A New Year..

It's a new year and a new decade. Personally, I could not be more excited to have the "Naughties" over and done with (with the exception of a few key events). Now, a week after 2010 rolled in, I thought I'd reflect on our final events of 2009.

To usher in the holiday season, I drank some crazy Kool-Aid and smothered our tulip tree infront of our house with 1,000 white LED lights. I've received several complements on its glow by the astronaunts in the International Space Station, so I've got that goin' for me.

Then, Paula and I hosted Thanksgiving and attempted to cook a turkey without killing everyone. The fact that everyone is still alive following that dinner suggests turkey wasn't a complete flop. More importantly though, we were surrounded by great company and were reminded of all that we have to be thankful for.


In early December, Eirik, Heidi, and our nephew Skye came to town for a pre-Christmas visit to check out Eirik's show at the Henry Art Gallery (by the way, check out his show at the Henry which is up until the end of January). While it was a short trip, I had plenty of time to subtly work several bad habits into Skye's routine for Eirik and Heidi to deal with later (sorry in advance, E&H!).


The joys of Paula's work schedule kicked in at Christmas when she was on-call and had to work Christmas Eve and into Christmas day. Fortunately, she got off work pretty early and was able to enjoy Christmas breakfast at my mom's house. Very relaxing! Then, we hopped on the ferry for a trip to Vashon. Again, we had a fantastic time with the family and relaxing on the beach.


Our nephew, Luke, decided once on the beach that the water looked too wonderful for dogs to enjoy by themselves. Needless to say, his cold feet and wet pants changed his mind relatively quickly.

The day after Christmas, I kept another tradition alive and well with my good friend Jeff (aka. Jefe rojito bonito). Since high school, Jeff and I (along with our friend Drew who has failed to live up to the responsibility of such a tradition) have gone swimming in freezing Lake Washington. This year was no different. Paula came to document the occasion and remind us how dumb it is to jump in a cold lake. Clearly, she doesn't appreciate the need to polar bear it every year.


New Year Eve (my least favorite pseudo-holiday) was spent appropriately with our friends, Josh, Melissa, and Chad. Paula had 3 days off and we made the most of it. Chad invited us to his cabin (aka., the Elk Horn Lodge) in Packwood near Mt. Rainier where we ate, read, ate, watched movies, ate, played games, ate, ate, and snow shoed. What better way could we roll in the new year.


So, now it's 2010. We've set many resolutions that we've already forgotten, but we're excited for what this year/decade has in store for us. We remain hopeful and looking forward to the changes ahead.

Happy New Year everyone!