Happy New Year!

I had a nice holiday, but as with some things i was also happy to get home. I
got a garage door opener as my "big" present, but also got some other cool
things including some artwork that my uncle wanted to get rid of. One piece is
an original fragment from a sculpture that I call the boxer, it is a bust of a
man. I also picked up a sweet black rod iron bistro table with glass top and 2
chairs in a similar style. I picked it out, but my parents paid as a
soon-to-be birthday present. Woo!

Highlights: Some of my young cousins who I wanted to nicknamed sniffly,
drooly, sneezy, and coughy. A bunch had colds which they gave to me and I
subsequently lost my voice. I sound very funny when I have lost my voice, it
changes from a squeaking frog to deep sultry bravado. 

They were cute none the less. They really liked my kitten who I took with me.
They chased him around. He finally realized he could hide behind the Christmas
tree to escape them. He then found that climbing the tree was fun too. And
then decided all those pretty ornaments must have been put up for him. I have
several pictures of Garth in the Christmas tree which I have to upload soon.

My mom's family who we were visiting is big. Not everyone was there, but we
had ~20 people for Christmas day. My mom has 12 siblings, 8 brothers, 4
sisters. We actually have "stages" and people come and go over the course of
the week, so you may not see everyone who is visiting. People I saw: 

Mom and Daddy, Artie and Attie (2 older cats that Garth got to terrorize)

Jacques(uncle, gay) and Grannie live on the farm

Ruth(aunt, gay, recently split from gf), Monet(cousin,sniffly, 1 yr old)

Ceci(a, gay, partner home), Georgia(c, 3 yrs old), Owen aka O.Henry,Oboe,Drooly
(c, 6mos)

Tom(u), Youngmi(a,korean), Sienna(c, 8y), Francis aka Growler(c, 6y)

Sarto(u), Arianna (c, 8y, musical prodigy-violin), Julianna(c,5y, contagious
flu)

Bruno(u), Caitlin(c,15y), Michaela(c, 12y), Avila(c, 5y), Angela(c,14y,
Dominican, partly reason for uncles separation unfortunately, nice girl been
through a lot)

Bill(u), Trina(a, my dad's sister), Luke(c, 30y) Katie (c), Katie's financC)
whose name escapes me, Gabe (c, 22y), Anna (c, 20y)

Abe(u), Kathy(a), Elysha, Ben, Hannah, Katherine, Elisabeth, Terese, Maria (al
cousins ages 14->toddler), Captain (8mos shepherd puppy)

I think that's all the family I saw, plus friends of the family.

My new year's resolution is to put together a portfolio of artwork and enter a
peice into an exhibition.