Well folks, 2008 is nearing an end and 2009 is upon us. Rick and I have had an interesting year; full of challenges and stumbling blocks, all of them surmountable with plenty of rewards. We have successfully completed our first year of the car detailing business, something new for us, and anticipate an even better second year.

Living in BC is everything we had hoped for and more. Condo living has proven to be perfect for us and residing in New Westminster is an ideal location. For Rick, we are ten minutes from the shop and for me, centrally located to all the areas I service with my Nerds on Site business. Despite the unusual blast of snow we have been experiencing, lately, the weather is much more temperate and we are enjoying exploring the Greater Vancouver region.

Thanks to Angie and Brandon in Ontario we have welcomed another grandchild, Ryder Phoenix, who is growing quickly. For now we have to be satisfied with tracking his progress with the help of pictures via the Internet and phone calls. Hopefully 2009 will give us some opportunities to see him more often. Though we miss them here, Bill and Laura have settled into a new home in Orillia and are embarking on new careers there. Everyone remains healthy and happy.

Fortunately for us, our other grandchildren, Makai and Monet are less than an hour’s drive away and we see them often. Karley is back in school, while working part time and is enjoying the help of a live-in nanny. Makai celebrated his fourth birthday on December 27th and continues to enjoy his little sister’s company while simultaneously being aggravated by her. Jay remains healthy and is excelling in his career as VP of marketing with Dominion Lending. He is now a BC property owner and is enjoying his bachelor life. Jamie is still flying with Air Canada despite the layoffs 2008 brought and begins training on a new plane next month. His past position enabled an almost-monthly visit to Vancouver when he was enroute to Sydney so it will be interesting to see how much we get to see him once he begins flying the new plane. He still lives with Mary in Orillia and enjoys seeing many new countries in his travels.

2009 promises to be even better than 2008 with lots of new opportunities to grow our businesses already presenting themselves on the horizon. We are excited, healthy and very happy and for you friends we wish you nothing less for the New Year! May you enjoy good health, may all your dreams come true and may you and your families find nothing but happiness in 2009!

Here is some scenery you have seen on this site before however, this is the view with the snow still in abundance!