Highlight, Low-light

We rang quietly in to the new year, just like last year (except KC wasn't throwing up this year, thank goodness). The whole week has been pretty quiet actually. Let's see if I can recall the happenings.

Last Friday, like I mentioned, we were Mary and Joseph at the DC Temple Visitor Center. KC was also helping direct Traffic until it was our turn in the manger. It was very similar to when we did it a couple years ago, but we had a few new moves thrown at us. We had a fun time doing our little set of actions continuously for about an hour. And the lights were amazing of course. I helped with a tree or two during a youth service project. There were thousands of people there. nice music, and a beautiful photography display. It was a great way to end our Christmas season. The weekend was relatively normal. I took advantage of the outrageous Target clearances (but not too much, just a few things I've been keeping my eye on) We saw The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and loved it. It's high time there were some good movies to see. On Sunday we were invited to dinner by one of KC's college buddies that was in town with his in-laws. It was fun to catch up with them,

Monday I did some returning/buying more-than-I-should, at the mall. Hey, I found some great deals. What was I supposed to do? And I did some babysitting that night. The kids were very excited to show me their new toys. KC was also excited-to play with the toys.

Tuesday I did some more shopping (I didn't find everything on my list before, and I was finally successful). Then the kids came to my house so their parents could do some work on their house. Iris was elated to be able to take her nap in my bed. She had everything she needed from the white noise machine, to specific books she liked. She asked me to close the blinds, and asked if she could use my blanket too (it was actually my bathrobe, but it's the same material as her blankie). We read a story together and she was out like a light for over 2 hours. I loved laying there with sweet Iris. Such a cuddly girl. Wade couldn't stop watching The Muppet Show DVDs KC's parents gave us for Christmas. They were right up his ally, and I had a good time watching them too.
Wednesday, the kids came over again for a few more hours while the work on the house was getting done. We made cookies, ordered pizza, and of course, watched more Muppets. It was a very blustery day outside, so it was fun to hang inside with the kids. They loved picking which apron, out of the many that I have, to wear while we baked. They looked so cute, and the cookies were quite good.
That night, being New Years Eve, we were wondering what to do. Join some friends, call the Turpins, go out for dinner, or go see a movie (yeah we are real party animals). . . But instead of deciding, we did none of the above, made some nachos, and watched our latest Netflix, Ghost Town. I fell asleep a good 15 minutes into it, around 10 or maybe earlier, and slept through any ball-dropping at the stroke of midnight. But that's they way I like it anway. I'm no fun to be around when I'm tired. And I was plenty tired.

I woke up and made breakfast. I copied Melody's tradition again, and made crepes. I like this tradition. We love crepes, but don't think to make them on any regular days, so this is a great occasion to get my crepe maker out. I made pomegranate curd, and layered it on the crepes with sectioned clementines, and freshly whipped cream. It was a great, and rich way to start the day. Now I have to figure out what to do with the rest of the pomegranate curd. I'll post the recipe on EE soon. It's a fun way to use up any stray pomegranates you have lying around. After breakfast, we slowly got ready, after I finished watching (and loving) Ghost Town, and went to do some window shopping, see a movie, and afterward get a burger at Five Guys. Seriously, nothing can compete with those burgers and fries. On our drive home, we took my mom's advice and play a game, Highlight, Low-light, hence the title of this post. You take turns each saying a highlight of the year, and then do the same with a low-light. There are some times this past year that I'd rather not revisit, but there were times that I wouln't trade for anything. It was a good way to reflect on our good times, and what we learned, and how far we've come from the bad. The rest of the night we spent relaxing, and watching a couple BBC Office episodes.

See, nothing too special about our New Year celebration, or our whole holiday season for that matter, but I loved the low key feeling we maintained through it all. It feels like forever since Christmas, though it was only a week ago. Maybe it seems so long because we took down everything Christmas related the morning after Christmas day. The space under the tree was depressing with it's lack of colorful gifts, and the accumulation of stray needles. I couldn't stand to look at it any longer. And besides, that tree was DEAD. I think our vacuum broke in the process of cleaning up this mess.I love the freshness and rejuvenation that a new year brings. Putting away the holiday decor is, to me, kind of a metaphor for the new year. Put everything in storage, clean all the nooks a crannies, and get ready for a fresh start. The house feels more open, clean, and relaxed, just like my mind, body and soul. I can feel that this will be the year of changes for us. And yeah, we're ready.