Happy New Year

I'm sitting here with a very sick boy and figured now would be a good time to catch up. The holidays are all over. Thank goodness... it was a very long time away from home. We spent the Christmas holiday in Joplin, Missouri with our families. Our drive to Missouri was surprisingly accomplished in a single day (that's 1151 miles). Everything just seemed to work in our favor (we were making great time and then the kids all fell asleep right outside of St. Louis) so we decided to just keep going. It was a very long drive and we won't ever try to do it in one day again!

It was a nice holiday... we were able to see some friends/family that we only see once a year. Of course, the theme for the holidays this year seems to be illness (as experienced over Thanksgiving)... so to continue that theme, both Jason and Clara were horribly sick. Jason got a 24-hr bug the Tuesday before Christmas (while we were visiting some friends) and Clara got the same thing the day after Christmas (only hers lasted 4 days!). Aside from that, our Christmas was really nice. Christmas Eve was spent with Jason's family (parents, brother, his wife, and their son). The day consisted of a nice visit, dinner, opening presents, and ended with a game of dominoes. The next day, Christmas, was spent with my family (mom, sister1, her husband, sister2 and her boyfriend). The day started with opening presents, playing with all the new toys, a fabulous feast (Jason's parents and sister's husband's mom joined us for that), and ended with some very tired kids.

We didn't stay quite as long as we originally were thinking. The plan was to leave Missouri and head home Wednesday or Thursday after Christmas, but we decided to leave Tuesday... and the trip still seemed too long. It is sad that we are there for an amount of time that seems too long and yet there are still friends that we don't get a chance to see.

One thing that was special for me this year... my sister, who will be graduating high school in May asked me to take her senior pictures. I definitely took this as a compliment, but for someone like me who loves taking pictures, it was a treat. I posted a few of my favorites on Flickr (the link on the lower left hand side of this page should get you there).

Our drive home wasn't as stressful, we broke it up over four days. We spent our first night in Lawrence, Kansas with a very dear friend that I haven't seen in a long time (I said I wouldn't give an exact time, but it was 3 years - Lucas was 9 months old when we were there last). That may have been the best part of the trip for me. Our next night (New Year's Eve) was spent with good friends in St. Louis, Missouri. Although, we had no intention of staying up to ring in the new year, an evening of Rock Band made the hours just fly by (and yes... I took my turn on vocals, reluctantly, but it turns out that may be the only part I score well on). Then our last night was spent in Lewisburg, West Virginia, just 4 hours from home. So going, 1151 miles in one day... returning, 4 days! Quite a difference, with the latter being the more enjoyable by far!

Thus ends a nice summary of our Christmas vacation. I will be glad to get back to normal... Lucas getting the bug put a bit of a damper on our return. For the most part, things are put away. Jason took down all the lights and put away the few decorations we had out. All the laundry is done. Most of the stuff is unpacked and put away (there are a few toys I need to make a space for). And I've already downloaded all the pictures and updated Flickr. It is time to move on... the holidays are officially over. Did I already say 'thank goodness'?

Oh and by the way... Jason purchased a GPS right before our trip. I thought it was a frivolous purchase since we've traveled this same route many times in the past (how could it possibly come into use?). Allow me to retract my doubts... it was so useful many times not just during our drive to and from Missouri, but while we were in Missouri. I highly recommend them now... no more doubting Heather.

Next on the agenda... come up with a plan for Clara's birthday and figure out what to do about this whole digital TV changeover. We just found out what a headache it's going to be for people like us who still use a VCR to record TV shows... ugh. Maybe we'll just keep basic cable until they make a DVR that has a built-in digital tuner... any guesses when that might be?

Let me end this post by saying Happy New Year to you! I am full of hope for 2009... Jason will find a great new job that will keep us here permanently!