Fröhliche Weihnachten aus Hamburg!

We hope this message finds you looking forward to a holiday of peaceful time spent with close friends and family. And of course, Kirsten and I are pleased that you have decided to take yet another peek at the 2005 edition of the Greco Gazette. Feedback from our readers (ahem…) suggests that the Greco Gazette is best enjoyed with a glass of spiced eggnog or hot Glühwein – so relax and enjoy!

As Kirsten and I reflected back on the past year, we agreed that it had this “crescendo” feeling to it – similar to a really good movie. I can’t think of anything better than watching the tension and action build before a spectacular climax of a good cinematic story. For us, 2005 was a year where several events seemed to build toward something big. And indeed, we sense that 2006 will be a very momentous year.

Intrigued yet? Well, consider the following...

• Jim’s sister Missy announced her engagement to be married (catch all the action at www.missyandbill.net).
• We celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary. (I [Jim] find it remarkable that someone can put up with me for so long.)
• Notre Dame football was revived.
• Kirsten’s brother Kevin and his wife Mandi welcomed their first child, Aidan Jeffrey Brown, into the world. (Check out Aidan's website at www.kmbinnovations.com/aidan.)
• We celebrated 5 years living in Germany (Mein Gott! Wir sind fast Deutsch!)
• …and perhaps the biggest news of the year…we are now expecting our own first child in the spring of next year.

It can all be found right here in the 2005 Greco Gazette. For those of you who like to see our travel photos, click around and you’ll discover our first exploration of the alpine region of Switzerland and France (where the food is awesome) as well as our anniversary celebration on the green seascapes of Ireland (for those of you who are wondering, the Guinness beer does in fact taste better). Also, in honor of this being our last full year in Germany, we have created a Best of Europe photo album showcasing all our best photos.

Our Weddings and Babies page is enormous this year, so make sure to get that second glass before you click on through – and don’t miss the special section on our own “FAQ About Having a Baby in Germany”. I am sure you are curious about a number of things, so we thought we’d share – it has been an interesting (and sometimes anxiety-creating) experience for us so far.

Finally, we are both happy and sad to announce that we will repatriate back to the States in 2006. We’ve had a wonderful experience living in Germany, and we’ll miss all of the friends we have made over our 5+ years here. For old friends back home, we look forward to re-establishing old ties and building new ones, wherever we may be. But until then, we wish all of you Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah and a joyous holiday season.

We hope to see many of you at Missy’s wedding!

Love & Peace, Jim & Kirsten