So, with the coming blizzard last night, and lack of any other pre-planning last night, we stayed home (as usual) for New Year’s Eve. What we did was play Mario Kart Wii online with some friends: one family across town and Phil‘s family in the US.

One thing we did was get Skype running so we could talk with Phil and his family while we played. Turned out to be a great idea as we could hear each others screams of agony and delight on either side.

Two great moments came out of using Skype. The first was a scream followed by “He dropped the controller trying to get away!” after I shot 4 shells at a member of Phil’s family in the final corner of the race! Which worked well, because it gave me the win!

The second moment came a little later as we were trying to figure out why the Skype voice connection kept dropping. Phil explained it this way, or at least we heard it this way. “[They] were playing with their weapons!” Now, I know Phil is American, but I didn’t know he had weapons lying around the house for his family to play with when they were waiting for their turn on the Wii. What he ACTUALLY said was, “…. playing with their webkinz” Big difference!

These of course won’t mean much to many out there, probably “you had to be there” moments. But it was a fun way to ring in the new year in the middle of a storm. We had hoped to have some friends over, but illness and the storm kept that from happening, so instead some fun and games, plus a chance to chat with some friends we don’t speak to directly all that often made for a pretty good night! So connections were still made and a fun was still had.

We all need a good laugh with all the negativity and loss of hope in our world lately. My prayer for you all is that you will laugh, love and live in 2009, rejoicing in the abundant blessings from God we enjoy each and every day.

Peace and love to all this year!