I hate New Years. I'll just come right out and say it. I do not like driving on a night when the most favored activity is drinking one's brains out. I do not enjoy blowing an entire month of my teacher's salary on some over-rated dinner/party. I do not like champagne (bummer). And, quite frankly, I do not like the pressure to make this one night the most entertaining and fun-filled than any other night of the year (it's usually disappointing anyway). I don't mean to sound like a party-pooper, but we all know it's hard to live up to.
Ready for the better part of this blog entry?!?
THIS YEAR WAS DIFFERENT... I had a blast. Scott and I started the New Years celebration with the goal of connecting our two friends, KK and Phil. Phil lives in LA and had plans to be in Ohio for the holiday. So we invited both of them to our home to have a quiet, peaceful evening filled with games and food. Then, my enthusiastic husband (in fact, Phil recently described Scott has having an infectious unbridled enthusiasm... I think he's right on) spontaneously transformed this quiet evening into an all-out PARTY by eviting our friendship circle. So we had a total of 20 people, coming and going, in our small little Clintonville home the night of the 31st. And that's not counting the darling little munchkins who got along quite well with the loud event (thank you Ellie, Jacob, and Avery). Meanwhile, our hard-sleeping son didn't make a peep upstairs. EVEN DURING THE KARAOKE. And I mean, it was a MEAN game of karaoke. A side of some folks came out that I would just as soon keep in a very dark corner of my consciousness. It got loud. It got competitive. It got funny.
Ready for the better part of this blog entry?!?
THIS YEAR WAS DIFFERENT... I had a blast. Scott and I started the New Years celebration with the goal of connecting our two friends, KK and Phil. Phil lives in LA and had plans to be in Ohio for the holiday. So we invited both of them to our home to have a quiet, peaceful evening filled with games and food. Then, my enthusiastic husband (in fact, Phil recently described Scott has having an infectious unbridled enthusiasm... I think he's right on) spontaneously transformed this quiet evening into an all-out PARTY by eviting our friendship circle. So we had a total of 20 people, coming and going, in our small little Clintonville home the night of the 31st. And that's not counting the darling little munchkins who got along quite well with the loud event (thank you Ellie, Jacob, and Avery). Meanwhile, our hard-sleeping son didn't make a peep upstairs. EVEN DURING THE KARAOKE. And I mean, it was a MEAN game of karaoke. A side of some folks came out that I would just as soon keep in a very dark corner of my consciousness. It got loud. It got competitive. It got funny.
Phil with Jackson - he's a hands-on kinda man. Not only did he give Jackson love, he was spreading cream cheese on pastries (in preparation for the party) and placing fudge on platters with the best of them! This pic was taken before the party.
How bout this guy? I told you karaoke was a little hairy. Especially for Adam, the clown.
Scott's good-buddy friends, John, Jeremy, and Rob.
Michelle and Sara with darling Avery, who is 1 year and almost 4 months. She was a trooper through the night.
So it was good for my soul to say goodbye to 2007. I guess I thank the habit we humans have for calendaring time, because there definitely IS something distinctly healthy about closing a chapter with a specific event. All this talk about "closure" ... it really is important.
As mentioned in a previous blog, I found that Christmas was all about Mom - her memory, her traditions, her legacy all were definitely present with me during that holiday. I felt the pain of the first holiday without her physically there.
But New Years was all about Duncan... standing in front of the sink loading the dishwasher at about 12:45am, I thought about him. He was born in 2007 and died in 2007. 2007 was HIS year.
So on with life! I have prepared myself for a peaceful January. My priorities are as follows: organize my home, develop a routine involving heavy amounts of exercise and spiritual devotion, be a Mom, and FIGURE OUT WHAT IN THE HECK I AM GOING TO DO COME SPRING (to teach or not to teach? to work part time or not to work part time?). Wish me luck.
As mentioned in a previous blog, I found that Christmas was all about Mom - her memory, her traditions, her legacy all were definitely present with me during that holiday. I felt the pain of the first holiday without her physically there.
But New Years was all about Duncan... standing in front of the sink loading the dishwasher at about 12:45am, I thought about him. He was born in 2007 and died in 2007. 2007 was HIS year.
So on with life! I have prepared myself for a peaceful January. My priorities are as follows: organize my home, develop a routine involving heavy amounts of exercise and spiritual devotion, be a Mom, and FIGURE OUT WHAT IN THE HECK I AM GOING TO DO COME SPRING (to teach or not to teach? to work part time or not to work part time?). Wish me luck.
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