Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!!
Not sending out Christmas cards this year, instead, enjoy this visual of 2016 highlights for our family – imagine you’re sitting next to me on a couch and I’m showing off a photo album as I love to do – but this way there are way fewer pictures, and I can share with so much more of you at once! With our love and best wishes for a joyful Holiday season and a 2017 full of laughter and precious memories,
Norbert, Rachel, Josiah & Aubrieanne, Joshua and Danny Lakatos
January
- we began 2016 ALTOGETHER, and while that didn’t happen again this year, it’s been a year full of togetherness in groups and parts and with many dear and special friends
Altogether in Disneyland
with Rachel’s sister Sarah, cousin Melanie and brother Noah’s family
with dear friend Marilyn in Budapest, just months before her battle against Leukemia began, she went home to Jesus in June
February
ICSB’s Basketball Tournament, the biggest school event of the year – Go Bulldogs! Danny’s BFF Ali is on the left, and extra points if you can count how many hair colors Danny went through this year.
Norbert’s birthday lasagna dinner
March
- Joshua returned to Europe in March, initially to attend a YWAM DTS in Germany, which ended up canceled, so he spent time as a Teacher’s Assistant at his old school in Budapest (and is now considering becoming a teacher) and then spent the summer as staff at Schloss Heroldeck Christian Conference Center in Austria
Easter weekend trip to the Budapest Zoo
Easter Day with Norbert’s sister Nora’s family
April
ICSB Junior Senior Banquet
Family BBQ at Norbert’s cousin’s home with his mom, her sister, three cousins and their kids
Boys will be boys…
May
CEO Picnic, friends as dear as family
Norbert hosts the 4th Pastor’s Retreat in Szeged
with Joshi on Margit Hid (bridge) near our home
Rachel’s best friend from High School arrives for a special visit!
Teaching Denise to pronounce her favorite treat in Hungarian…or trying to at least. 🙂
dinner at our favorite traditional Hungarian restaurant in Buda, Margit Kert
with Denise enjoying the nightly musical and lights fountain display on Margit Island
Szeged Days family photo
Danny’s beautiful photograph displayed at the ICSB Fine Arts night
father and son on our bridge before he heads off for the summer
Joshua heads to Austria…
June
Wednesday morning women’s Bible study that Rachel leads meeting at Elizabeth’s house to enjoy her amazing rose bower in full bloom
our nephew Viktor is one year old, and Uncle Norbert gets to play with Lego’s!
with Nora, Attis and Viktor at the cool Lego event in town
another friend flew across the ocean to visit, this time Danny’s best friend Skylar
and then Norbert & Rachel flew to the US, and Josiah joined us in CA to see Grandma
our first trip to Disneyland with just ONE child
Siah didn’t have any fun without his brother and sister
July
back in Colorado we had company too, Rachel’s cousin Emily and her family
but most of our time in Colorado this summer involved gloves, shovels and way too much mulch…
….but some work breaks were had with special friends, including Rachel’s best friend Robin
in our newly re-landscaped backyard, with our Colorado Welcome bear Frank who has traveled back to Budapest with us and now greets any visitors to our home here, come meet him!
August
- We flew back to Hungary early in August, but first we flew to Maine and spent a wonderful week with Rachel’s family there, before heading on to Budapest via Boston (wow – three hours off our regular flight made an amazing difference!)
on the ferry to Peaks Island with family in Maine
Rachel’s brother Zac and his family introduced us to Fielder’s Choice Ice Cream – yum!
Family Shot at the Willson Homestead in Mechanic Falls, ME
meanwhile in Austria….yep, Joshua got baptized!
we drove to the Missions Conference in Austria with this carload of lovely young ladies…it was not quiet.
more friendship hang time in Austria, Third Culture Kids and MK’s bonds are deep
caught Joshua hanging with friends in Austria too
but this year’s Missions Conf. will always be the year Joshua and a group swam across Lake Millstatt!
family shot before we leave Schloss Heroldeck, our family’s favorite place on earth
our car-load back to Budapest (plus an extra friend in the shot)
Danny’s last first day of school at ICSB or any regular school, our High School Senior this year!
September
- In mid-September Rachel took an unexpected two month trip back to Colorado to be with our oldest son Josiah as he became a father – for more about that time (and more baby pictures!), see the previous blog post.
Joshua flies to Italy for Bible College
Norbert’s surprise Danube evening river cruise for Rachel’s birthday
how our family keeps connected while spread all over the globe
October
at Josiah’s Disney-themed Daddy Shower
father and daughter, our precious first grandchild, Aubrieanne
November
- Rachel flew home to Budapest in mid-November, a week before we drove to Italy to pick up Joshua from Bible College to be home for the Holidays before heading to spring semester in York, England.
Rachel’s sister Sarah came to Colorado for a short but sweet visit over the same weekend that…
….Josiah dedicated Aubrieanne back to God
Joshua’s Bible College classmates and staff in Montebelluna, Italy
Venice, Italy was amazing!
December
Smiling, chunky-monkey Aubrieanne
Budapest Christmas Market
Merry Christmas from Aubrieanne and Santa!
lakatosfamily 