Season's Greetings from .... Atlanta! Yes, we're still in Georgia after nearly moving to New Jersey earlier this year. We had signed a contract on a house in Ridgewood, NJ in March and quickly put our own on the market. But then after losing the Ridgewood house to another buyer without a home sale contingency, and a few less than inspiring offers on our own home, we found out that we would have our third child in December 2000 and decided to stay in Atlanta at least another year. The move to New Jersey just didn't seem meant to be, at least not yet. We still have the option to open a New York office for Chris' firm later this year, but haven't yet decided whether we will or not.  

Of course the really big news is the arrival of Patrick Anthony! He was born on Friday, December 15th at 9:40 am and weighed in at 6 pounds 15 ounces. At the moment, he seems to have light brown hair, blue eyes and cute little face that reminds us of our Italian relatives on Beth's side of the family. This delivery was Beth's third cesarian section and everything went smoothly. She and Patrick came home from the hospital on December 19th and are doing well. Thankfully, Beth's mother and step-father, Mary Lou and Larry McDonald, had been taking care of the boys during our hospital stay. Beth will be sore from her surgery for several weeks, but fortunately we've hired a nanny to help out with the Charlie and Henry for the foreseeable future. Her name is Jurga, she's from Lithuania and she seems very nice. Charlie and Henry really seem to like her as well. 

Charlie and Henry continue to amaze us. Charlie turned four in October and has been attending pre-kindergarden classes at a local church five days a week. He's also been taking Karate, Spanish and Science classes in the afternoon as well. His latest passions include Nintendo 64, Crazy Bones, Power Rangers and Pokemon. True to form, Charlie remains full of personality and enthusiasm in everything he does. Henry has turned from a baby into an independent little boy before our eyes this year. He turned two in October, and like every two year old his favorite word is NO! Henry has been attending morning classes with Charlie two days a week this fall and also has been enjoying a Music class in the afternoon. Henry's hobbies are finger painting and trying to keep up with Charlie. If Charlie has it, you can bet that Henry wants it. So we've been buying lots of things in pairs lately. 

Beth has somehow managed to keep our two active boys busy and well cared for while being pregnant for most of the year. She's also acted as the general contractor for a number of renovation projects on our home. These include a new brick patio and front walk, remodeling our basement into a playroom for the boys, a new swingset in the backyard, and turning Charlie & Henry's bedroom into the wild west with new furniture and wall paper. Her pastimes include cooking, decorating, crafts, attending her book club & helping with friends' weddings. 

Chris' work as a marketing strategy consultant this past year has been very rewarding and demanding. He travels a great deal and has been working with clients in a variety of industries. His current engagements include a medical equipment firm in Seattle, a corporate jet manufacturer in Dallas and a major sports league in New York. Since he joined Z Marketing in January, the firm has jumped from 10 to 35 employees and more growth is expected in the coming year. One of Chris' college buddies, Jim Charanis, has joined the firm as well, making it that much more enjoyable.

Well, that's all the news for now. We hope you have a wonderful holiday and a happy and healthy New Year. 

To check out news from previous updates, just click on the date you'd like to see: 

December 19, 1999 Update 

October 10, 1998 Update