TALIA:
Talia joined the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater where she premiered "Dances-with-Tents," for which she won the Nobel Peace Prize. No, not really, but almost as improbably she took a contract with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where she encountered software that actually discourages you from working too hard (this explains why visa processes take as long as they do, were you wondering). In spare moments, Talia made VW buy back our cheatermobile, got the whole family to be strictly vegetarian for a week, and more than once slept in the barn.
GIDEON:
Yes, well, that happened, nor was this day, camping near Bodega Bay, the only such. As Gideon's pants attest, he continues to live life to the fullest, and then some. A second grader, he is knife self-certified and uses the word "hypocrite" correctly in conversation with my mother. When not disrespecting his elders, Gideon likes to ignore them. He's friends with a fish, a remarkably good rock climber (Gideon, not the fish), and wears glasses despite having perfect vision. Make of it what you will.
FELIX:
Felix, now in 5th grade, has discovered role playing games (shown here in character as a twelfth-level bouquet). This means he's happily entertained for a couple of hours each Friday night, and the rest of us get to hear about it in excruciating detail for twenty or thirty hours thereafter. A star student during the week, he continues to bring home worksheets with one, two, or even three gold stars on them. Having not paid much attention to his sports doings, I was surprised to find myself watching his team in finals, from which they emerged Champions of the World (or the part of it that calls the sport "soccer" anyway). Even more thrilling, he stood up on a surfboard for several seconds a couple of months ago.
ALEC:
This year Alec just gave up and let himself sink into it without further struggle. It's a relief. When not enmired, Alec is busy hunting pirates on the virtual seas and making infrastructure uncomfortable. For some reason he found himself floating down rivers repeatedly this year, which is a nice break from struggling against the tide.
THE HOUSE:
Speaking of sinking, our aged property likewise reached new depths, from which we are still trying to extricate it. Shown here, Talia attempting to levitate new drywall into place, just one of the many incidents that finally convinced us to get a roof. Also on our To Do list: doors, windows, insulation, and right angles. But first we must save the barn and the land upon which it sits from washing away downstream--there is a limit to how many rivers I wish to float down.
THE VACATIONS:
Faithful as always to the Christmas letter tradition, some pictures from this year's travel, of which there was a great deal. More to come in 2018, too. A crazy year for we inhabitants of planet Earth, but a wonderful one for us and, we hope, for you as well.
