No champagne for me tonight. I've done the confetti and dancing thing and I love nights like that. But tonight it's quiet, the Christmas lights are still on. I just finished a movie and the evenings beverage of choice is ice cold chocolate milk...........in a very elegant class, of course. Just when I was thinking I must be the only person home alone on NYE this year, I got a nice little text message from the East and I realized I wasn't really home alone a'tall. Thanks MFD :))

Happy New Year everyone!!!!!!!

Yeah, that was fun enough.

Bring on New Years Eve.

Hey, Santa Baby.....

Christmas morning is right around the corner and Mr. Binks and I are stacking our deck in anticipation of Santa's visit. We've heard the big guy in red likes treats.

I baked some cookies. Mr. Binks thought leaving his favorite catnip mouse under the tree would be a nice touch. Who knows, maybe reindeer like the stuff???

And we both agree that a nice, big glass of milk is the perfect accompaniment to Christmas Eve treats. Yup, we're sure we've got some great stuff on it's way to us, straight from Santa's bag.

I've also heard a rumor that Santa loves fine music. Mr. Binks, on the other hand, has very sensitive ears. So last night after he went to bed, I recorded a personal message to let the man with the bag full of presents kinda know what I've got in mind in case he forgets his glasses and can't quite read his list.....

Double click on the little arrow.

Hey, it doesn't hurt to be specific.......

Ho Ho Ho and Merry Merry from our house to yours!!!!

BIG WHEEL RALLY

This weekend my Sara and a bunch of her crazy biking friends dressed up, dressed warm and took to the streets to raise money for The Heart Connection, a wonderful non-profit group that addresses the needs of children with cancer and their families. The event is the annual Big Wheel Rally, a pub crawl with participants dressing up and riding fancied-up big wheels from bar to bar down a main street here in town.

That they raised $5000 for The Heart Connection is the most important part of the story.


But photos from the event give you an idea why everyone looks forward to it so much every year. (Hi Nick, where's Tinky Winky??)

Who is that masked banana?????

Closely followed by our favorite masked man....

You'll notice that warmth and hydration are big priorities,
not necessarily in that order.

Saturday's ice storm didn't dampen anyone's spirits,

although maybe it spun a couple of the riders off in the wrong direction.

That's a sheet of ice on the street.

But most riders managed to stay upright.

Well, most riders.

At one point my favorite banana went flying.

She's ok. It was all for a great cause.

And no beer was harmed in the making of this photo.

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like..........

Last weekend I flew into Norfolk, Virginia, arriving after dark. My hotel was right on the beach, along miles of which there is a drive-through holiday light display. I've been having troubling kicking my holiday spirit into gear, but the sight of these lights from my balcony was a great way to jump-start my mood.

All up and down the beach the cars creep on blacktop paths normally reserved for foot traffic and bicycles during any other time of year. Since it's a seaside community, there are lots of ocean-theme lights alongside the usual Santa's and snowflakes........seahorses, mermaids and shells. Palm trees. Sailing ships. It's pretty. The lights outside the path are actually mounted in the beach sand with the ocean just a few yards beyond. My camera had a hard time capturing it in the dark.

The next morning, I had hot chocolate on my little balcony and watched the sun rise over the beautiful Atlantic ocean.

Right on cue, my favorite weather guy started talking "winter" the day I got home from my quick trip to the East Coast. And sure enough......

...ice on Saturday and this morning, snow. The flakes were so big and gorgeous, I called Sara on her cell phone just so she could look out the window and see them. She was, at the time, upstairs under the covers in a very deep sleep. Someday I am pretty sure she will remember back to this magical moment and thank me. But it may take a while.

The tone of her appreciative voice convinced me I'd just go ahead and enjoy the little birds I saw feasting on the seed I spread on my patio by myself and tell her about it later.

Tonight the frost through the front door that I leaded and stained is a perfect showcase for the Christmas lights my neighbor put up across the street.

And my holiday spirit is open-throttle, full speed ahead.

Now where did I put my mistletoe.