....about the new year 2012.

It is now the end of year 2011 and what a year it has been.  The nicest event is gaining two new dogs to our canine family.  Lucy and Sadie are both wonderful little beings and we feel so blessed to have them join our family.  As the months have passed, they have meshed into our pack beautifully and brought joy to so many of our friends who visit us to spend time with the dogs.  Our older dogs, Lexi, Jazz, and Sam are delightful to have.  They are so well trained, spend much time sleeping, and show so much joy to be with us doing what they can manage.  We love them so dearly and although their time left with us might be short, we are treasuring every moment.  Kati and Zac are a special team who are the competing agility members of the crew at present.  They are also the frisbee stars, catching any frisbee thrown their way and bringing it right back to our feet.  Lots of times, Zac passes it off to Kati and she brings it in.  Teamwork!

My anxiety came back full force in February and decided to hang around almost all the rest of the year but finally, after a lot of work, I have tamed it once again. I feel very thankful to have such a nice group of friends and professionals to help me learn better ways to deal with panic/anxiety issues.  Thank you, each and every one of you!

Ralph retired at the end of June, then went back to work half time in July…lol…but it is wonderful to have him here at home much more.  Being here in Sanford, we have much less driving to get groceries, building supplies, etc which enables us to have more time just to relax and do our hobbies.  I am heavily into stained glass and Ralph is dividing his time between dog agility and woodworking.  

Hopefully, although we are in our sixties, we still have a lot of interesting years ahead of us and many more adventures to experience.  Health wise, we are both chugging along just fine.  I have lost nearly 50 pounds this year and hope to lose some more weight in 2012.  For both of us, having 7 energetic dogs keeps us both much more exercised than we might be otherwise so besides the quiet joy they bring us emotionally, there is a physical health benefit, too.  A lot of people remark how lucky the dogs are to have us, but the really astute folks also are aware of how lucky we are to have the dogs!  We are thankful to care for them.

Neither Ralph nor I have any ridiculous New Year's resolutions except what we always embrace….to continue to make our little corner of the world a pleasant, positive place…. one that contains plenty of humor and caring for all people with whom we interact.  We will continue to appreciate the wonderful beauty of diversity in the people around us and touch our lives.  Life can't get much nicer than that!

So to all who take the time to read this, have an adventurous 2012!  Both positive and negative things are bound to happen on the journey, but we all have the inner strength to move forward step by step and savor special little moments whenever they occur. Happy New Year!!

Take care,

Liz