SO's What

Wednesday, December 20

Happy Holidays 2023

Happy Holidays! Joyful Solstice! Merry Christmas! Happy Hannukah! Best Wishes! Joyeux Noël! Vrolijk Kerstmis! Feliz Navidad! Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan! Glædelig Jul! Gajan Kristnaskon! Hyvaa Joulua! Buorrit Juovllat! Gledileg Jol! Nodlaig Mhaith Chugnat! Buone Feste Natalizie! Gleðilega hátíð! Natale Hilare et Annum Faustum! Pozdrevlyayu s Prazdnikom Rozhdestva is Novim Godom! God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt! Season's Greetings! Peace!

I hope this greeting finds you well. It does us. 2023 has been a year full of fun and family and friends - all the while mixing in the now familiar routines of retired life once in a while.

Like most grandparents, family time has taken on even more meaning for us. The joys of getting together (particularly with Frankie and Elliott) are hard to overstate.They grow up so fast!

In the space of two short months, this guy -

Becomes this guy -

Frankie's looks change much more gradually now, but conversations with her always make her growth, joy in living and intelligence obvious.

We try to take every opportunity to experience the joy of being with them (and their parents). And with Madeline as well. She has transitioned this year from teaching first grade to being the librarian at Lapham School in Madison. We all think it was a great move for her. Teachers (and librarians!) are so important. We've had lots of fun with her over the year - in Madison, at home and at the cabin.

And it's great to have a professional librarian and expert book reader available when the kids want a book read.

Kate and I once again shortened our Minnesota winter by spending February in the lovely little town of Cedar Key, Florida.

It's with some regret and LOTS of excitement that we have decided to spend the month of February in New Zealand next year. We decided since we aren't getting any younger and the pandemic risks have normalized somewhat (and we've been 'jabbed' five times by now) it's time to explore the world and add more adventure to our travels.

We have had lots of fun with friends over the course of the year. Trips to our cabin.

Annual get togethers that mean so much.

Even the joys of a nice walk in Saint Paul aren't lost on us (though Kate can more often be found in challenging fitness classes at our local Y).

Happy holidays from our house to yours. Here's to a joyful 2024!

Stan and Kate

(Note: Photos may be enlarged

by clicking on them.)

Thursday, December 15

Happy Holidays 2022

Happy Holidays! Joyful Solstice! Merry Christmas! Happy Hannukah! Best Wishes! Joyeux Noël! Feliz Navidad! Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan! Glædelig Jul! Gajan Kristnaskon! Hyvaa Joulua! Buorrit Juovllat! Gledileg Jol! Nodlaig Mhaith Chugnat! Buone Feste Natalizie! Natale Hilare et Annum Faustum! Pozdrevlyayu s Prazdnikom Rozhdestva is Novim Godom! God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt! Season's Greetings! Peace!

I hope this greeting finds you well. It does us (perhaps this year it finds us well even if you do ask for details). 2022 may have been a crazy year, but for us at least it has seemed a little less crazy than 2020 or 2021. Maybe we've just accustomed ourselves to this "new normal." But on lots of levels it feels like the trend line is going in a better direction.

It was anything but normal for us to start the year at "good old" frigid Cranberry Lake with the Summitts. But it was great and so pretty.

Ice crystals and tabletop curling at Chez Summitt.

We again spent February in Cedar Key, Florida. Sunrises and sunsets. Birds. Libations. And (at least relative to Minnesota), warmth!

The big event of 2022 for us was on March 4th, when Elliott Griffith Oleson was born.

He was long and lean at birth but he has quickly transformed into the bubbly person we all refer to as "Big Boy."

His big sister is also a constant source of joy and amusement for us.

We've been lucky enough to get our whole family together several times this year in Denver, Madison, St. Paul or Cranberry Lake. And we'll ring in the New Year in Denver with the whole family.