Little Wonders

"For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning."
~T.S. Eliot, "Little Gidding"

A very Happy, Happy New Year to all. We had a laid back New Years Eve. Matt was working. His night was relatively quiet considering it was New Years Eve. Then again, his shift ended at 1 am and the craziness most likely went on after he left. Taylor went to a friends house to watch movies. Not happy with her being out and driving home late so Mark went and picked her up at 12:30 am. Jess hung with us. We made some super yummy homemade macaroni and cheese from her new Barefoot Contessa cookbook. So good. We also made hot chocolate from the book, followed by hot fudge sundaes and figured by then, we had more then fulfilled our fat/calorie intake for maybe the next several days! The boys were in heaven. Wii and board games were played and at 11:45 we turned on the TV to watch the Times Square ball drop. Joe fell asleep within seconds but Jake made it until midnight. Mark, Jess and I stayed up until 2am. Matt came home shortly after and we all collapsed, fat and happy, into our beds.

2010 is here. I am anxious to see what lies ahead for us all. Excited in fact. I look so forward to seeing my life and my children's lives unfold. Oh and my beautiful, beautiful granddaughter Charlotte's. We came home from round 2 last year on New Years day. I re-read that post just a bit ago. I re-visited pictures and it took but a second to tell myself, once more, how absolutely blessed I am to be living in this very moment. Right here. Right now. In years past, I have found myself becoming melancholy as the holidays came to an end. Wishing I could stop time. Freeze frame what ever place we were in. Sad to see my children growing up and not needing me the way they use to. Finding myself scared of change and the uncertainty of the future. No more. One of the greatest gift of this last year has been cancer. Yes,cancer. With that devastating diagnosis, we were brought to the lowest of low and had no way to go but up. We looked to God for our strength and to Zoey to lead the way. We gained the ultimate perspective of what was truly important and that was and still remains the gift of our moments. All of them. Even the difficult ones. So today, as I take down the decorations and pack them away for next year, I will joyfully do so and feel immense gratitude for new beginnings.