Season Greetings from the north. No lack of winter here. Temperature are around 0 F at our house today, and about –20 F in town. Usually, it is 20 to 30 degrees warmer in the hills than in town. Remember, cold air sucks, I mean, sinks. We went outside and took this picture with our digital camera. We decided to be politically incorrect this year and wear some fur. As you can see, this makes our dog Colville a little nervous! We assured him that we prefer his fur on him rather than us.

Of course, our year began with a trip to Mexico. We returned to La Cruz this year. This year we stayed in a different house just down the road from the previous year. A typical day found us waking late and having bananas and fresh squeezed orange juice for breakfast. Then, we would hop on a bus and find a nearby beach. After some boogey-boarding and reading under the palapa, we would go back and take a dip in the pool in our yard. It was very important to time dinner for the gorgeous sunsets on the water. Afterwards, a bit more reading, some fiddle tunes from the kids, or a DVD movie on the laptop computer. On the way down, we had a great time with Jeff Oliver at his beach-side condo near San Diego, and spent a day together at LegoLand. We all had a great time there.

Spring went by like a flash. Grandpa Schoder had surgery for stomach/esophageal cancer. Mary spent quite a lot of time in Homer, and I did some bonding with the kids. Grandpa is making a great recovery, and we are very thankful. In the meantime, Mariah turned 6 and Lander turned 9. In March, Brooke and Carina came up from Tucson to see if they could still ski. We really enjoyed their visit.

Our summer weather was one of the worst ever, but we tried to enjoy ourselves. After about mid-June, there were 3 big fires burning near Fairbanks, and we lived in a smoky fog for several weeks. Then it started to rain, and didn’t stop until October. However, we managed to get out and have some fun. We have been enjoying our boat a lot lately. We take it out on the Tanana River and do some camping, fishing, and eating! In July, Lander took his first trip from home to spend two weeks with Grandpa and Grandma in Iowa. He flew down and back all by himself. They all went with Kathy and Kembe and family, along with a bunch of Kembe’s family, to the Black Hills. He came back a little cowboy! I wasn’t sure Mary was going to make it without Lander for 2 whole weeks, but she coped by remodeling the house. Lander sure had a great time.

The highlight of the fall was my Grandma’s 90^th birthday. Every child, grandchild, and great-grandchild was there – over 50 of us in all. There were a lot of parties… and, as Grandma says, “Beeter de buijk ge basten donde gooi kos bedorven.” (Better to burst your belly than to let good food spoil). Are we Dutch or what?! What a treasure Grandma has been for all of these years. Now, we might have some tough times ahead. She has just been diagnosed with cancer in one of her lungs. We hope the for best.

The Holidays have been hectic. We went to Anchorage for Thanksgiving, and enjoyed seeing Grandpa and Grandma Schoder, Mike and Anne, and Ruthe and Lars. Grandpa is doing great – he was up for going to the Great Alaska Shootout basketball games. Since then, Lander has been practicing for the Nutcracker. He is a party boy this year, and an oriental servant. There aren’t many boys in ballet, so he gets multiple parts. Mariah is taking ballet lessons, but can’t be in the Nutcracker until she is 8. And is she ever anxious to get there. As you can see from the first picture, Lander just got glasses.

Our house is for sale. We have an offer on another house that has been accepted, contingent on the sale of our house. We had the first people look yesterday, and some more are coming on Monday. I hope this drags out a little bit – I really don’t want to move until late February at the earliest. But, by next year, we should be writing from a new house. It has a great view and 4 bedrooms, with a spare room for guests (hint, hint!). We’re pretty excited about it.

I’ve enjoyed some of your Holiday letters already, and look forward to others. I hope that you’ve had a great year, and that 2001 is even better. ~ Jay, 16 December, 2000.

Just a quick bit from me. Much of my energy this year has gone into family and home, rather than onto canvas. I did have a solo show in March before Dad’s illness, and have two scheduled for 2002. Jay and my friends here planned a surprise party for my 40^th birthday, which was terrific! I am ever thankful for my fine family and friends, and wish comfort and joy to you all in 2001. ~ Mary