 Happy Holidays Everyone The year has gone by in a quick blur. As I write this letter, I am still recuperating from surgery. I have had a lot of illness and medical procedures this year - mainly from migraines. Time goes faster when you can't think, I guess. I am still working at Shield Healthcare - 7 years now. And I am still a Scentsy consultant. I haven't made it to director yet. My health issues have really slowed me down. To focus more on Scentsy, I am quitting the Family Day Care Association, which I've been a part of for almost 20 years now.  The surgery I just had was to have my gallbladder removed. I was sick from mid-September until the beginning of November, when they finally took it out. I had to go in for an ultrasound to confirm that it was my gallbladder. That showed something in my liver, so I had to have a test for that. It didn't show what they wanted to see, so I had to wait another couple of weeks for another test. By then, I was so sick I couldn't work. Finally, waiting for a surgery appointment, I just went to the ER and they admitted me and did the surgery. My gallbladder was supposed to be the size of a walnut - mine was the size of a softball. Peter is still working at Anheuser-Busch - it's been 6 years for him. He still has his green 1967 Corvette. We've taken it to several car shows again this year (mostly throughout the summer). This year, he showed it at a few "Concours de Elegance" shows. He won first prize for his class at one and met Jay Leno at another one. 
Although he didn't switch his Corvette, he did just get a new Mustang to replace the one he has been driving. I don't think he's ever gone a year without getting a new car! His health is good, thank God. We also traded in my PT Cruiser for a new Kia Soul. I love it. It's orange and fun to drive. Plus way better gas mileage.  So we had a really weird year in terms of weather. It snowed 3 times. Yes, snow. We don't usually get snow. So of course I took a lot of pictures! 
Snow in our yard!
Maggie's first snow (that we know of!).
Our neighbor's snowman.
Driving to work the next day the snow was still there. In July, Peter and I celebrated our 9th anniversary, Katrina is living in Canyon Country (about 8 miles from us). She is doing well. She works at a "high end" shoe store in the local mall. She's currently single - no boyfriend at this time. She is also a Scentsy consultant! 
In August I went to Fort Worth, TX, for a Scentsy convention. Had a blast! I also got a chance to see two of my nieces (that I haven't seen in years), Margo and Linda. August also brought some bad news. Two people very close to me passed away - Diane, who I've worked with for about 5 years, and Tom, a dear friend's father. The strange thing was, their funerals were on the same day, in the same town. That wasn't a very good day. In September, Peter and I took another cruise, this time to the Western Caribbean. It was a pretty bad experience. Not to name names, but it was on Carnival (my 5th cruise with Carnival). The service was horrible, but our main complaint was that there were workers on the lifeboats outside our balcony the entire cruise. We were told to keep our drapes closed for most of the cruise. Next time we try Princess.  On September 27th of this year, my mom (Skeets, Betty) would have turned 100 years old.  Kenny and Jordan are still living in Palm Springs with their bunnies and turtles. Tried to get them to get married on 11/11/11, but they wouldn't do it. 
Here's hoping that the new year will bring prosperity and good health to all! Love, Annie |
