Happy 2013.  We’re tired already.  Chloe and her friend didn’t go to sleep until about 3 AM.  They kindly awoke me from my deep slumber when one of them fell off the bed.  Needless to say, I struggled to fall asleep again – as is always the case now that I’m old.

We all slept in a little bit, although Sophie, who didn’t go to bed until after midnight herself, still managed to wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at about 7:45 AM.  I don’t know how these kids do it.  It’s one of those mysteries of nature – no matter how late kids fall asleep, they always wake up at the same time, which is always way too early.

After brunch at a neighbor’s house, Chloe and I braved the mall.  We almost didn’t make it past the parking lot, but the shopping gods smiled upon us and revealed a parking spot just as I was getting ready to throw in the towel and return home.  We didn’t buy much, other than the too-expensive but oh-so-delicious Neuhaus chocolates I love, but it was a nice way for Chloe and me to spend a couple of hours together.

Tomorrow we all go back to the grind of school and work, which will be particularly hard for the girls and Papa, who was on vacation for the last two weeks.  But despite the cold weather, the return to homework and early morning alarms, we are all feeling pretty happy these days.  We have a lot to look forward to in 2013 and that will keep us all going during the next three months of winter.