We Say Goodbye to 2016 and Wonder What 2017 Will Bring

Merry Christmas from Sam, Cathy, Rowdy & Grover

We just celebrated Christmas this past Sunday.  It was a nice day, made nicer by the fact that our younger son is here with us.  He arrived from California on the 19th of December and he will be here until January 5.  He didn't really intend to stay so long, but air travel at this time of year can be quite expensive, so he is saving some money by staying longer.  We don't mind at all.  This is his first trip home in 4 years and it is just great to have him here.  We had a quiet Christmas morning and then went to Sam's Mom and Dad's place for an early Christmas dinner.  Sam's brother was there as were his daughter and her husband.  It's always nice to be able to spend time with family.  Sam, Zac and I will be going to my mom's on New Year's Day for a family gathering.

I can hardly believe the year is almost over.  A lot has happened, and much of it has been good.   The highlight of the year was probably the wedding of our son Ian and his longtime fiance, Michelle, in Oregon in June.  A large number of our family were able to attend to celebrate and it was also nice to meet most of Michelle's family.   Ian finally started his 2 year program at Oregon State and I so look forward to attending a graduation in a couple of years.  

We had a good year on the farm, though part of that was selling off most of our alpacas. It has been an adjustment for me to have so few to take care of, but it has allowed me time for other pursuits.  One of which was doing a better job of tending the garden, leading to a very busy canning season in late summer and fall.    And of course Grover and I came a long way in our agility career this past year.  Watch for more of that to come.

What will 2017 bring?  Well, the first big news is that my Arizona family is moving back to Ohio.  Right now in fact.  Sister-in-law Jill has a new job in the Cincinnati area starting in January.  I am so happy they will be back here within a few hours' drive.  But they still have a long road ahead, as their house in AZ will need to sell so they can buy one here.  They will be staying with relatives for now.  

At some point my new weaving studio will be complete and I will be able to move into that and do some serious fiber and equipment organizing.  I do look forward to that.

I am sure other things will come along as the year goes by, but right now there is nothing new looming in our future.  I will hope that anything new that comes along will be a blessing.

I received a pasta making attachment for my Kitchen Aid mixer for Christmas (which is funny because I sent one to Michelle and Ian!) and I watched Zac make pasta with it the other night.  He has made a lot more pasta in his career as a chef than I have and I was happy to observe his technique.

In addition to the pasta maker, I knitted some Christmas stockings for Ian and Michelle.









 



I knit Steeler's socks for Mary, my mother-in-law

And a hat for my neighbor.



I am still working on Sam's sweater, and will soon be ready to start the sleeves.    I haven't been weaving because my loom at home is put away while Zac is staying with us as the loom resides in the guest room.  I'm planning to start warping my big loom for some rugs in the next couple of days. 

Meanwhile, Grover and I will be running in a trial in Zanesville on Friday and Saturday this week.  It would be nice the end the year with another Double Q (or 2!), but anything can happen.