Happy New Year!

Wow, what a wonderful year end and new year I've had. Almost ALL of it was family time, lots also included friends who may as well be family, and I can't believe how incredibly good it makes me feel to hear my kids' laughter throughout the house. Tonight will be a quiet peace, compared to the recent hustle and bustle of 6-12 people in the house for the last three weeks.

I'm looking forward to taking a deep breath and being able to hear my own thoughts without interruption... but I definitely love having the kids and everyone else around. I love that the girls get along so well with our poly partners, and that they don't have any issues (that we can see, at least) with our "alternative" lifestyle and choices. I really felt connected on a different, more mature level this visit, with both my elder stepdaughter and stepson. :)

Looking ahead, I know I need to clear out the kitchen of all the sweet and junky foods we seem to have accumulated over the last month. OMG, there is so much junk in the house! Of course, today I'm getting rid of the overripe fruit by making banana nut bread, and my eldest wants to make cheesecake before she leaves. So I guess we may as well get all that out of the way- and hopefully send some home with family and friends!

Then I need to help R with His nutrition goals, for both our benefit. I hope we won't implement such drastic changes that we set ourselves up for failure, but I do want to improve our eating habits and energy levels.

I can't help feeling somewhat distanced and saddened by the lack of interaction with some of our family. I wonder if it's due to anything we've done (or not done), to health issues (that I wish would be resolved painlessly!), or what... but it feels like family is slipping away and we don't know what to do about it.

Then there are others who I wish lived closer, and some who *are* moving closer (yippee!), and I wonder how our relationships will progress in 2009 and beyond. There is a lot to look forward to this year!