Engen Holiday Letter 2019

I love this time of year. I love holiday lights. I love coming up with gifts for the people in my life. I love holiday treats. I love breaks from school and work. I love getting snowed in (although in Virginia that usually comes later in the winter season). I love receiving holiday cards - I especially love seeing your family photos and reading your holiday letters.

Some years we’ve managed to get out holiday letters or cards of our own but we’re admittedly sporadic about it. This is a busy phase in my and Dwight’s lives and unfortunately there are plenty of things that fall through the cracks. But this year we’re sending out an update. Woo hoo! I know most of you have an opportunity to keep up with us on Facebook but since I enjoy reading your holiday recaps, I wanted to reciprocate with one of our own.

Last year was one of the years we didn’t get a letter out but some pretty big stuff happened in 2018. So I’m going back a little. In fact, as we roll into the 2020s, you’re lucky I’m not going back a full decade, people! I’m feeling a little sentimental!

Let's not beat around the bush. This will be a tale of all the best things happening in our lives. But do not be fooled. I’m not lying but I’m also not bothering to mention the frenetic pace of trying to get everyone where they need to be at the right times. I’m not going to mention how Annika and Kardynn only have time for quick PB&J in the car on their way to volleyball practice two nights a week. I’ll be leaving out the part about Kiersten having practice until 10 pm, those same two nights. I’m skipping over the days when I have to pick Kiersten up from drama practice at the same time but different school from where I also have to pick Oskar up from gaming club. And I’m totally not going to mention how that’s why I can’t drop Annika off at that same time, to volunteer at the volleyball club with the younger kids, which technically she ought to be doing. I'm omitting the fact that Annika and Kiersten have volleyball practice every.single.weekend that they don't have a volleyball tournament. I won't be talking about how we couldn't survive all this madness without awesome friends who are willing to carpool. I mean, you’ll get a sense of the fact that life’s a little nuts these days, but I will do my best to make it sound glamorous.  And there really has been some pretty awesome stuff going on so THAT’S what I’m going to tell you about!

In 2018 we fell down the rabbit hole of club volleyball. Tryouts were in November of 2017 and practices started that December but things didn’t really ramp up until 2018. Before we could even get to the first tournament, Annika managed to break her thumb. (She fell trying to beat her Dad down a ski slope at Vail. Of course that’s what she was doing.) So she had to sit out the first couple of tournaments of her club volleyball career. That was a rough start but the romance with volleyball has continued to grow. Annika and Kiersten both love it and there’s been no turning back. Spoiler alert, Kardynn now loves it too.

In January 2018, while Annika was sitting on the bench with her broken thumb, I managed to get Dwight out of North America for the first time. He and I went to Costa Rica with our friends Tim and Laurie. We'd been planning this trip for a couple of years, to celebrate our respective 20 year anniversaries (20 years dating for us, 20 years married for them)! We spent a week exploring beaches on the southwest side of Costa Rica. We visited Manuel Antonio National Park. Then we traveled north to a resort near the volcano Arenal where we enjoyed completely different scenery and relaxed in natural hot springs. The vacation would have been a perfect except that Dwight slipped on rocks during the first week and hurt his shoulder. It was a nasty injury that still bothers him at times but he would tell you that the trip was totally worth it.

In May of 2018 something very special happened. My sister-in-law, Joy, married Alvin. He’s a great addition to the family. Not only did we gain an awesome brother-in-law/uncle, we also welcomed a new niece and two nephews/three cousins (Autumn, Guy and Alijah). In August we were able to spend a week at the beach getting to know our new extended family (except for Alvin’s daughter, who unfortunately couldn’t make it at the last minute). We’re hoping to have a repeat soon, and this time Autumn had better be there!

Our Extended Engen Family

Just like they say in the infomercials, "but wait, there’s more". Right before our week at the beach, the kids and I traveled to Europe with my mom for almost two weeks. We squeezed in a lot during a short time. We spent a day wandering around Paris with my childhood friends Manu and Christophe. In France, we visited the Paris Catacombs, we went to Mont St Michel, we did a quick tour of the Louvre, we explored Versailles, we climbed the Eiffel Tower. Then we traveled by train to London. We spent a weekend at Newbold College, in Bracknell, catching up with people mom went to school with, when she spent her sophomore year of college abroad. Back to London, our hotel was near Primrose Hill so we enjoyed several jaunts there to enjoy views of the city lights. We had two full days with our guide, Peter, visiting Stonehenge, Bath, Castle Combe and a whirlwind tour of London. (Once he realized that the kids were Harry Potter fans, he tried to include as many Harry Potter sites as he could.) We took the train to Leavesden to explore the Harry Potter studio, which did not disappoint. And then we flew to Dublin for one final evening, before returning to the US. It was an epic adventure with Grandma that none of us will ever forget. I would be happy to ply my scrapbook upon you, if you ever want to stop by for a visit!

Once home, things were crazy as per usual. Our suitcases were the last ones to arrive to the luggage carousel so we just had time to drive home for the girls to change into spandex and then straight to the gym for middle school volleyball tryouts.  It’s a good thing I’d made the girls lay out their volleyball stuff before we left for Europe!  

We had two nights at home before leaving for the beach.  So that was a little nutty but I have to say that a) three weeks of continuous vacation was amazing and b) it was so relaxing to go from our fast-paced European tour to a lazy week at the beach.  Originally the plan was for a two week beach vacation (one week with Proutys and one week with Engens).  But then one of my Prouty sisters-in-law got pregnant and was unable to travel. Meanwhile Mom was looking for company to attend her Newbold reunion, so when the first beach week fell through, we opted in on the Europe trip but we had to squeeze it in between all the other stuff we already had going on. So we accidentally ended up in the extravagant position of going from one vacation to another.  It’s something I suspect I’ll never be able do again but if I could, I totally would!

When we finally got home from all the vacationing, Oskar started high school – two high schools in fact.  He was accepted into the Academy of Engineering and Technology at the Academies of Loudoun.  He alternates every other day between there and his home high school.  He’s thoroughly enjoying that program. But in what seems to be our modus operandi, his high school experience got off to a rocky start. He fell in the locker room after PE, one day, and hurt his wrist. As is unfortunately typical of the guys in my life, he was very stoic about it and didn’t say anything about it to anyone for several hours.  He proceeded to take a quiz (which he later admitted was a challenge). He attended a pep rally and tried to protect his wounded wrist from all the other people jostling around. He didn't even say anything until he'd been home for a while. But as soon as he *did* mention it and I took a look, I drove him right to the urgent care, where they confirmed a break in one wrist and a likely sprain in the other. He ended up with a cast on one wrist and a brace on the other (his uncles, Danny and Ted could both commiserate on what a miserable experience it is to have both wrists out of commission at the same time!).

Aunt Heather with Kierra, Kolton & Konnor

There was some foreshadowing when I mentioned that my sister-in-law was pregnant. Ted and Kristin welcomed Kierra Annabelle into the world in September of 2018. At the end of November, Dwight, Jonny and I made it out to Phoenix for a couple of days, so that we could finally meet her.  We had a wonderful time hanging out with our Phoenix family.  They’re fantastic hosts and I’m grateful for any time I get to spend with them! 

I actually had a little too much excitement, to be honest. I was at the hotel on a call with work when I started feeling very sick. Eventually I had to grab a trash can because I felt like I was about to throw up. I was also experiencing a fair amount of abdominal pain. When I started to get the shakes, I bowed out of the conference call and asked Dwight to drive me to an urgent care. There was a long wait there so they gave us directions to an ER that was very close.  As we were approaching the entrance, I said, “Hmm, I’m actually feeling much better.”  I went ahead and checked in and filled out the paperwork but after sitting in the waiting room for about 10 minutes, feeling fine, I told them I didn’t need to been seen anymore.  I was a little nervous that whatever it was might return for the following day’s flight home but it didn’t. Whew!  

Okay, I say “whatever it was” but really I knew what it was. I definitely recognized the all-to-familiar symptoms of a kidney stone. Sure enough, a couple of weeks later I was back in the ER and this time I stayed put for a night because the kidney stone got stuck and blocked things up on the way out.  It turned out that I had a second stone causing trouble on the other side so I ended up having two ureteroscopies within two weeks of each other.  The first one went great and I bounced right back.  The second one took a toll.  It probably didn’t help matters that I spent the following weekend at a volleyball tournament (with a stent in place – yikes!). I perhaps overdid it but in the end everything worked out. I recovered and it’s been great going a full year without any kidney stone pain!! Also, even though my good friend Lisa will never make it through this letter, thank you for picking me up at the urgent care after that bout of "overdoing it".

Dwight having a snowball with the kids in our back yard

Photo by Brian Benoit

In February, my grandmother, Violet Prouty, passed away.  She would have turned 98 in July. When I got the news that she wasn’t doing well, the girls and I were in DC for a volleyball tournament.  We had plans to hang out with my Dad the following day but new plans were made and he immediately boarded a plane for British Columbia, where Grandma had just moved to live with one of my aunts. Dad was able to spend quality time with her on that last day - she was awake and chatting several times.  In fact, most of his siblings were able to be there as well as several of my cousins.  I wish I too could have been with them in BC but at least I was able to video chat with Grandma earlier that evening. I’m very grateful to have had that opportunity. Grandma’s passing was what any of us would wish for ourselves. She was with some of her very favorite people. I think my Dad was even holding her hand. She was surrounded by love. It was peaceful and quiet. 

Dwight happened to be out of town at the time.  He was in Colorado for a two-week ski vacation with his Dad, Rita and his Uncle Glenn.  I was supposed to meet up with them for Dwight’s second week but when Grandma took a turn for the worse, I wasn’t quite sure what to do.  I considered flying out to BC instead but Grandma passed away before I was able to change any of my plans. I stuck with the original plan and met up with Dwight in Colorado.  As soon as I arrived, I immediately got sick with a nasty cold. I think it was my body's way of saying, "ENOUGH ALREADY!" But it was a good week and I’m grateful that I had the perfect combination of distraction and personal time to absorb what had happened.

Ironically, one week later I was back in Colorado with Annika for a volleyball tournament.  That was odd. I felt like quite the jet setter. Also, we had flight mishaps so we ended up flying into Denver one day and flying back home the next day. It all added up to a surreal experience. (That weekend is a perfect example of all the stuff I’m glossing over in this letter. Annika had to attend district band assessments so missed the first day of the tournament. We drove straight from there to the airport to catch our flight. We sat around for several hours only to have our initial flight so delayed to the point that we missed our connection. They rebooked us for the following morning but by this point it was pretty late at night. We had to get Dwight come pick us up, we slept for a couple of hours and then returned for an early flight the next day. Ugh.)

In March I flew to Canada for Grandma’s memorial.  The occasion was somber but the gathering was not. I adore my extended family and thoroughly enjoyed their company. Once again, it was a little too much adventure. We got hung up on our way back to the US because there was a fire in our terminal at the airport and they had to evacuate us. They weren't initially sure what to do with us because we were in the "US terminal" and had all cleared customs already. Initially we sat in shuttles watching the fire trucks. Eventually they drove us to another terminal. We all started milling around in the airport trying to figure out what would happen next. Then all our flights got cancelled because they couldn’t get us all through customs again. The hotels near the airport filled up right away but Uncle Cliff didn’t mind us showing up in the middle of the night so we rented a van and drove back to Oshawa. He was a great last-minute host. I made it home the next day so all’s well that ends well.

Our "neighborhood" in Virgin Gorda

In April, I got Dwight out of North America for a SECOND time!  We flew to Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands with our friends Mark and Christy (who have generously been hanging out with us for more than 20 years now!) and Dave and Bryn. The Caribbean was gorgeous. I loved the clear water – a little too much apparently, because I got a pretty bad sunburn the very first day.  The rest of the time I swam in a long sleeve swim shirt and my North Face hiking pants.  But I think that kind of worked for me because even though I loved the clear water, most of you reading this will know that I can get a little squirrelly in water after my childhood trauma of being in the water with Dad when he was bit by a hippo.  So I loved and hated snorkeling.  I loved looking at the fish but I was also slightly terrified at all times and was glad to have my clothes between me and whatever creatures were out there. Dwight was – as always – an amazing friend.  I think I had several near panic attacks and possibly started hyper ventilating a time or two but he patiently and calmly helped me get through it. I would go back to the Caribbean in a heartbeat – but not without Dwight!

When we got home we went straight to the Gaylord at the National Harbor, where Annika was playing in a volleyball tournament (we missed Kiersten’s tournament in Philadelphia the previous weekend but our awesome friends Brian and Lori took good care of her).

As the school year started to wind down, we remained busy with volleyball practices, tournaments and musical obligations. Annika played the baritone saxophone for the school band (which she ultimately gave up in 9th grade). Kiersten has been a member of her school’s Select Chorus since 6th grade. She has quite a few Select concerts, in addition to the ones for the grade level chorus.

In May we drove down to Chattanooga, Tennessee for our nephew Hunter’s college graduation. Hunter is pretty much one of the coolest guys you’ll ever meet – in our completely unbiased opinion – so it was an honor to be able to be there to celebrate his success. He’s now living and working in Chattanooga and I think he’s enjoying it although we secretly wish he’d move back closer to us (and his mom too, I suppose).

In June, Annika and I flew to Florida for yet another volleyball tournament. I can’t believe that we’re actually flying around for volleyball tournaments. Years ago, I remember seeing some episodes of the TV show, “Dance Moms” and I was flabbergasted that they would actually FLY somewhere for a dance competition. And now here we are. We’ve taken commercial flights to two volleyball tournaments. Of course, between you and me, I’m secretly delighted for the excuse to travel ANYWHERE because I’m a nut and I LOVE travelling that much, but still, it’s weird.

Alright, I realize this is probably getting a bit much with the travel but I can’t help it.  Travelling is my favorite. If Dwight were the one writing this holiday letter I’m sure you’d be hearing all about software hacks or what tunes his band is singing.  But with me it’s all about the trips. So you can bail on this letter if you want to - because it will keep being more of the same - or you can keep reading and hear about the next place we went…which was…Newfoundland!  And it was awesome.  You might have seen this coming but we had some commitments to work the trip around. Before we left for Newfoundland, first we attended the wedding of our friends Danny and Ginger, in Richmond, Virginia. Then we rushed home and caught a flight to meet up with the rest of the Bob Prouty clan, in St John’s. Danny and Amy couldn’t make it due to the arrival of our youngest nephew, Cason Robert, at the beginning of May.  (Yep, my other Prouty sister-in-law decided to get in on the third baby, gender-change action.)  The rest of the Bob Prouty gang spent a week together in Newfoundland.  It was amazing. My Grandma Prouty was from Newfoundland so it was a perfect farewell.  Newfoundland also has special significance for me because that’s where my parents were living when I was born and where I spent the first year of my life.

We saw two different homes where Grandma Prouty lived in St. John’s. We visited a park that she frequented in her youth. We visited many sites with family historical significance. And just in general we enjoyed the beautiful scenery and the friendly folks. We also got to see whales which was something on *my* bucket list!

This year Annika started high school and Kardynn started middle school. Kiersten is in her last year of middle school and Oskar is in his second year of high school. Kardynn is at a different middle school than Kiersten – because of course we can never do anything the easy way. Our neighborhood got rezoned to new schools but we let our kids stay at the schools where they’ve been, with the kids they know.  The transition didn’t affect Kardynn because we got rezoned to the middle school where most of her elementary school friends would already be attending.  Oskar and Annika were able to get bussed for one last year (the county doesn’t force seniors to switch and we had a couple in our neighborhood) but I have had to drive Kiersten. It’s a big commitment but I’m grateful for that little bit of time to ourselves that we get twice a day on the drive to and from school.  

Kardynn seems to love her new school as well as being a middle-schooler. She’s a social butterfly.  She also has quite a flair for decorating.  Plus she seems to have learned how to purge much better than some members of our household (*cough, cough* me *cough, cough*). Dwight keeps trying to enlist her to “decorate” the rest of the house. 

Annika made the varsity volleyball team which was awesome for me because for one high school season I got to hang out in the bleachers with my friend Hilary whose oldest daughter was a senior on the same team.

Oskar has his learner’s permit.  He could have his driver’s license but we’re not quite ready to let him loose on the world. However, he does need to be driving by the start of next school, because he’s going to be driving the “Engen bus” for himself, Annika and Kiersten! Ha! He was initially unenthusiastic to get his license because he's convinced I'll try to make him drive his sisters to volleyball.  Why on earth would he think that?! *hehe*

Also, 2019 can go on record as the year that he passed Dwight in height. It’s still bizarre to see him taller than Dwight but there's no denying it at this point. He’s quite tall. 

Dwight is still working with the same guys that he started working with more than 20 years ago.  He had a two year jaunt with Oracle a few years ago but he missed his former team so eventually they wooed him back. When he’s not working you can still find him doing his favorite stuff – playing guitar and playing basketball being at the top of that list.  He’s been getting together once a week to play music with the same group of guys for quite a few years now.  That’s definitely a highlight for him. He also plays volleyball with me one night a week but it’s not the thing that either of us does best. Ha!

Our girls inherited my enthusiasm for volleyball but fortunately for them, there was some prowess added to the mix. This club volleyball season we’re taking it to the next level because all three girls are playing travel now.  If any of you happen to be into volleyball, Annika has been playing middle blocker although she’s hoping to transition to an outside.  Kiersten is a setter.  It remains to be seen how Kardynn will specialize but she’s certainly a better passer than her sisters were at the same age.  The younger ones always benefit from the influence of the older ones (said as an older sister, of course).

Annika missed the photo because she was taking a nap

We had one final hurrah for the 2010s and spent a long weekend in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  We had planned to spend a couple of days in Charleston but flooding down left us pivoting to a new plan. Traffic on the drive down was a nightmare but we explored a spot that was new to all of us and got a lot of quality time together so it was all worth it. We strolled on the beach. We played games together. We enjoyed the hot tub. We helped capture an FBI fugitive…okay…that was an escape room but still, we were awesome. I have the picture to prove it. 

At the start of this letter I mentioned that I love the holiday season and I shared some of the reasons why.  But I didn’t share my favorite thing about the season which is getting to spend time with so many people that I love.  My wish for you in the coming year is that you get to spend an abundant amount of time with your favorite people. I know that’s my wish for myself!

May the coming decade bring you much love and laughter!

With love from the Engens!

(Edited by Kiersten… so if you find any mistakes, come complaining to me!)

Happy Holidays from the Engen family

It’s the day after Christmas.  My sniffles have turned into a full blown cold. This morning I had big ideas about getting the house all cleaned up after yesterday’s onslaught, but once I finished with the dishes, my energy petered out. So it was a good excuse to do something I've been meaning to do for a long time. I’m writing a holiday letter!  I felt bad that I didn't get around to it last year and had sort of intended to just go ahead and write one at some point during the year, but here we are with Christmas behind us and the year rapidly winding down.

Before I started writing, I put together a slideshow of photos from the year. I’m pretty sure I get more out of this exercise than anyone who watches it. It’s a wonderful way to remember everything we did over the course of the year – the roads we traveled, the adventures we shared, the funny mishaps, the highs and the lows. Fortunately I take more photos of the highs than the lows!

Happy Holidays 2014 from Heather Engen on Vimeo.

It’s been a good year.  Many of you will know that in 2013 my mom got very sick. So one of the greatest blessings this year has been to watch my Mom return to more of her old self and to see the amazing progress she has made.

Because we never gave you a 2013 update, we never had a chance to announce that our family grew by two very sweet kittens: Smokey and Bandit. We think they might be at least part Maine Coon because they’re quite big.  In September they turned a year old and weighed in at 16.5 and 17 lbs, respectively. It’s always fun to watch Kardynn haul them around because they’re about half as long as she is!

Bandit & Smokey, November 2014

Around the same time that we acquired the kittens, I was having some struggles.  In November 2013, I attempted to run a half marathon. And I did run it but the instant I finished running, I could hardly walk. I got home and pulled out crutches because I was in so much pain. I was only on crutches for a couple of days but when a month had passed and things still weren't good, I finally went to the doctor.  I eventually discovered that I had a labral tear and a stress fracture in my hip. That was a lousy way to go into the holidays. I was in a massive brace that went from my waist to my thigh and on crutches for six miserable weeks. Literally adding insult to injury - I gained weight. Ugh. It was not a fun time. I had already committed to helping coach Girls on the Run in the Spring so that was a good way to ease back into exercise.  I was able to mostly jog the 5k race at the end so that felt like progress.

Meanwhile, in April (Spring Break), Oskar and Dwight had a big adventure. They flew out to Colorado with Grampy in his single engine plane. The trip took them a full day of flying!  But they had a blast. Meanwhile the girls had a good week too. The highlight was an overnight trip to Baltimore with friends.

Around this same time, my brother Jonny left his job in Colorado, defended his master thesis and started hiking the Appalachian Trail.  He left from Georgia on April 5 and he finished in Maine on October 9. It will no doubt be one of the highlights of his life. I was thrilled to be able to meet up with him on three different occasions. I loved hiking with him but I also decided maybe I don’t need to thru-hike the AT.*smile* Jonny’s trail name was Rockman. Dad and I were given trail names as well: Hippo and Blisterkrieg.  The funny thing about “Hippo” is that he was named by someone who knew absolutely nothing about his previous history with hippos. You can’t escape your past, it seems!

In June my past caught up with me in the form of a very dear childhood friend, Gary Roberts. He spent a few days visiting us, along with his wife and daughter. It had probably been nearly twenty-five years since we’d last spent time together but it was just like old times. We had a great time visiting with them and doing some touristy stuff as well.

We spent most of our summer poolside. But we did enjoy two quick getaways to the beach.  In July, Grampy took Kiersten, Kardynn and myself to Ocracoke for a day, in his plane.  A few weeks later the kids and I drove to the Eastern Shore and spent a couple of days with Dad and family.  Both trips were so much fun! We’re very grateful for relatives who share with us!

In September school started and it was a momentous occasion because Kardynn started first grade, which meant a jump from half day to full day. She did great. I thought I would have loads of free time but somehow that hasn't happened. Our house remains as disheveled as ever. But I have managed to squeeze in some good stuff all the same. In September, my friend and I did a 21 mile day hike on the AT. (Now I've hiked from Front Royal to Harper’s Ferry, not to mention 20 miles in southern Virginia and another little leg up in Maryland.) I managed to squeeze in a quick trip with Dad out to Arizona to visit Ted’s family. Dwight and I trained for a half marathon. I’m coordinating Odyssey of the Mind at the elementary school for the second year in a row (and the last year!). I’m also coaching two Odyssey teams. I’m taking photos for the school yearbook. And I've started working part time. So I’m keeping busy!

Dwight is still working from home for Oracle. It’s been interesting figuring out how to navigate around each other during the day. I think his life got easier when I started working because I’m no longer available to pester him during the day. I have to make the most of the time while the kids are away to get my work hours in! I’m really enjoying what I’m doing – I’m working with my Dad – but it’s only a short-term opportunity. So now I’m trying to decide whether or not I’d like to continue to work part time when this opportunity ends in a few months.

In November we were wild and crazy and had two whirlwind road trips.  At the start of the month, Dad and I piled my kids into the minivan and drove to Michigan for a long weekend.  It wasn't a very long weekend, however. We left here the Saturday after Halloween and came back two days later, on Monday. But we did get to visit a lot of relatives so that was fantastic and totally worth it.  Two weeks later Dwight and I drove to Richmond for the repeat Half Marathon. (I was thrilled to be able to jog the entire time and most importantly – I walked away from it!) The following weekend, Jonny and I loaded up the kids and drove down to Tennessee to visit with more relatives. Again, it was a mad dash there and back.  We took the kids out of school a little early on a Friday and then drove home on Sunday. Dwight surprised us by getting a ride in his Dad’s airplane and meeting up with us and then driving back with us on Sunday. We had a great time visiting with family, as always.  But all the same, we’re happy to report that there have been no road trips this month!

Jonny has been staying with us while he looks for a job. It seems he has a promising prospect so his time with us may be coming to an end, which will be bittersweet – bitter for us, sweet for him!  *smile* We really enjoy having him here. Unfortunately I think we've permanently cured him from ever wanting children!

Speaking of the children, we’re trying to adjust to the little people they’re becoming. Oskar has braces. Annika and Kiersten get their braces next month. Kiersten has started wearing glasses. Oskar's only a few inches shorter than me.  I look at them and wonder how they can possibly be this grown up.  They've changed so much, and yet they haven’t changed at all. 

Oskar wants to understand how everything works. He’s very curious about the hows and whys of the world. 

Annika is a powerhouse. She is organized chaos - a girl of extremes. One minute she's got our entire family organized and has everyone and everything moving like clockwork. The next minute she's on a raging rampage, wreaking havoc everywhere she goes. 

Kiersten is our sweet - and a little sneaky - bookworm. (She prides herself on the sneaky part.) She's tender, careful and cautious. 

Kardynn definitely makes the most of being the baby of the household. And yet it’s amazing to watch her interact with other people. She’s learned so much from having older siblings and she navigates the world with ease.   

They're all thriving in spite of us!

We look forward to the coming year and the many highlights it will no doubt bring. We hope our paths will cross with many of you and we wish you too, all the best things in 2015.

With much love and goodwill from the Engen family!

December 2014

Our Year in Review

As I sit here reflecting on the past year, my thoughts are dominated by the passing of mother-in-law, Joy.  It seems somehow fitting that she passed away at the start of the season of joy.  Every time I see the word “joy”, I think of her.  But it’s sad too.  We have a Christmas gift sitting under our tree, that was there before she passed.  I can’t bring myself to remove it. 

There will be a memorial service for her at the Frederick Seventh-day Adventist Church in the chapel, on Saturday, January 19, 2013 at 4:30 pm.

For those of you who didn't know Dwight's mom, she was a sweet and gentle person. She was a devoted mother. She was also an amazing mother-in-law. Dwight was always her perfect little boy but she welcomed me into his life and very quickly made me feel like one of her own. When we started having our own children, she was supportive and encouraging. She never had anything but kind words for me. She never suggested that I do things a different way. In fact she would quietly tell me that I was doing a great job. I feel so grateful to have had her approval and most importantly, her love. But with that very recent loss, it’s hard to write my usual lighthearted letter - as she herself would have said, “Uffda!”

Sadly, we had several losses this year. Dwight’s grandmother, “NeeNee”, passed away at the start of the year. We gathered with the Wold family for a graveside service, in January. In August I flew to Florida for a memorial service for my Aunt Charmaine (my mom’s sister) with my Van Belle family.

Fortunately there were many happy times as well. We went on several trips – I love trying new things and going new places so I’m hoping to foster that same passion in my family – particularly my husband.

• At the end of February we took our kids out west for a ski trip. We joined up with my father-in-law’s family for the week and my brother Jonny and his girlfriend, Julia, spent the weekend with us as well. Taking the kids to Colorado was very special for us.  Ever since our family started to grow, Dwight and I dreamed of being able to ski with our kids. It’s not something we’ll be doing every year (Yike$!) but it did live up to our expectations. The kids loved it and their skills improved rapidly. Oskar even managed to go down a black diamond before we left.
• At the start of the summer, my Grandma Prouty flew down and spent a little time with us – which was a wonderful treat. The Prouty family is huge (there are twenty-seven of us in my generation and all I can tell you about her great grandchildren is that she passed the twenty–seven mark a while ago). As I was saying, the Prouty family is huge so I’m incredibly honored that we managed to get some of her time.
• Dwight and I spent the first weekend in June, exploring Raleigh, NC.
• A few weeks later, the kids and I drove to Tennessee where we spent time with the Prouty family and then we had a quick visit with Bruce and Rita, in North Carolina.
• We celebrated Dwight’s 40^th birthday with a big surprise party. It required way too much subterfuge so I’m officially retiring from throwing surprise parties.  But it was a ton of fun and he loved it so I’m glad I did it this once.
• The following month, we also had a fun couple of days at Ocean City with just our little…ahem…large family of six (and a day trip to meet up with Dad’s family in Delaware, which was awesome).
• After nearly fifteen years at his previous position, Dwight started a new job, with Oracle. (On a side note, he started his new position one week before the kids started school. This is the first year the kids are all in school during the morning, five days a week. So naturally that’s when Dwight starts working from home. He is getting entirely the wrong impression of how my life has been, these past nine years! Not to mention, I’m not sure why the Universe apparently has a problem with me having time home alone. *hehe* But it’s actually been wonderful having him home. And I think he would agree.)
• We celebrated ten years of marriage with an overnight getaway to Alexandria. I'd never really been before, which is crazy since we live so close.  Dwight and I had fun wandering around and going for a nice, long jog together.
• We enjoyed an extended Labor Day weekend with the extended Engen family, at the Outer Banks (in the 4wd only section, which was an interesting experience).
• In October, the Wolcott family gathered here in DC where we participated in the ALS Walk, in support of Dwight’s aunt, Carolyn.

And through all this flutter activity, the kids continue to grow up at a startling rate. This morning I realized that Kardynn is now older than Oskar was, when she was born. 

Oskar is in 3^rdgrade.  He’s become obsessed with math – particularly pi. I’m so fascinated by this little boy whose brain operates NOTHING like mine. Right now is favorite book is one about math, called Go Figure!, that he checked out from the school library. He pores over it for hours at a time.  And then he’ll come quiz me on the formula for the area of various shapes.  It’s a little odd…and very amusing at the same time.  I just hope he somehow retains some of this enthusiasm until when he starts actually learning about this stuff in school.  He’s also become interested in programming.  Clearly he has 100% Dwight Engen DNA.

And then we have Annika, whose brain operates EXACTLY like mine (which has been very humbling – apparently I must have a rather challenging personality). She’s completely my little clone. But on the up side, she is a very happy child. She does everything with exuberance and enthusiasm. She has energy in spades. She loves to run. She’s a complete tomboy and even cut off her hair into an adorable little pixie cut this summer. She’s a wonderful organizer and list maker. She’s also going to be a fantastic babysitter.  She's in second grade.

Kiersten is a sweetheart. She has my mother-in-law’s personality.  This year she went into first grade. I was worried about how she’d transition to being there for a full-day but she’s thriving.  Having said that, this Fall has been a struggle for her because she somehow ended up with a nasty autoimmune disorder called Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP).  We’ve now been dealing with this for almost five weeks.  I hate to see my little girl in pain and it’s frustrating because there’s not a whole lot we can do for her.  But we’re keeping our fingers crossed that the worst of it is behind us. 

Kardynn is keeping things balanced and takes after her oldest sister.  Those two are either thick as thieves or fighting – there’s no in between with them.  Kardynn is enjoying one last year of preschool and loves being at the same school as her little cousin, Autumn.  Every day she gives me an update on her cousin. She always tells me what Autumn was wearing and how her hair looks.  (Based on those daily updates, I can tell you that my niece is one stylin’ little girl!) Kardynn is growing up especially fast. I think she loves her afternoons with me and Dwight, while the other guys are still in school. She’s a perpetual source of amusement and says the absolute cutest things (I’m not the least bit biased). She makes us laugh all the time and I’m a little sad that my baby is no longer a baby.

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This letter took me a long time to write. The slideshow has been ready to go for days but I just couldn’t get the words together. It probably doesn’t help that we’ve had a lot going on, this last little bit. Five out of the last six schooldays, I was at the elementary school or preschool for various events. We’ve also been spending extra time with family and friends these last couple of days. Our lives are very full, which is a wonderful thing but time-consuming, all the same.  Next year brings lots to look forward to.  Ted's first baby - a little boy - is due to arrive in May. We're already making plans for trips we might like to take (including a trip out to Arizona for this auntie, to meet said little boy). We hope the coming year brings more of the good stuff and less of the bad.  We wish the same for you!

If you’d like to refresh yourself on how we all look, check out our virtual holiday greeting (a mere 2 and a half minute commitment).


Happy Holidays 2012! from Heather Engen on Vimeo.

(If you have any problems with the video, trying going to Vimeo and viewing it full screen).

Much love,

Heather, Oskar, Kiersten, Kardynn, Annika, Dwight

P.S. I’ve been a little nervous about writing this letter ever since my friend Sharon posted a link on Facebook to the Humble Brag letter 2012, a few weeks ago.  I assume people would prefer to read about the good stuff in our lives but I definitely don’t want anyone punching me in the throat! *wink*)