I’m typically a “glass half full” kind of gal.  I am genuinely optimistic and can rein in my worries before they get too big (most of the time) but, as I’ve mentioned before, the start of the new year is tough for me…part of it is the post-Christmas blues but it has become more than that.  In recent years, it seems to be the time of year when my fears surface and feel the most aggressive!  There is this point in time, usually in the week between Christmas and New Years when time stands still and the joy & relief of a well-executed Christmas turns to fear over the coming new year…instead of anticipating great things and making helpful resolutions, anxiety over all the “what ifs” regarding Rudy builds and a heaviness sets in.  It’s a battle every year and I just get to the point where I say “bring it on”!  The year is going to unfold as it will…all the “what ifs” are out of my control and so…bring it on!

Luckily Oma was still around the week between Christmas and New Year which provided a nice distraction this year…

 

We rang in the new year with New York at 9pm…

…and again with California at midnight…

We were greeted this new year with a plumbing issue turned minor flood on January 1st!  Sadly, the clean up will require some demolition and rebuild over the course of the next several weeks…(Wait!  Did I say “Bring it on”?  Ok, maybe that’s just tough talk on my part.  I take it back.  Ugh!)…but the upside is we’ll have a lovely new guest bed/bath when all is said and done.

The carpet got pulled and discarded right away and we had a couple of days to dry things out, shuffle stuff around and make a comfortable spot for our exchange student from Australia visiting for the week!  Thankfully James is easy going and hasn’t minded the mess…since we’re waiting for insurance claims and bids anyway, hosting James has been another fun distraction…we’ll hate to see him leave bright and early tomorrow! 😦

We took James to the new ice rink in town for a little fun not realizing how much fun there was to be had!!!!  The plan was for Rolf to skate with the kids for a little bit while Rudy and I watched and then we’d leave and let the big kids come home on their own later…

…but then Rolf asked the on-ice monitor if we could bring Rudy out on the ice and she said YES!

Of course, Max made it the most fun!

We ended up staying 2 1/2 hours and only made it home a few minutes before James and the big sibs!  Ha Ha  We’re pretty much party animals!

So, Rudy can add another item to his long list of milestone accomplishments…ice skating, check!  Happy New Year Everyone!  May the “what ifs” of 2016 be minor and the blessings abound for all!  🙂