Happy 2025
Greetings and Happy 2025 to everyone! We wanted to share with you what we have been up to during the past year.
Mike and Mindy had some very fun travel experiences! First, we traveled to Johnson City, Tennessee, to visit close friends. We had a wonderful time exploring the surrounding area which has many beautiful mountains and which provided both very scenic views as well as some wonderful hiking opportunities. We explored nearby Jonesborough, where our friends own an art gallery where they display their works, as well as works of other local artists. While there, we were able to join a painting class, run by our artist friend, which was a very fun and different experience. In Mike’s case, the old saying, “Don’t quit your day job,” applies here, even though he doesn’t have a day job! We made a day trip to visit the artist community at the River Art District in Asheville, NC. While there, we met many of the artists in their studios, and they sell their artwork there. Unfortunately, 5 days after our visit, the whole area was flooded and completely underwater due to Hurricane Helene. It was such a terrible tragedy with so much destroyed, both the buildings and the beautiful artwork which we had just been able to enjoy.
In September we visited with our Aunt Michele and Uncle Michael in Boynton Beach, Florida for a few days. A highlight of our stay was a visit to the Morikami Museum, which has an interesting history and beautiful grounds which we explored. After that wonderful visit, we embarked on a 5-day cruise to the Caribbean. We boarded the Sun Princess ship in Ft. Lauderdale. While the ship is very large and can accommodate about 3,000 guests, we were part of a group of 120 Mah Jongg enthusiasts. Mike doesn’t play, so he had some quality time by himself relaxing, reading, and exploring the ship, while Mindy played many sessions of Mah Jongg. We had 2 ports of call: Dominican Republic and Grand Turk, where we enjoyed the local beaches.
We spent Thanksgiving at our niece and nephew’s home in the Boston area, along with our extended family. Thanksgiving has always been a special time in our family, and this one continued in that tradition.
In addition to these longer trips, we had a number of day and overnight trips to Ocean City, NJ, Cape May, and Long Beach Island.
Mindy has been busy as usual with her Polymer Clay pursuits. She has been developing some new designs, many of which she has added to her Etsy Shop and exhibited at recent local craft shows. Mindy has also been enjoying playing both Mah Jongg and Canasta which provide lots of social time with her friends. She has been playing Mah Jongg for many years, but Canasta is a newer interest for her. Meanwhile, Mindy won’t retire from her speech therapy career because she loves it so much, so she continues to see a few clients in her private practice.
Mike continues his passion for flying his drone in interesting places to capture both still photos and video from a different perspective than can be achieved on the ground. In addition to his current “camera drone,” he built his first “First Person View,” or FPV drone, which is a different type of drone that allows the pilot to do complicated acrobatic maneuvers. He built it with the help of his friends in the Jersey Droners group that he has been part of for several years now. The build was pretty challenging, but it is working properly! A friend from the group tested it for him, while he is honing his piloting skills on a flight simulator so that he can fly it himself.
Mike photographed the solar eclipse which took place in April. The sky was pretty cloudy that day in South Jersey, but he was able to get this photo during a short break in the clouds:
In November, we were honored to attend the beautiful wedding of our niece Sarah to Eric. It was a night to remember! They make such a beautiful couple! Kayla was also honored to be a bridesmaid.
Mike and Kayla, along with a close friend, attended their first pro soccer game, where the Philadelphia Union played the Washington DC team, D.C. United. The Union’s stadium is a wonderful venue. It was a great game, with Philadelphia winning the game, 4-0!
Some concerts that Mike attended this year, some with Mindy and some with friends. These included Bruce Springsteen (of course!), Graham Nash, Samantha Fish, who is a really talented blues guitarist. All were very enjoyable!
Kayla continues to live in her apartment in Voorhees, NJ, with her cat, Nova, and a newer kitten, Autumn. She is a Social Worker and has a newer job, where she is a Support Coordinator helping intellectually developmentally disabled individuals. In this role, she helps coordinate needed services for her clients and periodically visits them in their homes to ensure that they are getting what they need. We are very proud of her! Kayla enjoys reading, country line dancing, and visiting local wineries with her friends.
We wish you all a healthy and happy 2025!
With love, Mike, Mindy, and Kayla
Wow! You have made it to the end, thank you so much for reading!
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