Hello 2011!!

Happy New Year!!

I am sorry I have taken a bit of a blogging break the past few weeks. Life has been busy, yet nice. Mike has been off since December 17th, and we have been visiting family, playing Santa, and enjoying the magic of the holidays through the eyes of our children. In between all of that we have taken time to catch up on some projects around the house (as I type this Mike is upstairs pretending to be a plumber and fix the tub in the kid's bathroom), and catching up with friends.

Christmas was wonderful. We spent the weekend of the 18th/19th in northern Illinois visiting Mike's extended family; Charlotte was able to meet a lot of relatives for the first time.

Christmas Eve was hosted by Kate and Bill, complete with a huge spread of Mexican food, Will's first snow mobile ride, and an outdoor margarita bar.

The kid's slept in on Christmas morning, and were delighted with all of the gifts Santa left for them. We spent a quiet morning at home playing with new toys and eating pancakes...just the five of us.

After a late breakfast we packed up the car and headed north for a few nights with Mike's family. The kids were super excited to spend a few days at Grandma and Grandpa's house; the 3 cats seemed to be the biggest hit of the weekend.

And finally, New Years Eve we spent at the Neuharths. It was super low-key. We brought Toppers pizza, Chris got a Culver's ice cream cake, and we spent a few hours chatting and watching New Year's festivities on TV while the kid's played. The highlight of the evening was the gingerbread train Missy and I constructed with the kids (I know, a bit late, however I got it for $2 on after Christmas clearance!). When all was said and done, it was probably the saddest Gingerbread train one has ever seen, and Alec promptly informed me, "Emmy, you are the craziest train builder!"

In closing, it has been a fantastically simple couple weeks. I know I should have some long, involved, soul-searching New Year's post. I should write about why I am grateful 2010 is behind us, and what we have to look forward to in 2011. I should list our resolutions and goals for the coming year. But frankly, I am going to enjoy just one more simple day. Because, during these past two weeks, I didn't think about the fact that my daughter has Down syndrome. I didn't think about all her upcoming doctor appointments. I didn't worry about the "what-if's" of the future. Instead, I enjoyed every second of Charlotte's first Christmas and the time spent with my children, husband, family, and close friends.

Happy New Year everyone, may 2011 bring happiness to all.