Golden toasting by a cracklin' fire!

Here are the promised photos of the new room. Rory especially loves the warmth of the fire. This is pure dog contentment!

It was an exceptionally busy holiday season this year. Between births, birthdays, a graduation and Christmas, it has been quite a December!

Our family seems to have a tradition of having birthdays as close to Christmas as possible! On December 23rd my nephew George turned 8 this year. December 24th another nephew, Adam, turned 26. On January 3rd, Adam's daughter Noel will be 7. And we have a new Christmas blessing -Adam's newest daughter, Mia Rose, was born on December 18th! What a tiny, sweet delight she is. She slept peacefully through the presents, the food and all the hoopla! Her parents report that she sleeps pretty well through the night also. How lucky is that?

We have so much to celebrate this New Year. A friend who has just completed radiation treatments for cancer, a child whose college applications are all mailed, a new room for wine tastings in the new year, many dear friends with whom to celebrate throughout the year, and lots of great wines from the 2007 growing season to taste! Our New Year's resolutions will center around New York State wines. Jim and I hope to take a course in February offered at the New York Wine and Culinary Center in Canandaigua that will give us an internationally recognized certification from the Wine and Education Trust of London, England. We will also keep up our tradition of wine tasting parties throughout the year as well as excursions to the wineries to bring the best wines back to you.

In the mean time, we'll sit back with a glass of Standing Stone's Cab Franc and enjoy the room, the warmth of the fire and the company of our goldens.

So, raise your glass for a toast to 2008. May it be a fabulous, memorable year!