At one time in my life I was a dedicated sender of Christmas cards. I would compose a tidy little letter to go along with my cards that summarized the major highlights of my year. I self-righteously shunned the simple "photo cards". My cards were actual greeting cards....you know the kind with a folded hinge that had a graphic of some sort on the cover, and you had to open it up to see the message and signature on the inside? They were addressed by hand, the whole nine yards.
Oh those were the days.
I'm not sure if I should blame it on the technology age, having kids, getting old, or the overall decline in social graces in America...but I have failed miserably on the Christmas Card scene in recent years. I have lots of good excuses lined up too.
1. Nearly everyone I know is on Facebook, and therefore a Christmas letter is not necessary.
2. People move and don't bother to send out their new addresses because their email address doesn't change....so I don't know where to mail the cards.
3. Nothing of note happened this year. What would I write about?
4. I'm busy. I'm tired. Christmas shouldn't be stressful.
5. Etc, etc etc.
Well, I have jumped back on the bandwagon this year and actually ordered cards. They are photo cards, but cards nonetheless. Funny thing is, I haven't sent them out in so many years I just took a guess on how many to order, and it turns out we have more friends than I realized. Ideally I would have counted up addresses BEFORE ordering the cards, but that's all water under the bridge so I'll just have to make do. I apologize in advance if you didn't receive the hard-copy Christmas card. Please accept this electronic Christmas Letter (with bonus links for full detail on the exciting aspects of our year) as your consolation prize. I will try to do better next year.
Dear Friends and Family,
Here we are, nearing the end of 2013 and the time has come for (electronic) Christmas letters! As we reminisce on this year that is coming to a close, we have much to be thankful for in the Cavalleri house....
- Big Milestones! Amy and Nick both turned 40 this summer and celebrated with Martini parties (Nick) and a long-awaited trip to Mexico with some high school girlfriends (Amy). Bella turned 16. We anxiously await the moment she learns how to disconnect the iPod from her hand long enough to sit behind the wheel of a car.
- Great Vacations! This spring we spent a week in southern California visiting Disneyland and Amy's brother in Santa Barbara. In July we took a multi-generational camping trip to Burney Falls with two sets of grandparents. We spent Labor Day weekend on the Oregon coast visiting tide pools and tacky tourist traps.
- Good Insurance! We got our money's worth on our health plan this year. Nick has his thyroid removed in the spring and Clara visited the ER after doing a face-plant off the backyard swing set. While we always appreciate getting full value on our investments, we look forward to a quieter, healthier 2014.
- New Adventures! We got a puppy. We ate Paleo for 30 days. Amy & Nick attended Cursillo. Clara learned to ride a two-wheeler. Amy started Blogging. Thomas reminded us on a daily basis what it means to be TWO. Bella is prepping to take the SAT in January. Amy got braces. Nick started playing guitar again. Clara learned to write her name. Bella and Nick both got new tablets. We got enough snow to make a snowman in our own backyard. Did I mention Thomas is two?
Merry (electronic) Christmas!
From, The Cavalleri Family
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