If I had to write one...

Thankfully, my family isn’t very big on the generic holiday letters. I do receive them occasionally from friends who haven’t been able to stay in touch due to their busy lives. I admit to having sent them to penpals on occasion, particularly during college, because I just couldn’t keep up with everyone. Generally, though, I’d rather just receive a little email from someone, rather than the “INSERT NAME HERE” mailmerge that often times isn’t even merged. They’re so dry, and despite my writing skills—I can’t make them sound interesting. They’re just… impersonal. Feh. But I guess that’s what makes holiday letters so uniquely un-unique.

However, in the spirit of Holidailies, here’s what I would write if I had to send a generic letter out for this year…

Dear INSERT NAME HERE,

Hey there! Happy INSERT APPROPRIATE HOLIDAY HERE! I hope that this card and letter find you and your family in good health and happiness. Hopefully you’re getting a bit more of a holiday-like December than we are here. It’s been in the low 40s to mid 50s since early December, and both Erich and I are wondering whether we’re looking at Christmas or at Memorial Day as the next upcoming holiday.

I’m sorry for not keeping in touch this year. It’s been horrendously hectic here. Thankfully, though, it’s ended up being a pretty good year despite some large bumps and bruises along the way.

We’ve been to five weddings this year. The first two had us traveling to new and exciting places- first to San Diego in April for my friend Melinda & her (now) husband, Kevin. Then in June, we headed to the Bahamas with the majority of our college crew for a week for Seth (who I used to refer to as Carge in college) and Gina’s wedding. The last four were thankfully closer to home- Frank and Teresa in August, Erin and Marc in October, and Dennis and Lisa in November.

All the while we realized that we really should start planning our wedding, considering that out of that group, only Seth & Gina had been engaged for longer than us. In September, my mother came up for what I now refer to as the “wedding crasher weekend,” where we managed to pick my date, pick a place, pick a caterer, and buy my dress in two days.  The official date is September 23, 2007. I haven’t started to freak out yet, but probably will starting in April or so when I realize I really need to get stuff done. You know me—procrastinator? Nah… never. 

On the sadder side, Erich lost his two remaining grandparents this year. His paternal grandmother died in early summer after a long illness. His maternal grandfather died suddenly in September. I never had the chance to meet his grandmother, but did meet his grandfather last year. I can only hope to live to 90 years and still have four close friends by my side.

Erich’s mom has been ill or in recovery for a good portion of this year. She broke her leg in late spring and has been in and out of a rehabilitation home due to complications that occurred with her diabetes. She seems to be in better spirits now that she’s able to go home once per week for the day. We’re hoping that she’ll be able to go home for good within the next few weeks—and then hopefully get up to see her, as she didn’t want visitors while she was in recovery.

Being homeowners has been great so far. We’ve now been in the house for over 18 months, and have really only had one major repair so far that needed immediate attention- the roof over the sunroom. We had a bad leak during one of the many severe rainstorms. We do have to replace the plaster on the ceiling and take a look in the nearby wall to seek out any internal damage to the house, but we’ve at least solved the leak problem. We haven’t done much else to the house yet—I’m hoping to be able to get wallpaper down in at least a couple rooms and repaint by the time the wedding comes around.

After six years at OLDCOMPANY, I decided it was time for a big change. In late November, I began a new job at NEWCOMPANY, doing similar work to what I did before. But the switch in industries and surroundings have been wonderful. I already feel like I’ve been here for a long time (except for still not having faces stick with names). I’m still commuting to Boston, but Erich and I can make the commute together. It’s not that bad with the two of us.

That’s about all for here. Please drop me an email at ADDRESS HERE, and I’ll make a point to stay better in touch next year. I’m sure I have your email somewhere, but you know me—always disorganized. Much love to NAME, NAME, and OTHERNAME.

Love,

Mel (and Erich)