Christmas 2011

Magri-Olson Family News

From our home to yours Merry Christmas

I have finally found some time to post my Christmas Newsletter, better late than never I say! What is Christmas? It is a time to reminisce about the past, courage for the present and hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace. Where has the year gone I ask? It only feels like yesterday we were all welcoming the New Year and here we are preparing for yet another Christmas! It has been a year of many ups and downs, there has been so many world disasters, my diary entry goes like this: There is devastation everywhere in QLD. The water from the floods is so bad, people have lost their lives, homes and their belongings. It is very sad! January to March: In January our old pergola got pulled down and work started on a new six square structure. On the 4th February Dayle's Birthday the heavens opened, this was Dayle's first Birthday in Australia for two years, due to the renovations at home we had Dayle's Birthday at my sisters. On the 6th February my mum would have celebrated her 66th Birthday, she is never far from our minds and the legacy she started many years ago continues through her children and grandchildren. The lovely Laura also celebrated her Birthday on the 14th February. On the 8th February I embarked on further study and commenced a leadership course, what an amazing journey, the course was designed to take you out of your comfort zone, challenge you and help you to build strong relationships. At the end of the course we had to do a presentation and deliver a project around feedback. The presentation went extremely well and I feel so much wiser having embarked on this journey. In March I went off to my annual scrapbooking weekend to the Briars, this year I was introduced to digital scrapbooking, I always think to myself I should not start new things as I always get hooked. Many pages have been created and it is a quick fun way to scrapbook. On the 25th March Uncle Vic and Auntie Sylvia arrived from the States, it had been 40 years since we had last seen them. On the 31st March Brad celebrated his 28th Birthday, he went off to the comedy festival with Ray, Alex, Paul and a group of other friends. April to June: On the 1st April Brad and I had the family over for our Birthdays, it was a fun night with much chatter and laughter. On the 15th April I got to go away on another scrapbooking weekend to Rosebud with Kathleen and Glenda, it was lovely to catch up and do some more scrapping, we even managed a long walk along the coast line. On the 20th April Dayle and Anke moved into their little unit in Hallam. On the Sunday the three of us went shopping at Ikea, what an adventure that was the two of them bought so much stuff we could not fit another thing in the car or trailer. On the 30th April Ray and I went to see the Tutankhamen exhibition, it was interesting to see all the artifacts however it did not compare to the museum I visited in Egypt. On the 1st May Benjamin turned 6, what a confident little man he is, Benjamin also started school this year and I have to say, he has taken to it like a duck to water, he is also playing basketball and enjoying it vey much. On the 15th May Maddy turned 14, Miss Maddy is growing up too fast. Her love of sport continues, she is now playing soccer and is very good at it, at school she participates in everything sporty and as I write this newsletter I have some 'hot of the press news'.... Our Maddy girl was awarded Dux of the school in sports. We are all very proud of her for this wonderful achievement! On the 28th May Dad celebrated another birthday, it is always nice when we all gather at his house for these occasions. In June Brad sold his unit in Cambridge Road, the end of another era, it's hard to believe it was four years ago the two of us were house hunting for him. July to September: Sixth of July was a very busy day, I graduated from my leadership course, the presentation was a huge success and the group received great feedback. Ray and I attended the Rock of Ages concert, it was a great night taking us both down memory lane. August is a very busy Birthday month in our family, our nephew Adam would have celebrated his 16th Birthday, Ray celebrated his Birthday by being taken out to lunch and the family all popped in for more Birthday celebrations. Max and Carrie also celebrated their Birthdays this month. On the 29th August Ray and I celebrated our 30th Wedding Anniversary, we decided to keep it very low key and opted for a few days away in the beautiful country side of Central Victoria. Alex started a new job with the Commonwealth bank, he now has four jobs on the go and is keeping very busy. In Sept I finished my Girl's Day out patchwork quilt, it took almost three years to complete. I am elated with the finished product and it is now hanging in my lounge room. October to December: In October my girlfriend Jackie and I went away to Tootgarook for a scrapbooking weekend, Jackie and I always have a lot of fun when we are together, we never seem to run out of things to talk about, our friendship goes back a long time and we always pick up where we left off. My friend Kay and I got to catch up and the two of us had a day driving around the country side and stopping at the Lavender Farm for lunch. We also caught up with the Beath's, Long's and the lovely Rachel for dinner. Alex moved out for the month as he house sat for his great uncle, I have missed not having him around even though he pops in a few times per week. On the 27th October the lovely Anke celebrated her Birthday, we all gathered at a German restaurant in Prahan,we wanted her to have a little of her German culture for her Birthday. Alex and Thomas celebrated their Birthdays on the 31st October, the family came over for dinner and Birthday cake of course! On the 1st November my brother Chris celebrated his Birthday, we had a lovely dinner together to celebrate. We also caught up with more family and friends, Ray, Jackie, David and I had a lovely day at Portsea, the four of us enjoyed a scrumptious lunch at the Portsea Pub then finished off with a walk. We also caught up with Theresa and Brad for dinner before we all got too busy. Alex had his wisdom teeth out at Knox Private Hospital, he took a week off work to recuperate. At the end of November we went away for the weekend to watch Maddy play soccer in Moama, it was great to get away and spend quality time with my brother, sister-in-law, nieces and Lydia (Laura's Mum). A very important decision was made during the weekend, Ray and I are off to Europe next year with my brother Chris, Laura and my gorgeous nieces Maddison and Lilly, it's going to be awesome traveling around with them all. In December our lives seemed to get even busier, Christmas catch-ups started early this year, in December I caught up with the Fairfax girls for dinner, it was good to see them and reminisce about old times. My two nephews had their Christmas carols concert at Kent Park Primary school, Ray and I went to watch them perform, they were both so cute singing their Christmas carols. On the 15th December we had a going away Christmas dinner for Dayle and Anke, the next day they boarded their flight for Germany. Anke was so excited to be going home to her family! We also caught up for a pre Christmas meal with Jackie and David and Kay and Taijyn, it is always so nice to catch up with family and friends. On reflection it has been a very eventful year in the Magri-Olson household! In closing let the spirit of love gently fill your hearts and homes. In this loveliest of seasons may you find many reasons for happiness to last a lifetime! With love from Ray, Carmen & family...