2008 Our Year in Review

Happy New Year 2009!

I regret that I didn't have time to put together a Christmas letter this year. We have heard from many of you and I look forward to that each year.  The year has been eventful, but our biggest news is the arrival of our fourth child in October. Here is just a compilation of pictures that tell a little about each of us and what we've been up to this past year while living in England. It starts with November and goes backwards.  


--November--

Mandy LOVES ballet.  Here she is at her British Preschool at her ballet show on Thanksgiving day.  She insisted on wearing her purple leotard even though we told her everyone else would be wearing pink. 

Here she is earlier in the season before her first ballet class.

--October-- Andrea Marie joined our family on the 18th of October.  She was just under 8 lbs. at birth and she has grown fast. On Halloween, we dressed with a Peter Pan theme, with Andrea as one of the Lost Boys. Andrea LOVES being bundled in her coat. Here she is on her blessing day And at one month old asleep in her swing --September-- On Labor day in September we went to Old Hunstanton Beach.  The kids loved picking up seashells and crabs and burying their feet in the sand. --August-- Joseph went to Scotland as he visited a lab for work. Here he is by the Harry Potter Train. Joseph had a conference in Garmisch, Germany, so we made it a vacation at the resort for American Military.  Joseph enjoys taking photos, and he was prepared with his tripod for these pictures. --July-- The 4th of July was full of fun.  Here we are at the annual carnival on base. Joseph's family was in town so we went to  Pisa and Florence with them.

Here is Joseph at the Leaning Tower.  It "leans" differently in pictures depending on angle they are taken at.  Joseph LOVES traveling and seeing sites.  We were in Pisa for his Birthday.

Our family near the Bed and Breakfast where we stayed

Emily enjoyed seeing the local street artists' work.

Emily and Joey checked out this iguana while we waited in line at the Uffizi.

After the family got back from Pisa and Florence, Joseph's mom watched the kids while Joseph and Jenny went to Venice for a late anniversary get away. 

Jenny's favorite part of Venice was having uninterrupted time with her Sweetheart.

In Burano, one of the islands near Venice, the homes are brightly colored.  Jenny was 6 months pregnant in this picture. 

Amidst all the travel we managed to squeeze in a birthday party for Emily.  She LOVES art.  So we had a painting party at the craft center on base.  She LOVES animals, especially dogs and cats.

--June--  

In June we went to Ireland, where the McDermott family originated.

Here is Emily at Lough Key Park

The Kids painted with Quills at the King House (museum).  

--May--

Emily's 1st grade end-of-the-year play.  She was a beautiful monarch butterfly.

We also celebrated Mandy's and Jenny's birthdays.

Here is Mandy stringing flowers for her necklace at her 3rd birthday party.  She LOVES pink and requested an all pink birthday party.

Jenny LOVES musicals so we went to the Lion King in London for her birthday.

--April--

In April we went to Edinburgh, Scotland.  Joseph had some work at the lab south of there and so we made a family vacation out of it.

We visited Alnwick Castle, where some of Harry Potter was filmed.

In the courtyard of the castle they had Medieval activities and costumes to dress up in.

We give our kids the chance to earn private dates with Mom or Dad by getting ready for school and helping around the house.  On one of these private dates, Emily and her dad went to Thetford.  She had a great time feeding the birds and loved seeing them run off with a whole piece of bread!

Mandy tagged along on Joey's request for a candy date at the park.

--March--

Easter morning it snowed.  It was the first snow for Mandy  and the first one that Emily and Joey remember.

--February--

In February we found out we were expecting our fourth child.

--January--

Joey LOVES Spiderman and his favorite colors are red and blue.  Here he is at his 5th Birthday Party.

We hope you have a wonderful year in 2009!

With Love, the McDermotts

--Joseph, Jenny, Emily (7), Joey (5), Mandy (3), and Andrea (2 months)

Ireland

We took a trip to Ireland, to visit the birthplace of the McDermott Family.



We flew into Dublin, then drove across Ireland to Roscommon and Sligo Counties. Here is Joseph in Carrick-on-Shannon, a bright little town on the Shannon River.






Mandy and Grandpa visited Boyle Abbey. This abbey was built on land donated by the MacDermot Family in the 1100's.



MacDermot Castle sits on an island in Lough Key. The MacDermot Clan ruled the Kingdom of Moylurg from this location, from the 12th Century through the early 1600s.



The kids enjoyed playing in Lough Key Forest Park.



Here is a view of MacDermot Castle from the other side of the Lough.



Here is Emily outside of the bed and breakfast where we stayed. The gates behind lead to Lough Key Forest Park. Prior to the 1950s, they were the gates to Rockingham Demesne.




King House in Boyle, built about 1730 and recently restored. The King family was given 30,000 acres of land around Boyle in the 1600's that was seized from the MacDermot Clan.



Richard and Joseph in Boyle, near a bridge over the Boyle River.



Joseph and his grandpa in Sligo.







The guys visited Sligo Abbey, while the ladies took a nap.



We headed to Dublin, where we visited the cathedral.



The crypt under the cathedral was cool and dark.



It was raining as we left the cathedral, but with rain comes rainbows.