Dear Family and Friends, Well, we've reached the end of the year 2000, and it's been a wild one. Time and energy did not permit us to arrange our usual family portrait card, and so this year we're going all-cyber with our Christmas greetings. Sure, we'll print a few hard copies and mail them to the off line among you. But the vast majority will be sent via e-mail (we'll save a bundle and reach even more of you, is technology great or what?). Read on and enjoy. [If you are seeing a plain text message here, you can find the graphical version of this card at http://www.casey.com/xmas/2000]. We began 2000 with anticipation and concern, excited to see the numbers change on the calendar like miles on the odometer, and wondering how many computers might choke on Y2K bugs (we took great comfort that this was never a concern for our Macs :-) Happily the world didn't come to an end, the New Year's party was a blast, and at Colleen's urging Chris began growing a beard he promised would last for the year (it has). We enjoyed some travels this year. In the spring we took a trip to The Bahamas, joining Jenny's brother David and his bride Lou on their wedding cruise. In the summer we loaded up the van and headed home to Glasford, with a side trip to Arrow Rock, Missouri to visit Chris' brother Kevin where he was musical director at the Lyceum Theatre. Politics brought us home to California in August, to New York in November, and finally back again to Florida in December (for Chris anyway).
Business has been great. August found the whole family home in California, where Chris worked to help bring the Democratic Convention online. We spent election night at Hillary's party in Manhattan. And Chris unexpectedly found himself spending a week in West Palm Beach Florida for a week in December trying to help sort things out. (He knows who REALLY won, just don't get him started on it). And Jenny keeps the whole crew on schedule. She is Katie's troop leader, and Will's Den leader, and even when out of uniform, for all of us, she is just plain 'leader'. Kid classes, practices and other activities frequently keep her at the wheel of the family mini-van, delivering our charges to their many appointments. And with Chris working at home she has an extra kid in the house all day. While she ponders how he can work all night on the computer, he's amazed with how she can spend all day on the phone. It's been a wonderful year. We are happy to have shared some of it with you, our family and friends, and we look forward to the coming promised odyssey of 2001. Chris' sister Jenny is coming to visit for Christmas and we're going to Williamsburg, VA to enjoy some of the holiday in colonial style. New Years Day will mean a fresh shave for Chris. As we settle in for the holidays, you are all in our thoughts. We wish for you a Merry Christmas, and a very happy New Year! 
4414 Ridgewood Court, Montclair, VA 22026 | 703/590-5639 http://www.casey.com | chris@casey.com | jennifer@casey.com |
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Katie
has had a great year. She is in the 4th grade now and loves
school. A voracious reader, Katie is not often without a book.
She is proud to be a self-described 'bookworm'. Katie advanced from
Brownies to Juniors with her Girl Scout troop this year, and she is also
a member of the school safety patrol. Inspired by some performances
she's seen this year, (in particular the production of 'Joseph and the
Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat we saw in Arrow Rock), Katie aspires
to being on stage. She keeps very busy writing songs and singing
in choir. Soon she will join her first drama class. The year
is ending with a big change for Katie. Her new braces have red and
green colored mountings, providing her with a beautiful holiday smile.
Will
is now in the 2nd grade. He had a great season on the soccer field and
plans to continue with this sport next spring. Will can often be
found building new contraptions with his Legos, or creating works of art
with paper and markers. Will has also advanced with his Cub Scout
troop, growing from a Tiger to a Wolf scout. A man of great mobility,
Will travels by bike, rollerblades, skateboard, and most recently on his
new Razor scooter. Each provides numerous opportunities for bumps
and scrapes, to which he frequently succumbs. For more sedate
entertainment, Will turns to his GameBoy to battle some Pokemon.
With Santa's cooperation, he hopes to get a video game system that will
let him take his gaming onto the TV screen.
Colleen
began her formal education this year and is really enjoying pre-school.
A fan of the arts, Colleen studied ballet and tap this year, sings in the
church choir, and aspires to attain the super-powers displayed by her favorite
Power Puff girl, Blossom. Not one to be left far behind her older
siblings, Colleen keeps right up with all of the kid traffic in Ridgewood
Court, pedaling away on her big girl bike (training wheel's still providing
an essential barrier against the effects of gravity). Not yet able
to go completely cold turkey, Colleen has limited use of her 'pacie'
to bedtime and rare moments of particular emotional distress.
Chris
started the year with two jobs; working in the Senate by day, and building
campaign webs on his own time. But by April it became apparent that
his fledgling business had enough promise to become a full time gig, and
both Chris and his business partner left their Senate jobs to work full
time for