Hey Y’all!

To ready myself for writing this year’s Official Holiday Letter, I read last year’s. And the year before. Yes, and the one before that. What a smarmy bunch of crap: “Ivy…the most devastating love we’ve ever experienced.” Blargh! Honestly, how did you stand it? And the worse thing is that no one said anything…I thought you people were my friends! You’re all out of the will.

I hope all of you are doing well. We’re doing fine…Aaron is crazy-busy and stressed out, I’m still up in arms over Ivy’s change of schedule, and - of course - the big news of the year is that Ivy started Kindergarten. *balloons & confetti* She attends a fantastic school in El Cerrito (why yes, we DO still live in Berkeley…funny how that all turned out), and just loves it. Her favorite subject is art (shocking!), and her favorite after-school class is Ceramics (again, a shocker). I suspect she also has a crush on an after-school teacher, and whole kindergarten class seems very interested in “boyfriends” and “girlfriends”. Yes, we KNOW she’s only 5.5…trust me, it drives Aaron nuts, and I’m sure it will only get to be MORE of an issue, but how do you handle at this age? (No, that really wasn’t rhetorical.)

So, let’s see…the year in review:

In May, my (paid for) car got totaled in front of our house, while we all slept. Isn’t that special? I’m now driving a CRV, which is a great car, but it’s a 4-cylinder, and I’ve come to the realization that I absolutely despise 4-cylinders. I think I got passed by a Prius the other day. I mean…really! Am I still bitter about it? You betcha!

Aaron also started a new social media marketing company in the same month, and it’s really taking off. His largest client is Visa (yes, that one), and it’s rapidly taken over everything. I joke with him about being Visa’s little bitch, but they call him for every single thing. Okay, that’s a blatant exaggeration, but it’s a lot.

I’m still at Tastebook, while also handling all the accounting & HR concerns at Aaron’s new company and volunteering at Ivy’s new school. It keeps me (psychotic and grumpy) very busy. In January, I start a consulting gig at UCSF Medical Center (thank you Jen, for hooking that up!)…the (grumpiness) craziness promises to continue at a spectacular level.

For those of you following the drama of our pre-lit Wal-Mart Christmas tree, well…it lit again this year, but the very top section is missing the white lights. This may be its final year with us (halle-freaking-lujah). And since I decided to prop it up on two cinderblocks, the angel no longer fits. I spent 3 weeks looking for a beaten tin star for the top, but finally gave up. We now have one of Ivy’s hand puppets sitting on top of the tree. Unfortunately, the only one we could find was a three-headed dragon, but at least it’s red. Whatever…don’t judge until you have kids.

All the cats are still alive, and disgustingly healthy. Due to last year’s unfortunate incident with the curling ribbon, none of the presents have ribbons or bows. No tinsel allowed in the house either. *sigh* I know these updates make your year.

Enough jibber-jabber…just know that all of you have been on my mind, and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas/Chanukah/Kwanza/Festivus. Oh, hey…maybe we can get a Festivus pole for next year! The red dragon will look fantastic on top.