A New Year - 2009 is Here!

Happy New Year, everyone!

I firmly believe that 2009 is going to be a good year. It WILL be a good year, I insist! It's off to a decent start - we sold my Dad's house as of the 6th, and moved him into the retirement community where he has wanted to go since 2001. The move was pretty smooth, last Saturday we moved all of the furniture that wasn't going to his new place but was being dispersed amongst the family. Then we went to the new place and unpacked all of the boxes and hung curtains. On Monday the movers came to the house and moved Dad's things to the new place. On Monday night, I took another van load of trash out of there after cleaning the bathrooms and emptying all the small stuff out of the house, the little things that you don't notice until you have to collect it all - it adds up quickly!! On Tuesday my sisters went to the closing and the house was officially THEIRS. The weirdest moment for me was on Monday night when I was leaving the house, I had to put my key inside on the counter and shut the door - I stood there, in the dark, staring back into the empty house, and realized I would never again walk through that door. At least not without being welcomed in by the new people!! It wasn't devastating, but just a little sad. The second weird moment was on Tuesday...I have to drive by the house on my way home from work and the new people were there, their car in the driveway and the lights in my Mom's old room were on. Just weird. Not bad weird, just unfamiliar weird. My sister-in-law said it best: "It's time for that house to raise it's next family." I thought that was an awesome way to look at it. She had the same experience a couple of years ago when her parents sold her childhood home. I know my sisters are having a harder time than my brother and I are. But that is just typical of our personalities.

My Dad already seems to be doing well at the new place. Yesterday I called him to see how he was doing and I could actually hear the difference in his voice. Some neighbors on his floor invited him down to dinner the night before and he went! That is already a 100% improvement than him living alone in that big old house!! I can not be more hopeful that my Dad will become more like his old self.

The only glitch with 2009 already being a better year is that Pal is having a hard time adjusting to being back to school. We go through this every year, and every year the teachers seem surprised by this, but I am not. I told this teacher that every year we have the same issues after the Christmas vacation - it's like starting school all over again for Pal. And it doesn't get any easier from here on out, because there are 2 more vacations before school is out, and Pal will have the same difficulty after those vacations. Oh well, let's just hope he gets back in the swing of things soon.

Heck, I had a hard time getting back in the swing of things with this last week being a full week of work, plus I worked this morning for 4 hours, so my weekend didn't begin until noontime today!

So, raise your glasses to a great beginning to 2009. I hope all your New Year's Resolutions go down the drain like mine always do!!! Just kidding - stick to 'em!!!!


G