Dear Friends,

What an exciting year this has been for us! Having a child sure adds a different dimension to our lives. Eric will be one year old December 20th. He chatters in his own language, he is just starting to walk, and likes to climb up on things that he can't get down from. We take him with us almost any where we go. John was able to watch him in his office, or take him to lunch while Marti was in class. He rides in a backpack carrier for early morning walks, and on hikes in to rock climbs. He usually plays with one parent at the bottom of the rock climb, while the other parent climbs with friends. Eric has found a few rocks his size and is already starting to imitate his parents. Rock climbing is a year round activity in Tucson, and we have both been quite active.

John is still teaching Computer Science at the University of Arizona. This spring he will be taking on a new course, Comparitive Programming Languages. Marti has finished her course work and after one more small project will (finally) have earned her masters degree in Computer Science.

Having Eric isn't likely to keep the Petersons in one place. We managed to get out skiing near Flagstaff, Arizona, last February. Eric rode in a "snuggly" front pack inside our parkas, where he was warm and found the motion pleasing. We hope he still likes it, as we are heading to Denver for Christmas, and on to Salt Lake around New Years Day. We also managed to drag Eric to Denver last summer for some climbing and kayaking (Eric just got to watch, though).

Next summer we will be travelling west to California and Oregon for climbing, kayaking, visiting, and computer conferences (in that order!). We will try to look up as many of our friends as we can while we are in the area.

We feel fortunate that we were able to get together with both of Marti's sisters at once this year. Anna and her family from Houston drove across Texas and New Mexico to meet us and Nina's family in Phoenix. We took them on a mini-camping tour of the sights of Arizona. It was nice to get to know Anna's daughter Heather (5) a little better. Eric's cousin Karen (3) was there too and everyone had a great time camping, hiking, and even exploring a cave. Eric loves playing with his cousins. Nina's youngest daughter, Sarah, is almost the same age as Eric and they have great fun together. Our nephew, David (10), and niece, Rachel (5), are budding rock climbers and David has been up some very exciting routes in the Phoenix area.

We are still at the same address, where there is plenty of room for a family of three. We still have room for guests and are happy to have visitors.

Best wishes for the holidays and the year to come,

John, Marti, and Eric Peterson