What a year 2020 has been!
We started out the year with a family trip to Aruba in January, never suspecting it would be one of the best, most unrestricted and carefree weeks of our entire year. Our state locked down in the middle of March and stayed closed until the middle of May. During the stay at home order, Matt and the kids painted the kids’ bedrooms, we purged a dumpster full of old papers and junk from the basement, donated loads of stuff, cooked some delicious meals and were able to fish quite a bit. We used our bigger boat more in April and May than we do most summers! We watched the Netflix series Tiger King (waste of time) and enjoyed a bunch of movies at home as a family. Matt and I were also busy during the shutdown with paperwork and planning for our office expansion, which began in May and finished up in November. We got back to work in May with a bunch of increased safety precautions and have had a fantastic second half of the year. We fished, camped, played at the cabin, and tried to enjoy life as much as we could, even with the COVID outbreak this summer. We had most of our trips cancelled this year, including a volleyball tournament for Katie in Florida and fishing in both Ontario and British Columbia for Matt and Jack. The fall brought renewed excitement at the office when we moved into the fresh, new addition. We doubled our square footage and are so excited about it! The whole office looks absolutely beautiful! We hope to spend more time at the cabin this winter and get outdoors to snowmobile and ice fish.
Campbell is a Senior in high school this year and is also in her second year of PSEO, a program that allows kids to attend college for free their Junior and/or Senior years of high school. She will graduate this spring with her AA degree from Lake Superior College and her high school diploma. She worked for us at the dental office over the summer and has worked at the Tutoring Center at LSC this 2020/2021 school year, tutoring fellow students in both chemistry and calculus. She really enjoys college and it’s a good thing she does because she most likely will be in school for another 6-10 years for a career in either the medical or dental field. Campbell and her long-time boyfriend, Brett, have enjoyed being carefree kids this year and spent a lot of time hiking, hammocking, hanging out with friends and binging on TV shows. All in all, it’s been a great year for Campbell. We are looking forward to her turning 18 in January and enjoying a further taste of freedom as she enters adulthood.
Jack is a Junior at Duluth Marshall. He turned 16 in May and got his driver’s license in July, thanks to the COVID shutdown. He’s thoroughly enjoying all the freedom a driver’s license allows and is always willing to help drive his little sister to school and get her to and from her commitments. Jack is still an extremely social kid, enjoying many of the fun activities of the typical high school kids – attending sporting events, hosting sleepovers at the cabin, hanging out and grabbing food with friends, and lots and lots of XBox. He met his dad’s height and stands at a solid 6’ tall. Jack continues to make us laugh with his antics and has proven to be a fantastic sous vide chef. His flame-finished ribeye is to die for. Jack also spent a few weekends hunting birds this fall with Matt. We all enjoy the pheasants, ducks and geese.
Katie started high school this year and is a happy Freshman at Duluth Marshall. She stayed active and connected with friends with a lot of volleyball this year. COVID cancelled the last 4 months of her regular JO volleyball season, but she was able to play her favorite sport with new, fun, alternative volleyball options over the summer and into the fall. She is still very helpful around the house and has a special affection for all creatures great and small – dogs, fish and even geckos. She took driver’s ed in the fall, so she’ll be ready to get her permit to drive when she turns 15 at the end of the month. Katie is almost always fun to hang out with (she is a teenager, don’t forget) and is still game to camp, fish or watch a movie with us almost anytime.
The dogs are happy and healthy, although Alvin, at 7 years old, is starting to slow down. Ollie still wants to jump off the dock every chance he gets and he’ll hold your hand all day long if you’ll let him.
Jack and Katie switched to online learning in November and Campbell continues to be about half online and half in-person classes. COVID struck our house in November, too. Campbell has fully recovered and we are thankful it was a very mild case. Although we were close together before we knew she was sick, she was the only one to get the virus. How does that work?
We continue to be thankful for amazing coworkers and patients, steady jobs we enjoy, a healthy family, true friends, and lots of opportunities to indulge in our favorite pastimes. The invitation still stands – there’s always a comfortable floatie and a cold beer available during the summer at our cabin on Bass Lake near Biwabik.
Here’s hoping 2021 is a year filled with health and happiness for you and yours!
Our love always,
Stephanie, Matt, Campbell, Jack and Katie Jugovich
Here are a few of our favorite pictures from 2020:
Livin’ it up on the beach in Aruba in January.
Signing our lives away at the closing of the loan for the office expansion in June.
Campbell and Brett celebrating the 4th of July at our cabin.
Mid-construction of the office addition in July.
Alvin cuddling on Katie’s bed.
The kids standing for their obligatory photo in Grand Marais in August.
Our 18th wedding anniversary in August.
Ollie ready to roll t0 SD to hunt this fall.
Matt and Jack pheasant hunting in South Dakota in October.