THE GARVEY'S: January 2009

2008- A look back........

Day after Christmas- Galveston, TX

Well, it's hard to believe that another year has come to a close. Where does the time go???? We usually send out a Christmas Letter with our cards, but this past year has been so crazy. Here with thought, if we make it through the Wedding, things will slow down...... yeah, right, it only got busier. So here is a brief over view of our year, and well wishes for you all as we roll into 2009.

January 2008: My Grandma Steffen passed away on December 21, 2007. In January we flew to New York for her memorial service and some much needed time with the family. Greg also traveled a few weeks in January with work. ( the start of the year of travel)

Me in Downtown Rochester, NY January 2008

Febuary 2008: I was told at work that some down sizing was about to occure, and that I would no longer be over seeing the Catering, and that I would be taking on the role of a General Manager for a Cafe in Missouri City, TX ( about an hour drive from home) I was really unsure of this transition, and didn't think I would like it.

March 2008: Sierra joined our family...... Our little monster, only about 4 weeks old, wandered into the yard on Saturday morning, and found Greg.... LIfe just hasn't been the same since. Although, we are past the every 2 hours of getting up and letting her out each night. We still have to be very careful with what's left out for her to chew. Shelby, I think at times wonders what were we thinking...... Over all it's been fun having the 2 dogs. ( and yes, they went to see Santa at Pet Smart)

Our first night with Sierra- Shelby is not to sure of this

April 2008: More traveling for Greg

May 2008: Greg's brother Graeme graduated with his PHD, and Greg was able to fly back to Chicago for his graduation and a weekend with the family. Congratulations Graeme !!!!

June 2008: And the weekly trips continued for Greg- by this point he's spent time in Iowa, Kansas, Dallas, New Orleans, and Oklahoma. I was transfered to a Panera closer to home in Pasadena. Now I only have about a 15 minute drive to work. It's a much busier Cafe, so it's been a little rough to transition.

July 2008: Greg and I took a week off from work, and spent some time working around the house, and a few days in San Antonio,TX. It was nice to spend some time together and just relax.

Greg and I at Sea World

August 2008: We had a close hit with a Tropical Storm Ed this month. No major damage, just lots of rain and wind. Panera closed down for a partial day as well as Hobart.

September 2008: September 12, Hurricane Ike made landfall. We lost power for 5 days, and took weeks for the city to return to somewhat of a normal way of life. To this day, many houses in our neighborhood are still covered with the blue tarps on the roofs, and fencing down. It was a night we will never forget. Greg was told at that he would be traveling to Kansas City every week until the end of the year to help run the branch up there. I was less than thrilled about this, but had high hopes of a promotion for Greg and a chance to move closer to friends and family.

Looking out our front door the morning after

Kehma Broadwalk, after the storm

October 2008: We celebrated our First Anniversary !!!!

November 2008: We were able to take a vacation up north and spend Thanksgiving with family. And enjoy the snow !!! Sorry for wishing the snow on everyone, but it was AWESOME !!! While in Chicago we learned that Greg would be returning to Houston at the end of the year,due to some down sizing of a few branches in his district. It was not the news we had been hoping for, but we've excepted it, and eagerly are awaiting what the future has in store for us. (all our pictures from Chicago are saved on Greg's hard drive, we'll have to post at a different time)

Greg and I in Chicago- this was our Christmas card picture

December 2008: My parents made the long drive from Arizona to spend Christmas with us. It was sooo nice to have family around for the Holidays. Thanks for making the drive- it truely made our Christmas special. Shelby and Sierra really enjoyed their time with you as well. December 30th- was Greg's final trip home from Kansas City. This marked week number 34 of travel this year for him.