Goodbye '08 Hello '09!

I have sadly neglected emptying the pictures from my camera for a long while, so here is my abbreviated attempt to share the most recent cuteness that crossed its lens. I will try not to go too long, but be warned(if you didn't already know) that it is probably not going to happen! I have a feeling that right now my words are only making sense in my head, so I apologize in advance for any gibberish. Anyhoo...this is my favorite picture, taken by the talented photog in the family otherwise known as Daddy. You can see a distinct difference between the snaps I take and the ones he does, mine are blurry and his are focused!
Here are the first and second runners up(as close as my kids will ever get to a beauty contest, I know they would win but I am against the concept!)

Now here for some that I took of Son's school Christmas program...see the difference?




I have a hard time admitting that I might not be good at something, but photography is definitely not my calling in life! I think my calling might be something closer to run-on sentences...
I do not, as a general rule, make New Year's resolutions. I have a hard time thinking of goals for myself. They are always way too hard or way too easy, never reasonably attainable. I feel like most New Year's resolutions are just promises begging to be broken. Unless, of course, you are my inhumanly self-control possessing husband, who gave up soda last January and made it all year without a sip(and several pounds lighter and healthier.) So, although I am not making an official New Year's resolution, I am adopting a motto for this year: a place for everything, and everything in its place. If I can't find a place for things to be put away properly, I have too much stuff and it's time to get rid of it(or have hubby build new shelves)(or quit being such a cheapskate and invest in some.)
We were walking through Walmart the other day and noticed that every aisle and end display advertised exercise equipment and gadgets. We just laughed, because the smart people at Walmart know what many many people have made for their New Year's resolutions this year(and every year?): Get in shape/lose weight. Let me share a little secret with you that L and I learned the hard way: there is no miracle diet/drug/gadget that will magically drop the pounds off. None. None. None. There are things that can help, but here is how you lose weight: Burn more calories than you take in. That means many different things to many different people, but that is the secret. For L, he works out a lot, and so has quite a bit more leeway in his diet than I do. I am quite limited as to my physical activity right now, so the way I lost my weight was to very carefully watch what I ate. We unofficially followed weight watchers, that helped us to pinpoint where we were going wrong. I am far from finished, but now I know what it takes and it is doable. I love sweets, especially that one miserable week out of the month. I just have to say no sometimes, and recognize when it is ok to say yes(once in a while.) We trimmed down portions and eat a lot more veggies, less starches. Eating healthy can be expensive, but if your portions are smaller that they used to be, I found that we saved money on that end, so it worked out pretty close to what we used to spend on groceries. It just occurred to me that I promised this would be a short post...oops! At least I didn't make it a New Year's resolution!