the post-holiday post

I hope everyone had an exciting (and safe) start to the new year!  Mine was certainly buzzing from start to finish, and hasn't really drawn to its close quite yet.  On Saturday we're all going out for a good German lunch with my Opa and his lady-friend Ruth -- always good for a laugh, and there are always stories to tell.  And it'll be the first time he meets Luke, as well as my older brother's lovely girlfriend, Ashley!  So we'll see how that goes.  With my Opa, you just never know.  (P.S. isn't that picture of Shawn with the antlers too cute?  Seriously, that dog will let you put anything on him. I've tied pashminas on him, we've put glasses, hats, and various other clothing and he just sits there with that adorable look on his face. Such a good dog.)

Anyway, I promised you a second Christmas post, and a New Years post, so I've combined them into one post because that felt like the most efficient thing to do.  

My Mom and I take great pride in our holiday table settings. And while I've only included one shot, trust me that there are photographs from every angle imaginable of that table.  It was so sparkly and festive.  I think our Christmas settings are always the best.  Also, that Christmas photo of me and Luke is not quite genuine...it was actually taken on New Years Eve.  Over the three Christmases we have spent together, Luke and I had never managed to get a really good picture of us by a tree, or whatever.  So my mom took some.  And strangely enough, though we both felt that we were making really happy, excited faces, all the pictures made us look like we were bored.  But oh well. I can live with it.

New Years was spent with Marc and Leanne, as I mentioned in my last post.  It was so much fun!  None of us are big drinkers (and I don't know about anyone else, but I generally like to remember special events, rather than lose them in an alcohol-induced haze), so for the final count down we actually toasted with sparkling juice.  But it was delicious sparkling juice.  We did have some wine with dinner though, and I had a small Bailey's because Bailey's is best (mmm alliteration).  Oh...and we made CHOCOLATE FONDUE. So utterly delicious.

That second photo is one of my favourites from the evening.  It just seems really classically New Years to me. :)  And the first shot is Luke and Marc goofing around and pretending that the champanade was not just champanade.

We played this great board game called the Magic Labyrinth.  Basically, you're trying to collect your medallions, but you have to go through a labyrinth that you can't see because it's under the board. Your piece moves on a magnet, and if you hit a wall, you have to start back at your corner. It's definitely a challenge to play at midnight!  And of course I couldn't resist a sparkly silver nail polish to celebrate the New Year. I didn't have any sparkly clothes, so the sparkles had to appear on my nails (which are finally long enough to paint!).

Anyway, that's the holiday in a nutshell!  Now back to our regularly scheduled programming!