State of the Union address

We had good intentions to get out Christmas cards, but that never happened. And then I had good intentions to get out some cards for New Years, and then Valentine's Day . . . and here we are.

We didn't do our regular ugly sweater Christmas picture this year. We did, however, win tickets to the zoo, and we got this little gem while we were there.

I'm still trying to find a work-life balance. Some days and weeks it is better than others. At times, I want to run away from it all. But for the most part, I'm really enjoying being back at work.

My writing has been pretty much non-existent for quite some time. I write a sentence or two in a little diary/journal each night before bed, and I write status updates on Facebook, but that's about it.

Things are going pretty well for us right now. I really don't have anything to complain about. We are finally able to start getting some things taken care of around the house that we have been putting off. We finally painted our bedroom, got curtains, got new hardware for our bathroom cupboards, and even got the disgusting foil wallpaper from the 60s off the wall in the bathroom area.

Our renter moved out and got married. It's a bit weird and yet nice to have the place back to just us. It hasn't been that way for close to 3 years. That extra income from him was nice, but it wasn't needed, especially since I'm moving up with my new job/career.

I appreciate people being in my life still who have chosen to do so. I leave the door open and let people go in and out of their own choosing. I must admit that I have closed the door on a few people, but a knock to show they really want to be there is basically all it takes for me to open the door again for them. I'm more cautious when I open the door again, but I know that I've made mistakes myself and am willing to give people the same grace I hope others would be willing to give me.