There is no place like home....

Hi all,

Am writing this blog from good ole Washougal, Washington. I arrived home on Saturday after a long, long, l-o-n-g flight. Exhausted from the trip, from lack of sleep, and from a hair-raising week at work... walking in the door of my mom's house was the first time I've truly been relaxed in weeks.

I spent all day Sunday with my mom making Christmas cookies - enough to make my stomach ache from all the sugar and chocolate (mostly because I kept eating the dough!). It really is nice to be home - not just because it's Christmas, but for the thousand other things that I take for granted. I went for a run on Monday, came home and was stretching on the floor and Angel (the dog) came and played with me for about 30minutes. I don't know when the last time I spent thirty full minutes petting a dog -- Honestly, I just haven't taken the time.

Speaking of time - this trip is already flying by so very quickly. I spent Sunday with my friend Mettie - laughing and catching up on life. I spent Monday catching up with my friend Jenn - and letting her two adorable girls climb all over me (Paityn & Camryn). If you haven't spent nearly a day in the presence of children recently, I recommend it - it was the nicest afternoon I can remember in recent history(the two redhook winter brews I had added to the happy feeling!). Monday and Tuesday night I spent with old friends from college... this morning on the phone with my sister Marg in Chicago (way to go on the A in art history!!!) and today with my dad and brother driving through the breath-taking Columbia River Gorge. I could go on and on, but well, you get the picture. I am enjoying how wonderful it is to just call someone up for a conversation, run an erand together, or share a dinner remebering some of your best times together, I will dearly miss these luxuries when I return to London. :-)

Anyway - without spending too much time gushing over why I love all my friends and will end this with a great big Christmas wish. I will be home with my family this year and it will mean more than it ever has before. I will enjoy the bickering, the laughter, the poking fun, the Tripoly (of course I plan on winning all the money this year!!), the terrible Ivan jokes where we all groan, the way Paul laughs to entice him on further, and everything else that makes being a Hooper special. And although I was never one to take these things for granted, I am sure that I have never understood quite so fully how precious the time I have with each of them really is - until now. I hope you find the same joy and content in your time with family and friends this year. It truly is the most precious gift of all.

Merry Christmas everyone! And as Frosty would say (the other Frosty) - Make It A Great Year!

With much love,

Suzy