December 2025

To our family and friends,

We hope this letter finds you and your family happy, healthy and enjoying the holiday season! Continuing the Neader tradition, here is the 2025 Year in Review.

It was another busy travel year for Scott and Laurie, visiting 11 countries in 2025. In March, the whole family traveled to visit India. We spent 6 days in the “Golden Triangle” area — New Delhi, Jaipur and Agra (Taj Mahal). Then we flew to the city of Surat for another 4 days, where Ashlyn spent a year as a Rotary Exchange Student in 2018-19. We thoroughly enjoyed the chaotic beauty of India and had a great time meeting Ashlyn’s host families in Surat. As a bonus, while in Surat, we were able to spend time with Simran, the exchange student from India that lived with us in 2016-17 — we were even able to meet her mom and dad!

After India, Scott, Laurie and Macy continued on for another adventure — a 9-day tour of the beautiful country of Sri Lanka. A few highlights included Galle, Mirissa, Udawalawe National Park, Ella, Kandy, Sigiriya, and Colombo. We also visited the home of Kamal 4S7AB, one of Scott’s ham radio friends. It was a wonderful experience! (P.S. We highly recommend our guide and driver, Ranjith Alwis)

After a month back home, Scott and Laurie headed out again on a 4-week journey. First, we started with a 13-day drive through Iceland, where we were amazed by the wide variety of landscapes — from barren volcanic fields with bubbling mud pools to grassy hills packed with puffins, and lagoons filled with blue-tinted icebergs. Next, we flew to the Faroe Islands and spent 5 days exploring this small but incredibly beautiful country by car. Scott had a blast operating ham radio one evening with a group of local Faroese hams. We finished the trip with 4 days in Helsinki, Finland and 3 days in the medieval old town of Tallinn, Estonia.

We spent the summer mostly at home, including quite a bit of time at our campsite in West Salem. In August, we celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary by going to our ‘happy place’ — Italy! We spent 10 days in the Tuscany and Rome areas, visiting some new places as well as some of our old favorites.

In the fall, we were off on our next adventure — a 3-week drive through northern Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. While in Poland, we were able to visit a few of the Kashubian towns where some of Laurie’s family once lived. It was nice to have Ashlyn fly from Vienna to join us for the last half of the trip. Then we all flew to Vienna, plus Macy flew in to join us as well. The four of us had a wonderful time together in Vienna, especially being able to meet Ashlyn’s boyfriend, Roland, and his family, and having Ashlyn give us the VIP tour of Schönbrunn Palace, where she works (more on that later). Scott and Laurie also had a fun meet up with Scott’s ham radio friend, Braco E77DX/OE1EMS, who took us to The Kahlenberg, for a hilltop view of Vienna.

An update on our kids… Cameron is 28 years old and living with his boyfriend, Chris, in the Flushing area of New York City. He truly loves being in NYC. He’s still working remotely for Wisconsin-based Trilliant Food and Nutrition and really enjoys the market research and data analysis work he does, as their Associate Category Manager. Cameron and Chris were able to do some international travel this year, including trips to Spain, Hong Kong, China and South Korea.

Ashlyn is 25 years old and has been living in Vienna, Austria for two years now and continues to love being there. This year she started working at Schönbrunn Palace (Austria’s largest tourist attraction), which she truly enjoys. Ashlyn and her boyfriend, Roland, did some traveling in Europe this year, including Hungary and Slovakia (plus Ashlyn’s time with us in Latvia and Lithuania).

Macy is 22 years old. She is living in downtown La Crosse with her boyfriend, Ryan, and their cat, Miso. Macy continues to amaze us with the beautiful and intricate jewelry she is creating. This year, she added silversmithing to her skill set. Using her own designs, she is making necklaces, pendants, rings and earrings, in copper, brass and now sterling silver. She is selling the jewelry at local makers’ markets and through her website at SylvanJewelry.com.

Well, that’s the 2025 Year In Review. Until next year… Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Love,

Scott, Laurie, Cameron, Ashlyn & Macy Neader

Scott and Laurie at Skógafoss waterfall in southern Iceland — Skógafoss waterfall in southern Iceland

Scott, Macy and Laurie, at the Nine Arches Bridge in Ella, Sri Lanka — Nine Arches Bridge in Ella, Sri Lanka

Dinner with friends at Osteria Il Mangiapane, in Alberese, Italy — Dinner with two of Scott's ham radio friends at Osteria Il Mangiapane, in Alberese, Italy

Overlooking Riga, Latvia, from atop St. Peters Church.

On Gediminas' Hill, overlooking Vilnius, Lithuania

Macy selling her jewelry at a local craft fair

Laurie sitting on the remnant of an iceburg, on Diamond Beach in SE Iceland.

Enjoying some famous Gingerbread in Toruń, Poland

In memory of Spritzy, our 15 yr old cat that crossed over the rainbow bridge in November.

Northern Lights, from our house on Nov 11, 2025.

Marble Quarry, where marble for David statue came from, near Carrara, Italy

Ashlyn at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria, where she works.

Cameron at Splendid China Folk Village, in Shenzhen, China.

We saw hundreds of puffins up close at Borgarfjarðarhöfn, in Bakkagerði, Iceland

Village of Funningur, at the foot of Slættaratindur mountain, in Faroe Islands

Visiting Kamal 4S7AB at his home near Colombo, Sri Lanka — Scott visiting the home of a ham radio friend, Kamal 4S7AB, near Colombo, Sri Lanka

Celebrating Scott's 61st birthday at La Crosse Oktoberfest

Click photos to enlarge

Visiting Humayun’s Tomb in New Delhi, India.

Scott and Laurie overlooking Goðafoss Waterfall, the “Waterfall of the Gods,” in northern Iceland. — Overlooking Goðafoss Waterfall, the “Waterfall of the Gods,” in northern Iceland.

Cameron and Chris, at Park Güell in Barcelona, Spain.

Ashlyn and Roland at the Sziget Music Festival in Budapest, Hungary.

Macy and Ryan, at the Renaissance Faire in Bristol, WI

Lake Sørvágsvatn from the cliff Trælanípa in the Faroe Islands.

Scott and Laurie, along the Motlawa river in the Old Town area of Gdansk, Poland. — Along the Motlawa river in the Old Town area of Gdansk, Poland.

Overlooking the Old Town in Tallinn, Estonia

Candlelit Cemetery on All Saints Day in Warsaw, Poland

Blue-tinted Icebergs at Jökulsárlón lagoon in Iceland.

Scott relaxing in a thermal bath at sunset in Siglufjörður, Iceland.

Ashlyn giving us the VIP tour of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria

Hill of Crosses near Šiauliai, Lithuania

Long Embankment (Długie Pobrzeże) along the Motława River in Gdańsk, Poland

Scott operating as OY/KA9FOX at the Faroe Islands ham radio club station