Christmas Letter 2009

2009 is almost over and we look forward to 2010. This year has gone by very quickly. Our children are both very active and there is very little time for breaks and boredom. 

Sarah will be 2 years old in March and speaks a lot of German words and a few short sentences. We go to Co-op Preschool (parents Initiative) with Teacher Wendy every Wednesday. Sarah loves painting and likes to play with her dolls.

Tim will be 4 years at the end of the year and goes to Kiddie Academy to Teacher Susan and Mamata three days a week. He already knows all his letters and can read many sight words. He has great fun reading books and playing computer. 

Both children love music and dancing wildly to the music from their CD player and when Dad plays the guitar. 

In August we were to at Tini's brothers wedding in Bavaria, and their wedding in Vienna. We were very grateful that we could be there to finally meet our sister in laws family in person. We also spent a good time with Grandma and Grandpa on a farm in Wildsteig and then with our kids great grandparents on a sheep farm in Guenzburg. Tim is very enthusiastic about German churches and loved his visit to the monastery of Andechs and Diessen with Omily. He even got to ring the bells in a small chapel in Wildsteig. Clearly one of his highlight on this trip.

After our long 4 week stay in Germany, Marco had to catch up with work and got assigned a small team he is now responsible for. Amazon does well despite the recession (stock price and jobs), which is certainly due to the innovative, yet economical management team led by founder Jeff Bezos. Fortunately, we did not have to worry about Marcos job much. 

After 5 years home, taking care of the kids all day every day and night, Tini decided to spent more time for herself. She goes to the gym at the local sports club several times a week, takes step classes and goes swimming, goes to massages and carries her pedometer diligently. She is also the treasurer for Sarah's preschool and takes care of the family finances.

Thanks to the successful share price from Amazon, we were able to spent a week of family vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in early December. The best about this trip was the Kids Club. While our children were cared for, we read a lot, went swimming, fine dining, kayaking, saw dolphin, released turtles and relaxed at the pool. 

Merry Christmas and all the best for 2010 
from Seattle