How to Have a Weird Day

It's Sunday, but I have on my Wednesday undies. This cannot be good.

Hiya, Friends!

Hey, have ya ever heard of day-of-the-week undies?  Don't be precious.  Of COURSE ya have.  I betchyoo've even worn a pair or two in your day.  They're kind of a cultural icon.

Well, I've noticed something about day-of-the-week undies.  I've noticed that if you're careful when you pick 'em out in the morning, and make sure the day that is spelled on the undies matches up with the day it actually is, a day just goes so smoothly.  It's like the day has a golden glow of good luck around it.  It's pretty much impossible to go wrong on a day when your day-of-the-week undies match up with the day on the calendar!

On the other hand, if ya just grab whatever day-of-the-week undies you touch first in the drawer in the morning, and it doesn't match what day it really is, that's a good way to make sure the day just goes... well, weird.  I have noticed that I am eighty-two percent more awkward in my interactions with others when I don't take care to match my day-of-the-week undies to the day of the week.  In addition, on those days, I find that I am at least forty-eight percent more clumsy. 

The statistics don't lie, Friends.  Even though nobody sees my day-of-the-week undies, I know when they're on the correct day of the week and when they're not.  It's one of those unseen things that really makes a difference in the way a day goes. 

Anyways, it's Sunday, but I put on my Wednesday undies this morning, for some inexplicable reason.  I just told my best pal Rozzie a joke that she usually laughs at, every time I tell it.  Today, she just looked at me blankly and then nudged me out of her way with her snout, and I fell on my hiney-butt.  In one interaction, there was the increased awkwardness and clumsiness. 

I don't have high hopes for the rest of this day.

But I do hope you have a good day, Friends!  I love ya lots!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Happy Health Fair!

Laughter really is the best medicine.

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Saturday to you!

Well, ya know, recently, I attended an Expo for practitioners of Humorous Healing.  It was a Happy Health Fair, if you will.  I had a booth and represented St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital.

I think I did a really good job.  I did a few simple non-surgical Spirit Lifts, right there on the expo floor.  That was a real show stopper.  Not that there was any competition going on, but it DID make those laugh-jocks from Mirthwood MediPlex look like amateurs, with their little joy-buzzers and whoopie cushions.  They think they're so hot, just because they have a cool-soundin' name, but I'll tell ya what those Mirthwood jokers are- they're corporate practitioners of Humorous Healing!  Their MediPlex is all about the assembly-line spirit lift.  That isn't how we do things at St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital, I'll tell ya what.  Each patient is a person, treated with dignity, respect, and zany wit at St. Laffalotatus- Mercy Mercy Hospital.

But seriously, we're all on the same team, all of us practitioners of Humorous Healing.  We wanna lift people's spirits.  We wanna light their darkness.  We want to help 'em get their sad-blue-colored glasses off.  The smart money goes to St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital.  We're just the best.  That's all I'm saying.

Anyway, the thing we all agreed on at the Happy Health Fair is that laughter is truly the best medicine.  Unless you have a bacterial infection.  In that case, antibiotics are truly the best medicine.  You heard it from me, right here, Friends!  I love ya lots!  Laugh today!  Muah!

Boots and Cats

You haven't heard beatboxing until you've heard it from Siri.  Or Zoe.

Friends, have you ever heard of Siri? 

If not, Siri's the digital assistant that lives in the dang ol' iPhone.  She's pretty cool.  She tells me everything I ever wanted to know, like where the nearest gas station is, where I can buy the best pizza near me, or why dividing zero by zero makes Cookie Monster sad.

But maybe the coolest thing Siri has ever taught me is how to beatbox.  You know, making stylized sounds of percussion instruments that you do with just your own mouth.  You've heard it!

Anyway, Siri taught me a really cool beatbox, and it goes like this: "boots-n-cats-n-boots-n-cats-n-boots!"

Or you can mix it up and go "cats-n-boots-n-cats-n-boots-n-cats!"

I got to studying up on beatboxing, and as it turns out, "Cats-n-Boots" is a variation on "Pants-n-Boots," another iconic beatbox track.

If you have Siri, ask her to beatbox for you.  You won't be sorry! 

And if you don't have Siri, I'm really sorry.

I've gotta go, Big People!  I've gotta practice my beatboxing!  Maybe Siri and I will put on a concert!  Muah!

January 28, 1986

Every generation has their own January 28, 1986.

Hiya, Big People!  How are you this Thursday?

Well, this is something WAY before my time, and I'm not even sure that it isn't considered ancient history at this point, but it's important to my Mommy, so I wanna talk about it.

I guess thirty years ago today, something happened that really changed things for a lot of kids.  Thirty years ago today, there was a space shuttle named Challenger that lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida.  Kids all across America got to put their plastic chairs in rows in front of televisions perched atop smart carts so they could watch the space shuttle lift off. 

Mommy says this wasn't the first space shuttle to lift off from the launch pad in Florida, but it was a special one, because there was a teacher on that space shuttle named Christa McAuliffe.  She got to be the Teacher In Space and she was gonna do some science experiments in space and have 'em beamed back down to kids on earth. 

So all these kids, Mommy included, were lined up in front of the television sets in their schools, and the space shuttle started up.  There was white smoke, because a space shuttle doesn't just decide to take off and not expect to make a fuss about it.  The Earth tends to like to keep its people home, you know?  But there was lotsa smoke, and some fire, and lotsa excitement as that space shuttle left the launch pad and rode into the sky on a bright white pillar of fire.

But something went wrong, and the space shuttle disappeared into a big ball of white smoke and fire.  That wasn't right.  Mommy says it was confusing.  Nobody really understood what happened at first.  And then when they did, they were sad. That space shuttle had an accident on its way to the sky, and everybody on it died.

Mommy says that for the rest of the day of school, whenever she and her classmates would see other kids in the hall, or in the cafeteria, or out on the playground, they'd ask each other if they saw the space shuttle blow up, and if they knew there was a teacher on it.  Mommy said she and her friends were second graders, so that was about as deep as their analysis could go.

But over the next few weeks, maybe even for the rest of the school year, all the teachers had newspaper clippings about the Challenger, and the space program, and Christa McAuliffe on their bulletin boards.  The kids could learn everything they ever wanted to know about space travel from reading those bulletin boards.

Mommy says that sometimes, January 28, 1986 seems like it was just yesterday, and that it definitely doesn't seem like it was thirty years ago.  She says that every generation has their January 28, 1986, that day that freezes time and changes everything forever, especially for the people who were Little Kids when it happened.  I feel like that's an awfully ominous thing for her to say to me. 

Maybe my generation's January 28, 1986 will be the day when people decide they can see past their differences and all get along.  Maybe my generation's January 28, 1986 will be the day our world really does become a better place, a place that really is as beautiful and peaceful as it looks from outer space, where the space shuttle Challenger was supposed to fly.

But I'm gonna remember the Challenger Seven with Mommy today, and with all of you who were Little Kids on January 28, 1986.  And even if you were Big People, then, too.  It couldn't have been an easy day for anybody, and you have my big hugs, Big People.  I love ya lots!  I'll see ya tomorrow.

The Bad Mood Kid

I pretty much meant it when I said I was sorry.

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Wednesday to you! 

Well, ya know, I have my moods, just like anybody else does.  That doesn't mean I'm a bad little kid or that I'm better than anyone else, but it just means that I have lotsa moods, and they all take a turn runnin' through me, and some of 'em are nicer than others.

The other day, I was havin' just a rotten time.  It was Monday.  My fun weekend was over.  I had to have my hair washed.  I HATE havin' my hair washed.  I had to stop playing a game that I love to play in order to hop in the tub and have my hair washed.  I hate havin' to stop playing games that I love.  So this set me up for a fit of meanness.

So I get in the tub, and Mommy helped me brush my teeth.  I wasn't in the mood to be in the tub in the first place, so brushing my teeth was a major imposition.  Then she told me to tip my head back so she could get my hair wet.  I didn't want to.  I didn't want my hair wet or washed, and I told her so, and she said I hadn't had my hair washed all weekend long, and that I'd better tip my head back, or she was gonna just dump the water over my head.  I didn't think she dared, because I hate it when water gets in my face, and she knows that!  So I didn't tip my head back.

Well, danged if Mommy didn't just go ahead and dump the water right over my head.  I screamed and told Mommy I hate her.  Hate her.  She didn't even flinch.  She wiped the water out of my face, grabbed up the shampoo, and started washing my hair.  THE NERVE OF HER!  Washing my hair, like I hadn't JUST told her I didn't want my hair washed and that I hate her.  So I screamed and cried like she was pullin' my hair on purpose, even though she wasn't pulling my hair.  One of these times when I do that, she'll stop washing my hair, for fear that she's pulling my hair.  One of these times, that'll work.  But it didn't work on Monday.  She just kept washing my hair... and she sudsed it up TWICE, no less!

And then she told me if I didn't stop fussing, I wasn't gonna get to play with my bath toys and I was gonna hafta get out of the tub as soon as she got my hair rinsed.  But she'd drawn all that water, and she wouldn't let it go to waste, just because I was fussing, so I kept on.  Boy, I had a good head of rage worked up while she rinsed my hair the second time, and probably said I really, really hate her.  I can't remember.  I was in the heat of a hot moment, there.

So then, do you know what she did?!  That's right.  She let the water right the heck outta the tub, soon's I had all the suds out of my hair!  And when I tried to get to the stopper again and stop the water from going down the drain, she reached in and let the water back out!

Just for that, I didn't help Mommy dress me.  I fought her, every garment of the way.  You bet I did.  And I screamed every single time the comb pulled my hair, even just a little bit, because Mommy deserved to hear me scream.  Then she got my hair all done and told me I could go downstairs.  I told HER to go away, and that I don't like her, and that I wish I just had Daddy, not Mommy.

So I wound up taking quite a nap on Monday.  A two-parter.  Nap and sequel nap.  Once I woke up, I realized I was probably pretty mean to Mommy, when really, I shoulda just been mean. Or maybe irritated.  I shouldn't have told her I hate her, and that I wish I just had Daddy, not Mommy.  I felt genuinely bad about that.

Anyways, the point of all this is that we all have our bad moods, Big People.  Even your pal Zoe.  I'm mostly a nice kid, but I have my mornings.  You know how it is.  I try not to be so mean!

I hope ya still love me, even if my halo's kinda crooked this week.  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Celebratin' the Yard-Pebbles In Life!

I like to celebrate all the Yard-Pebbles in life!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Tuesday to you! 

Hey.  Didja know that this is my eleven-hundredth post?  It's true.  Usually I don't make a big deal out of how many posts I've written, because every day, it's always one more than the day before, but when the numbers end in double zeros, I tend to sit up and take notice, and today's one of those days.

Not only is eleven-hundred a whole lot of weblog posts, but 1100 is a cool number.  You have a pair of ones, a pair of zeros. 

This is one of those things that's likely a big deal only to me, Friends.  But for me it's a really big deal. Well, not the kind of really big deal that learning to crawl, talk, and walk was.  Those were definitely bigger deals than eleven-hundred blog posts.  Also, so were the times I ate chocolate, ordered from a restaurant menu, and got to turn my carseat around to face forward when I ride.

I guess all those things are called "milestones" in life, because they mark something important that takes a little while to get to.  But this post is important to my, by golly.  Maybe not up to "milestone" status, but it's definitely... I don't know... a yard-pebble, you know?  Well, because yards aren't as long as miles, and pebbles are little stones.  There ya go.  I've coined a new name for something we all have, but were just callin' 'em "little milestones."

How about that?!

Hey, Friends, I'll see ya tomorrow.  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Reintegrating Into Regular Routines

Sometimes it's hard to get into reintegrating into regular routines.

Happy Monday, Big People!

Boyo boy, I'll tell ya what.  I had a GREAT weekend.  It was just the most fun weekend ever, and I loved the dickens right the heck out of it.  I spent the whole, entire weekend at Gramma's house.  I got to play with all the toys, and eat wonderful food, and have all the chocolate chip cookies I wanted.  And then yesterday when Mommy and Daddy came to pick me up, they stayed around, and we played the dang ol' Wii!  It was so much fun!  We played carnival games and Mario Kart.

It turns out that I'm an enthusiastic driver.  In fact, what I lack in skill, I make up for in enthusiasm about the art of driving.  No matter.  My favorite race course is through Coconut Mall, but I'll tell ya what, nobody better be racing Mario Karts through MY mall, the Bingham Centre.

Anyway.  It's Monday now, and like I said, I'm having a little trouble getting excited about being back in my regular routine.  I bet you can relate, Friends.  I bet you can relate.

Anyways, I love ya lots, Friends!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

The Mediumest Tower in the World!

Well, this tower isn't gonna build itself, now, is it?

Hiya, Friends!  Happy Sunday to you!

Well, ya know, I'm a kid who keeps busy, so I wear a lot of hats.  Today, it so happens that I'm wearin' a construction hat, because I'm on the crew that's gonna build the Mediumest Tower in the World! 

Before you laugh and say, "Zoe, you've lost your dag-nabbed mind!" hear me out.  Everybody and their brother tries to build the world's tallest thiserthat.  Or if they're into nano stuff, they're trying to make things smaller and smaller. 

But who among you has EVER heard of someone striving to do something most medium?  Nobody, I bet.  This is not a matter of striving for mediocrity.  It actually takes a superlative soul to set out to build the mediumest tower.

So off I go today, taking the road that's so extremely less traveled that it hasn't been built yet.  You might think I'm crazy today, but trust me.  In the Future, you're gonna be looking back on this day as the day Zoe set herself apart in History!

I love ya lots, Friends!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

The Dang Ol' Imaginatron 2100!

My favorite Imaginatron is still the good ol' 2100-B

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Saturday to you!

Well, ya know, I wear many hats, and one of those many hats I wear is that I'm a test pilot for the Imaginatron company.  I get to test Imaginatrons before they go to showrooms and distributors, galaxy-wide.

My most-frequently tested model is the 2100, although I've had the privilege to test out the enormous X400 as well as the extremely portable and super entry-level helmet version, the IRI550.  In case you're wondering, IRI stands for "Imaginary Reality Interface," and all Imaginatrons run on Imaginary Reality Interface, but the IRI550 doesn't have much else to it besides the Imaginary Reality Interface.  I mean, it's pretty much like a box you put on your head.  It shuts out the outside world for you, so you can get your imagination on, but you're probably going to be using it as a helmet for a spacewalk while using another Imaginatron model or two as your scenery and vehicle, or you're going to be using the IRI550 as something of a virtual reality-imaginary reality mashup while you're sitting quietly.

You know, not to brag, but I was the test pilot who tried out whether or not an Imaginatron pilot could use a series of models in tandem for optimized Imaginatron play.  It's true.  I was just kickin' around the dang ol' proving grounds one day, got bored, there was an enormous X400, so I grabbed a good ol' 2100-B and an IRI550, dialed myself up a space adventure, took off in the 2100, and darned if I didn't blow a booster, soon's I got into space.  Well, I put on the IRI550, hopped out of the 2100, fixed the booster, and was on my way.  Got back to the proving grounds, safe and sound!

I know it can seem kinda silly, that I take playin' so seriously, but thing of it is, Friends, when you're a Little Kid like me, playin' should be serious work.

Hey. I love ya lots, Big People!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Christmas Decorations ALL the Time

Christmas: that was fun, but now it's done!

Well, hi there, Big People!  Happy Friday to ya!

Yes, that's the Christmas tree you see a little bit of, in the picture behind me.  Don't worry.  I haven't time-warped back to Christmas, and my tree isn't still up.  No, we took that down in a timely fashion.  It's just that my pictures are sometimes a few weeks behind.  That isn't important.  What's important is that they get to you!

It got me to wondering, though, what would happen if I did convince Mommy and Daddy to let me leave the tree up all year long.  I mean, out in Nature, there's pine trees out all the time, not just in December.  For example, there's a whole line of giant ones, right outside my house!

Right off the toppa my head, it seemed like it'd be spectacular to get to leave the tree up, all year.  I had a whole plan, and everything.  I'd take off all the Christmas decorations, right after Christmas, and replace 'em with lace and red and pink hearts for Valentine's, and then after that, take all that stuff off and put on rainbow garland and shamrock-shaped ornaments and little pots-o-gold for St. Patrick's Day.  And then in a quick turnaround, since Easter's early this year, I'd take off all the St. Patrick's Day decorations and put up pastel Easter egg ornaments for the coupla weeks until Easter. 

I wasn't sure where I'd go, decoration-wise after Easter.  I mean, I coulda probably festooned the tree in red, white, and blue for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, but then after the Fourth, things are pretty quiet, holiday decoratin'-wise until Halloween, and the O'Lanterns have told me that they don't want the Christmas tree hornin' in on Halloween turf. 

But then I got to thinking... somewhere along in that time-frame, I'd hafta devise a way to dust off the tree.  Dust is everywhere, and it collects on surfaces.  It collects on the tree surfaces, too, but it gets shaken off in the takin' down and puttin' up the tree experiences throughout the Christmas season.  But that's a lotta surface for dust to collect on.  When I really think about it, Friends, a Christmas tree is like one of those Swiffer 360 Dusters that I'm allowed to use to dust underneath the television set and in other small places where dust gets.  Except you throw out those Swiffer 360s when they're fulla dust.  The Christmas tree?  I don't know what a kid'd do!

So there was the dust factor.  But there was also the factor of familiarity breeding a little bit of contempt.  You know what I mean.  As wonderful as the Christmas tree is, and as much fun as it represents, when the Christmas tree overstays its welcome, the very things about it that were charming from the day after Thanksgiving until the week after New Year's become the very things that are most annoying about it.  It's like that with any friend, really.  Spend enough time together, and you're gonna get on each other's nerves, no doubt.

So no, I didn't campaign to leave up the Christmas tree and adapt it to multiple holidays this year, Friends.  It was taken down and put in its special box up in the attic, until the day after Thanksgiving this year.  It's just as well.  I didn't wanna hafta figure out how to deal with all that dust, but more importantly, I didn't want the O'Lanterns mad at me, coming into this year's Holiday Season.  They were on my side during the Great Elves on Shelves Skirmish of 2015, but that doesn't mean they won't just take up sides with those little red-clad menaces, come this year, and if I'm anything, I'm a Little Kid who thinks ahead.  You bet I am!

Hey.  Speakin' of thinkin' ahead, I'll see ya tomorrow, Big People.  I love ya lots, even if you might still have your Christmas tree still up.  If ya do, it's okay, but I strongly urge ya to go ahead and take it down now.  Christmas is over until December.  You've gotta let it go.  But I get it.  Winter's dark.  Get yourself a lava lamp.  They're fun!  They light up!  And.  They pretty much make a party, wherever they are.  Lava lamps are where it's at, in the off-season for holidays, Friends!  How about that?!

Great ideas, just another service I offer!  Muah!

Down in the Goondocks!

That was so nice of ol' One-Eyed Willie to leave those kids his treasure!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Thursday to you!

Hey.  Have you ever seen the old movie The Goonies?  I've seen it TWICE now, and I've gotta say, I just love it.  LOVE it!

I love the way those kids work together to defeat those bad guys and to find the pirate ship which is also full of bad guys, except they're in skeleton form, and those bad skeletons WERE kind enough to leave behind their magnificent pirate ship, so that makes the skeleton bad-guys kinda lovable, because those kids used the treasure to keep the bad guy developers from making a golf course out of their neighborhood.  So I guess you could say that's another thing I like about The Goonies.  It's all twisty and unexpected.  Even after ALL these years.

You should make it your Movie Night movie this weekend!  How about it?

I love ya lots, Big People!  Muah!

Warm Wednesday Wishes

I'm thinkin' about warm winter woolies and hot cocoa today!

Hiya, Big People! 

Well, this is quite the weather we're having this week, isn't it, Friends?  Actually, so far, today is the warmest day of the week. 

I know this is all seasonable weather, Friends.  I understand that.  This is how winter is.  I just keep thinkin' back to not havin' to wear a coat, much less snow gear, for Christmas, just a month ago.

I don't mind it, though, the winter.  I can go out and play in it, by choice, but otherwise, I can look out my window and marvel at how neat it is to be able to sit inside my warm house and look out at the cold snow outside. 

You know, Little Cave Kids didn't have that luxury.  Even Big Cave People didn't!  That's why I'm grateful to be livin' in the winter NOW!  I hope you are, too!

Hey, Friends!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Trickin' Out Your Tuesday!

It's Tuesday!  Go crazy!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Tuesday to you!

Tuesdays, huh?  How about 'em?  They're kinda like the base-level minivan of days of the work-week, aren't they?  I mean, it's serviceable, and it holds a lot and gets you where you're going.  But it has a little engine and has none of the bells and whistles that more fun days will have.

I know how to make Tuesday more fun, though.  Just like addin' leopard-print seatcovers and fuzzy dice make a base-level minivan a little more fun, addin' leopard-print leggings and some crazy dance moves makes Tuesday less work and more Wa-hoo, We're On Our Way to Wednesday (trademark)!!!

It's all about the frame of your mind and the print on your pants.  Tuesday doesn't hafta be a boring, base-level minivan.  No way.  While Tuesday will never be the red Challenger with black leather interior of the week, Tuesday can at least be the toppa the line minivan with stow-and-go seats, DVD player, premium sound package, and lotsa room to hold all the shoppin' bags!  How 'bout it!

Come on, be crazy with me today, Big People!  Put on some leopard-print leggings and dance to some crazy musics!  I love ya lots, Friends!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  On Wednesday! 

Wednesday, in case you're wondering, is like a smart and sassy, fun-to-drive sedan.  Not a sports car, but gettin' closer!

Fallin' Down Rabbit Holes of Knowledge

Never stop asking, "But why?"

Hiya, Big People!

Hey, it's Monday, and I like to use Mondays to start the week off on a Learnin' Note.  That's why I'm wearin' my Questioning Shirt.  That's why I took the Bingham Underground to the Greater Bingham Metropolitan Research and Lending Library. 

I plan to spend the whole, entire day reading all the books and learning. 

And askin' why.

Because if you don't ask 'why?' you never find out the answers.  I mean, sometimes, the answers just fall outta the thin air for you, but most of the time, you've gotta go lookin' for 'em. 

I don't know what it is, Big People, but I feel as though the answers I hafta go lookin' for are so much more satisfying to think about than the answers that fall outta the thin air for me. Although, I could argue that even with the answers that fall outta the thin air, you've still gotta have your eyes open to recognize 'em as answers, and not just random facts or whatever.

That's the point of my day today, Friends.  Lookin' for answers, askin' why, fallin' down rabbit holes of knowledge.  Emergin' on the other side more informed and yes, even a little smarter.

I love to learn, Friends.  I hope you do, too.  Never, never, never stop askin' why.  Never, never, never stop learnin'!  I love the heck right outta ya, Big People!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

The Imaginator

That spot in the corridor needs a FOUNTAIN!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Sunday to you! 

Well, ya know, everything's a work in progress, even and especially my imaginary Bingham Centre shopping mall.  Just when I think I have everything all done, I go to my Mall Imaginator office upstairs and survey all the splendor before me and realize I forgot key things.

The other day, it was that I didn't imagine mall directories.  That was a practical bummer.  Then I realized that the area where the double-decker carousel is could really use some better lighting, so I imagined a really nice lighting setup.

Today, I realized a tragic lack of fountains and mall trees, so that's what I decided to imagine for my premiere, upscale shopping, dining, and entertainment destination for Little Kids.  I imagined them throughout the whole entire shopping mall.

I even imagined some fountains and mall trees at the Grand Underground Entrance, where the Bingham Underground stops to let off passengers at the Bingham Centre. I think that traveling by Underground ought to be an Event, not some unpleasant, dirty experience, so the Bingham Underground of my imagination is nicey clean and comfortable, and when passengers arrive at the Bingham Centre, they're greeted by lush mall trees and magnificent fountains. I believe that if you treat people first-class, they'll act first-class.  And in my imagination, it's so.

I love ya lots, Friends, but I have some serious imaginin' to do.  So I'll hafta ketchup with ya tomorrow!  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Endless Lazy Rivers of Words

When I'm floating in endless lazy rivers of words, my mind goes on a walkabout.

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Saturday to you! 

Well, ya know, my life as a Director of Donut Development, Imaginer of Upscale Little Kid Shopping Malls, and even Doctor of Humorous Healing isn't all the time glamorous and interesting.  It's true.  There's mundane aspects to every hat I wear.  Especially that last one, which is odd, because you'd think that being a Doctor of Humorous Healing would be all fun-n-games, all the time.  But it really isn't!

It's because I hafta complete so many continuing education credits each year.  Don't get me wrong.  Some of those continuing education seminars and classes are really interesting, filled with useful, timely information on how I, Dr. Zoe, can optimize the use of laughter, which truly IS the best medicine, to elevate the quality of life of my patients. 

Those kindsa continuing education classes are rare gems in the gumball machine of continuing educations, I'll tell ya what, Friends.  Most of 'em I find myself attending are boooooooooring and they don't even really affect how I do my job.  For instance, I most recently attended a continuing education on the usefulness of color-coding folders in patient charting application.  First of all, all my charts are digital, so the computer knows what colors to make 'em.  Second of all, it seemed geared more for the clerical staff at St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital.  They would have learned a lot... if it were 1986. Because like I said, all of us use digital chart management now.

Now, even if it were 1986, and even if I were on the clerical staff and not a clinical practitioner, I'm not sure I woulda felt as though St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital would have gotten its money's worth out of this particular continuing education class.  The presenters were all drier than a sleeve of Premium Saltines.  And don't feel bad that I'm bad-mouthin' 'em on my blog.  I told 'em on the evaluation card I filled out at the end of the class.  I said my Premium Saltines thing, and I also was specific: I said that the presenters were mismatched to their audience, that their technology references are outdated, and their delivery fails to engage today's dynamic and youthful doctors of humorous healing.  I'm just reiterating my complaints here, is what I'm doing.

Listening to 'em was like floating on an endless lazy river of words, Big People.  All's I wanted to do was sit back and sleep.  Instead, I sent my mind on a Wandery Walkabout inside of a daydream.  It wasn't the ideal way to spend a day, but I made it work.  You bet I did.

Anyways, Friends, this is Saturday, and I think you oughtta go have some fun.  I love ya lots!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Chillin' with a Cookie!

I'm a donut gal, but I love a good cookie, too!

Hiya, Friends!  Happy Friday to you!

This week has been quite a whirlwind, what with the imagining and opening of the Bingham Centre.  I've definitely been busy, attending and presiding over ribbon cutting ceremonies for all the shoppes, restaurants, kiosks, stands, and attractions.  It's so much fun, but definitely hungry work!

Today, after I helped welcome customers to the new Bubble Babe Little Kid Beauty Megastore, I decided I'd better stop for a break.  Although I work for Donut Dude in his World Corporate Headquarters, that doesn't mean I don't like other kinds of treats, so as I was wandering through the Food Emporium, the cookies at Shortbread's just kinda called out to me. 

The iced and sprinkled shortbread cookie I enjoyed gave me just the amount of energy I needed to power through the rest of my day, opening up new stores in the Bingham Centre.  Today it was the aforementioned Bubble Babe Little Kid Beauty Megastore, which really is all about one-stop shoppin' for tear-free shampoo and lotions, makeup that comes off with water, hair stuff that doesn't sting or pull, nail polish that doesn't hurt anything if it gets on your clothes or the furniture... that sort of thing.  It's three big floors of beautiful fun!  And there were some smaller stores I helped open today, too: Sunnies: A Place for Kid-Friendly Sun Wear, PuddleJumperzz, selling the latest in rain gear and especially boots suitable for jumping puddles dry, Captain Curl's, which is a personal favorite of mine- they sell lotsa clippies! Elsa's Place, which is in the Food Emporium- it's ice cream, frozen yogurt, frozen fruit bars, and take-home bags of frozen fruits and vegetables.  It's going to be a big hit in the Summer!

I betchyoo were a Little Kid, so you could come enjoy the boundless fun that is the Bingham Centre, Friends.  Part of me is really sorry it's Little Kid only.  But don't feel bad!  You Big People get to do a lot of things us Little Kids can't.  You get to drive real cars and decide which places those real cars drive to in the Real World.  You get to decide what's for dinner.  You get to use the oven and stove by yourselves.  You get to set your own bedtime and boss us Little Kids around on when we oughtta head to bed.  So you're all right, Big People Friends.  The Bingham Centre is a place where Little Kids like me can go and feel like we're in control of something.  So don't feel bad or left out.  We love ya just the same! 

I'll be seein' ya tomorrow!  Muah!

A Little Directory Goes a Long Way!

I got lost in my own mall.

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Thursday to you!

Well, ya know, in my excitement to imagine the Bingham Centre, premier, upscale shopping, dining, and entertainment for the discerning Little Kid with an active imagination, I forgot all about one thing: a mall directory. 

Now, for a little shopping center, a mall directory is sort of nice, but not necessary.  If you can stand in the middle and see all the stores and eateries, do you really need a map, telling you how to get from here to there and back again?  I don't think so.  But the Bingham Centre is HUGE, Friends!  And it's crawling with discerning Little Kids with active imaginations, so trying to navigate by landmark is a challenge.

Long story short, I got lost in my own mall.  It's fine!  I'm fine.  It all turned out fine.  I met a lot of really nice Little Kids, and I also got to see Mall Security at work when they noticed I hadn't arrived at my ribbon cutting ceremony at the Unbelievably Big Arcade.  So they hopped in their Mall Security Golf Cart and came looking for me.  I was in the Food Court, eating at a Donut Dude Outpost, since I got hungry, and I knew those Little Kids who work there.

As it turns out, pertineer everyone was a little lost that day.  While there's a certain charm to shopping by serendipity, if you really need a donut, or you're lookin' for the Antibacterial Ball Pit or the Milk Shakery, and you have limited time, a mall directory is very helpful.

So now they're all installed, and Little Kids, myself included, are no longer wandering around lost at the Bingham Centre! 

Hey.  I'll see ya tomorrow, Friends!  I have another ribbon-cutting ceremony to go to. There's an Everything's Your Size opening in the Bingham Centre, and I, ironically, hafta go cut that ribbon with a pair of giant scissors.  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Winter's Finally Here!

It finally looks like a marshmella world out there, and I love it!

Hiya, Friends!

Well, it's the first Thirteenth of the Year, and it just so happens that it falls on a Wednesday.  In that spirit, I hope you're having a Wonderful Wednesday the Thirteenth!

So anyways, you know that Christmas song "It's a Marshmella World in the Winter?"  I sure do.  It played quite a few times on my playlist over the course of the Holiday season, and every time it would, I'd cast my gaze toward the nearest window and see not a marshmella world, but a world that coulda been winter, or maybe spring, before the flowers come back out, or possibly fall, right after the last of the leaves falls off the trees. 

Heck.  The grass was still green and growin' on Christmas Eve.  In fact, I almost said something to Mommy about shouldn't she go out and mow the lawn, so our grass would be nice and manicured for Christmas, but then I didn't say it.  I figured that might hurt my odds of gettin' the good presents for Christmas.  But it was definitely the weirdest weather experience I've experienced at Christmas, in my whole life!

It looks more like Christmas now.  I wanna put back up the tree and go get more presents, but Mommy says 'no.'  So I guess I'll hafta find other ways to enjoy the winter.

I love ya lots, Big People! I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

The Bingham Centre

Imagination is a wonderful thing!

Hiya, Friends!  Happy Tuesday to you! 

You know, I had sucha fun time at that fabulous mall on Saturday that I decided to add an upscale Little Kid mall to my own developmental development, which includes such well-known favorites as The Company, where I used to work before I got a job at Donut Dude's World Corporate Headquarters, and all Donut Dude's donut shoppes, and the Bingham Underground, which is the subterranean mass-transit system, and St. Laffalotatus- Mercy-Mercy Hospital, where I am a practitioner of humorous healing.

All those places are very rich and very real in my imagination.  And now they're being joined by the Bingham Centre, an imaginary, world-class, upscale retail, dining, and entertainment experience destination, located deep underground in the heart of the Binghams. 

If you could see it from the Surface, the Bingham Centre would be conveniently located just off the 1013 in downtown Bingham Center, PeeYay, but you can't get to it from the Surface.  You hafta take the Bingham Underground to get there, but it's accessible from all Bingham Underground lines, including the Llake Lloyd Lloop.

The Bingham Centre is a Little Kid's dream mall.  We're talking toy stores as far as the eye can see.  Candy, ice cream, and root beer in the food court.  Stylish but comfortable things to wear.  Ride-on amusements such as coin-operated horses, and sports cars.  Arcades where you win AND you can meet Wreck-It Ralph and all his friends.  Plenty of complimentary Napping Pods for when Little Kids need to unplug and unwind.  It's an inevitability, but thing of it is, us Little Kids don't mind the naps so much if they're our idea, and the Napping Pods are so cool, it's always our idea!

Best thing about the Bingham Centre is that I didn't have to wait for it to be built!  I decided that's what I wanted to have in my world, and BOOM!  There it was.  That's the power of imagination, Friends!  That's what happens when a Little Kid dreams big!

So I look forward to tellin' ya stories about the Bingham Centre, Friends!  I love ya lots, and I'll see ya tomorrow!  You never know where my imagination is gonna take us!  Muah!

My Amazing Weekend Adventure!

The worst part about the Big Mall was havin' to leave it to come home!

Hiya, Friends!

Happy Monday to ya!

You know what?  I went on an adventure to a new-to-me Mall on Saturday!  Have ya ever heard of the Eastview Mall in Victor, New York?  That's where I went!

It was HUGE, and I walked in the whole thing.  By the time we left, my feet were so TIRED, but I had so much fun!  I even got to purchase some things at the great big mall!  I got a roly-poly R2D2 night light that I can hug, a fishing set that has a fishing pole and five magnetic fish, and... my very first Lego set!

It's Ariel's castle, and Daddy and I got up early on Sunday morning to put it together.  It took us FOREVER!  Daddy did most of the work, buildin' it, but now I get to PLAY!  It's the best arrangement, ever!

I don't know, Friends.  I'm starting to think that malls can be magical places.  That mall we went to definitely was magical!

That adventure is gonna pretty much get me through my whole WEEK!  And if not, I always have Ariel's Lego castle!

Friends, I'll see ya tomorrow.  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Palaverin' with My Pup!

My pal Rozzie sure helps me put things into perspective! I love this dog!

Hiya Friends! 

Well, ya know, even though I'm pretty happy most of the time, I have my moments of upsettitude.  I really do.

That's when I find myself sittin' down with my best pal Rozzie and havin' a pow-wow.  You see, Rozzie has a way of helpin' me put things into perspective.  She doesn't nag or tell me my troubles are "cute" compared to the things she's been through, but she does help me realize that most of the things I get all wrought up over are mere quibbles in the grand scheme of things.

It's really important to have friends like that, Friends.  Someone you can count on to have your back, but also that you can trust to tell ya when you're gettin' too big for your britches, or when your worldview is just all kinds of outta whack.  A good friend can tell ya that stuff and then help ya come back into line. 

Rozzie's that kind of pal for me, Friends.  I hope you have a pal like that, too.  I sure love ya lots, Friends!  And I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Triple-Mint Gum

Let's sing- an-a-ONE, an-a-TWO! Triple-Mint gum will make you smile...

Friends, I haven't made a big deal out of this, but it's going on in my life.  I am currently absolutely obsessed with the movie "Inside Out," the film about the little voices inside our heads. 

Now, if you know me, when I decide I like a movie, I REALLY like a movie.  I think it has something to do with the obsessive tendencies Little Kids have.  It's nothing to worry about!

Anyways, as part of my obsession with "Inside Out," I have now watched the movie at least twice a day for the last however many days since the Christmas Holiday Season wrapped up.  I got it on Digital Video Disc for Christmas, and I need to get my present's worth out of it!

And the thing I noticed most about "Inside Out" is that there's no big song and dance number for me to sing constantly.  Sure, there's the beautiful "Lava" short in the front of the movie, to get people like my Mommy all weepy before the feature presentation even starts up, and that has a song to it.  But it's nothing like the show-stoppin' song and dance that "Let It Go" is. 

In fact, there isn't really a show-stoppin' song and dance like "Let It Go" in the whole entire "Inside Out" movie!  The closest it comes is the Triple-Mint Gum jingle.  And that's a jingle, not even a whole multi-verse song with chorus and bridge and solo!

Oh, well.  I'll take what I can get.  I still love "Let It Go," but I've gotta move on to my new obsession.  Will ya sing the Triple-Mint Gum jingle with me?  Once you learn it, apparently it'll be stuck in your head FOREVER, so that's a really cool feature!

Hey, Friends!  I'll see ya tomorrow!  I have some serious jingle-singin' to do!  Love ya lots!  Muah!

It's the First Friday of 2016!!!

Fridays are always reason to celebrate!

Friends!  Break out the popcorn and root beer, because it's the FIRST FRIDAY OF 2016!!!

That's right!  Fridays are always an occasion special enough to celebrate, and the first Friday of a year is definitely celebration-worthy!  How about that?!

There's a lot of things you can do to celebrate a Friday.  I know the last three Fridays have been really big things to celebrate- New Year's, Christmas, the day I got to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the mall and have my own pop pop and popcorn!  Those things are pretty epic, and it'd be exhausting if EVERY Friday were that big. 

That's why it's important to celebrate the little moments in life, as well.  The everyday Fridays.  I mean, if ya celebrated every Friday with presents and sparklers and adorably delicious little finger-foods, those things wouldn't be special anymore!

So on this First Friday of 2016, I'm just gonna wanna hafta keep it simple.  I'm gonna enjoy a bottle of my favorite root beer tonight.  I'm gonna have Daddy pop us some popcorn.  I'm gonna just enjoy the atmosphere.

I hope you celebrate this First Friday of 2016, too, Friends!  Do something that puts a smile on your face!  I love ya lots, and I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

How Not to Feel Overwhelmed in the New Year!

One moment at a time, one day at a time, one thing at a time!

Well, hiya, Big People!  Can you believe it's the seventh of January already?  I sure can't!

Ya know, facing a fresh, New Year is both exciting and terrifying.  It's exciting because the New Year is stretched out in front of you, all clean and new and full of possibilities of all the things you're gonna do and see and learn and become over the next twelve months.  It's terrifying because there's just so much, especially when you're a Little Kid.

Okay.  Maybe not 'terrifying.'  Maybe that's an exaggeration for most of us here.  But it can certainly be overwhelming, especially for a Little Kid. 

For instance, I remember New Year's 2012.  I was just shy of four months old.  I'd already learned and accomplished so much in the short time I was around in 2011-getting people's attention when I was hungry or dirty,  how to hold my head up, how to hold my own bottle, smiling, how to navigate a busy upscale shopping mall on the Monday after Thanksgiving, how to make friends with Santa, rolling from my back to my belly, rolling from my belly to my back, walking along in my little Pink Jeep, Sabres Appreciation... I mean, there was a LOT of stuff I learned to do right off the bat, so as 2012 dawned, I thought for a moment that I'd get to enjoy some restin' on my laurels, so to speak.  Just gettin' some time to stretch out and enjoy bein' me.

Then I realized that wasn't how it was gonna go down at all, in 2012.  Not even a little.  In that year, I was gonna hafta learn how to drink out of a sippy cup, how to sit up on my own, how to crawl over distances and obstacles, how to speak actual words on purpose, eat solid foods, eat solid foods I'd hafta chew, grow teeth so I could chew in the first place, master my colorful stacking rings, get good at the Jumperoo, learn to go faster in my Little Pink Jeep, WALK, string together sentences, avoid a predicted Mayan apocalypse...

Friends, knowing I was gonna hafta do all that and more in 2012, it made me really overwhelmed and panicked that I wasn't gonna be able to accomplish it all, and that I'd let myself down in a big way, come 2013.

But then something happened.  Insteadda focusing on ALL those things I was gonna need to do in 2012, I just took things one day at a time.  One step at a time, if you will.  And one by one, moment by moment, by golly, I did 'em.  Easy-peasy.  And that's how I've approached all the bigness in my life, ever since.  One thing at a time.

So if you're lookin' at this New Year and feelin' overwhelmed, Friends, just remember to do like I do and slow down.  Don't let the bigness and newness and the sheer number of things get all up in your head and freak you the heck out.  That's not gonna do you any good at all!  Just take it one thing at a time, one day at a time, one step at a time.  Concentrate on bein' the best you you can be in each moment.  And then every so often, reflect on all the things you've gotten done and marvel!

I love ya lots, Big People!  I sure as heck do!  And I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Hittin' My Stride in the New Year!

2016 is gonna be a good one, I reckon!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Wednesday to you!

Well, I don't know about you, but I had a little trouble gettin' started this week.  I know New Year's was on Friday, but with a weekend to start the year off right, Monday hit me like a ton of bricks running into a semi-truck.

That's okay, though.  Now I'm more or less at peace with the Holiday Season bein' over, and I'm ready to take on 2016 in style.

I guess you could say I'm finally hittin' my stride in this New Year!

You know, it really isn't that hard to do, to hit your stride in the New Year.  It's all about your mindset.  You decide that you're gonna crush it, and then you do.  Swing and follow-through.  That's all you gotta do, Friends!

So what if it's cold and dark outside?  It could always be worse.  You bet it could!  This is the time of year when I celebrate electric lights and readily-available heat!  And wooly socks and cuddly sweaters-n-blankets!

And.  Sled-riding!  I LOVE sled-riding!

See?  There's lotsa ways to assist you in stride-hitting in the New Year, Big People!  You just hafta choose yours. 

Hey.  I'm gonna go, but I'll be back tomorrow.  I sure do love ya lots, Big People!  Muah!

I Didn't Mean To Upsetchya!

Is this the face of a kid who's just up and quittin' her picture show and blog?  No!

Oopsie-doodles, Friends.  I guess I shoulda been a little more careful when I slapped a title on my post from yesterday. 
I shoulda thought it through a little better, what it looked like, sayin' "All Good Things Must Come to an End" because as it turns out, I ended up upsetting some people who looked at the title and thought I was quittin' and they didn't read all the way to the bottom.

That is completely my bad right there, Friends, and I do apologize for any strife.  I SWEAR I wasn't usin' clickbait to go fishin' for people to beg me not to leave my TDZBlog or my TDZ Facebook Picture Show. I know I'm appreciated in these capacities, and even if nobody looked in on me or read me, I'd still do what I do, because I LIKE it, friends! 

Although this kid's not gonna lie.  It felt kinda good for a minute there, to see that there were some people who got upset at the thought of me hangin' up my keyboard.  And then I realized I'd upset those people with an errant title for yesterday's post, and it didn't feel so good.

So if you were upset by my title yesterday, please accept my deepest apologies for the same.  It was not my intention, and I am not going anywheres.  I LOVE palaverin' with ya every day, Big People! 

Right now, though, I've gotta go.  But I PROMISE I'll be back tomorrow.  Same time, same place, different topic!  I love ya so much!  Muah!

All Good Things Must Come to an End

I have my mad face on 'cause there's no Valentine's Vacation.

Friends, your pal Zoe here, and I just wanna say that Christmas Vacation was so wonderful and I had sucha great time that today is just like gettin' hit upside the head with a frozen mackerel fish or something. 

Not that I've ever been hit upside the head with a frozen mackerel fish or anything near it, but I bet if I ever did, it'd be a rude awakening.

And that's just what this day is for me.  A rude awakening.

Well, I got accustomed to gettin' up in the morning and either wakin' Daddy up or meetin' him down in the living room for early-morning movie mornings.  And today, he's gone back to work at the office.  No more early-morning movie mornings, which is too bad, because it's a tradition I got really fond of in the short time I got to enjoy it during Christmas Vacation.

The other thing that has me really outta sorts this morning is that the Christmas decorations came down over the weekend.  First, it was the spectacular blue and white starry fireworks outside, and then the Christmas tree and all the wonderful ornaments, and the Leg Lamp.  I LOVE the Leg Lamp because it reminds me of one of my new favorite Christmas movies of all time, and also because someday when I'm bigger, I'm gonna wear fishnet stockings and high heels, just like that Leg Lamp, no matter what Daddy says!  How the heck right about that, anyways?!

Friends, I know that all good things must come to an end, and Christmas Vacation is one of those good things, but that doesn't make it any easier of a pill for me to swallow, you know?

However, I like to think that The Daily Zoe Blog is a good thing as well, and as of yet, it isn't coming to an end.  Sometimes, Mommy and I have discussions about the future of TDZBlog and TDZ over on the Facebook, once I get to School, but so far, there are no plans for termination.  So I guess insteadda bein' all mad over Christmas Vacation havin' to come to an end, I really oughtta be celebrating because I'm still here on my weblog, and I'm still over on my Facebook Picture Show, and I will be, for quite a while to come.  One day at a time, I should take things. I know it.

Anyways, I'll see ya tomorrow, Friends.  I'm just havin' a little trouble gettin' through the at-grade intersection that is Monday in the manual transmission car of Life.  I'll be happy to see ya tomorrow!  I sure do love ya lots, and even though it's Monday after a wonderful vacation, I'm glad we're all here in it together!  Muah!

Ol' Sparky

Everybody ought to have a pal as good as ol' Sparky!

Hiya, Friends!  Happy Sunday to you!

Sometimes, the best way to spend a Sunday is to just saddle up and go for a ride on a horse. 

Sometimes, I ride the horse at the Mall, but other times, I take out my own horse Sparky. 

Ol' Sparky is a great horse. For one thing, he's right here at my house. And he's happy with an imaginary carrot or invisible sugar cube.  Ol' Sparky's always up for an adventure, but he's also good if I just wanna watch a movie with him on the couch.

Friends, did you know that real horses are too big to sit on the couch, or to even come inside the house?  It's true!  And I don't even hafta mention all the stable duties we don't hafta mess with, since Ol' Sparky's a self-cleaning little horse!

Anyways, Friends, Ol' Sparky and I are gonna go on a ride now.  I'm not sure where, but it's gonna be an adventure!  I love ya lots, Friends, and I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

My Pal Rozzie

I'm a lucky little girl to have a pal as perfect as Rozzie!

Hiya, Friends!

Well, now that New Year's Day is over, and we're starting to shift from Holiday Mode to Back to Everyday Mode, I gotta tell ya my secret for stayin' exuberant.  My secret to stayin' exuberant is spendin' time with my best pal Rozzie.  I just love that dog!

Besides her soft fur and her authoritative bark, Rozzie helps me stay out of the doldrums in lotsa other ways.  Most importantly, Rozzie is a great example of how to be.  You know why? Because no matter what happens to Rozzie, she's a pretty sweet dog.  Sure, she barks a LOT, but she's the appointed Guardian Dog of our House, so of course she's gonna bark at any threat, perceived or actual.  But once Rozzie decides you're okay, you can't ask for a sweeter friend.

Rozzie shares her toys with me, and it's like she just knows when I need a big hug.  Sometimes, I get in a bad mood and don't wanna hang with Rozzie, and she understands.  She doesn't take it personally when I need my space.  She's always there for me when I don't need my space.

She's a great listener, my pal Rozzie.  When the world starts to gettin' me down, all I hafta do is talk to my pal Rozzie, and I feel lots better.  She usually makes sure I get a nice dog kiss on the face after I tell her all my troubles, and that makes 'em all go away.

I hope you have a great pal like my pal Rozzie, Friends.  Everybody oughtta have a great pal like that.

I love ya lots, Friends, and I'll see ya tomorrow. We're gonna shift into Everyday Mode again together.  It's all gonna be all right!  I love ya!   Muah!

Happy New Year!

I, for one, am gonna be extra-exuberant this year!

Hiya, Big People!  Happy New Year!

You know, it just hit me that I forgot to make my New Year's resolutions for this year, so I intend to do that now.

This year, in 2016, I've decided to be extra-exuberant!  How about that?!

I think makin' a resolution about the kind of attitude I'm gonna have this year is better than tryin' to say I'm gonna do something like grow two or three or more inches tall or something.  I mean, I'll grow as much as I'm gonna, and I have very little control over that.  I can't just say on this New Year's Day that I'm gonna do this or that this year, because I just don't know what this year holds for me.  But I CAN decide right now how I'm gonna handle the New Year! 

I'm gonna handle it with a smile and big excitement!

I'm not about to tell ya what to do, Friends, or how, but I will say that when I decide I'm gonna be Happy, it usually works out for me. 

So with that in mind, Big People, lemme wanna wishyoo a Happy New Year, from the very bottom of my heart!  I love ya lots!  I'll be seein' ya right here, tomorrow!  Muah!