Blessings of the holiday season to you and yours.

The year of 2014 is quickly coming to a close and this letter like the weather will have both ebb and flow. Rather than begin at the end we shall go back to the start. In November of 2013, nothing grew larger than our heart. Our little Zae came into this world to see our smiling faces; while Dani and I tried to sleep, eat, and find our places. By January 2014 we were in such stride and little Z pretty much never left our side. Quickly the month past and February was upon us, we had some fun filled visiting with Dani's cousins .... rhyming is much to hard, I'm giving up at this point :-)

Once the snow started melting, Dani and I decided that it was finally time to finish off the construction of our deck (we started it in .... 2010 maybe ... it was a long time ago). But before we could finish I had to figure out how big of a jut out to build for the bbq. I thought to myself, what a great time to buy a pellet smoker! Just before Dani's 30th birthday the smoker was purchased and placed on the deck. We had a big ole smokefest to celebrate Dani's birthday which featured many friends, family, and of course tons of food.

As the year moved on, we began the season of traveling: summer. Our first major event was the Brosinsky reunion at Jackfish Lake. We spent a great weekend visiting with family and going for the odd round of golf. As well, it was Z's first time in a lake ... lets just say she didn't spend much time in the water. Our next adventure was the Craven Country Jamboree. No, we didn't take Zaeya out for the shows, she stayed back in Regina with Grandma Marilyn while we spent the daytime listening to music and enjoying some cocktails in the warm summer weather. We drove back into the city after the last show every night, to relieve Grandma for the night, and then we went back out to sun, country music and beautiful Saskatchewan weather during the day time.

Having a child has many perks, one of which is the ability to take time off of work to spend it with our family. Beginning in July, I took two whole months of parental leave and since Dani is a teacher, that meant we had two whole months to spend as a whole family unit. We took advantage of this and went on a 10 day journey. We started by traveling to Waskesiu for a few days of camping. We stayed in an O-Tentik which is kind of like an old A-Frame cabin. We had a blast visiting with friends of ours who have a cabin there, walking around by the beach, watching the odd bear, and swatting mosquitoes until we went mad.

On our travels back home we took a rather indirect route. We started in Prince Albert by visiting with my Uncle Don and Auntie Marlene, then to Shellbrook to spend a night with my grandmother. The day after we took off to my parents in Neilburg for a few days then went south to visit my aunt's, uncles, and grandmother in Macklin and Denzil. We ended off the day in Kindersley visiting with a few of Dani's cousins. By the time we got home, we were a little tired (it was by far the biggest trip Z had ever gone one) but we enjoyed every minute of it.

As the summer days began growing shorter we helped celebrate the marriage of our good friends Becky (Sigfusson) and Curtis Fiege. Dani was a bridesmaid and I was excited to put Z into her first real dress.

Believe it (or not) as fall approached so did the completion of the deck. I had to take many days off of work, but slowly the rest of it got built, the furniture got placed, and the railing was bolted down. We now have a great outdoor location to cook, entertain, and chill during the warmer seasons.

With the building of the deck, we had officially began fall. The grapes that I tend on the back fence grew large and lush with all the rain we had. We also spent some time down at the farm doing the yearly cow roundup and took a few fun rides on the border. Dani, myself, and Dani's sister and brother-in-law ran the QCM relay race. It was a beautiful day and I think we all had a blast. At halloween, we managed to dress up Z as Little Red Riding Hood. All we were missing was the wolf.

We spent thanksgiving at my sisters house in Martinsville. Besides the good food and good company we took some good pictures. We had the whole family together on dad's side except for my neice Brook. It was extra special as we knew it would be one of the last few family events with my Grandmother

As November came to an end we started to transition Zaeya to a day home as Dani was headed back to teaching. During her time off, she got transferred to a new school (F. W. Johnston) which will lead to some new adventures and new friends. ... About Zaeya's dayhome, well that is a story is for another time, but lets just say Z can now say she got kicked out of something (which is hilarious considering she spends about 90% of her day smiling and making faces). Luckily, we found a wonderful lady close to home to take care of Z.

The month of December has been a hard one, after 87 years of providing joy to those around her, my Grandmother (Park) passed away. She was a wonderful lady and will be greatly missed, but every time I think of her or hear her voice in my head I smile.

Oh, and last but not least there is Pixel our friendly household feline. He is still doing great and being .... well, Pixel. We were interested to see how Z and he would get along and they both usually function independently. Pix has given Z a few face massages with is paws, but I'm pretty sure they both love each other even though they keep a 1 foot distance at all times.

And at that, we begin where we are now, at the end of 2014. Dani, Pixel, Zaeya & I would like to wish you and yours all the best in 2015. If you are ever in Regina, feel free to stop in for a visit. Or maybe we will see you in our travels in the coming year.

Love Brett, Dani, Zaeya & Pixel