A new year. A new me.
New Year's Resolutions abound. Most people resolve to lose weight or get organized (I asked for that for Christmas, so I am ahead of the game). I resolve to blog more! The fall was too busy and I got out of the habit! So Happy New Year. Here is 2006 in review for all those visiting for the first time or who have no idea what is happening in our lives:

As for any year, 2006 had highlights and lowlights but was a normal year if you can call anything normal around here! (Quite of bit of this is covered in the archives--including pics!)

Esther started out the year on a high note by falling and busting her head open on our hearth tile. So on my first kid visit to the ER, I got to hold her down while they stitched her up. Now all her self-portraits include a slash across her forehead for her boo-boo. We also started what has turned out to the be the very long process of trying to get her into speech therapy. Still working on it, but she is making great progress. This year included her 3rd birthday at the park, the continuation of gymnastics classes, the beginning of dance classes, and her start at a formal preschool. She goes twice a week to preschool immediately next door to Emma's elementary school and goes once a week to our neighborhood co-op. Although she is still a bit quiet, she loves school and everyone loves her (who wouldn't!). She is a wiz at letters, writing, and anything requiring fine motor skills. Her speech has improved dramatically! She also has her first loose tooth--only because she got hit in the mouth--but thinks it is great! Now she is eagerly anticipating yet another princess birthday party and finally being 4. Apparently, when you turn 4 you magically like spinach, don't like carrots, and get to go to school every day. Who knew that 4 was SO grown up!

Emma started her year in kindergarten and ended it in 1st grade going on high school. Kindergarten went well--she loved her teachers and had a wonderful year-end "graduation" including singing, dancing, and dressing up! February saw a "Narnia" birthday party complete with costumes and treasure hunt to Narnia as well as the first tooth lost. By the end of the year, she had lost 4 and had another 3 threatening to jump any day now. She has grown at least 3 inches in the last year. I will lament further on the growing up of my baby--she can't decide whether she wants to watch Dragon Tales or The Suite Life of Zach and Cody. She owns both "High School Musical" and "Molly: An American Girl Movie". Emma enjoyed the summer--both zoo camp (again) and swimming (her favorite sport). She played soccer both spring and fall. Undefeated in spring, almost completely defeated in fall. She loves 1st grade and has her first "crush". She finished off the year trying out and getting a spot in our school's production of the musical "The Wiz" and losing the coveted spot of Mary in the church pagent. She was a wise man which turned out to be way better--a sparkly costume and crown, a pretty box to carry, and the last kid in which meant a prime spot up front.

Shaun is still hard at work with the neighborhood. He escaped being pulled back into the presidency and is still Vice President. It does not seem to have affected his workload but takes him out of the direct crossfire. He will soon unveil the neighborhood's latest project--the 14th Street Streetscape plan. 14th Street is a major thoroughfare (and state highway) that cuts through the heart of our neighborhood. Speaking of our neighborhood--it continues to change. Atlantic Station has introduced a new element, midtown is changing dramatically around us, the west side is beginning to make its mark--we will see how it all plays out! Shaun also continues to take on new and exciting projects at work. He had a number of new express bus lines open around the metro area. All seem to be very popular with suburban commuters looking for ways to get our of their cars! He is also working on the outer perimeter project (a big deal in metro ATL). He loves his work (how GREAT is that!) and continues to bike to work. He also volunteers at church as a kindergarten Sunday school teacher and does presentations at Emma's school about pedestrian safety.

As for me, this year has brought a lot of changes and 2007 poses many more. After staying home for years, I now receive paychecks from 3 different places. Last year, I began working "for the holidays" at a furniture store called West Elm owned by Williams-Sonoma. I am still there and will be as long as I enjoy it. So, if you get gifts from Pottery Barn, W-S, or WE you'll know why--I get a great discount. I also started working part-time at Emma's school as a Parent Volunteer Coordinator. This led to another opportunity to coordinate a reading program called Everybody Wins! at the school. Volunteers from surrounding businesses come to read to "at risk" students during their lunch time. This all meshes with my other volunteer efforts at the school as PTA Fundraising Chair (I have raised over $35,000 to date) and Parent Rep to the Local School Council (an elected 2-year term). This year will probably see another change in my employment status or at least more juggling what I do now--I say "Bring it On!!"

As a family, we took a number of trips. First, our annual Spring Break trip to visit Rachel and Cheryl in PC bringing home lots of strawberries. I also got to make a special trip down again in May for a surprise 30th birthday party for Rachel--she was actually really surprised which is saying something if you know Rachel. We also headed up to Binghamton in June to see the Green family and have a little reunion for Shaun's cousin's graduation. On our way back, we headed through Pennsylvania (hello Hershey factory!) to Washington, DC for a few days. We stayed with my cousin Camille (and Jay and Isabele) in their lovely home. Despite their busy schedule, they made us feel very at home and we had a great time exploring the city with the girls. We also saw our great friends Mike and Shirin. From there we went home with some camping along the way. Summer included lots of swimming and then back to school in July (remember, Emma is year-round). In August, I got to go on my annual girls' trip--this time to Seattle and right before my birthday. During fall break, we headed to Aruba for the first time in several years. We came back very rested and fairly tan! Thanksgiving was here with Shaun's parents. Christmas here with my family--Santa was great and brought scooters for both girls (best gift ever!). New Year's in Boston!

So I was looking over last year's blog posts and came across one complaining about all my appliances falling apart right before Christmas. As it turned out, we did not have to replace those appliances. But I will continue to hold that the theory still stands. This year the car fell apart right before Christmas and required lots of money flying out the window just to make it driveable. I should make a note of it for next year--"Something will require large amounts of money right before Christmas. Plan!"

Hope the new year is treating you well so far. We look forward to seeing you soon. Love and kisses to all.

Oh, and by the way, it wouldn't be a normal year if we weren't adding a new pet at the holidays. We now have a new frog, actually a tadpole at this point, named Spots. I don't do frogs so we'll see how long this one lives!

Happy 2007!