Summary of 2024

The winter of 2024 was cold and snowy but not too harsh. Walking was treacherous so we spent much time inside. When it snowed we cleared the deck, driveway and front walk with shovels, but when snow was deep a friendly neighbor cleared the driveway with his tractor-snowblower. We played cribbage and bridge at the local Library and Jerry helped people file income taxes. Ben & Katyana came for a visit, as did Dorothy, and we visited Nico, Steph, Scarlett, Lilly and Jennifer. We watched a lot of movies on TV while dreaming of warm summer days to come.

In March we rented a condominium on Myrtle Beach in South Carolina for two weeks. Dawn and Tom wanted to join us but got sick on the way and went back home to recover. We got together with Hope and Denny and Gary and Sue for card games. It was slightly warmer than in Vermont but the long drives were ordeals which we probably will not repeat. On the way back we stopped at Dorothy and Dan's in Washington, DC for two days. They came to Vermont with Dan's mother for the solar eclipse on April 8. We drove them north to where the eclipse was total and were fortunate in having clear weather for perfect viewing. It caused a phenomenal amount of traffic on Vermont's Interstate highways but everyone was in a good mood and tolerated the delays.

In the last days of April we started trimming hedges, planting vegetables and spending days at camp in Newbury, VT, enjoying it more and more as days got warmer. We bought an old Vermont Castings stove and installed it in the cabin to make the camp more enjoyable in chilly weather. We built a bat house for the cabin but it didn't get occupied. We kept the camp access road and walking trails clear, cut wood for campfires, transplanted wild roses and weeded around the firepit. The trail camera captured photos of deer plus a moose and her calf. We saw forest birds of species different than those seen at home in Hartland. Bluebirds nested again in the box by the garden.

We got the family together for a few days at Ricker Pond State Park during the Fourth of July holiday. Everyone enjoyed tent camping, swimming, fishing and being together around campfires. The garden was productive all summer so we ate greens, beets and tomato sandwiches for months and have a good supply of garlic, onions, butternut squash and Delicata squash stored for winter use. Many days were spent at camp so it was hard to keep up with chores at home. We finally hired someone to mow the lawn so we could spend more time at camp. We got together with friends in Underhill, and Hilary and Rod came up for shows at Weston Playhouse and Northern Stage. Dorothy created a sculpture reminiscent of our schooner which got rave reviews in a big DC art show but was not for sale because she made it for us. Her imaginative sculpture is on a stand visible from both kitchen and living room. It was a good summer.

This Fall the whole country focused on the Presidential election. There was a Harris/Walz sign on our lawn. Fall foliage was magnificent but the election result was sad. The next few years may be bad not only for our country but for the whole world. We enjoyed the birthdays of our children. Jennifer is a caller for traditional dances and we saw her acting and fiddling in "A Christmas Carol" at Conway's M&D Playhouse. We got vaccinations and had medical exams. Snow arrived on Thanksgiving day, stayed through our 30th wedding anniversary and was still on the ground at year-end. Hilary broke a leg and couldn't join us for the holidays but Sara helped decorate our tree and prepare a turkey dinner on Christmas. We are grateful for our wonderful family and friends and hope everyone enjoys 2025.