Happy New Year 2016

Hello Hello!!!

Wishing you all a VERY Happy New Year!!!

How were the holidays? Hope you all enjoyed some quality family time, and/or had time for yourself. I know some of you took vacations and I hope your travels were fun.

Sorry for the disappearing act last month. I was hoping to write a lot more than I did, but for some reason, whenever I sat to pen down things, I lost my motivation to write. I just wanted to read, read, read and so that's pretty much what I did during all my spare time.

We took a week long vacation to the Palm Desert in Southern California. From hiking in the snow at an altitude of 9000 feet with snow gear and a sled, to off-roading in a hummer at Joshua Tree National Park, we had a grand time. Throughout our trip, I never got tired of the 100's of windmills on I-10, always tuned to the winds, churning slowly, all day and all night long. The sunsets were fantastic as well. I fell in love with this area.

We were fortunate and were able to stay out of most touristy areas during our trip. We had rented a private condo, so we stayed out of the resorts. We also made most of our meals at home, so avoided the crowded restaurant scene. We saw lots of Christmas lights, met extended family, and even spent an awesome quiet but educational day at the local Children's museum.

The kids and I spent a few days after our trip at my sister's house, getting pampered by my parents. My mom cooked, cooked and cooked. We ate and slept, on repeat, during our time with them. She also cooked loads of stuff for us to freeze before she left for India last week. Mum is my star, and whenever I get lazy around the kitchen, one thought about her brings me back to action.

After my parents left for India on the 31st, we met loads of friends in the bay area. Conversations, dining out, games, coffee outings - it was a different kind of fun and relaxation.

When we returned home after 2 weeks, it didn't feel that we were very much in California the entire time. It felt we had traveled several countries and met so many people. We saw snow, rain, desert, new vegetation, Joshua trees, loads of cacti, windmills, tons of airplanes at the Air Museum near SF, rolling green hills and cloud covered vistas during our drives....and so much more. Nature truly treated us this time, and I am very grateful for that.

Our local friends waited for us to celebrate the new year, so once we returned, we partied with them and caught up. Here are a couple of pictures from the party....the kids' gang and a family portrait...

I gifted myself a "kindle unlimited" subscription for my birthday in November, and since then, I've read atleast 30 books, if not more. I stayed up on most nights after the kids slept to read, and after ages, I felt satiated on that front.

The kids are back in school, and I am back at work as of this morning. We are rested, and relaxed, and are looking forward to a couple weeks of solid rain and snow in NorCal. We have more outings planned for later this month and then again in Feb, and I can't wait for summer when I have 2.5 months off this - Sabbatical - can't wait to start planning it!!

What are your 2016 plans :)? I'm listening!!