2022 Annual Christmas Letter
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Old town Kissimmee. Jon, katie, rosie and i stopped here on our way in from the airport. loved the vibe of this place. check out the tree decorated with hubcaps!
I can’t believe that 2022 is coming to an end and we are into the holiday season. As we look forward to celebrating Christmas in another week, it is a good time to update everyone on our family instead of just writing about Tim and my adventures. It has been a busy and exciting year for the Senko family filled with many family gatherings and new family members.
Nova rose, photo cRedit: emilynovakphotography.com
Our first grandchild, Nova Rose, was born December 23,2021, just in time for last Christmas and she was the perfect Christmas gift. Even though I said no more winter weather after I retired, I flew north to Pittsburgh 12/24/21 and spent 7 weeks with Katie, Jon, and little Rosie. I loved being there to help them and getting to know this precious little girl. Of course, it was cold and snowy so I ended up shoveling lots of snow and walking their dog on very icy sidewalks. That part wasn’t fun.
Jon, katie, and rosie - first trip to disney!
So this year, they came to visit us in Florida. We got to spend the past week with them and loved the time with Rosie. She is just full of energy and is in constant motion, either crawling or cruising the furniture and climbing whatever she can. Pap-pap had loads of fun making her laugh; she loved his silly faces and noises. Nana enjoyed every moment with her, too.
Nana and rosie having a blast at magic kingdom
pap-pap enjoyed meal time with rosie.
Of course spending time with Katie and Jon was wonderful too. They are doing great as well. Katie’s photography business continues to thrive. When she isn’t out on photo shoots, she is busy with their rental units. They recently bought another house that they are updating and remodeling to get ready to rent in the new year. They do much of the work themselves and turn these houses into gems. Jon continues to work at Auto-Chlor so with both of them working full time, it is hard to believe they find the time to remodel homes and care for an active baby.
2022 brought two more new family members. Both Kim and Whitney got married so we gained 2 sons this year. It was still cold in March when we headed north again for Kim and Greg’s wedding in Cincinnati. We left the RV in Florida for this trip and just stayed in hotels. Much easier than dealing with the trailer in cold weather.
wonderful to have the entire family together at the wedding. Photo credit: Maria Palermo, palermophoto.com
this church was gorgeous. thanks to Jon for capturing this moment for us.
Even though it snowed during rehearsal and it didn’t reach 30 degrees the day of the wedding, the sun was shining and they had a beautiful day for the wedding. They have settled well into married life and are enjoying their busy lives. Kim is in her fourth year of her residency so continues to work long hours and lots of night shifts. Both of them work hard but they manage to find time to enjoy themselves and do a little traveling. They have gone further west than us with trips to Utah and Washington this year.
Returning to Florida, after the wedding, we only had a week or so and the we were on the move again with RV. We traveled north to Pennsylvania fairly quickly and were there by mid April. Whitney and Ian’s wedding was on June 1st so we wanted to spend the Spring and early summer in the Pittsburgh area. The weather was great in April and May which we appreciated. The wedding was on the Eastern shore of Maryland so we booked a condo in Ocean City, MD for the week which was perfect. We got to enjoy the beach for a week and we’re close enough to spend two days at the resort for rehearsal and the wedding.
Photo credit: dawn derbyshire, dawn-derbyshire.com
Their wedding day was a warm sunny day and the gazebo at the end of the dock was a perfect wedding venue. They have also settled well into married life and have been working hard remodeling their home. Whitney continues to work for the Postal Service and moved into a permanent position this year. Ian started an apprenticeship with the Carpenter’s Union this year, which is a great fit for him.
beautiful couple. Photo credit: dawn derbyshire, dawn-derbyshire.com
That sounds like enough excitement for one year, right? After the wedding, Tim and I spent the next 2.5 months traveling and visited 7 states, New Jersey, New York and all of the New England states. We have now visited the 24 states east of the Mississippi. Three years of full time RV living and we are halfway to our goal of visiting the lower 48 states. When we returned to Pittsburgh, Whitney gave us the best news, she is pregnant. We will have our second grandchild this March. We are looking forward to another baby to spoil. Being Grandparents is the best.
So we are delaying a trip further west and plan to spend the spring and summer in Pennsylvania this coming year. So we decided to try something new. We are going to be work campers. We will be spending our summer in Altoona, PA helping at a small family campground. For 15 hours of work a week, we get a free site and enough free time to spend lots of time in Pittsburgh with our grand babies.
Looks like 2023 is going to be another great year. We wish all of you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
how cute are these decorations made from tires! old town kissimmee decorated for christmas.
