Happy New Year

I did it!  I stayed up until midnight.  It wasn't really intentional, I was waiting for my kids to get home from babysitting.  It's been a few years, since I have seen this hour of the day.  I usually celebrate that New York City has made into the New Year and go to bed trusting that the Pacific coast will follow suit without me watching for it.  It was nice to sip champagne with the kids and toast 2013.  The text I got from the B girls was sweet, but a bit late.  Thanks girls, I wasn't actually awake at 2:00 am, until my tweet woke me up.  Happy New Year to all of you.

I scrolled through my Facebook posts for the last year, to see what I had been doing.  Dreaming mostly, and watching my older girls run.  We spent a lot of time in the big, white van going to cross country and track meets.  It has paid off, the girls have done well.  Madie has had several track coaches from small colleges contact her.  It won't pay for school, but it is nice to know that they recognize the work she has put in.  We dreamed of moving to Indonesia.  It was a lovely dream, and we made contact with some really great folks, who do some great work for God.  I know that all things happen for a reason, and that this isn't the end of that side story.  It may not be what I thought it might be, but I still think getting passports is a good idea.  REACH camp was a highlight for all of us.  Thanks Andrea for making it clear we had to be there.  All of the kids loved it, and we made some new friends.  I deleted all of my posts about what I had planned to do for the year, and of course I don't quite remember what the goals were.  I guess in the end it doesn't matter.  God knew the plan all along, and my plans were too small anyway.

What are my hopes for the new year?  I'm hoping to learn what it means to work smarter, not harder.  I'm hoping to spend more time with my kids making messes, failing, dusting ourselves off, trying again, reading great stories, walking by faith, learning about God, and being thankful for another year.  I'm pretty sure I wanted to spend more time with people last year, and that's on the list again this year.  Although I have the same amount of time, so I'm not sure how that is going to work.  I think one thing I learned last year is that I need to spend time with people in a way that lets me focus on them.  I'm a one on one person, not a big party person.  I would love to say that I am going to commit to posting a picture a day, or read a book a week for the next year.  That's been done by others, so I will let them take a bow.  I know that I can't finish a book a week, but I will give it a go.  I have a list.  I will start posting my thankful list again.  I love reading it.  I have nailed down hundreds of little moments for the past couple of years.  It only take a couple of words to bring that moment back.  My own little poetry, which is the only kind I will be good at.

I know there will be new adventures this coming year.  Some are expected, like Madie graduating and starting a new chapter of her life.  Some unexpected, like the rest of today, or friends I haven't met yet.  I know that there will be some colossal failures, and folks that will shake their heads at my stupidity.  It's OK, that is the way God made me.  You may want to thank God for my failures that confirm that whatever I did was stupid, and you didn't have to do it to find out.  If I succeed, be thankful I took the risk first.  Bring on 2013!

Today I am thankful for:

A faithful breakfast chef

Colorful linens that brighten up a bland season

Fireworks on New Years Eve

Texts from kids that are out of town, even at 2:00 am

Eden's smile

Helen's creations all over the house

Jewelry, a little sparkle is very cheerful

Coffee over and over again

Pink light from the east calling us all to join the party of the day

The Word of God which is never boring, and explains so much about this crazy world we live in