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This year we spent the
Christmas holidays in Texas where we also celebrated the upcoming
arrival of Rini & Albert's twin girls at a baby shower and
Amanda's birthday!
Then we
took another trip to say goodbye to 2007 and ring in the New Year with friends.
Who knew
Vegas could be so much fun family-style? |
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All Aboard the Thanksgiving
Express!
We rode the rails on the
Grand Canyon Railway during our
Thanksgiving holiday to see the stunning
Grand Canyon.
It was a fun, relaxing vacation and we had a
great time just being together.
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Congratulations to friends
Alan & Vanessa on the birth of their daughter, Cailyn Isabelle,
on December 5th. We can't wait to meet you! |
A December to Remember
A very special birthday
surprise arrived
on our doorstep at midnight. Our friends, Byron and Je traveled
west to wish Brian "Happy 30th Birthday" in person!
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Our
October visit back to
Texas was packed with special
events
and precious time with those we love. Beginning our trip in
Austin, we visited with friends at Central Market (our favorite
college date spot) and hung out with Jennifer's cousins whose
kids love to play with Kendall. In Houston, we surprised Brian's
Dad by flying in for his 70th birthday party and celebrated with
Elizabeth at her red egg. The timing was perfect since all three
daughters (Amanda, Tiffany, Jennifer) and Brian were in town to
host a retirement dinner for our Mom. And for
Halloween, Kendall, Alex and Rachel had a blast at a
costume party!
Back home, we went to the
state fair with the Ngs and our friend, Eli, from
Houston to get our corn dog, turkey leg and funnel cake fix. |
This
October, Jennifer's
Mom came out for her first visit since retiring and
Amanda and Tiff also flew in for a long weekend. Thanks for
coming to visit! |
Up, Up and
Away
Whoosh! We
experienced the amazing sights and sounds of the International
Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque with Peggy, Paul and Jacob. We
felt like kids again at the most spectacular display of hot-air
balloons in the world.
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More family
visits! Mom & Dad
came out for a stay in
September. Together we enjoyed sweet mooncakes to celebrate the Harvest Moon Festival.
Brian's Aunt
Marguerite
also came out for a special visit in August.
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Along with Jennifer's Mom,
Amanda and Tiffany, we traveled to the
San Juan Islands,
Victoria,
and
Seattle
over a long Labor Day holiday to celebrate Mom's retirement. We
were so glad to have seen some family from the Gee-side who live
in the area - Brian's cousin Melissa, her son Ian and daughter
Alicia. |
One of the best things about our new home is that we are close
to our friends Peggy, Paul & Jacob. We were happy to help
celebrate
Jacob's 1st birthday this August! |
Brian's
parents visited with us at the end of
July. It was great to be together again and Kendall
especially loved having two of her favorite buddies around.
Even during their stay she continued to change and grow right
before our very eyes.
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Also in
August, Jennifer &
Kendall visited Amanda in
California
with a side trip to the
fairytale-like
Sequoia National Forest.
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For the July
4th holiday, we made our first trip back to Texas visiting
Austin and
Houston! We wished Donna a happy birthday and attended the
very special wedding of
Cathy & Jerome. It was a blessing to have spent time with so
many good friends and our family again. |
 In June,
Jennifer's parents and sisters came to
visit and celebrate Mom's
birthday together. We toured the stunning scenery of Sabino
Canyon and retreated from the heat to the pine forests of Mt.
Lemmon. Jennifer's Mom stayed with us the rest of the week
visiting
places
in and around town and spending precious time with Kendall. |
We were also
happy to have our friend,
Jean,
come for a visit. During her stay Bloom Night was announced
(when a special desert flower blooms only one night each year.)
We had a relaxing and great time together. It almost felt like
our old college days! |
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Our first
family vacation of the year took us out west to California. It
was an honor to be a part of
Ping & Jane's destination wedding in southern California's
wine country. We had a great time with Amanda in the
L.A. area and even visited a family
farm nearby with perfectly ripe, sweet and juicy
strawberries at just the right height for Kendall to pick on her
own!
  
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We took a
Memorial Day weekend getaway to celebrate
Peggy's big birthday and give Kendall and Jacob a chance to
get reacquainted.
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Kendall has more cousins to grow up with...
Introducing the littlest Gees
Emme
born to Alan
& Eng (Young)
Noah David
born to David
& Carol
Elizabeth Lin
born to Alex
& Jodie
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We've said
"fare well" to several friends who have moved away within
the past year, but now it's our turn to say "'til we meet again"
to our friends and family in
Austin and
Houston.
We thank our friends Julia, Oliver, Joe, Grace, Je, Byron, John
and Donna and Brian's parents for hosting farewell
gatherings for us.
It was wonderful to see some of our family and friends one more time
before our move. Thankfully, we were also able to join
Alex at
his Red Egg celebration just before leaving.
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From the
Lakes to the Mountains
On the
last day of April, our family
moved to Arizona for Brian's new job. As excited as we are
about our new adventure together, we will dearly miss our family
and friends in our great state of Texas. We thank God for a smooth moving
experience and transition to our new home, a restful first
flight for Kendall and for keeping us all safe and healthy
during the move. Come on by anytime!
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Kendall's 1st
birthday
Our beautiful
daughter is
ONE year old! It seems like we just brought her home
from the
hospital a few days ago. She has brought us
unimaginable joy and we praise God for His amazing gift everyday.
You can see a
slideshow of her
first year here.
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Tour of Texas
Before we
moved, we had to visit a few very special places in Texas one
last time. The Zilker
Botanical Gardens were in full bloom one weekend while
Jennifer's Mom was visiting. Kendall visited
Fredericksburg for the first time, a place where we've
spent many relaxing long weekends and taken day trips to pick
sweet peaches off the trees in the summer. We also stopped by the
Capitol building to take a few photos, just as we did on our
wedding day. Brian had a conference in Dallas, so Jennifer and
Kendall spent a few days out on the town exploring the
Big D. Finally, we made a stop at the
University of Texas campus where at last we "met" and began our
journey together a decade ago. |
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Happy "big" birthday
Je! |
Easter
Thanks to
Jennifer's Mom who hosted a
Kwan Family Farewell for us in Houston. |
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Our friends and
family helped Jennifer celebrate her
30th birthday in February! Brian hosted an inspired and
thoughtful Monopoly-themed dinner party complete with custom invitations,
a Monopoly money raffle, delicious food, great company and one very creative
cake. Thanks also to the friends who called from all over the country
with warm birthday wishes. |
Baby Lin arrives on
February 5th. Welcome to the world,
Alexander Owen, and congratulations John & Donna!
Happy first
birthday to
Andrew! |
What
a treat we had picnicking at the
Kite Festival this
March. The
weather was beautiful and the kites spectacular.
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Baby Lin is almost here! We're so excited for John and Donna as they
prepare to become new parents. We can't wait to meet him or her in
February.
 Our
friend Charlotte made a last minute trip to Texas so we met up with her
in
San Antonio and Kendall was able to visit with her friend Caden. |
Friends
shower Leslie with love and gifts before she becomes a wife just a
few weeks before her
wedding to Oliver. Congratulations, Leslie & Oliver! |
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Congratulations, Andy and Marilyn.
Thanks for including us in your wedding day! |
We returned to the site
(even back to the same leather sofa!)
where our wedding reception was held for a special dinner to
celebrate our
anniversary. It was fun to reminisce about our beautiful
wedding day years ago and show Kendall where our Gee Family
began. |
