Christmas 1997 (1st Christmas married)

December, 1997

Dear Family & Friends,

Since I am now an old married guy, I guess I can start writing the seasonal form letter. Considering that the alternative might be no communication whatsoever, I don’t feel quite so bad about adopting this method of wishing “good tidings to all”.

Beth and I have officially survived the first three months and some-odd days of marital bliss and, I have to say, it’s been really great! We are looking to see how we can combine all of our assets and trade them in for a cozy place on the Hawaiian Islands. Judging from our assets and the cost of accommodations in Hawaii, I think I calculated that if we stow away on an airplane, we should be able to afford several weeks of poverty in the Pacific.

The complete merging of the households is still “in-process” but nothing insurmountable has come to my/our attention…to my knowledge. I think it was wise to go ahead and dispose of the big yellow couch before the actual wedding ceremony to allow more room for the increased amount of Christmas decorations that moved in sometime around mid October. The Season looks a little bit different around the Templeton house this year.

Tracker (the dog / son) and I are enjoying the new homey feel of my / our house but I still find myself looking in the sock drawer and finding lacey things that don’t really fit my personality. Tracker really likes having a Mom since she has a tendency to overfeed sometimes. He and I are both showing the effects of the increased food consumption. I’m sure that I will start on the diet after the beginning of the year. If I can only get Beth to scratch my belly like she does Tracker’s.

Beth’s / Our Snow Villages are beautifully displayed throughout the house complete with custom interior lighting. I am quite the “snowman” with the polyester filling strewn about the place. Other than the Christmas tree falling over around 5:30 a.m. one morning, we have not had any significant decorating dilemmas. (Beth slept through the crashing of the tree.)

I hope that you have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Best wishes,