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It’s the day after Christmas.  My sniffles have turned into a full blown cold. This morning I had big ideas about getting the house all cleaned up after yesterday’s onslaught, but once I finished with the dishes, my energy petered out. So it was a good excuse to do something I've been meaning to do for a long time. I’m writing a holiday letter!  I felt bad that I didn't get around to it last year and had sort of intended to just go ahead and write one at some point during the year, but here we are with Christmas behind us and the year rapidly winding down.
Before I started writing, I put together a slideshow of photos from the year. I’m pretty sure I get more out of this exercise than anyone who watches it. It’s a wonderful way to remember everything we did over the course of the year – the roads we traveled, the adventures we shared, the funny mishaps, the highs and the lows. Fortunately I take more photos of the highs than the lows!

Happy Holidays 2014 from Heather Engen on Vimeo.
It’s been a good year.  Many of you will know that in 2013 my mom got very sick. So one of the greatest blessings this year has been to watch my Mom return to more of her old self and to see the amazing progress she has made.
Because we never gave you a 2013 update, we never had a chance to announce that our family grew by two very sweet kittens: Smokey and Bandit. We think they might be at least part Maine Coon because they’re quite big.  In September they turned a year old and weighed in at 16.5 and 17 lbs, respectively. It’s always fun to watch Kardynn haul them around because they’re about half as long as she is!

[Image] Bandit & Smokey, November 2014
Around the same time that we acquired the kittens, I was having some struggles.  In November 2013, I attempted to run a half marathon. And I did run it but the instant I finished running, I could hardly walk. I got home and pulled out crutches because I was in so much pain. I was only on crutches for a couple of days but when a month had passed and things still weren't good, I finally went to the doctor.  I eventually discovered that I had a labral tear and a stress fracture in my hip. That was a lousy way to go into the holidays. I was in a massive brace that went from my waist to my thigh and on crutches for six miserable weeks. Literally adding insult to injury - I gained weight. Ugh. It was not a fun time. I had already committed to helping coach Girls on the Run in the Spring so that was a good way to ease back into exercise.  I was able to mostly jog the 5k race at the end so that felt like progress.

Meanwhile, in April (Spring Break), Oskar and Dwight had a big adventure. They flew out to Colorado with Grampy in his single engine plane. The trip took them a full day of flying!  But they had a blast. Meanwhile the girls had a good week too. The highlight was an overnight trip to Baltimore with friends.
Around this same time, my brother Jonny left his job in Colorado, defended his master thesis and started hiking the Appalachian Trail.  He left from Georgia on April 5 and he finished in Maine on October 9. It will no doubt be one of the highlights of his life. I was thrilled to be able to meet up with him on three different occasions. I loved hiking with him but I also decided maybe I don’t need to thru-hike the AT.*smile* Jonny’s trail name was Rockman. Dad and I were given trail names as well: Hippo and Blisterkrieg.  The funny thing about “Hippo” is that he was named by someone who knew absolutely nothing about his previous history with hippos. You can’t escape your past, it seems!
In June my past caught up with me in the form of a very dear childhood friend, Gary Roberts. He spent a few days visiting us, along with his wife and daughter. It had probably been nearly twenty-five years since we’d last spent time together but it was just like old times. We had a great time visiting with them and doing some touristy stuff as well.

We spent most of our summer poolside. But we did enjoy two quick getaways to the beach.  In July, Grampy took Kiersten, Kardynn and myself to Ocracoke for a day, in his plane.  A few weeks later the kids and I drove to the Eastern Shore and spent a couple of days with Dad and family.  Both trips were so much fun! We’re very grateful for relatives who share with us!
In September school started and it was a momentous occasion because Kardynn started first grade, which meant a jump from half day to full day. She did great. I thought I would have loads of free time but somehow that hasn't happened. Our house remains as disheveled as ever. But I have managed to squeeze in some good stuff all the same. In September, my friend and I did a 21 mile day hike on the AT. (Now I've hiked from Front Royal to Harper’s Ferry, not to mention 20 miles in southern Virginia and another little leg up in Maryland.) I managed to squeeze in a quick trip with Dad out to Arizona to visit Ted’s family. Dwight and I trained for a half marathon. I’m coordinating Odyssey of the Mind at the elementary school for the second year in a row (and the last year!). I’m also coaching two Odyssey teams. I’m taking photos for the school yearbook. And I've started working part time. So I’m keeping busy!
Dwight is still working from home for Oracle. It’s been interesting figuring out how to navigate around each other during the day. I think his life got easier when I started working because I’m no longer available to pester him during the day. I have to make the most of the time while the kids are away to get my work hours in! I’m really enjoying what I’m doing – I’m working with my Dad – but it’s only a short-term opportunity. So now I’m trying to decide whether or not I’d like to continue to work part time when this opportunity ends in a few months.
In November we were wild and crazy and had two whirlwind road trips.  At the start of the month, Dad and I piled my kids into the minivan and drove to Michigan for a long weekend.  It wasn't a very long weekend, however. We left here the Saturday after Halloween and came back two days later, on Monday. But we did get to visit a lot of relatives so that was fantastic and totally worth it.  Two weeks later Dwight and I drove to Richmond for the repeat Half Marathon. (I was thrilled to be able to jog the entire time and most importantly – I walked away from it!) The following weekend, Jonny and I loaded up the kids and drove down to Tennessee to visit with more relatives. Again, it was a mad dash there and back.  We took the kids out of school a little early on a Friday and then drove home on Sunday. Dwight surprised us by getting a ride in his Dad’s airplane and meeting up with us and then driving back with us on Sunday. We had a great time visiting with family, as always.  But all the same, we’re happy to report that there have been no road trips this month!

Jonny has been staying with us while he looks for a job. It seems he has a promising prospect so his time with us may be coming to an end, which will be bittersweet – bitter for us, sweet for him!  *smile* We really enjoy having him here. Unfortunately I think we've permanently cured him from ever wanting children!

Speaking of the children, we’re trying to adjust to the little people they’re becoming. Oskar has braces. Annika and Kiersten get their braces next month. Kiersten has started wearing glasses. Oskar's only a few inches shorter than me.  I look at them and wonder how they can possibly be this grown up.  They've changed so much, and yet they haven’t changed at all. 
Oskar wants to understand how everything works. He’s very curious about the hows and whys of the world. 
Annika is a powerhouse. She is organized chaos - a girl of extremes. One minute she's got our entire family organized and has everyone and everything moving like clockwork. The next minute she's on a raging rampage, wreaking havoc everywhere she goes. 
Kiersten is our sweet - and a little sneaky - bookworm. (She prides herself on the sneaky part.) She's tender, careful and cautious. 
Kardynn definitely makes the most of being the baby of the household. And yet it’s amazing to watch her interact with other people. She’s learned so much from having older siblings and she navigates the world with ease.   
They're all thriving in spite of us!

We look forward to the coming year and the many highlights it will no doubt bring. We hope our paths will cross with many of you and we wish you too, all the best things in 2015.
With much love and goodwill from the Engen family!
[Image] December 2014