Family Style!: Happy New Year 2009!

Kim seems to be out doing me with the pictures these days so I haven't had the need to write lately. I'll keep it short. I would like to start by congratulating Kim on starting a new job this week. She has taken a job with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and started last week. Ironically she now works in the same building as me!! It is a little interesting to have you wife work a couple of walls away. Her section has even higher security then my area so I can't just stop by. She can stop by my area but hasn't come by yet. We now both work less then a mile from where we live. Congrats to Kim!!

Thanksgiving was great with Dad and Carolyn coming out for the Holidays. It was a big family event. My cousin Ellie moved out here this past summer and she hosted Thanksgiving. We had a blast. Five Hoefen's were there, 7 Camann's and a few of Ellie's very nice friends. The weather held up for a couple of days and we got a good hike in. A great visit for sure.

Then the Buytaert's came out for a week during Christmas. Again the weather held up for a few days. They got to get a good hike in at Red Rock State Park. The Buytaert's got to see their condo and go swimming in the community pool. I think the went to the museum of nature and science as well. As usual I got cook a lot while everyone was here which I love to do. I cooked a family style meal for us on Christmas Eve. On Christmas Morhea had a blast opening all of her presents. This is the first year she REALLY understood what was going on and she loved every minute of it. She actually woke up around 9:30 or 10:00 AM which was nice. After presents at our house we went over to the Camann's in the afternoon. Morhea and her cousins get along so well. Her and Isabelle played for hours. I didn't even see her for most of the night. Janya and her mother made dueling roasts and we all pitched in on the fixings.

New Year's was good. Morhea was a little sick earlier in the week and so we didn't want to do too much. We ended up going to the Zoo Lights. The Denver Zoo always does a great job lighting up the zoo around Christmas. We spent the early part of the night walking around the zoo. We came home and I made some clams steamed in a white wine, onion and parsley sauce. Then I made some shrimp cocktails, crab stuffed mushrooms and finished it off with some fine deserts. Morhea easily made it to midnight and then some.