Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Barrington, NH! I just finished sending out my family's annual Christmas newsletter to family & friends. I've been working diligently in organizing my new office, which added an additional table where I have my multiple printers, because I needed to make room for a custom server that I'm going to be installing here in about a month. The server will be for various software development projects.

I had a good Christmas with my mother, Diane Labrie, and we had Filet Minot twice - once barbequed and another time she cooked it on her new stove. I prefer BBQ! We went over to my cousin's house last night, Elaine Howard, and watched her daughter open her many presents. I miss being a kid and having a ton of presents to open, however I like being an adult because I can just buy anything that I need and I don't have to wait for Christmas or my birthday to request it.

We had a White Christmas this year - it snowed over 6 inches over the past several days. Our neighbors helped to snow blow our house, and we're very thankful! I spent a lot on presents for my mother this year, compared to past years. I really appreciate everything that she does to help me get going in the morning, and get to school well fed, etc. so I helped her buy a new speaker system for our TV, and also gave her a set of good speakers for her desktop computer. I also purchased a glass globe that goes over a crafts Christmas tree that she put together. It took her a couple of hours to put the Christmas lights on it - the tree is so small, only about 12" tall.

In organizing my office, I've been scanning old paperwork, because it's amazing at how much space paperwork takes up! Even with all of the pushes to become paperless, there's still so much paper product around, and especially in this house! I have financial paperwork dating back to 1999 still, and I need to start scanning it to get it digitized and put in the web. Not to mention I still have school papers dating back to McIntosh College (in physical form). I have digital copies of homework I was assigned in Jr. High School. I tend to collect everything, rather than throw it away. Better safe than sorry, and then I can always look back on what I was doing at various times in history.

I've done a lot of work on my personal website, to which this article is being published! I've added a lot of information to my autobiography, however there is a ton more that I will be adding over the years. I've been looking for ways to improve the viewership, such as adding things like recipes that people love, and will come back to look at. If you haven't seen my Nana's recipes, you definitely need to check them out. Some of them date back to the early 1900's when she was a child.

It never hurts to send me an e-mail! There are so many of you that I would like to communicate with on a daily basis, but I stay very busy! Just send me an e-mail, or give me a call. I'll reply, even if I don't answer right away, although I admit I prefer textual communications. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and will have a Happy New Year!