Merry Christmas! And a Happy New Year!

Ring out the old! Ring in the new!

Woah!  I am going into the new year with so much to catch up on on this blog, and I’m determined to do so (along with way too many other resolutions that I’m sure I’ll abandon (with the other 80% of Americans who make resolutions and abandon them) by February.  But I’m going to do my best.

We’ve had a busy December over here.  I’m sure everyone has.  It’s just a packed month and this year I think I’ve come to terms with that.  We did a lot, yes, and not all of it was perfect, but what I’ve learned this year is that Christmas is resilient.  That my memory doesn’t latch on to the craziness or the catastrophes, but the magic of it all.  The little magical moments that makes us all want to do it year after year.     

Having said that, I’ve already written an email to myself about what I want to improve about the season next year.  I scheduled it to be sent to me mid November next year.  Did you know you can do that with Google boomerang?  I’m hoping for the best year ever next year.

Anyway, the new year finds us all a bit overspent, overtired, overfed and overstimulated (according to Hazel who is always claiming that she’s ‘overstimulated’).  But, I think I’d take over over under on all of those things.  Life is good.

Here are some photos I took on a crazy Sunday after church mid-December.  Everyone is tired, but grinning to appease me so that they can go in and eat lunch.  I love the out takes.  The expressions, the interactions captured.  I don’t get out my real camera enough with these guys and before I know it they’ll be WAY too old for these shenanigans.  At this point Emmeline had had enough!And here’s my favorite, perfect capture of who each of these kids are right now.  Hazel cooperating, Charlie entertaining, angelic Peter and upset Emmeline (we need to do something about that one in 2013).

Welcome 2013!  Let’s get this party started!

(I copied that phrase from a friends’ New Years card)