Children get bigger very quickly. This is perhaps no shock to any of us, but I defy a first-time parent not to wince when their offspring shoots up and suddenly needs a whole new wardrobe.

Add to that a car seat, to replace the one he’s had since birth and now almost hangs out of, and factor in the gifts we received that are so big that he won’t get into them for at least another year, and January is shaping up to be an expensive old month.

Renovations on the house continue (will I ever be able to stop saying that?), and if I’ve learned anything from our experiences here, it’s that you should never cut through a telephone extension cable while laying a subfloor. Sage advice that should keep you out of trouble in almost any situation.

I would like to extend a thank-you to Michael and Andrea for a great New Year’s Eve dinner, and especially to Mike for shoveling our driveway after the storm hit while we were in Europe. I’m sure I was nowhere near as drunk as it felt like, and my state of mind was simple euphoria brought on by tasty food and excellent company, not to mention seeing another new year in.

I’ve always thought that being around when Auld Lang Syne breaks out proves you’re ahead of the game, for a while longer anyway. The January 1st hangover should be considered a worthy rite of passage.

New Year’s Eve was unusual for another reason, in that it barely featured children, despite being hosted by a couple who became parents three months after us. It was oddly grown-up not to worry about the little man, who was ably sat for by his Granny Marina. And of course we used this grown-up quality time to act like kids for a few hours.

So I’ll go back to the mingled smells of paint, plaster and adhesive and trying to keep the house warm, and hope everybody reading, writing and featured in this column has an excellent 2006. Sleep well.

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