An at home kind of New Year's Eve

"Lamp is burning low upon my table top

The snow is softly falling

The air is still in the silence of my room

I hear your voice softly calling

If I could only have you near

To breath a sigh or two

I would be happy just to hold the hands I love

On this winter's night with you"

~ by Gordon Lightfoot as heard in Sarah McLachlan's Wintersong

New Year's was a little low key for Scott and me. The last three years we were in Chicago at Navy Pier or on our apartment building roof, watching fire works and in 2002, we were in Time Square. We were planning on bringing in the year at a cozy bed and breakfast in Lexington, but things changed and I was so grateful to be unexpectedly home with the people I love most.

We shared some Champaign and shrimp cocktail and watched a fitting movie: Ratatouille. Just minutes before midnight, we changed it to watch the bedazzled ball drop to bring in 2008...

We passed out kisses...

And then started the year off right with the best kind of medicine: laughter. Jeny was using her laptop's video with distorted lenses, which made the funniest picasso like versions of ourselves. I enjoyed watching others watch themselves just as much.

A New Chapter...

Scott and I helped my parents move all of my Grandparents belongings from Fairington apartments in South Bend into their own home--Grandma and Grandpa are no longer willing and able to live on their own. I am so proud of mom and dad for taking on this honorable responsibility--they always said they would take their parents in, as opposed to putting them in the nursing home and they were good to their word. They will use my old bedroom. It was a little sad going through their things, casually, as they vacation with their daughter in North Carolina--hard to believe we put a lifetime of possessions and memories into a small truck and drove it away...but it was much more difficult to say goodbye to their little red house on the hill on Ewing about five years ago--so this is a happier,easier kind of change. And I know that Grandma and Grandpa couldn't be more excited...

Christmas 'take three'

I think my sis could tell that I needed some Christmas magic and what better way than to watch her kids open presents on their "Christmas morning," the 26th! With the busyness of school and being broke in general, I did not have the time or the money to get ready for Christmas this year, and as a consequence, I was running quite low on Cheer. So Scott and I spent the night at her house, made Christmas breakfast together, complete with mochas from our cappuccino machine, and shared in their very special family time...it was so fun and just the right kind of medicine for my half empty cup.

Christmas

Christmas for Scott and me started at his parents from the 21st thru the 23rd and with it brought good food, crackling fires, laughter, games and music. For the last several years, we have accomplished the feat of staying all together under one roof for two to three days. It doesn't usually happen the week of Christmas, though it did this year, but it doesn't matter when it is--we always bring Christmas with us.

On the evening of the 23rd, we went to the Palicki Christmas get together on my mom's side in South Bend. Having it at a restaurant wasn't the warmth and cheer of one of our home's, but it was worth it this year, knowing that the reason we did it was to not stress my recently pregnant cousin, who was supposed to host the get together this year...

Christmas at my parents was happily tight quarters, with lots of neices (OK, four) and one nephew (and a lot of Mario Cart...)

We had a beautiful Christmas dinner together as Dad opened with communion, explaining it to the children, and closed dinnertime with gifts of stories, song, poetry and piano music...

I told the story of Rindercella, Scott sang I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas, Dad recited a poem and read the Cajun Night Before Christmas, Madelyn recited a poem, Noah and Bronwen recited the Pledge of Allegiance, Mom led us in a bunch of Christmas Carols (Thanks, mom, it was my favorite part) and Chloe played a song on the piano.

All afternoon, the children were so patient and never asked about presents...until it was time!

Finally, we all watched The Muppet's Christmas Carol and ate chocolate and pound cake and pop corn and drank egg nog and hot chocolate...

A Stranger and a Snowman

Scott and I had a Christmasy morning at the Racks. After breakfast, Carl spotted a deer back by the creek, then two, then three!! We all had fun watching them out the windows for at least an hour. Dolly couldn't take her eyes off the horse-dogs...




After our strangers in the woods left, we all piled on the snow gear and sledded and threw snowballs...Cassia was on the prowl for Uncle Scott and she got him a couple times too!

Jeff started to roll a giant ball and before we knew it, everyone was helping to make the biggest snowman I've ever seen!

We rolled him on the side of the house, and took him to the front so the green grass wouldn't lie exposed underneath...

Scott realized that we had real coal we had brought from our backyard in Boston to put in people's stockings for a joke, so Frosty had "two eyes made out of coal!"

Going Home...

The last papers in, the exams all taken, the Christmas cards almost sent, the bags packed, we are ready at last to head west to Indiana and home!! As always, Dolly can tell something is up and being familiar with my luggage, promptly jumped into the empty suitcase before I could put my folded pile of clothes into it. I guess I have no choice but to take her with us, huh? She is too much. I'm crazy about her...

The sun set beautifully on the 18th as we headed out of Massachusetts and into the long dark night of New York and Ohio...

...to rise again on familiar Indiana Tollroad and home! As soon as I walked into my mom's house, it smelled like Christmas, with cinnamon scented pinecones and fresh pound cake in the oven.


As if it couldn't get any better, my sister's kids were there, ready with hugs and smiles. It feels SOOO good to have them in my arms once again!

A word from Scott..

Scott was emailing a friend of his in Oregon this evening...This was the content...."As for my own woes, we just brought our car to Boston from Indiana at Thanksgiving. Our hood was jammed shut and we had to pay $407 to have it fixed. Then we didn't pass the mechanical inspection (in order to get a city sticker for parking purposes) because our car needs some body work and a couple of other minor things. Body work? Who knew that you could fail an inspection because of body work!? The Honda dealer told us that it would cost around $2500 to get it into passable condition. I brought it home from the failed inspection and parked it on the street as usual. That night it was broken into. The thief pried our window open, tried to get the stereo out, scratched and dented up the face of it, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Angry at being foiled, he popped the trunk and stole my air compressor, worth $300. That thing must weigh 85 pounds, I wonder what he did with it. The next day we got a $20 ticket for not having an inspection sticker. Ugh. There's probably another ticket waiting for me on the car right now.Well, if it's not one thing, it's another. Life as a poor man, living in an affluent society is certainly difficult. Press on."

Christmas at Neil's

Here I am at my Director's home for our Christmas bash last night, with my beloved Grads, whom I am growing more fondly of every day. I have such talented, dedicated and supportive colleagues. We played Charades until 1:30 in the morning. What fun.