Flashback 2011 - Allan and I

Allan
The story of 2011 for Allan was TWU and robotics.  The planets, stars, time and finances finally aligned for Allan to get the degree that BC College of Teachers demands he get after teaching here for 17 years!  Trinity Western University admitted him to the Adult Degree Completion Program for a Bachelor in Leadership. He has embraced this journey and is excelling at it.....I think a Masters is on the cards once he graduates this October.  I truly believe this study on this topic comes at such a timely point in his life and career and I am excited for what the future holds for him.  I so admire his commitment to this additional workload and am proud of his successes.

His robotics teams cleaned up the competition in the Pacific North West again and headed to the World Championships in Florida in April.  We had to do so much fundraising for this but it was worth it as the teams went so far in the Worlds and winning the Inspire Award, putting the Cambie robotics program firmly on the world map.  A day and a half at Disney World was a welcome break after the intensity of the competition.

Allan continues to enjoy his teaching and managed to get some more time in the workshops this year which he so enjoys.  He is also on the forefront of online teaching and is running his 5th online physics course so more students can be accommodated. 

He is also the assistant coach of David's soccer team which enabled him to get some exercise too in his busy schedule.  Although he had to relinquish his soup duties to me as it conflicted with his night at Trinity he often makes the soup for me on a Sunday which is a blessing to me.

Allan still loves time in the workshop making things (surfboards look to be a prime project in 2012) as well as in the kitchen where he is a wonderful cook.

Nicky
The story of 2011 for me was trips and more of the same at work.

When our expected new child care facility burned down in March we knew it would be another year or more until we'd actually open a centre we have been working on for 6 years.  I tried to turn the disappointment into an opportunity to further ready the organisation for the expansion by doing a complete review and rewrite of all our policies and procedures, developing a new tools and aligning all our documents and bringing them up to date.  I was ably assisted in this by a wonderful assistant who also did a complete reorg of my office and all our filing systems - Hallelujah!  I miss her! By the end of 2011 we had bid on an additional centre and were awarded the Hamilton Child Care Centre days before Christmas.  So 2012 will be a busy one of anticipating the opening of 2 centres (100 spaces of child care) in 2013.

I decided to accompany my Mom to Anchorage Alaska to visit my sister and family in March and had an incredible visit that included going to the start of the Iditarod in Willow Alaska and
down to Seward - amazing and magnificent places.  Lovely to get to know my 6 nieces and nephews and learn that I was to be an aunt one more time (Ian arrived in October).  It was a great trip.
Right after Anchorage we headed for Florence Oregon and the Dunes with the Burtons - We rented a house on a lake together and had a grand time in spite of iffy spring break weather.

In the Summer I met my old school friend Leigh in Seattle and we did the Cascade loop together in a Thelma and Louise styled trip which was alot of fun!  A late summer trip to Portland and Leavenworth with the family was all the Summer vacation Allan got from Trinity and we made the most of it.

The Fall was less frantic as I took a semester off of teaching in the ECE program and just supervised a few practicum students.  I continued to lead/host our beloved Soup Group on Tuesdays and with
Lindsay in a MT program in Vancouver I spend Wednesday evenings with her while the boys are at soccer - we have developed a little ritual of having sushi after dance and I cherish my girl time with her.

I continued to co-lead the Junior Youth boys with my friend Graham and was sad to let it go in 2012 as I return to teaching at night.  I continue to love my Jazzercise and end 2011 22lbs lighter and much
trimmer and firmer and feeling more fit than in a long time.

My event planning business EventAbility continues to muddle along keeping my patner and dear friend Joyce as busy as we want to be.  Joyce has saved my butt many Tuesdays by making sublime desserts for our soup groupers to enjoy!

And then there was Hawaii - a lovely lovely way to end the year and a carrot that kept me going many a day!

As you know Allan and I celebrated (and celebrated and celebrated) our 20th wedding anniversary - a wonderful milestone and one hard won and sincerely appreciated for the gift it is.

We also continue to attend Emmanuel Christian Community but are less involved than in past years. 

We look forward to all the promise that 2012 offers and to the journey ahead and try to take it one day at a time and not sweat the small stuff and remember to say "I love you" more and to serve one another and raise our children and make a difference in this old world.  To increase our faith in our God, to love and serve our friends and family, to make good choices for our bodies, to have fun and be grateful.

We are blessed!