Happy New Year

Did the holidays seem to last a long time this year? I don't mean the retail push of Christmas in October, but the actual days we celebrated. No complaints here. It was great to be able to visit both families and spend several days with my sister and her husband. There was a warm up in the Northeast with rain and fog, so we spent our time indoors eating, watching movies, and playing games (Dance Dance & Scrabble). Fun stuff!

The New Year was fairly quite for us. We did go to a New Year's Eve party, but in typical Candace and Dennis fashion we called it a night before midnight. The party was lively, good food, and we talked extensively about skiing with a couple from Bethel. Alas, it was not enough to keep these fogies out all night. Besides, I was "working". We were taking care of a dog in our home for the week. So, we came home to the dogs, popped open a bottle of champagne that we couldn't remember when we got it or why, and toasted in the New Year on our sofa with the TV on. It was freakin' freezing (wind chill minus!) and we felt so sorry for the poor saps in Times Square. What on earth possesses people to call that fun?

The dogs were having their own New Years Eve celebration with some rowdy play fighting. Here's a shot of them just before midnight when on normal nights they are dead asleep.
Now it's back to the daily grind. We had the wheel bearing go on our Mazda while it sat for a week over Christmas. Because of the New Year holiday, it took over a week to get it repaired. No biggie. We managed just fine as a one car family. I enjoyed the routine of taking Dennis to work and picking him up.
I got my first ever facial. It was very relaxing until she started picking. "Extractions" they call it in the biz. Apparently I haven't been drinking enough water which causes some skin issues. I already knew I wasn't drinking enough. I could feel it elsewhere in my body. My day gets so busy sometimes that I don't have time to sip the water I bring with me. So, my number one resolution for 2009 is to hydrate more.

The pellet stove contributes to the dryness in the house. We are burning pellets primarily for heat because it is better for the environment - cleaner emissions. With oil prices down, It's not so much cheaper like it seemed it would be back in the summer. You'd think the pellet prices would fall as well, but so far we haven't seen it. Here's a bad photo taken with my computer's camera of our lovely stove. She's such a part of our daily lives, I think she needs a name. What shall we call her?

I hope everyone has a happy, healthy 2009 and that you've all made your new year's resolutions/goals. It's good to have goals, big and small, to strive toward. Never stop experimenting with bettering yourself, your life and the lives of those around you.