A new year, a new life

January has been a good month. On so many levels there are changes afoot. And they are good.

So what’s going on in the Hyde household? Well, the normal roller-coaster of life, which for me has always been somewhat extreme, has hit a plateau. Now, for your normal roller-coaster, plateaux are something to shun. They’re not exciting. Oh really? Well I can tell you mate, plateaux for me are like gold.

And we start at the end and the beginning, on the last day of the month. A new life. A new member of the Hyde family.

Born 5:10pm on Sunday 31 January 2016, weighing in at 6lb 2oz, this little bundle of joy (along with all the bodily functions one finds so often in babies) is our new grandchild. As yet unnamed, and so helpless, she will undoubtedly turn our worlds upside down, but in a good way.

And so my darling daughter Lisa is now a Mum. Just think of that! I’m sure that she is too, lying there in warm love and cold pain. This is what kids do to you, right? Anyway, my congrats to the happy (if somewhat shattered) parents, Lisa and Christian.

I strongly suspect we’ll see more of the nameless one on this blog in weeks and years to come. For instance, she’s coming skiing with us in a few weeks, so I hope she’s good on her feet….

So why else has January been a good month?

Well, our forever home is now truly ours, with our personae writ large all over it. We’ve tried to make it as it once was, but added a large pinch of us.

In other news, my exit strategy (that is, retirement, not passing on to the other side) is moving along at pace. My health has improved, although the hundred day cough has now topped four hundred days. The old house has been fully repaired, post-tornado, giving us some hope that it may soon be sold, replenishing our dwindling coffers. The new pond is ready to receive the ducks and swans, still residing at the old place. This week sees us try to catch the buggers.

We also visited the Pyrénées in search of snow (little luck) …

and Wales in search of sunshine (less luck)

And so life goes on with its wry smile. My morning walks revitalise me each day with constantly changing vistas.

Back inside our new home, I continue to coat the walls with pictures. The new baby has been added to the family photos adorning one of many walls in need of frames. Here’s the rest of the Hyde family portraits hanging there…

Annick’s family, on the other hand, is conciderably larger, and may require the construction of a new house…