New Year's

So, I'm a little behind, and you probably don't even care about the specifics of our New Year's, but since this blog is effectively my main source of record-keeping, here it is anyway!

We didn't really get any pictures (sadly,) except a few on my phone, for which I have not yet gotten the means of transferring pictures. So, anyway, we went with the whole entire Radcliffe clan, including Grandma and even Reed (I know-you don't even know who he is, right?) to dinner at Buca di Beppo. We chose this place because it was family style, which actually really threw some people off for quite awhile. :) We eventually got it all worked out, though, and I ended up loving 3 of the 4 dishes we ate from-the 4th was good, just not my fave. I personally had a blast, though I can't speak for everyone. :) (It was a very long table.) My daughters, as usual, bothered their favorite relations a bit much while they were trying to eat, but they always love seeing our families.

From there, we headed over to Jeff's mom's house for dessert and some Just Dance. We ended up playing it all night long, despite other plans previously made, and had a great time. Jeff and I brought our champagne flutes and the bubbly (this is always a must at my house, and didn't want to do without, so we brought it along for the party.) It just so happens, that we saw a new and awesome-sounding flavor that we chose, Apple-Peach. Too bad it was disgusting. A great way to turn the North in-laws on to the necessity of bubbly on special occasions. Not!

Seeing as we are terribly old and boring, we stayed only a little after midnight, then took our brood home. (Alisa actually got to sleep somewhere amidst the Just Dance ruckous, thanks to sweet Grandma snuggles.)

New Year's day was lazy for us, just the way it should be.

Again, as I reflect back on yet another year, I can only be thankful and recognize the blessings of our Heavenly Father. This past year, we welcomed Alisa to our family, paid off our car, I was blessed with the most perfect kind of job for a young mom, that has in turn helped us greatly reduce our debt, AND we had a wonderful vacation to Seaside, Oregon. Life for us carries the usual ups and downs, but on the whole, we are so greatly blessed here in the North home, and are grateful for another wonderful year.

We expect yet another wonderful year on the horizon, with our focuses being on first, to get our physical selves in order, and also to better and more consistently invite the spirit into our home. Here's to another great one!