First Day of the New Year

And I can think of nothing else:

This lovely chirp woke me up sometime this morning, and we're trapped with it.  The office is closed today, and we have nothing taller than a two-step ladder.  Ryan took all my Christmas boxes to the garage last night, so I don't want to ask him to get out today and bring the tallest ladder he has, but one of us might break before then.  Or go to their house.  I think they're going to be gone most of the day to Gig Harbor.

Christmas was just perfect in spite of us taking turns with a stomach thing.  Christmas Day was fun, and it's the first time since we've been here that I've managed to spend several hours with family.  Last year it snowed, and the year before that, it was too hard.  I have a lot of pictures but most of them were just craziness and excitement.  I was sitting there in my new fur-lined slippers, drinking something good and just eating it up, how warm and secure and loved I was with most of our family there having such a good time.  The girls were all playing a rowdy game that involved putting cards on your foreheads and guessing what they are, and Ryan had just unwrapped his Auburn hoodie, approved of it, and immediately stretched out and fallen asleep - with his hood up.

The next few days were rainy, windy, stormy, bitterly cold mostly, so I got out no more than I had to.  We kept the girls yesterday for Emily and Ryan to go and pick out a couch for their den.  I did a lot of reading, a good bit of cleaning and taking care of Mama's papers and things, and some working on the puzzle.

Two thousand pieces is just about too big for my table, and it's impossible to sit down and work on it.  You just have to wander around and find what you need.  I see a few pieces under the table.  Layla has pretty much lost interest in it, so I don't have to cover it at night, but the temptation is sometimes too much for her.  

It's a candy shop and very colorful and interesting, so I've mostly enjoyed it when I've had time.

But there are way too many green and brown shelves and jars of candy that all look alike.  I had hoped to finish it before January, but it looks like it may be February.

Just sitting here this morning listening to the chirping and enjoying the fire and a glass of cold ginger ale and hoping for the smoke alarm will die and I'll feel like a cup of coffee.