So my husband and I rang in the new year in bed, cuddled up and probably snoring. Does that mean we are old? Or do those classic songs we remember from our childhood or teenage years mean we have almost reached the top of the hill?

At least, we got to enjoy our delicious gargantuan pretzel. In fact, we are still enjoying it. I am not kidding about the size of this. I am also not kidding about the size. I am also not kidding about the deliciousness. I spent much of the evening saying, "Num num," while munching happily.

In other news, I may or may not actually be getting a good start on my resolutions this year. I had a salad for lunch, took a walk with the husband, and it should be obvious that I am trying to revamp this site a little bit. Granted, I have just been working on the formatting the links to my previous journals. They should be a little easier to visit now that you only have to scroll through each year and not the full 115 previous months. That seems like a lot of pages. I might have to check that number sometime. For now, I leave you with a thought for the new year: enjoy every minute!

I've devoted some more time to perfecting the archive of this journal. I moved it to the bottom of the page, so people can jump right into Annabella Now instead of scrolling through Annabella Past. Hopefully my enthusiasm lasts for a while because the rest of this site needs some serious revamping. Maybe I should have asked for a code gremlin for Christmas since my brain may have turned to tapioca during the past few years while I was using a dreaded Windows box. I knew better, so I only have myself to blame.

Of course, the mention of previous holidays brings me back to our upcoming holidays. I believe they are Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents Day, and Valentine's Day. The last is the most celebrated, but I still think we should celebrate it every day. Every day is a great opportunity to tell someone you love them or plaster your house with pink, red, and white paper hearts. I personally like hiding random love letters in my husband's sock drawer. He usually goes dancing out of the room in search of a light when he discovers one since he is too sweet and smart to turn on a bright light while the mogwai is sleeping.

I think I may just get a jump on showing off my love this year by doing something similar. I hope the husband doesn't get a papercut. That would be counterproductive. Though it would give me an excuse to kiss him better. I guess I should work on my resolution about novel revision. We'll see how that goes.

I continue to be amused by how much information other people feel they need to share with the world at large. Every little moment in their life is a chance to make themselves interesting to anyone they think might be listening. Of course, over time, people stop bothering to listen or read. I wonder how long it will take them to realize this. I am well aware that I don't often have something interesting to report. While watching the snow fall may amuse me, does anyone want to read about my thoughts on snowflakes? I suppose that would have the same answer as the following question: are you still reading this?

Anyway, I decided to do something novel today. I shoveled the snow from the sidewalk and driveway. I have decided this is a pretty good workout for a couch potato such as myself. It also served to remind me that my upper body could use some serious toning. I am pretty sure everyone knew that already.

In other news, my husband still hasn't found all of my little love notes. I can see two of them from where I sit, but he seems to remember them only as we are drifting off to sleep. He's so cute when he is anticipating finding more of them though. I have to give him that. I also have to give him a kiss, so see ya later...

Sometimes, I look at my friends and I am amazed by all that they accomplish. They struggle to be good mothers not only to their children, but all the children they come in contact with. They make time to exercise between cooking, meals, and changing sheets. Amazing. And they don't realize it.

The winter wonderland has returned to taunt us or offer us exercise opportuinites, depending on our unique perspective. I took advantage of the opportunity to bundle up and go out into the cold. Someday, I am going to take a picture of my car doing an impression of Stripe from the Gremlins. This is what happens when a hobbit tries to clean off a green car. A taller person could easily clear all the snow off of their car with just their arms. I, however, tend to leave a nice white mohawk down the center of the car. I really need to take a picture of this sometime, but that would require it to snow again.

The change in the season and trying to juggle too many obligations (of my own and my darling hubby's) has not been kind to my attempts to learn to ice skate without doing a bird impersonation. My subconscious decided to make me aware of this last night by causing me to dream about it. My dream took a strange turn that involved crinkly skirts, old ladies, and an embarassing mishap for one of them. I admit that I laughed in my dream and then felt bad for the old lady. Some day, I may have to seek counseling for the weirdness in my head, but today is not the day.

So many lonesome stretching feet, reaching toward the sea
Feeling the swells of hearts and tides overtaking me
Like so many who once danced upon this shore
Where forgotten are all loves loved before
And we listen once more to hear the music of
The waters, the winds, the ones we love
Whispering in voices so soft and low
That in their softness, our loves grow
So stretch your feet and arms toward the sound
Of our greatest loves coming to ground

My neglect of my journal and other obligations is disappointing. I know this. I also know that my readers may have given up on seeing what I did today. I find my little accomplishments far more exciting that people who are not involved in my day to day life. I enjoy knowing that I have made a dent in the cleaning that needs to be done. For instance, I washed some laundry which included a comforter that has been sitting on a floor since before I moved into the house. This means that I am getting closer to reclaiming that section of floor. I am also about to finish another quilt which means I can devote some time to my new quilt idea that I had.

Maybe my readers could inspire me by sending me e-mail with ideas. You know you want to. You could also help me revive my guestbook. It has been lonely.