Snyder Family Christmas Letter 2020

Snyder Family Christmas Letter 2020

As I have thought about this letter, it occurred to me that there may not be anything interesting to write about in 2020.  So, here I go and we will see where it leads.  You will have to let me know if you found it interesting or not.  Like the rest of you, many of our plans changed or were completely canceled this year.  We worked hard to find ways to enjoy the time we had together. 

But first, let's recap what our kids have been up to.

Saying Bye to Dylan in Oct

Dylan went to Texas in July and when he returned he announced that he was moving back to Texas.  He made it official in October and is doing well.  He has his own place and likes his job.  We talk several times a week.  He likes to video chat but doesn’t like it when I play with the filters LOL!

Leighton in NYC 2019

Leighton and Kavya are also working from home.  They moved into a bigger apartment this year that has a balcony.  We look forward to being able to visit again and seeing their new place.

Rachel is doing virtual classes and working as a barista in a coffee shop.  We got to see her in action last year when we visited, and she really does an amazing job.  We were very impressed with her skills.  

Rachel's first official wine tasting

In January we met up with our friends Troy & Leslie Kelly and Mike & Sophie Grinnan at Bobby McKey’s Dueling Piano Bar in National Harbor, MD.  It was such a fun night.  We miss seeing them and spending time with them.  January 29^th brought the 3^rd anniversary of losing Jessica.  I have dedicated this day as a self-care day.  This year, I did a yoga class and had a facial.  That may seem incredibly selfish (or maybe that's just the negative self-talk in my head coming out), but that’s how I make it through the day.

Good friends and good times at Bobby McKey's

Anthony and I are fortunate that we can both work remotely.  We both transitioned to working from home on March 16^th and have been working from home ever since.  Our upstairs bedroom was converted into an office a couple of years ago.  We each have our own workspace and Anthony has "macked" his out.   You would think that we would start to drive each other crazy spending every day together.  We have a nice working rhythm and the only time there’s an issue is when we both have virtual meetings at the same time. 

Jessica Bear at Two Twisted Posts

The weekends in March and April brought lots of projects.  We cleaned and organized closets and the kitchen pantry, we steam cleaned carpets and cleaned out the refrigerator.  We tried our best to support restaurants by ordering food delivery and wineries with curbside pick up, by purchasing bottles of wine.  By May, we were ready to get out and see more than our neighborhood.   We designated the summer “No Chore Weekends”.  For the entire summer, we did not do any household projects or chores on the weekends.  We spent our weekends getting outside enjoying the sunshine and fresh air.  We did several hikes, we kayaked, and we rode bikes.  The wineries started opening up and we did a few winery visits.  We spent July 4th on the lawn of Valerie Hill winery eating burgers, drinking wine and listening to music.  

Hanging out with Mike

 We had 2 cruises canceled; however,  we took the opportunity to take several smaller trips.  In May we spent Memorial Day weekend in Savannah, GA.  We had a great visit and Anthony’s friend Mike Hullihan drove up to have dinner with us one night.   

Bike Tour of Savannah

In June, we went to visit our good friend Kathy Clifton and visited Stone Mountain Winery.  This winery is at the top of a mountain – literally.  The drive’s a little nerve racking, but the view is totally worth it.   In July, we went to Tennessee for our MCJROTC reunion.  For those of you who didn’t know, I was in the Marine Corp JROTC all 4 years of high school.  It was great to see everyone and catch up.  

Anthony had to make several trips to Tampa for work; I tagged along for a couple.  In September, we went to Texas to visit Jessica.  In October, we went to south Florida during our birthday week.  While there, we visited our friends John & Dawn Tillie and Joe and Cindy Delmonte.  We had a great time just sitting on the beach, cycling and hiking.  On my birthday – we did the air boat tour in the Everglades (and even saw some real gators.)

Hanging out with the Tilley's

Happy 50th Birthday to me!

With Dylan gone, Thanksgiving was just me and Anthony.  We made homemade pizzas and they were delicious.  Rachel arrived the following Saturday and has spent the last 2 weeks with us.  While we are sad to see her leave, nobody will be sadder than Snickers,  Rachel is his most favorite person on the planet.

Our Thanksgiving Feast

Snickers loves him some Rachel

Like everyone, we are ready for 2020 to be over and we have hopes that 2021 will be a better year.  We are choosing to find joy where we can.  It takes conscious effort and prayer, but it is possible.

 

We  Choose Joy!

Merry Christmas

Anthony & Cindy Snyder

Our "We put up the tree" photo 2020