Beginning the New Year

Here it is the 4th of January (just barely) and I am struggling to find a topic.  Guess I will wing it; nothing new there.

For New Year's Eve, DH and I split a tiny bottle of Martini Asti and crashed about 9 pm.  I can't remember the last time I stayed awake until midnight, but it has been a good long time.  Maybe when the kids were wee babies and I was up because they were ill.  The older I get the more sleep I need; I have read that seniors need less sleep as the age, which goes to show that I am not typical.

My friend H is now a grandmother, as of Dec. 21st.  I wish (sorta) that I was a grandmother too.  But then I stop to think, that if R had had a baby when she was, say, 20, that kid would now be 13.  A teenager.  And R was no fun at all at that age.  I used to say, I can handle anything because I took R through puberty.  Now I know that I can't handle everything, far from it.  So I believe I will not be worried about grandbabies and just admire the YouTube videos of, for example, baby tasting a pickle for the first time.  So I am a vicarious grandma, and that has its own benefits.

The Christmas stuff is all back in the attic and I have been cleaning/straightening the house.  We recyle cardboard and boy, there was a lot of that to break down.  I still need to vacuum, a chore I completely detest, and it shows I am afraid.  Maybe I can con R into helping me later today.

We saw the neatest bird at the bird feeders.  It was a Cooper's hawk, I think:

They are known to feed on sparrows and wrens, so when he arrived on the fence next to the feeders, everyone else split.  He stood there for a good long time, then took off in a wide climbing flight.  So nice to see one that close.  I have seen them perched in a tree a time or two while riding, but looking at one above you, versus one level with the window is a new thing for me.  A few days ago I saw what I thought was an owl being chased by 4 or 5 ravens, but now I wonder if that was the hawk also.  Although I thought that was a bigger bird.  I will have to keep a closer eye on the feeders and the area surrounding them.

Time to turn back into bed.  Bumper sticker for the day:  "Does running late count as exercise?"