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.)

T

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:

  Sunsets:

 Wild berries:

 Harvest:

Autumn:

 Stars and moon:

 And, of course, barns:

And now we are on to 2012, which I'm sure will be full of its own adventures, and I trust God will be at work through everything.  

Checking the Rear-view Mirror: 2010

For me, 2010 was full of "hellos" and "good-byes", and the occasional "hello again" followed closely by a "good-bye again."  

The good-byes are rough, but they do give the opportunity for one more "hello again" and I suppose they're unavoidable when one chooses to live on the opposite side of the world for a while.  So here's a look at my year, divided into two parts by location:

Israel: January-July

January was a month of "hellos" as people slowly trickled back after the Christmas break. 

It also contained lots of bacon (relatively)

…and a trip to Galilee with Emily and her mom

Also, my nephew was born, though I wasn't there to meet him. 

In February school started up again.  I joined the new Physical Settings class on a few of their field studies, continually working on my knowledge of the land and trying to get ideas for my project. 

 It was fun to see water in the wilderness.

March contained a few adventures.

I headed to the Dead Sea area with some friends early one morning where we climbed Masada to watch the sunrise.

Later in the month I went on a camping trip with some friends and my sister and we explored much of the Negev, including parts of the ancient Spice Routes. 

April was a busy month.

During the week of Passover, I went on a field study to Galilee.  It was for a class on the modern history of Israel, so the sites visited and perspective gained were quite a departure from the norm. 

 On campus we had our annual egg hunt and BBQ for Easter.

My sister was stuck in Jerusalem for her birthday, so we partied by getting locked into a church when it closed and had to climb over a gate to escape. 

The next week a group of us went to Dor, Haifa, and Rosh HaNikra for a little break.

May was a month of good-byes as the semester ended and most people left shortly thereafter.  

It was also a month of hellos as my aunt and uncle came with a short-term group and I met up with several other people I knew from "back home."

June was a big month for me as I finally completed all my projects and earned my master's degree.

July was a month of transitions.

For my last week in Israel, a couple girls visited and I took them on a whirl-wind tour of the country. 

Then, after a few more good-byes, I was off to…

The United States of America: July-December

July (continued)

The first job on my list after my return was to visit my nephew, which I quickly accomplished.

 Then they made me dress up like a cow so we could get free food.

I also had a chance to spend some time with another part of my family as I helped them move and spent a few days with them. 

Finally back to beautiful Montana where it rains in the summer!

August was filled with more reunions 

and a week at camp. 

In September I took a recruiting trip to Colorado and also managed to see some old friends. 

In October I tried to do some hiking and exploring and enjoy the Rockies in fall.

Then I broke my finger.  Ouch.

November was spent recovering.

First snow came…and stayed.

My nephew, brother, and sister-in-law came for Thanksgiving, but, unlike the snow, they couldn't stay. 

We got a Christmas tree.

And a herd of elk decided to take up residence in my back yard.

In December I went to the Christmas stroll

And decorated my own place.

It was a blessing to have friends and family around to be with over the holidays.

A few favorite memories this year include:
Numerous birthday celebrations (and yes, '81 was a good year for babies).

In a similar vein, various get-togethers with friends, usually involving food (Shabbat meals, Top Chef Parties, etc.)

 Getting to see most of my friends and family this year - though usually for only very short periods.  

So here's to the New Year!