calculate the timing between the wedding date and the due date, you'll understand why they took an hour to get from the ceremony to the banquet.
Nick did his Fulbright field research in Cuenca, Ecuador while Wendy completed hers in Oaxaca. They are now safely at home in Tucson writing their dissertations. They have additional grants well into 2010, and after that, who knows where they will settle down.Jim and Suzi will be in Tucson for the month of February to be with them when the baby arrives, so that Suzi can to help change diapers while Nick and Jim work on their golf games.
Please note that thus far we have been unable to get the NFL to change the Superbowl date, so we won't be able to host our annual Chinese New Year and Superbowl Party, but we will definitely resume the festivities in 2011 (unless someone has another baby).
Kristina is completing her Masters work at the Art Institute of Chicago and absolutely loves the nice winter weather.
Kristina's graduation is in May and we plan on attending and then taking a drive around the area, hopefully getting down to St. Louis to visit Jim's old hometown. Kris then plans on remaining in Chicago for another year or so. She has made some very good friends in the city, has a neat new beau, also named Chris, and is establishing herself in the Chicago art therapy community.Kelly, Aaron and Everett are busy with work and school in Sherman Oaks.
Kelly obtained her yoga teaching certification and is conducting classes at UCLA when she isn't busy with public relations work and taking care of Everett. Aaron continues fund raising with Outward Bound and will now be working exclusively for the national organization.Everett is 4 1/2 and totally into Star Wars and all of its characters. He dreams of becoming a Jedi Knight when he grows up. This summer he met one of his Heroes on his first trip to Disneyland (thanks, Aunt Becky!) Meanwhile, he is proud to announce that he caught his first trout on a trip to Mammoth this Fall.
Of course, someone else baited the hook, cast the line, and reeled in the fish, however it was all done on his Batman spinning reel, and therefore counts as being caught by young Everett (call me "Ev").
"Ev" also found time to taste a few of the local sweets
This summer Jim and Suzi went to South America, including the Peruvian Amazon, where Suzi went piranha fishing. They were delicious!
And to Machu Picchu,where hiking the mountains at 9,000 feet literally took our breath away
And to Lima, where Suzi and Georgia
enlisted in the local militia (our friendly neighbors, Len and Georgia [Danielle's parents], joined us on the trip.
And to Cuzco, where Suzi showed a local lady how to cook potatoes in an outdoor hearth,
And, finally, to the Galapagos
Thus far, Tucson and Chicago remain our only destinations for 2010, although Japan, Egypt, the Dalmatian Coast and Barstow are possibilities.
The kids will be here for the holidays, so it is time to put up the tree and retrieve the decorations from storage.
We hope that 2010 brings each of you good health and prosperity. Have a great one!
The Vogts
