Joining the Heavens: A (belated) Year in Review: 2011

I fear that I have rather fallen out of the habit of blogging. This will have to be remedied. This also means that I never did my annual "Year in Review" summary of the previous year.

So, about a month late, here's my highlights from 2011:

In the winter months I worked at odd jobs, like tutoring and cooking (lunch for 100+ at MBC):

I took a couple small trips, one to Arizona. It was not as warm as one on vacation from Montana could have hoped.

On Feburary 9th we celebrated my Grandad's 82nd birthday,

a month before he passed away, on March 9th. While it was hard to say good-bye to him, it was a blessing to be able to spend time with various members on that side of the family. I have a pretty great family.

A week later my Great Uncle George passed away also. I didn't know him very well, but we were able to join his family in remembering his life for a short time also.

Probably the highlight of the year was the trip I took in May-June.

It started off in Greece, a couple hours drive from Athens, on a boat.

After about a week on the boat, we ended up in the area of Ephesus (in Turkey) for a few days.

Then back on the boat, and headed back to Athens. The Acropolis is truly spectacular.

We took a day trip to Corinth. This picture is from the top of Acrocorinth, with a good view of the Isthmus of Corinth (now the canal) separating the Aegean from the Ionian Sea.

From Athens I headed to Delphi, probably one of my favorite places in Greece (aside from some of the Islands I visited).

After other Greece adventures I ended up in Istanbul. Here you can see the Golden Horn across the way, with both Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque visible. The Blue Mosque is towards the right and has more minarets.

After an over-night bus ride from Istanbul I found myself in Goreme, Cappadocia, which has some of the most interesting and spectacular geology I've seen. I enjoyed a few exploratory hikes in the area.

After stops in Ankara and Antalya, I paused in Olympos, a magical and Care Paravel-like ruin.

The trip finished off with short stops in Finike and Hierapolis, before heading back to Istanbul and then home.

Shortly after I arrived home, my uncle passed away on July 11th.

Again, it was hard, but we took great comfort in knowing that he was home, with his Savior. I also enjoyed re-connecting with cousins I hadn't seen in some time.

At the end of July I went to a Family Reunion/50th Wedding Anniversary in beautiful eastern Montana. We took the time to visit the old ranch, Sleepy Hollow. (Yes, yes that is its name, and no, there are no headless horsemen.)

We even flew some kites. :)

We spent time with Uncle Walt and Aunt Arden at their family reunion.

We cousins enjoyed playing some games together.

Most of the rest of the summer I ended up spending at camp, helping in the kitchen and re-connecting with old friends. This is some of my camp "family."

I even got to go on the annual rafting trip. Most summers I would have missed it, but with the high water we had in the spring and early summer, it took much longer than usual to be safe enough.

I never get tired of the scenery up there.

After camp I celebrated my birthday...and somehow we all managed to wear just about the same color.

And to go with all the purple...we had our first grape harvest. Pretty exciting because grapes aren't really known to grow here...

This fall especially I started experimenting with various knitting techniques. I'm getting better.

I've also tried to experiment more with cooking, like this lime cheesecake I made for my birthday:

or this lemon souffle I made, just to try a souffle:

We haven't had much snow, but I've tried to enjoy it a little. (This is me building a fort.)

It wasn't all just fun and games. I also worked at MBC, including starting to help in the library. I've cataloged...lots of books...

For the holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas) we spent some time at our place in Lewistown. (It's very cold at first.)

And, of course, we visit my Grandma when we get a chance. (This picture isn't all that flattering...but the situation made me laugh.)

The year wouldn't be complete without a mention of the Christmas stroll and the Christmas spiders.

And, of course, throughout the year I've enjoyed experimenting with capturing various places, moods, and seasons in Montana with my camera. (I've added some new lenses and filters to experiment with, which is fun. If you want a bigger view, click on the picture.)
Lightening: