happy new year!

I went out! On New Year's Eve! Without children! It was cuh-razy!

My parents were supposed to leave at 2pm on December 31st, and about 2 hours before their scheduled departure a snowstorm arrived. They checked in for their flight, went through security, got to the gate and called to tell me their flight was delayed. Then they were going to miss their connection, then they were being rescheduled, then they were going to stay until January 1st instead. Gabe and I spent 4 hours in the airport waiting for them to let us know what was happening, since we didn't want to head home just to have to turn around and pick them up.

I was thrilled, though, because an extra day with my parents is an extra day! Even if we did have to spend hours in the airport and do it all again the next day. It was worth it. So like any good daughter would do, I took advantage and ditched them so Josh and I could go out. Ok, not really, my mom actually insisted because she was thrilled with the idea that we'd be able to go out and enjoy a night on the town.

We first took the kids and my parents to one of those Japanese restaurants where they cook everything at your table (highly recommended for the toddler and baby crowd- they loved it), then we came home and did a mini-celebration, and once we'd gotten the little monsters into bed, we headed out.

To a club! With dancing! And champagne! And appetizers! And NO CHILDREN! I called our only childless friends and basically invited ourselves along to their plans. We ate, we drank, we danced, and then we went out for pancakes at 1am. It was awesome, and totally unlike us. We felt very young and unencumbered.

Now I need to sit down and think about what I'd like to include in my Happiness Project, which I'm going to attempt for 2010. I figure I'll keep notes on my progress here to keep myself honest. January is going to be devoted to organization and cleaning and coming up with a system to get this house less chaotic. We still have loads of boxes and pictures piled all over the place, and lots of drawers and closets still need some major help. We'll see how it goes.

I'm also crossing all fingers and toes for a healthier 2010! Down with sickness! Health ahead! Happy new year to all of you! I hope your year is happy, healthy, and full of fun!