Dan is doing great, as you can see in this picture! He's working out 2 - 3 times
per week, keeping the household fed and maintained, keeping the nurses and waitresses (wherever he goes) entertained! He feels it is his duty to make their jobs more interesting... so his special brand of humor kicks into gear whenever he has a medical appointment, or simply breakfast on his way to workout! He's (finally!) off prednisone entirely (he was put on in 2003), and a couple of other drugs that he was also taking b/c he was on prednisone! Still lingering challenges, but they are simply annoyances that we even laugh about when we can.
Kelsey (pictured here with our friend Laurie, on a Christmas shopping day and her b'day) just turned 18 and received her first college acceptance letter (St. Bonaventure)! SO hard to believe she'll be leaving for college in less than 1 year! I will miss her more than I can imagine, and I am guessing that Erin will miss her tremendously also. She is such a rock in our family.
She's interested in psychology and clinical social work, perhaps working with cancer patients and their families. She's also interested in chiropractic, but this seems to be fading into a remote second pick, for now. AND I know she will likely change her mind many times in upcoming years :-) Don't we all?
passion. I call him my flying squirrel, because he has those occasional beautiful flying saves where he appears to get way more airtime than humanly possible. He is also playing JV basketball. He loves skiing, good movies (Netflix), his dad's humor (most of the time), and even his little sister (most of the time).
Unfortunately, he rarely does his own laundry! He has grown about 3- 4 inches this year, it's very strange to look up to him!
Unfortunately, he rarely does his own laundry! He has grown about 3- 4 inches this year, it's very strange to look up to him!
Erin is in 2nd grade, and she's a wonderful, independent spirit with tons of energy and character! Her biggest extra-curriculars are gymnastics and skiing, but she played kiddie soccer too, and she will try lacrosse out in the next couple months at an indoor clinic. She wants to do it all! She reminds us that's it's all about having fun, and she's only 7!
I am loving life also. I left IBM, the smarter planet company this year to join Schneider Electric to help companies "make the most of their energy". I have the pleasure of working all over the world to help our SE country teams work together to bring Green Buildings solutions to their markets. I had a fantastic trip to China right after Thanksgiving, and I am heading to India in first quarter. Schneider Electric is a French company, so I am quite often in Paris as well. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity I have at SE to lead their Green Buildings strategy. I am also working with the internal SE team to accelerate the efforts to make our own facilities more energy efficient, sustainable and "green".
One note about my China experience, because it truly inspired hope that this huge and rapidly growing population may indeed be able to accomplish this in a much more sustainable way. There are 3 separate eco-city initiatives (sponsored by 3 different gov't agencies). Each initiative has many cities participating in their program - to build and retrofit in a more sustainable way. China has just launched their own Green Building Label (GBL), which I believe will be used more widely than LEED in China. (The view is that this will become mandatory for new construction over time). I met with a very large real estate company that is committed to build only GBL 1 star buildings starting in 2011. The commitment and activity feels very real, fast and furious. The Schneider Electric team in China is coming together to be an important part of this green movement, and it's exciting.
So, what's my hope for all of my friends, family and neighbors in 2011? Always, I hope for good health, and I also hope that all who need a job have a job. Beyond the basics, I hope that each of you has many sources of inspiration and pure joy, every day! We all have certain challenges that we face, and we need to know what kinds of activities and people "fuel" us! I choose those people and those activities that give us the energy to do our work in the world, whatever it is.
Wishing you the very best for 2011! Happy Holidays!
Melissa, Dan, Kelsey, Ryan and Erin
