Christmas 2018

It is that time of year again. It seems as if this year has flown bye! Christmas is coming and it’s a good feeling looking back to take in all that this year have given us. 

Looking at the photo above it seems we are all very grown up. I guess that´s true now with Sandra having graduated from High school and started at Agricultural college this autumn.  The family is busy pursuing their life paths and it is kind of difficult to keep up sometimes. But we are able to get together for lunch and serious gaming fairly regularly. Eiríkur is going great guns at school. He has moved across to the Reykjavík Art school and is taking courses in illustration. This builds on the work he did at the technical school with animation – check out youtube and instagram. He is also working as a life guard at Nauthólsvík beach. That’s where the sea swimmers do their stuff. Chilly I would say!

The high point for Mr David has been a trip to Iran as part of an assessment team working for the International Project Managers Association Global excellence award team. Amazing to see the country and meet people doing amazing things in their projects. There has also been a lot of Red Cross work both here and abroad which is very rewarding. I have also made my own drum and “ship of the day” is still alive and well on Instagram and Facebook.  The Harbour is a fascinating place for boat watchers!

Sandra has moved out of Reykjavík to become a residential student at the Agricultural college in Hvanneyri. She is able to have her horses with her, which is a good thing. On the other hand the school is quite isolated, so we can expect that Sandra will be a frequent visitor to the big city.

Rebekka and Bubbi are the proud owners of a lovely Irish setter who goes by the name of Íri. He young, lively, intelligent and very handsome, so he is a regular at the dog shows and is going well. Rebecca is furiously pursuing her doctorate. Her work is gaining both attention and funding. Part of the deal is travel to conferences and symposia which makes it exciting.

Anna Bryndís has been travelling a lot this year. Memorable trips for the Red Cross, to Bangladesh Also for pleasure. A group of girlfriends went to visit the Italian treasure of Cinque Terre and walked the trails of the National park between these beautifully picturesque villages. There was a trip to the States to stay with friends, do some shopping and celebrate Thanksgiving.  Nephews, Anna Dís and Arni have looked after Anna, taken her on long walks to the park and played and played and played. There is lots of joy around these young hearts!

It has been a rich and varied year for all of us and we are fortunate to enjoy so many opportunities. Hoping the 2019 will be as exciting!

Christmas greetings 2017

Dearest Friends close by and far away,

We are getting far too close to Christmas as we write the annual missive. The year has gone bye in a world wind and when we take time to look back we can see how full on it has been.

This is why it was so important to get together, make a road trip to Ashwell and spend some days with family in the UK.  We are talking about the Icelandic Lynch massif does Blightly !!!!!

We took a long weekend to fly out to Luton, visit the Bushel and Strike, Cheyney Water Farmhouse, spend a day in Cambridge including punting and a night in a stately home before zooming down to Henley to link up with Rory, Laura and Kaiden. 

We were lucky enough to find a beautiful cottage to stay the weekend in and we enjoyed an unforgettable day on the river Thames, with Rory at the helm. 

Camila came down for the evening and we had a great BBQ supper having raided Tesco. Sunday was more food, Sunday roast at the Crooked billet before we zoomed up to the airport for the trip home. I don´t think I have eaten as much in one weekend in my life.

The weather was perfectly warm and sunny. That added to the Indian summer atmosphere to the  overall ambience of nostalgia for Dad and touching the roots for the young ones.

There have been loads of trips abroad for everybody, Anna backwards and forwards to Geneva, Sandra to Austria, Eirikur to Ireland, Rebekka to Stockholm and so it goes on! 

The Lynch clan are completing milestones in their lives at an alarming rate. Rebekka moved house (again) and got a dog. Eirikur started college and Sandra is set to graduate from high school. 

It was a big year for birthdays in the extended family. Agla and Siggi celebrated 50th  birthday, Erla celebrated 40th birthday, Rikki  her 70th birthday and Íris, Anna´s mum was 75 years young this year. 

Anna and baby Anna Dís are firm friends and had regular play dates. Its an quiet an achievement when one lives in Iceland and the other in Denmark!!!

"Arni litli" is a regular guest. He is big enough to stay overnight and help with the cooking.  

There were camping trips and concerts and vegetarian retreats to the countryside. It makes me dizzy just writing about it. 

I hope next year will be as busy and full of special moments! 

We are breathlessly racing to the holidays, Christmas and New Year. Will take a short breather, to raise a glass to friends and family, and then its kick off for 2018!

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, with love from the Lynches in Iceland.

Christmas and New Year greetings

Dearest Friends close by and far away, Christmas is just around the corner, approaching at high speed in unseasonably warm weather. What a year, though!

We have a lot to be thankful for. Tony and Bobbie paid a quick visit in the summer. Then Tony and David headed to Bath for a Lynch reunion with Paul and his tribe. Camilla and Andy looked after us beautifully. 


 

Eirikur is a games master, steering the family through ever more intricate board games. We love it! 

He has a job and concurrently works on his art skills, adding to his portfolio. Stephanie feels very much like part of the family. They and friends took a grand tour of Europe together, ending in Italy and the eternal city. They absorbed so much culture and art - it was an excellent trip judging by the photos.

Sandra has her heart and head set on horses. This year a dark and handsome stranger found his way into her heart. Þrymur frá Koulsey is his name and Sandra holds the papers to prove it.This industrious young lady brought herself a horse! She is also into showing dogs and is foster mum to Bragi the Afghan hound. Sandra revisited “her”horse farm, Der Windhof, outside Vienna in Austria and travelled with an Icelandic delegation in a youth culture congress in Mumbai India in the New Year. Their show was a great success, featuring folk songs and dance with a modern arrangement.

Dr Rebekka  graduated from medical school this year and begins her “kandidates” year. Well done Rebekka, and although its does not feel like being close to the end, this is a massive milestone. Another massive milestone in life is buying ones own place, which is what Guðbjörn and Rebekka did this autumn. They will be spending their first Christmas in their own home this year. Congratulations! Rebekka has been doctoring in the north of Iceland, doing emergency and accident work, and research, which is funded by a grant she won earlier in the year. Also Rebekka has been seen eating tofu.

Anna has returned to full time work having been declared clear of cancer by the doctor. She been able to enjoy travelling to Geneva, Copenhagen and Brussels. Anna has also been spending time with her sister, who is on her own journey battling cancer.

Anna went on her first salmon fishing trip with a group women who have been through similar experiences. David had the grill ready on her return, but  you should have seen the one that got away! 
Kiddi, Anna´s nephew got married this year and that was a great event. The highlight of the year was the arrival of a new family member in Copenhagen. This little baby girl is always smiling and was christened in Iceland this autumn. Her name is Anna Dís and her aunty Anna is as proud as punch.

During the year David continues coaching, painting, and teaching along side his work at the Icelandic Customs. Red Cross work takes up time but progress in being made. However, this year David decided that the time had come to hang up his boots and retire from rugby.  The highlight of the year was a trip to Australia, where he met up with Kieron. Together they went surfing. Great trip and great fun!

At has been a year full of great moments and achievements.  We are looking forward to the holidays, Christmas and New Year, when we can remember friends and family.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, with love from the Lynches in Iceland.

Christmas greetings 2015

It is Christmas again in our home in Álfholsvegur. We have a lot to be thankful for this year including wonderful visit from Tony and Bobbie in the summer. We had a couple of good days of weather and enjoyed a relaxed visit. They both were in fine form. Meanwhile the year seems to have flown by.

Eirikur enjoyed his school trip to Canada early this year examining the cultural life of Icelandic emigres in the town of Gimli. Canada in January is super cold but offers ice fishing. What´s not to like?  Eirikur started dating Stephanie. She is a lovely young lady and they look happy together. He has been working hard to finish high school. A milestone was passed when he exhibited art work at the students show in Perlan and again in the winter at Hitt Husið. Now is exam time and with that behind him he is clear to graduate at Christmas. Well done  Eirikur 

Sandra, like last year, has her heart and head set on horses. Her classes in stable management go well and she completed a 10 week work experience assignment on a horse farm, Der Windhof, outside Vienna in Austria. It was a tremendous experience and both her Mum and Dad were able to visit an  enjoy the sights of Bratislava  and Vienna respectively with her. Her next project is to take part in a youth culture congress in Mumbai India in the New Year.

Rebekka is moving steadily closer and closer to finishing medical school and in this final year is taking on more responsibilities on the hospital wards. She has also gained experience of medical practice in the countryside. Rebekka introduced  her boy friend  Guðbjörn to the family. He is polite, likes dogs and eats meat.

Although not Africa, Anna enjoyed travelling to Geneva, Copenhagen and Brussels. We also enjoyed celebrating the confirmations of her niece and nephew, Ásdís and Úlfar this year. Anna celebrated her 50th birthday in June of this year. There were deliberations on how to spend the day and in the end a party in Iceland was foresworn in favour of a celebration in the sunshine and warmth of Turkey. 

It was a lovely time and a memorable holiday but on returning we understood that Anna had to tackle a more challenging project, having been diagnosed with breast cancer - lobular carcinoma grade 2. The medical procedures have gone well, with surgery, radiation and a drugs  regime. Anna has responded well and the prospects for a full recovery are good. We would like to thank everybody for their support and kindness during this difficult time.

During the year David continued his studies in coaching weaving it together with art and painting, taking courses in Iceland and in France.

He continues to teach disaster management on European Union Civil Protection courses. He was also able to travel to Panama and sail the canal from one ocean to another!  Meanwhile rugby continues to grow - the club toured Scotland this year - and Red Cross work progresses.

At has been a year full of great moments and achievements.  We are looking forward to the holidays, Christmas and New Year, when we can remember friends and family. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, with love from the Lynches in Iceland. 

Christmas greetings 2014

Dear Friends far and near,

As it snows outside, we are inside preparing for our first Christmas in our new apartment. We saw the place over the summer, made the We didn't have to move far, just across the road from Álfaheiði to Álfholsvegur 108, Kopavógur, 200, Iceland.

For there it follows that the last part of the summer was taken in packing, and then unpacking on the other side of the street. Friends and family pitched in. It all went remarkably smoothly. We would have never have made it without the help. Thank you everybody. 

There have been lots of high points in the year which add up to make this memorable and busy year. Not least of all, the team Lynch 10km contribution to the Reykjavik marathon!

Early in the spring Dad and Eirikur went on a boys road trip to Edinburgh to celebrate  number one sons birthday. We were lucky to get tickets to the Scotland versus France match in the 6 nations championship at Murrayfield stadium and use the rest of the time to take in Edinburgh´s cultural scene. We were looked after very well by the Scottish Rugby Union. Eirikur is active in the “gamers”social scene. The next event for him will be a graduation trip to Canada. 

Sandra has graduated from Hagaskóli and celebrated her sweet sixteen this year. She started a Senior High school that offers foundation courses in Horse and stable management. Sandra virtually lives at the stables now. 

All the work has paid off, as she successfully qualified her horse for the National Icelandic Horse Congress. There was dreadful weather on the day, but that didn't phase Sandra and Flinkur. They when out there and shone bright! Excellent showing!

Rebekka, now in fifth year med school has been almost invisible this year, buried under text books and hospital work, both in research and on the wards. Rebekka was however sighted in the north of Iceland as lead medic on the Myrabolti (mud larking) support team. She has the teeshirt to prove it.

For Anna, another year of  travel (Geneva, Brussels, Copenhagen times two plus Washington times one) Sierra Leone was on the agenda, but Ebola put that particular trip on hold. Instead she has been working hard on supporting the Red Cross response to this epidemic.  Anna was present for her nephew, Henni´s, graduation celebrations in Brussels. At home she is the number one favourite aunt of Arni, the youngest family member.

At the beginning of the year David was elected Chairman of his local Red Cross Branch. There is lots of work to do but its great to be a volunteer and work with the fabulous people who make up the branch.

David has also been busy coaching his rugby club and the fledgling national team. He completed his level II coaching qualification this year. The sport  is attracting more attention in Iceland and growing as a result. 

The year was rounded of with a memorable trip to Rotterdam to attend the International Project Managers Association annual congress and meeting old friends in Amsterdam.

At has been a year full of movement. We are  looking forward to the holidays, Christmas and New Year, when we can remember friends and family, and then glide smoothly into 2015.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, 

with love from the Lynches in Iceland.