Welcome to the Schoenwalds’ year-in-review for 2014.
Easily the biggest saga of the year began in February when we experienced a short but very severe rainstorm which deluged our house over a span of about 48 hours. During this storm we discovered that our 2-year old windows were leaking water. This led to what has clearly been the worst part of the year for us, when we found out that all of the windows that had been installed by the people we bought the house from were done so incorrectly. Not only that, but they used the wrong type of window for the frame and we had to throw them all out and buy all new windows. That started a chain reaction which led to the demolition of the brick facade on the front of our house, the months-long construction which killed all our landscaping, and the resurfacing of our hardwood floors to fix the water damage. To this date we’re still trying to recover some of the funds.
The bright side of this saga is the new landscaping we have in the front and back yards. In the back we replaced our (stone dead) grass with synthetic turf and a perimeter of drought-tolerant plants. In the front we replaced our (not-quite-dead-but-not-getting-better) lawn with a variety of drought-tolerant plants. We also changed the color of the front of our house from the stark white we had before to a much more pleasing orange-ish tint (officially called “adobe”). We really love our new look even if we’re seething at the reasons it happened.
On a sadder note, we said goodbye this year to Josh’s grandmother who passed away at the incredible age of 101. Her spirit, spunk and fight were there right up until the end, and while we certainly will miss her, she had an unbelievably long and fulfilling life. If only we could all enjoy such longevity…
We were able to take a few family trips this year: to Big Bear in June when we had to evacuate while our floors were refinished, to Cambria in Ocober for a family get-together and wine tasting, to Arizona for Thanksgiving to see Josh’s family, and then to the Bay Area in December to see Courtney’s family for Christmas.
In January we celebrated Elliot’s 3rd birthday by going to Disneyland one last time before he needs his own ticket. We had a great time; Elliot’s favorite rides were Peter Pan and the Astro Orbitor. Elliot also began taking swim lessons to get him safer in the water. He also took a soccer class in the Spring which he enjoyed, and we’re looking forward to doing much more of that in 2015. Elliot has been doing extremely well at preschool, and in September he “graduated” from the Crocodile room to the Sea Turtle room where he became a “Yellow” Sea Turtle (skipping the "Green" Sea Turtle level). I think if you asked him that would be his greatest accomplishment of the year. Mom and dad would probably pinpoint his ability to use the potty as his greatest achievement, but then he's not the one buying the diapers. His teachers continue to give us excellent feedback and he has more energy than ever before.
Albert is the wins the award for “most improved” this year, and it wasn’t really close. He’s learned to laugh, sit up, crawl, and walk. As his personality started to emerge more, it's clear that Albert is as sweet as ever, clearly a milder disposition than Elliot, but no less inquisitive or determined. He’s constantly babbling and on the cusp of uttering his first “real” word. He’s currently attending a very loving family-run day care not far from our house. It’s similar to the one Elliot attended while we were in Culver City; the people there clearly love him and take wonderful care of him. Both kids are joys in our lives and we feel lucky to be their parents!
Josh continues to work at Spark Networks where he began at the end of 2013. During the year he worked to design the user experience for two major apps: the JDate app for iPhone and the ChristianMingle app for Android, both of which were released in the past month. Early in the year Josh was suckered into signing up for the Disneyland Half Marathon. After paying the (rather exorbitant and completely non-refundable or transferrable) registration fee, he committed himself to getting in shape to run the 13.1 miles. He sacrificed his already-compromised sleep to train and managed to finish the race in a respectable 2:35. Later in the year he also ran in the inaugural LA Dodgers 5K, but he insists he is NOT a runner, and still much prefers to play tennis which he does at every opportunity. Also during the year, Josh continued his membership in The Great Steakout – the steak club he and some friends maintain. 2014 was a bit of a down year for us but there are a lot of new places to try in 2015!
After the first few months of the year out on maternity leave, Courtney celebrated her fifth anniversary with the City of Los Angeles this October, and continues to work at the office two miles from home. She enjoyed being able to chaperone most of the preschool summer field trips and is happy her commute allows her more family time. In August she flew up to Moraga for a last look at her childhood house and to help her mom pack it all up. Cherie is now house sitting for a friend until she figures out where life will take her next. Also this year, Courtney was relieved to be released from Conservatorship duties for her father. She still works with the hillside developments of Mulholland Drive as well as the burgeoning area of Reseda. She still tries to swim regularly.
We hope you had a wonderful year and are looking forward to even better and brighter things in 2015!