Happy Holidays 2008!

We can call 2008 nothing if not eventful. In one year we moved halfway around the world, then moved halfway across the country!

During our last 6 months in The Netherlands, we were lucky to see many more European sights, and especially lucky to have seen friends and family. Friend Judy from Texas visited around Easter, and even the cold weather (and Judy's bad cold) didn't stop us from seeing sights around Holland and France. We toured the Louvre, saw the beaches of Normandy, and even made it to the top of the Mont St Michel abbey (pictured).

In May, we spent time with Rochelle's sister Kathleen and her boyfriend Al, touring Holland and Germany. Touring the Rhine and staying in a small b&b in Rothenburg were highlights of the trip -- especially our talks with the b&b's owner -- is feisty a german word? (Pictured: Rochelle and Kathleen getting punished at Rothenburg's criminal ["torture"] museum)

We squeezed in three trips to Italy -- the Amalfi coast, Milan, and Venice. We couldn't leave Europe without seeing Greek ruins (in the Italian city Paestum, south of Sorrento), DaVinci's "The Last Supper" (in a small church in Milan), and the romantic canals of Venice (pictured below: the island of Murano, famous for glassmaking).

Most of you know that mid-year saw us moving back to the states. Rochelle was asked to take over managing the research and development team stationed in Corona, California. As R&D manager for custom products, her task was to lead development of products such as sauces and seasonings that Unilever makes for companies like Taco Bell & KFC.

It was quite unexpected that Unilever would decide in the fall to sell off this business. For Rochelle it meant that her management asked her to take on another position within Unilever. So it's back to the Chicago area for us. Rochelle is taking the role of Project Leader R&D for Sustainability. She'll be spearheading the efforts of Unilever's Foodservice division to do things like reduce packaging, energy use, and environmental impact.

Rich spent the 2nd half of the year working around the California house ... it was a great experience doing a lot of the work ourselves. He is now an expert at tasks like fixing sprinkler systems and installing floor trim! We are really going to miss the pool!

During our short stay in California we were able to check out a lot of the sights around L.A., like Hollywood, Venice Beach, and we saw a concert in the beautiful Disney concert hall. We managed a trip to Santa Barbara, enjoying the laid-back atmosphere and the area wineries. And just before we left we spent a day at Disneyland with our friend (and former Disney employees) Tina and her father Curt. Pictured below is the Mission Santa Barbara.

After buying a fixer-upper and "flipping" it earlier than expected, we found a house in the Chicago suburb of Naperville that doesn't need a lot of immediate work. We should be moving in at the end of January. Until then we're in a furnished apartment (at the company's expense, of course).

Although the cold weather has hit hard since we moved back, we're happy to be closer to many of our friends and family. And we certainly won't have a hard time enjoying all that the Chicago area has to offer!

Our cat Andy has coped well considering that he's taken three plane rides this year! He seemed to like his home in California and we hope that he will enjoy his new home as well. Here he is at Christmastime last year.


Thanks for stopping by to check out our news. Happy holidays and best wishes in the New Year!

Christmas Card: Holland Holidays

We were very fortunate to experience many different Holiday customs during our two years in The Netherlands. Here's a little bit about the Christmas holiday time in Holland.

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Sinterklaas is The Netherlands' holiday equivalent to our Santa Claus. Some even say Sinterklaas is the version of St. Nick upon which Santa is based, because of the dutch settlers in New York. But there are big differences in timing and traditions!

Each November, Sinterklaas arrives on a boat from his residence in Spain. He brings along his white horse and the "Zwarte Pieten" ("Black Peters"). Every year Sinterklaas officially arrives in a different Holland city, but he manages to have a procession in just about every town in the country. The "Peters" toss licorice candy or spice cookies to the kids. In some of the larger cities like Amsterdam they perform tricks like jumping out of department store windows.



Leading up to the feast of St. Nikolaus, children put their shoes out every night, sing a Sinterklaas song, and leave treats for the Peters or the White Horse. Each night a treat or small gift is left for the kids ... or a bunch of sticks or salt if they've been bad!

As opposed to our tradition of gift-giving on Christmas Day, the Dutch exchange gifts on (or the evening before) St. Nickolaus Day (Dec. 6). Many of the gifts are homemade and often a humorous poem is read along with the gift. The emphasis is on giving very personal gifts.

Normally, Christmas trees don't go up until after this point. Suddenly all of the Sinterklaas and Zwarte Pieten disappear from the stores until his arrival the following year.

If you'd like to read a more detailed account of this holiday tradition, check out the wiki article here.

Thanks for visiting ... perhaps we'll share some other traditions next year. Best wishes for a happy new year!