Resolute

We enjoyed having the Exiles round this afternoon for a festive cup of tea. The grown ups played several games of non-competitive Round Up, while the kids trashed the house - all good.

This evening the Man and I delivered our daughter to her second-in-a-row sleepover. After only about six hours sleep the night before I dread to think what state she'll be starting the next decade in, but anyway. Hats off to the fearless parent who is celebrating New Year's eve by letting her twins invite five friends each to stay the night.

Got any resolutions you care to share? I'm planning on completing my fair trade campaign with a Fair Trade Town declaration. I'm also aiming not to have to pay any more library fines (yeah, right, good luck with that).

Happy New Year everyone - all of us here wish you peace, health and happiness for 2010.

Open endings

Our automatic garage door stopped working just before Christmas, which was inconvenient timing. We've been getting in and out ok manually, still it was good to have a bloke come and fix it this afternoon.

The Man is feeling under the weather, and the Boy wanted very much to spend the day at home, so no great adventures or exciting outings today. The Girl was happy about this, too, as it freed her up to go off on a play date/sleepover - I guess we'll see her again tomorrow sometime.

The end of the year looms ever closer - how will you be celebrating, if at all?

Left cold

It has been a bitterly cold day. We decided to spend it at MASS MoCA - the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art.


I have a rather uncomfortable relationship with a lot of modern art. I want it to inspire and satisfy, but so often it leaves me unmoved at best and at worst gets me quite riled up. That was the case with most of what we encountered today - though I did enjoy the scale of Sol LeWitt's vast wall paintings, and the joyousness of the artworks made from food and wrappers in the Kidspace gallery.

But a very excellent thing about contemporary art is the spaces it is displayed in - be they outdoors, custom-built or, as today, converted from an industrial building (a nineteenth century textile printing mill). That was definitely worth the journey.

Walking, in the air

The snow we'd been promised today didn't amount to anything much at all, which was quite disappointing. Still, it meant I was able to take two walks at Five Rivers - one with my parents and one with the Man. Everything was bright and crunchy. The wild turkey we've been seeing there since before Thanksgiving is still hanging out by the visitor centre and seems to have lost all sense of being wild at all.

This evening the Man and I abandoned the grandparents to their fate with our lovely children while we went to the movies (at the excellent Spectrum 8, a proper not-in-a-mall cinema). We saw Up in the Air, starring George Clooney. Though the plot didn't bear much close scrutiny, it was well directed and absorbing to watch. After the film, my own little Clooney look-a-bit-alike took me to a Japanese restaurant for dinner, so that was lovely too.

Just desserts

It's nearly half eleven, and we've just put the kids to bed. We've all been round at our friends' house eating dessert, drinking champagne and setting the world to rights. Very enjoyable it was, but now it's past my bedtime, never mind the children's, so that's it for now.

Tomorrow we're expecting snow...

Grudge match

We've been at a party tonight. Lots of good company and food, and a quality table football game. The Man and I found ourselves on opposing sides - always a risky scenario.

I was teamed with another female guest and my dear husband with the organiser of the local farmers' market. I tell you, when peacenik pinko commie types (Buy Fair, Buy Local! Let's make the world a nice cooperative place!) play competitive sports it can get pretty bloody.

We drew one game all, and would have played a decider but some small kids came along and took over. Probably a good thing - a marriage was in the balance for a moment there.

So, that was Christmas

We had a good one. The Boy joined us in bed at about 4:50am, but went back to sleep immediately so we didn't have to start opening presents until he woke up again and fetched his stocking at 7:30.

There was a goodly haul of gifts under the tree. Plenty of books to go round, a doll and some skating gear for the Girl, and a Playmobil dolphin pool for the Boy. Also a Meccano set, which the Man spent a long time tinkering with.

Of course, Grandma and Grandpa have been here to celebrate the day with us and make it extra special. Different combinations of us went for a walk in the snow, watched "Home Alone" and ate a Vietnamese fish curry. To end the day we all joined in a cooperative (i.e. non-competitive) board game called Round Up, where players work together to corral some horses (it sounds revoltingly worthy, but is actually a lot of fun).

And suddenly the day is over. Whatever you were doing today, we hope you also had a lovely time.