What a year it has been. It was hard to choose pictures for the year and not make it too long and it's long anyway. So many pictures left behind. We started the year with a cruise to the Antarctica. Who would have ever guest we could see that great continent. It was cold and beautiful and incredibly amazing. We watch penguins and whales swim through the ocean. We had clear skies and smooth waters. Seeing parts of Argentina, Chile and Uruguay was an added plus.
We visited the Schramms in California March for Macie's birthday. It great to have Brinley only 30 minutes away from her so we got to visit with her as well. We made a last minute decision in October when we learned they were selling their house and were buying a new one on the other side of town. We quickly went out to help them with their move. It was a busy week but were so glad we went.
We got one trip to Colorado in August to celebrate Robi's birthday and give recognition to Meggie's birthday 2 weeks after. St. George is close and we went as often as time permitted. Sunny loves to spend time with us when we are there. This year he graduated from high school. So proud of him. Aayla got her first job working at Zeppes. Now we can visit her and get a treat at the same time.
In August we embarked on a month long trip to Europe. We started by visiting Paul and Linda, Kim's brother, who is serving a mission in Gouda, Netherlands. After spending a couple of days with them we boarded a cruise ship and went to all the Baltic States, Denmark, Germany, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Sweden. (not necessarily in that order). After 2 weeks we docked in Holland again and our friends Clark and Jody Boulton joined us for 7 days to the Norway Fjords. Such a beautiful country. God knew what he was doing when he created this world. After the cruise we flew to Geneva, Switzerland with the Boultons. Traveled by train to Zermatt, Churr and then Frankfurt Germany. That's when we split from Clark and Jody and they went on to Zurich. We met up with Ellen and Peter Müller who live outside of Frankfurt. Kim baptized Ellen when he was on his mission almost 50 years ago. We spent 3 days touring the area with them and meeting up with their family for Sunday dinner. What a delightful time. We flew home after 32 days. It was so good to be home.
Kim turned 70 in October. We weren't able to find a way to get the whole family together to celebrate but were able to get our 4 daughters to join us for a couple of days in Disneyland. We all love Disneyland and it was so fun to watch Annie, Katie, Millie and Abbie laugh and enjoy each other's company. We were thrilled to have Brinley (Annie's oldest daughter) join us and to have Millie's boyfriend Jon spend one day with us at the park.
It was our year for Thanksgiving. We had Abbie and James join us in St. George. Katie and Brandon drove down as well. Lee Wang, a Chinese student Kim taught while in China who now lives in Ohio, flew out to join us for a couple of days. This is his at least his 3rd time joining us for Holiday. He's becoming part of the family. We got to see Millie a little as it was her holiday to work but got to see Aayla and Sunny quite a bit. Always fun to be with our kids. Love my family the most.
Clark and Jody had extra points that were going to go to waste so invited us to cruise with them and all we had to do was pay the taxes. YES Please. We had a fabulous week cruising to Princess Cay, Amber Cove in Dominican Republic and Grand Turk. The water was crystal clear and fairly warm.
As we come to the end of this year, we give thanks for our many blessings. We are grateful for our family and the love we share. We love our Savior and this time of year when we can celebrate not only his birth but his life and all that He gives to us.
We wish you all peace and love and joy as we finish this year and begin a new.
Love from the Ropers