Ringing in 2011

For the last two years, our family has attended a New Years Eve party at the house of some friends from our church in Durham.  Both Jenna and Ethan have managed to stay awake to see the ball drop and now there is no going back!  I've always enjoyed ringing in the New Year.  Maybe because I'm naturally a night owl, all the great party food that comes along with the festivities, or the hopeful time to ponder what God has in store for our lives in the coming year - probably a combination of all three!  Regardless of the reasons, the children have caught the New Year fever and there was no way we were going to trick them with a pseudo New Year at 9:00 pm. 

Jason and I decided to invite some of our friends over to join in the celebration.  They have three children also and all of them get along very well.  They are British, so it seems that everything they say is so clever and witty just because of the accent!  The kids enjoyed Playmobil, games and watching Toy Story 3, and the adults chatted and pulled out Trivial Pursuit.  It was an interesting game as neither Jason nor I are trivia buffs and the game was clearly written for Americans.

With celebration drinks in hand, we snapped a photo and made a toast to the New Year.  One of the funniest parts of the evening was when my friend told her four year old son he needed to come over for "a toast".  He replied, "No, I don't really feel like toast right now." - obviously thinking she meant a piece of cooked bread!! 

Right at mid-night we started hearing fireworks. Jenna and Ethan enjoyed watching out the window and managed to  delay their bedtime until nearly 1:00 am!! 

We are filled with anticipation for the exciting things 2011 holds!  We already have 5 different house guests lined up before June and several spring trips we are planning.  We thank God for the precious gift of life in another new year and pray that we will be drawn closer to Him and grow in love for our family and friends in 2011. 

Bonne Année