So Young Now...

ANOTHER DAY TO CELEBRATE!

Kurt and I used to be big New Year's Eve celebrators...always a party night out, with fancy outfits, friends, dinner, cocktails, fun hats and sparkly things, and a very late start to our New Year's Day! Until Max was born. On New Year's Eve! We haven't been out to celebrate like the old times since Max was born five years ago! How could we be those parents who ditch our son on his birthday to go out and have a good time without him?? Can't do it! He could be scarred for life! (Oh, and we also moved to the 'burbs shortly after Max's first birthday, which certainly changed things for us, almost as much as having kids did!) So, now the celebrations are family-based and close to home. We went to a neighbor's party last year, and were intending to go again this year (and perhaps stop at another party before that, also pretty close to home) but we had to cancel all plans this year because we had a house half-full of sick and likely contagious people! Nicole had strep! Jack had a rash! Kurt thinks he has strep! At least the birthday boy was feeling good! And who I am kidding, I was pretty happy that I wasn't sick too! Poor Max (and poor me) was stuck in most of the day on his birthday, but I took him to Toys R Us to choose some birthday toys (couldn't you have found something from those clearance racks that were EVERYWHERE in the store the week after Christmas, honey?) and then the whole family rallied to take him to his favorite restaurant for his birthday...On the Border! We had another delicious meal (very poor service again!) and then went back to our house to celebrate with a birthday cake! We let the kids stay up to watch a movie of Max's choice, and then put them to bed. They were asleep before 9 and Kurt (who was not feeling very well) was asleep by 10. I sat alone in a quiet house and watched NewYearsROCKINEve and rang in 2009 with my loved ones safe and sound around me. Markedly different from my prior life, but I can't really say the old way to celebrate was better...