Auld Lang Syne

Ah, these eyes!

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne, we'll take a cup of kindness yet, for auld lang syne.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !
and surely I’ll buy mine !
And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have run about the slopes,
and picked the daisies fine ;
But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have paddled in the stream,
from morning sun till dine^† ;
But seas between us broad have roared
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand my trusty friend !
And give us a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.

Well, it's been a while my friends and I suppose I should catch you up on the last few months here at the Rye House!  We had a fantastic Halloween with the most perfect Garden Gnome ever.  Not only did he look adorable, he actually put up with me putting him in every garden we could find so I could snap a picture!  The faces he made were perfect and he actually looks like he should be in the Travelocity "Never roam alone" ads!  I think he could absolutely put that fake gnome out of a job.  

After Halloween came, drum roll please, BEN'S FIRST BIRTHDAY.  (insert deep breath and sigh from Momma).  We had a lovely Elmo theme.  Do you have any idea how hard it is to make red icing?  Take my word for it, it's not easy.  But the cakes were delicious!  Too bad we think Ben hit another growth spurt the weekend of his parties, because he ended up sleeping through most of them.  Speaking of growth spurts, he was 24.5 pounds and 32 inches at his 1 year doctor's appointment.  Putting him in the 75th percentile for weight and 95 for height (not that any of us are surprised about that one).  His new nickname is Moose.  

  Back to the parties..  We were lucky to celebrate with many family members and friends.  It was a weekend to remember!  Tim decided Ben "needed" a bouncy house, so he got one.. to keep.. And Ben does really love it, especially when he decides to launch himself out of it, essentially belly flopping down on the ground.  Boys.  We can't thank all of you who were able to celebrate with us enough.  Your love means the world to us, so thank you!  (And your thank you notes are still in process, but don't hold your breath....)

Quickly following behind Ben's b-day was TURKEY DAY(S)!!  Mom & Dad were in town (day care was closed Thanksgiving week) and spent Thanksgiving Thursday with us and the Meyer's clan (Tim's Mom's family).  Always a good time and great food.  Black Friday we discovered Ben's shopping capabilities.  He definitely got those genes from both of us!  He was a trooper, as long as we kept his belly full!  And lastly, Thanksgiving Part Deux with the Buchers on Saturday.  Tim & I hosted the group this year and as always, there will be stories floating for years to come (ahem, note to self, no more sculpting materials at dinner).   

November is over, which means... CHRISTMAS is coming!  In early December, I was determined to find reindeer in Maryland.  Well, apparently, Maryland DNR won't allow them into the state.  Whomp, whomp.  So, one afternoon, we found ourselves at the Plumpton Park Zoo in Rising Sun.  Ben had a blast and even got the Bmooo cow to Bmooo at him!  Definitely the highlight of the trip (if you ask him).  Personally I think the peacocks roaming about were pretty awesome.  But alas, no reindeer, and of course, Santa was coming the following weekend.

And to "wrap" things up, Christmas.  As I sit here and type this blog entry, I feel the toys creeping in on me - I have no clue where I'm going to put all of this stuff!  Tim said earlier tonight, "We're gonna need a bigger house".  Christmas morning was fantastic.  Ben really got into ripping paper and playing with his toys.  His favorite by far was his ride on "Doot doot" or to most, a truck.  

So, in closing my dear friends.  

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Happy New Year!  Stay in touch with us next year!!

Lots of love and laughs, Laura, Tim & Ben