2020, huh?
Hello everyone! Well, 2020 – what can we say? This has been a trying year for all of us – some much more than others. We are very sad for all of the people who have been lost to the pandemic this year, as well as all others who have been affected negatively through loss of family members, jobs/income, not being able to go to school, graduations and other related activities. Our hearts go out to all – we hope that you are able to get through what will be left of this horrible pandemic.
We wanted to relay a little of what we have been up to during 2020.
Kayla
Kayla decided to attend graduate school, working towards a Master’s Degree in Social Work. She started this past September at Rutgers University in an online, 3 year program. She really likes it so far, and has been doing very well! In addition, she is still working a few days a week at her same restaurant, Uno Pizzeria and Grill. Back in March, Kayla decided to foster a cat named Cookie. He is a very lovable cat, but has some medical issues. He is relatively healthy at this point, hopefully it will stay that way for a while. Kayla has also been doing some contract work in advertising.
Mindy
Mindy was laid off from her position in the Camden School District at the end of June, due to the pandemic and funding. Although it was a difficult transition, she has been realizing that retirement might come sooner than she originally planned. During the pandemic, she has been spending her time crafting, baking, playing Mah Jongg online, organizing things around the house, doing puzzles, in addition to seeing a few private clients. Socially distanced speech therapy is a challenge. It was conducted with masks either outside on the patio when the weather was nice, in the opened garage, and then virtually. Mindy and Kayla experimented with sour dough bread, knishes, blintzes, fresh pasta, and also tried their hand at bagels. Everything turned out very delicious! Mindy started an Etsy store with her new line of mask necklaces (etsy.com/shop/FoxHandmadeCreations) and Mike is helping her update her web page with her polymer clay creations. You can view it here: foxcreations.com She participated in a few socially distanced craft shows, in which some of the proceeds benefited the local theater in which we are members
Mike
Mike is up to his usual hijinks. He continues to enjoy his hobbies of photography, music, reading, movies, and home video. He also continues to help out with the web site of a local non-profit organization. In addition, he has flown his drone quite a bit more in 2020, getting more confident in his piloting. One of the reasons that he likes this hobby is that it is a fun combination of 3 things that he really likes: flying, photography, and video. You can see some of his photos below. One of Mike’s biggest pandemic activities was to do a total rehab of his home office. It is something he has wanted to do for years, and it was a very big project!
In other Mike news: On December 3rd, he had cardiac bypass surgery. All went extremely well, and he is very thankful for his medical team and all of the doctors and nurses who cared for him. Mindy has been wonderful taking care of him during this time, for which he is very appreciative! His recovery has been going great, and hopefully he will be back to normal soon.
Travel
Travel this year has been quite a bit less than other years, just like everyone else. We did manage to get a number of day trips in to the Jersey Shore, mostly Brigantine, Ocean City (NJ) and Margate. We are hoping to get around more once things start to be safe. We hope to see as many of our family and friends as possible, making up for lost time!
We wish you all a healthy and happy 2021!
With love, Mike, Mindy, and Kayla
Wow! You have made it to the end, thank you so much for reading!
Feel free to leave a comment below.
A little sample of my drone footage
Thanks for adding us to your mailing list. It is nice to know that things are going relatively well in these trying times. We are here for you if you every need anything
Thanks for sharing. We are sorry to hear of your health problem. Prays for a wonderful recovery.
Mike – Glad you sent this out. Keeping a positive attitude during these times is important. Since you just “dropped in” the comment about your surgery, I hope that you are doing well with a good prognosis. And, I enjoyed viewing your montage.
Happy New Year.
-Rich
Happy Healthy New Year to everyone!! Great pictures especially the drone montage!
Harvey & Rosanne
This was such a cool montage! Can’t wait to see others. Glad to hear everyone seems to be doing well and Kayla is thriving. Hope to see everyone soon!
This was a lovely reminiscence of your year. Congratulations to you all on your achievements and, most of all, let the good health continue!!
May we all go from strength to strength!
Love,
The Moxie Foxes
Loved reading this and seeing all the pictures and drone video! The footage of the beach and city views were so neat and I loved the sunset one at the end. Maybe after our house is finished, you could take some drone shots of it and the surrounding area? What a neat skill to have!
So glad you are recovering well from your surgery and that everyone is making the best of the limitations and changes the pandemic has imposed. All the baking sounds and looks amazing! 🙂
Happy New Year,
Sarah
Thanks so much for sharing these updates and (as usual) great photos! Wishing you all good health and happiness in the New Year!
Leslie
I love the updates!! I especially appreciate that I think this is all (or mostly) written by Mike, but you’ve committed to the 3rd person voice for your own update 😀 The drone footage is beautiful! Thanks for adding the video at the end, I loved all the gallery, but really liked the drone shots, so scrolling down and seeing a video was neat 🙂 So glad the family has stayed tight together through 2020. Hope your recovery continues smoothly, and looking forward to seeing you all again!
Hi Mike,
Thanks for including us in your list. You drone footage was great. I look forward to the sunsets you post on FB. So sorry to hear about your bypass surgery, but glad to know that your recuperation is going well. George and I hope to retire in 2 – 3 years. I can’t wait! Say hi to Mindy and Kayla for me. Feel better!
Annette
So great to read about everyone’s 2020 doings! While home bound for the most part, I can see the manny accomplishments and baking going on! Best wishes to all!
Yo, Mike,
Great newsletter. Glad to hear you’re recuperating well. You write a neat summary of your family’s year. Many newsletters just drone on and on…..(couldn’t resist that one).
Tell Mindy I love her work. Love to the 3 of you,
—Murrie
What a wonderful letter! Your family is an inspiration for all the projects you do together and all the places you visit together!
Thank you, Mike, for the update on all of your family’s activities. You sure are busy.
I am happy your surgery went well and you are recovering nicely You went through a lot.
We received our Moderna COVID19 vaccine shots today, so we are thankful and celebrated with Chinese food after. We get the second shot in 4 weeks. We are also thankful for the results of the recent elections and celebrate that. Of course the murderer-in-chief is still in office, provoking death and destruction. And outrage.
Hope to see you all in Florida as soon as possible.
Sheila and Phil
Thank you for sharing your newsletter with us again. Congrats to Kayla on the grad program—she’s going to crush it! Mike hope you are still recovering well and getting back out to drone piloting. Glad Mindy is able to reap the rewards of a successful career and enjoy herself even with COVID layoffs. Sending love to you all, stay well, stay positive,
Amanda & Dylan
Hi Mike! It was so nice to read your newsletter. I loved all the photos and your drone video. I am so glad you are doing well after your surgery and hope you have a full recovery. It sounds like Mindy is enjoying her time off and I am so glad she was able to be there to help care for you after your surgery. You must be so proud of Kayla! She is obviously very dedicated and a hard worker and will sure to have a bright future ahead. I hope to see you soon. Take care.